The Apostles' Creed: 12-Day Plan Sample

The Resurrection of the Body, and the Life Everlasting. Amen.

Every religious tradition, every culture, every family, and every individual has some concept of hope. Of course, the object of hope can differ quite significantly from person to person or from culture to culture, but everyone is hoping for something. For example, one of the main forms of hope that has captured the minds and imaginations of our culture is the hope of progress. The promise of progress tells us things are constantly getting better; culture is making strides toward greater freedom, greater liberty, better health, greater medical advances, fewer problems, and more enjoyment. But we know that no matter what we achieve, things don’t get any better. We may improve our quality of life—maybe—but sin, brokenness, and death are still inescapable. We can’t repair the fracture in our lives or in the world around us.

Christians, however, have real hope. As we’ve already studied, we’re not immune to problems, and we’re not perfect. We don’t have a forced smile that’s oblivious to the pain and suffering in life. We don’t think a believe-it-to-achieve-it positivity is going to make everything work out in the end. We know something much, much better. Something true. Something real. We know the end of the story, and death isn’t the end.

Confessing, “I believe in … the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting” is to place our hope in something very specific about our future and the future of all creation. 

The Apostles’ Creed ends on an incredibly positive note by proclaiming our common hope: resurrection and everlasting life. The eschatology of our culture is built on progress. The eschatology of Christianity is built on death and resurrection. Our hope isn’t in human progress but in God’s raising the dead.

For more information on The Apostles' Creed by Matt Chandler, please visit LifeWay.com/ApostlesCreed.