Back to the Basics: How the Holy Spirit Brings Faith to Life

The Heart of the Message

When life gets stormy, the best thing we can do is go back to the basics of what we believe. In this sermon, Pastor Kirt Anderson walks through the closing lines of the Apostles’ Creed and shows that the Holy Spirit is the way God reaches us, calls us, and assures us that we are forgiven. It is a hopeful message for anyone who wants a faith that feels real and not only something to read about.

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Pastor Kirt opened with a story told by Tom Gillespie, a former president of Princeton Seminary. A ship’s captain, famous for his exploits at sea, went down to his cabin in the middle of a squall. A young merchant marine watched him open a desk drawer, pull out a small piece of paper, and read it out loud: “Port is left, starboard is right.”

Practice the fundamentals. Stick to the basics. Pastor Kirt said that reciting the Apostles’ Creed is like pulling out that little piece of paper and reading it aloud to ourselves. He had read an article that same morning claiming that something like 100,000 churches could close in the next decade, and he believes much of that comes from churches losing track of the fundamentals. This week’s fundamental is one line: “I believe in the Holy Ghost.”

What does the Holy Spirit actually do?

Pastor Kirt put it simply: we can read about the Father and we can read about the Son, but the access God has to us is through His Spirit. In John 20, the risen Jesus comes to His frightened disciples behind locked doors, breathes on them, and gives them the Holy Spirit. Pastor Kirt connected that moment to creation, when God breathed the breath of life into the first man, and noted that the Hebrew word ruach means breath, spirit, and wind all at once.

In that room, the disciples were given authority to forgive sins. Later, at Pentecost, they were given languages so they could carry the good news into the whole world.

How do I know what God is calling me to do?

Pastor Kirt answered this one with his own story. After leading a group of kids into the Sierra Nevada, he sat alone on a peak, looking across a glacial valley toward Mount Whitney and taking in how beautiful it was. On the way down he asked himself, “If I could do anything other than this, what would I do?” He had been headed for law school. He went to seminary instead, and that sense of call has carried him through some very hard seasons of ministry.

He was quick to say that this is only his story, and that each of us has one too. The Spirit of God moves on us and gives us a sense of calling, and it is more than “follow your passion.” It is follow your calling.

What does “the holy catholic Church” mean in the Apostles’ Creed?

The word “catholic” here does not mean the Catholic Church the way we usually use the name. It is simply a word for universal. Pastor Kirt explained that the church is founded by God, that it is His creation and His doing, and that the Spirit of God is what moves it and makes it happen.

That does not make it easy. Jesus said He sends His followers out like sheep among wolves, and Pastor Kirt reminded us that we take our lead from Christ and His word, not from whatever everyone else happens to be doing.

The Answer: Faith Is a Gift the Spirit Gives

Pastor Kirt admitted that when he was 15 or 16, he found church boring. Everything was read from a page, including the sermon. Across the arroyo from his family’s church, he visited a youth gathering where the music was loud, the skits were hilarious, and the message was spoken from the heart. Then, at the end, everyone was lined up and told to start mumbling in an effort to get them to speak in tongues. He decided he was done. The gifts of the Spirit, he said, come spontaneously. They are not something to be stirred up by a plan.

Looking back, though, he believes the Spirit of Christ could speak through that long, dry service and through that wild one too. Borrowing from the theologian Karl Barth, he said God can speak through just about anything, even an apple tree, and we do well to listen when He does. The better question is what God has chosen to work through, and that is the clear preaching and teaching of His word.

From there, the message moved through the rest of the Creed:

The communion of saints. This is all of us together, recognizing the body of Christ. Pastor Kirt described baptism as a great current we are plunged into, one we allow to carry us where it will, finding our security in God alone.

The forgiveness of sins. If we know we are forgiven, it is not up to us to pass judgment on anyone else. The Spirit gives us a strong sense of being forgiven, and if God forgives us, why wouldn’t He forgive others? Pastor Kirt was also honest that evil is real, and that we are not asked to tolerate anything and everything. We are to be discerning, hardest on ourselves and most tender with others.

The life everlasting. Pastor Kirt does not picture streets of gold or everyone playing harps on a cloud. He thinks heaven looks a lot more like little kids playing: full of life, laughing at silly things, always with something to look forward to. Not a static place, but an ongoing life in which we are fully known and fully loved.

He closed in prayer with the heart of it all. By our own understanding and strength we cannot believe in Jesus. God comes to us through His Spirit, gives us the gift of faith, and gives us the courage to live out what we have been called to.

Scripture Focus

Anchor verses: John 20:21-22 (NLT)
Jesus greets His disciples with peace a second time and tells them that just as the Father sent Him, He is now sending them. Then He breathes on them and tells them to receive the Holy Spirit.

Also referenced:

• John 20:19-29 (the full reading, including Thomas)
• Genesis 1:2
• Genesis 2:7
• Acts 2:1-4
• Matthew 10:16