I have to admit I did not pay too much attention to the Saints for most of my walk. More recently I have been reading about some of the more famous ones.
Recently I have been looking at St Benedict…
St. Benedict was a 6th-century monk who profoundly shaped Western monasticism and civilization through his Rule, which balanced prayer, work, and community life. Born to a noble Roman family around 480, he abandoned his studies in Rome, disgusted by the city’s corruption, to live as a hermit in Subiaco. His holiness attracted followers, leading him to establish twelve monasteries before founding the great abbey of Monte Cassino, where he wrote his famous Rule. The Rule of St. Benedict, marked by its wisdom, moderation, and flexibility, provided a practical guide for monastic life that spread throughout Europe and remains influential today.
There are quite a few things I find interesting about Benedict.
1. One is that he was born to a family who was well off and he gave it up to follow God.
2. I also admire the way he lived his life drew people to follow him as he followed Jesus.
3. Lastly, he became a hermit in Subiaco. As someone who is introverted being a hermit is quite appealing to me.
Reading about the Saints has been a real blessing to me. They are much like the heroes of faith the Bible mentions in Hebrews 11. Their lives can encourage and inspire us now.
One of the things it is easy to do as a Christian is to complicate our faith and our practices. By this I mean I must believe all this list of things and do all of these practices religiously to be okay.
I know this because I can fall in to this trap at times. I can have a list of things I “must” do and a lot of boxes I “must” tick off, to be a good Christian. It can be tiring.
When I am in my best place, I have a simplified faith that has been passed down to me from the Apostles. In simple terms I need to hold fast to the Apostles Creed as my true north or compass.
The Apostles Creed in its earliest version, the Old Roman Creed, has been around since the second century AD. It is very similar to the later version…
The Old Roman Creed
I believe in God the Father almighty; and in Christ Jesus His only Son, our Lord, Who was born from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, Who under Pontius Pilate was crucified and buried, on the third day rose again from the dead, ascended into heaven, sits at the right hand of the Father, whence he will come to judge the living and the dead; and in the Holy Spirit, the holy Church, the remission of sins, the resurrection of the flesh, [life everlasting].
As you can see it has nearly all the wording of the later version from the fifth century AD. The latter Apostles Creed is a bit more fleshed out and has been accepted by all major Christian traditions as a rule of faith.
The Apostles Creed
I believe in God the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth; And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born from the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried, descended into hell, (or to the dead) on the third day rose again from the dead, ascended to heaven, sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty, thence He will come to judge the living and the dead; I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, (or holy Christian church) the communion of saints, the remission of sins, the resurrection of the flesh, and eternal life. Amen.
While there is some disputed phrases (see brackets above) depending on which branch of christianity you belong to, the vast majority is accepted worldwide today and has been accepted down through the ages.
The Apostles’ Creed, like all creeds, functions like a filter for an orthodox faith and belief. It indicates what is and what is not “Christian.” It is a public profession of belief in historic Christianity.
As I type I am reminded of a statement by the famous theologian Karl Bath. At a Q&A session he was asked by a student if he could summarise his theology in one sentence. He replied, “Yes, I can. In the words of a song I learned at my mother’s knee: ‘Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”
For me this is enough to say I need to stick to a simple definition of my faith. I need a simplified statement to hang on to. Thankfully Christians down through the ages have prepared one for me in the Apostles Creed.
Do you have a quote you live your life by or think of often?
Galatians 2:20 NLT – My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 2:20 would be the main quote I try to remember and live by each day. It reminds me of three things.
1. It reminds me that my old self is gone, my new life in Christ is here, and that I need to allow Christ to live and love through me.
2. It reminds me of the hope I have in Christ. He is going to prepare a place for me and He is coming back.
3. It reminds me that Jesus did not hold anything back to save me. He gave His life for me. That is how much He loved me.
The same goes for you too. If you are trusting Jesus for your salvation, then your old life is gone and your new life is here. He can live and love others through you.
Over the years people have asked me what church I attend or what church do I point people to? Generally I do not say, especially online. But if someone asks to come along I will tell them.
My reason for this is that churches in different countries are not the same. If I say I belong to a particular denomination online, it may be very different in Australia to the USA, Asia, Africa or Europe.
My heart is to always point people to Jesus. Jesus is the way we find salvation. Jesus died on the cross for our sin. First and foremost we have to come to Him. Then I encourage people to read the Bible and learn to pray and find a local church.
I came to Jesus through some friends I worked with. They talked about Jesus and the Bible, prayed for me and gave me a tract to find salvation. Then they asked me to their church. I attended for about a year, but as it was a 30 minute drive, I found one closer to my home.
I have found in a smallish country town where I live this works best in my context. People will talk about God, the Bible, prayer and ask questions, but are reluctant to attend church at first. Walking in to a church in a small country town is a big statement. Everybody has a way of finding out.
So I do not really point people to a particular church, I point them to Jesus. I want people to be saved, discipled and to follow Him. Then I point them to the main church denominations in Australia. I encourage them to find a local one.
This is why I include an alphabetical list of denominations on my links page. I want people to find a church where Jesus is held up as Lord and Saviour, the Bible is preached, prayer happens and they can grow in their faith.
Another reason I do not recommend a particular church is one person might like a relaxed house church style and another might like a high church or liturgical style of worship. We are not all the same, we have different tastes, we have to find our own place in the church.
So this is why I do not talk about my church or push a particular denomination. My heart is to point people to Jesus, not a church.
I was reading the early church fathers recently and I saw two interesting things.
They told followers of Jesus to fast twice a week.
They told followers to pray the Lord’s Prayer three times a day.
I fast occasionally when I feel I have something on my heart to bring before the Lord. But I do not fast twice per week.
I do pray the Lord’s Prayer several times per day. It has become my practice over the last six months. Especially since I have been using prayer beads.
I do wonder how my life would change if I followed the prescription of the early church fathers and fasted and prayed as they suggested? How would your life change?
Prayer and Fasting
Do not have your fasts with the hypocrites. For they fast on Mondays and Thursdays; but you should fast on Wednesdays and Fridays. Neither are you to pray as the hypocrites, but as the Lord commanded in his gospel, “Pray in this way: Our Father who is in heaven, may your name be holy, may your kingdom come, may your will be done as in heaven, so also upon earth; give to us today our daily bread, and forgive us our debt as also we forgive our debtors, and do not lead us into temptation but deliver us from the evil one, because yours is the power and the glory forever.” Pray this way three times a day.
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