I Believe...in Jesus Christ, Savior of the World

(a continuation of thoughts for a sermon series on the Apostle's Creed)

It's impossible to separate who Christ is from what Christ does. But the distinction has been made for hundreds of years as the church figured out how to put its beliefs into words.

Jesus is the Son of God, Son of Man, the Christ--the Messiah, the One who Saves...but how does he save?

Atonement theories give me headaches. Did Christ's work on the cross appease an angry God, or did it reveal the heart of God? Why would anyone in rural Marshall County, TN care to answer?

I'm not necessarily a bottom line kind of person, but here I want to be. I feel like this whole question comes down to our view of God. Starting with the Trinity--we have to understand that whatever exactly the work of Christ is accomplishing, it happens within the three-in-one God--so that we might have a relationship with that same God.

Do we owe God something? Yes--our lives, our selves, our worship.
Does the work of Christ on the cross reveal something about God? Absolutely--God desires that we would know and love Him.

I'm satisfied (intended) with that, but I guess it doesn't answer the question. Maybe that's the point.