(Nicene Creed): He Came Down From Heaven; Was Incarnate By The Holy Spirit…

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven; was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and was made man… Indeed Christ came down. Jesus, not created by but equal with God the Father was “born in the likeness of men” (Phil. 2:6). The fact that God became man distinguishes … Continue reading (Nicene Creed): He Came Down From Heaven; Was Incarnate By The Holy Spirit…

(Nicene Creed): God from God, Light from Light, True God from True God

As we continue in our series on the Nicene Creed, we come to a section that is the crux of the entire Creed. The phrase “God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God” is carefully crafted to affirm the biblical, orthodox (dare I say catholic) understanding of the divinity of Jesus Christ, … Continue reading (Nicene Creed): God from God, Light from Light, True God from True God

(Nicene Creed): We Believe in One Lord, Jesus Christ, the Only Son of God…

The Council of Nicaea was convened in 325 AD by Emperor Constantine to resolve doctrinal issues raised by Arius, a prominent elder of the church in Alexandria, Egypt. The issues largely revolved around the Greek word monogenes. The term literally means, “only generated” and is translated “only begotten Son” in the King James Version. The term … Continue reading (Nicene Creed): We Believe in One Lord, Jesus Christ, the Only Son of God…

(Nicene Creed): Maker of Heaven and Earth, of All Things Visible and Invisible

“We believe in one God…maker of heaven and earth, of all that is visible and invisible:” the second theological statement of faith of the Nicene Creed. For many Christians, this point of doctrine is somewhat ho-hum. It’s just such a given in Christian circles, that God created all that exists, that many glaze right over … Continue reading (Nicene Creed): Maker of Heaven and Earth, of All Things Visible and Invisible

(Nicene Creed): We Believe in one God the Father, the Almighty…

“I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.” These ancient words from the Nicene Creed might sound formal, but they speak to a very personal trust – the kind of trust that we can have in God as our Father. They describe the foundation of our faith, the solid ground we can … Continue reading (Nicene Creed): We Believe in one God the Father, the Almighty…

The Ascent of Morning and Evening Prayer

The heart of the Book of Common Prayer is the daily offices—Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer. These services nourish your soul, but not with intense bursts of devotion or with a dizzying complex of options that let you customize your devotional experience. They offer something else: simplicity, structure, Scripture.  Over the last five hundred years, Morning and … Continue reading The Ascent of Morning and Evening Prayer