Circle the words in the following documents that state what you rely on in your faith when your back is against the wall.
THE NICENE CREED (The United Methodist Hymnal, #880)
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.
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. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven, was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became truly human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in the one holy catholic and apostolic church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
THE APOSTLES' CREED (Traditional Version, The United Methodist Hymnal, #881)
I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth;
And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord: who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; the third day he arose from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
A STATEMENT OF FAITH OF THE UNITED CHURCH OF CANADA (The United Methodist Hymnal, #883)
We are not alone, we live in God’s world.
We believe in God: who has created and is creating, who has come in
Jesus, the Word made flesh, to reconcile and make new, who works in us
and others by the Spirit. We trust in God.
We are called to be the church: to celebrate God’s presence, to love
and serve others, to seek justice and resist evil, to proclaim Jesus,
crucified and risen, our judge and our hope.
In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us. We are not alone. Thanks be to God. Amen.
A STATEMENT OF FAITH OF THE KOREAN METHODIST CHURCH (The United Methodist Hymnal, #884)
We believe in the one God, creator and sustainer of all things,
Father of all nations, the source of all goodness and beauty, all truth
and love.
We believe in Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh, our teacher, example and Redeemer, the Savior of the world.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, God present with us for guidance, for comfort, and for strength.
We believe in the forgiveness of sins, in the life of love and prayer, and in grace equal to every need.
We believe in the Word of God contained in the Old and New Testaments as the sufficient rule both of faith and of practice.
We believe in the church, those who are united in the living Lord for the purpose of worship and service.
We believe in the reign of God as the divine will realized in human
society, and in the family of God, where we are all brothers and
sisters.
We believe in the final triumph of righteousness and in the life everlasting. Amen.
A MODERN AFFIRMATION (The United Methodist Hymnal, #885)
Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is the one true church, apostolic and universal, whose holy faith let us now declare:
We believe in God the Father, infinite in wisdom, power, and love,
whose mercy is over all his works, and whose will is ever directed to
his children’s good.
We believe in Jesus Christ, Son of God and Son of man, the gift of the Father’s unfailing grace,
the ground of our hope, and the promise of our deliverance from sin and death.
We believe in the Holy Spirit as the divine presence in our lives,
whereby we are kept in perpetual remembrance of the truth of Christ,
and find strength and help in time of need.
We believe that this faith should manifest itself in the service of
love as set forth in the example of our blessed Lord, to the end that
the kingdom of God may come upon the earth. Amen.
THE WORLD METHODIST SOCIAL AFFIRMATION (The United Methodist Hymnal, #886)
We believe in God, creator of the world and of all people;
And in Jesus Christ, incarnate among us, who died and rose again;
And in the Holy Spirit, present with us to guide, strengthen, and comfort.
We believe; God, help our unbelief.
We rejoice in every sign of God’s kingdom:
In the upholding of human dignity and community;
In every expression of love, justice, and reconciliation;
In each act of self-giving on behalf of others;
In the abundance of God’s gifts entrusted to us that all may have enough;
In all responsible use of the earth’s resources.
Glory be to God on high; and on earth, peace.
We confess our sin, individual and collective, by silence or action:
Through the violation of human dignity based on race, class, age, sex, nation, or faith;
Through the exploitation of people because of greed and indifference;
Through the misuse of power in personal, communal, national, and international life;
Through the search for security by those military and economic forces that threaten human existence;
Through the abuse of technology which endangers the earth and all life upon it.
Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.
We commit ourselves individually and as a community to the way of Christ:
To take up the cross;
To seek abundant life for all humanity;
To struggle for peace with justice and freedom;
To risk ourselves in faith, hope, and love, praying that God’s kingdom may come.
Thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.
AFFIRMATION FROM ROMANS 8:35, 8:37-39 (The United Methodist Hymnal, #887)
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall
tribulation or distress, or persecution or famine, or nakedness or
peril or sword?
No! In all things we are more than conquerors through the One who
loved us. We are sure that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor
pincipalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor
height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to
separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Thanks be
to God! Amen.
AFFIRMATIONS FROM I CORINTHIANS 15:1-6 AND COLOSSIANS 1:15-20 (The United Methodist Hymnal, #888)
This is the good news which we have received, in which we stand, and by which we are saved:
Christ died for our sins, was buried, was raised on the third day,
and appeared first to the women, then to Peter and the Twelve, and then
to many faithful witnesses. We believe Jesus is the Christ, the
Anointed One of God, the firstborn of all creation, the firstborn from
the dead, in whom all things hold together, in whom the fullness of God
was pleased to dwell by the power of the Spirit. Christ is the head of
the body, the church, and by the blood of the cross reconciles all
things to God. Amen.
AFFIRMATION FROM I TIMOTHY 2:5-6; 1:15; 3:16 (The United Methodist Hymnal, #889)
There is one God and there is one mediator, Christ Jesus, who came as a ransom for all, to whom we testify.
This saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance: that Jesus Christ
came into the world to save sinners, and was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations,
believed in throughout the world, taken up in glory. Great indeed is
the mystery of the gospel. Amen.
Front Porch Reflections 