If you pull out a hymnal in one of our pews and turn to page 880, you’ll find The Nicene Creed, an ancient summary of the Christian faith.  We have a later edition of it in our hymnal (it maybe a surprise to many that it wasn’t written originally in English); it’s a document that early church toiled over for decades and is the product of two ecumenical councils of the church (in 325 and later in 381).  While the early church may have tried hard to remain as one, various beliefs in who Jesus was, and just plain-old geography, had the church divided - in a way not unsimilar to the Christian church of today.  As a way to solidify the church across the continents, the ecumenical councils were called, bringing together bishops from Europe, Africa, the Middle-East, and Asia to try to figure out - at least a little bit - what we actually believed about Jesus, the Bible, and the very nature of God.

What we get from the Nicene Creed is a beautiful poem, especially as it talks about Jesus Christ.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God

begotten, not made,

of one Being with the Father;

through him all things were made.

Beautiful, right?  A picture of Jesus not just as we have come to know him, as our walking talking savior, but as a part of God that was with God from the very beginning of all things.  As we look towards Advent, though, the next part of the creed as something special for us:

For us and for our salvation

he came down from heaven,

was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary

and became truly human.

That’s the ministry of what we’ve come to call the incarnation - this inexplicable event where God, in order to show us just how much God loves us, became fully human, fully incarnate, in Jesus.  Even going so far as to come into this world just as we all do, as a baby, on Christmas day.  Jesus Christ, the very Son of God, came from heaven to earth - for us.

On November 29, we heard from the prophet Jeremiah, another theologian who toiled over God’s meaning, an Israelite watching his country scatter into the wind.  In all of that, God would give him a word of hope, “The time is coming declares the Lord, when I will fulfill my gracious promise with the people of Israel and Judah …”  We, today, know that the promise will be fulfilled in the Promised One - Our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Theologians can talk all day long, but what really matters is this: God loves us, and God sent us Jesus, Light from Light, True God from True God.  If you’re family is anything like mine, even before you have received this magazine in the mail and have read this article, you’re already steeped in the tensions of preparing for Christmas.  Lights are going up, trees are being decorated.  Budgets are being blown to get just the right presents.  Calendars are filled to bursting with what I hope are joyful occasions of worship, music, family, and food.  Our prayer this Advent season is that is we prepare to meet the Christ Child on Christmas Day, that we can remember that God set a great deal of time aside to meet us where we are - and God still does that.

Jesus, the one who came down from heaven to earth on Christmas Day, wants you to know the hope, peace, love, and joy that only he can bring to your life and the lives of those that you love.  We invite you this November and December to remember that with us, in worship, song, and celebration, not just on Sundays, but every day.

In Christ,

Rev. Jarrod