Creed: Week One

Bible Text:

Deuteronomy 6:4; Mark 12:28–34

Lesson Focus:

The Apostles' Creed states our shared beliefs as a community of faith.

Big Question:

What do I believe?

Key Words:

CREED, BELIEF, CHURCH, MONOTHEISM, TRINITY

Definitions of the Key Words

CREED: a statement of belief.

BELIEF: an affirmed or accepted truth.

CHURCH: the community of faith, known in the Apostles' Creed as the "communion of saints."

MONOTHEISM: the belief in one God.

TRINITY: God as three persons in one being.

Focus on Monotheism ....

Ask students to turn to Mark 12:28–34, and ask another volunteer to read the verses aloud. Asked which commandment is greatest, Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:4. Explain to students that the people of Israel were the only people in the time of Moses, and later, the time of Jesus, who believed in the concept of monotheism: that there is one God, not many. Other people, who believed in many gods, thought that either the God of Israel was not one of the gods, or that the God Israel worshipped was another god like theirs. The belief in only one God was radical and caused Israel a lot of problems. But without that belief, they would no longer have been Israel. If you have time at this point, you may want to have the students consider if this idea of there being only one God continues to be a radical one today.