Scripture recognises the existence in the universe of two great armies,
marshalled under their respective leaders--one under the rule of Jesus
Christ, the other under His adversary the Devil, otherwise termed Satan,
Apollyon, and the Old Serpent. These powers are in constant antagonism,
and every man takes his place in the army of Christ or in that of Satan.
Those opposed to the Lord are rebels who, except they repent, must share
the doom of their leader in the place prepared for the devil and his
angels; "for He must reign until He hath put all His enemies under His
feet." He is their Lord for their overthrow and destruction; while to
those who are "with Him,"--"the called, and chosen, and
faithful,"[067]--He is their Lord to secure for them victory and
everlasting salvation. When we use the expression "our Lord," we declare
that we renounce other masters; that we make no compromise with His
enemies, and refuse to have "fellowship with the unfruitful works of
darkness"; that, renouncing the Devil and his works, rejecting the vain
pleasures, pomps, and glories of the world, and denying ourselves the
gratification of sinful desires, we accept Christ as our leader, with
the determination expressed by the prophet, "O Lord our God, other lords
beside thee have had dominion over us: but by thee only will we make
mention of thy name."[068] As the followers and subjects of an
omnipotent, righteous King we shall strive to "bring into captivity
every thought to the obedience of Christ."
It is noteworthy that a plural pronoun is used in this recognition of
Christ as _our_ Lord, while elsewhere throughout the Creed the
confession of belief is personal, "I believe." The plural form here
indicates that while in following Jesus we are separated from the world,
we are gathered into the fellowship of the saints, and are members of
the whole family in heaven and earth.
* * * * *
ARTICLE 3
_Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary_
The Creed proceeds to declare belief in the doctrine of the Incarnation,
which is thus set forth in the Shorter Catechism: "Christ, the Son of
God, became man, by taking to Himself a true body, and a reasonable
soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost, in the womb of the
Virgin Mary, and born of her, yet without sin."[069]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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