Apostles Creed - Jesus, Fully Human

Jesus, Fully Human

Text: Hebrews 2:10–18, with Luke 1:34–35
Preacher: Pastor Alex
Date: October 18, 2026

Sermon Summary

Last week showed that Jesus is God, eternal and uncreated. This week turns to the other side: the Word became flesh (John 1:14). Hebrews 2:17 says he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, and gives three reasons: to be our high priest, our propitiation, and our help.

A priest stands between God and man. As the Son, Jesus already belongs in the throne room, but to represent us he had to stand among us. Israel’s priest was chosen from among his brothers, and so Christ became our brother. He even trusts the Father as we do.

The Creed describes how: conceived by the Holy Spirit, who worked the miracle, and born of the virgin Mary--this is where Jesus' humanity came from. He was born as we are, our true flesh and blood brother. Holding his two natures together guards against old errors that made him only man, only God, or something in between. He is fully human and fully God; he has two natures; he has two wills too--a human will and a divine one.

Because he is fully human, Jesus could be our propitiation, the sacrifice that turns away God’s wrath against evil. He not only shared in our flesh and blood, but he took our sin, shame, and guilt as his own too, even though he himself was without sin.

His human will gives us hope that he can help us in our temptations. He lived a whole human life in submission to the Father, right up to that moment in the garden when he prayed “not my will, but yours be done.” He faced every temptation we face and does not look down on our struggle.

So we rest in him as our priest, peacemaker, and help. Because he gave up his rights for us, we give up ours for one another and engage the world with the same humility.

Ice Breaker

Light: Who in your family do you most take after, and in what way?

Deeper: When you're struggling with something, who is the most helpful to you: Someone who can relate, someone who has studied it, or someone who can give you advice?

Discussion Questions

1. Remember the Truth: The law required that the king be a brother from among the people, the prophet also must be a brother, and the priest the chief among his brothers. What struck you about that pattern once you saw it running toward Jesus?

1. Remember the Truth (alternate): The Creed's wording settled around 710-740 AD. The older version left some people thinking the Spirit had given the Son something of his own being. So the confession clarified that he was "conceived by" the Spirit and "born of" the virgin; the Spirit worked the miracle, and Mary's body provided his humanity. What did you notice in those two small words that you’d never noticed before?

2. Understand the Truth: Read Hebrews 2:17 again, and notice that the writer says Jesus had to be made like his brothers in every respect. Using the verse, how would you explain to a friend why God the Son becoming human was necessary?

3. Test the Truth: Plenty of people treat the virgin birth as an optional part--a quaint fairytale you can quietly set aside and still follow Jesus. Where do you think that instinct comes from, and what does Luke 1:34–35 say about it?  

4. Be Transformed: He faced every temptation you face, always submitting his human will to God's will. He is not standing over you wondering why you can't manage it. What would change if you, in your weakest point, "put your trust in him" this week?

5. Be Transformed Together: Being joined to Jesus means giving up our rights and privileges for each other the way he did for us. Can we do that for each other as a group? Our high priest prays for us. How can we pray specifically for each other this week?

6. Be Sent: Jesus could have told us to get our act together. Instead he came low, took our flesh, and met us where we are. Where are you serving with some impatience toward people, and what would his humility look like in that same spot?

The Apostles' Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth;
And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord;

who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary,

suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell;

the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,

and sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty;

from there he shall come to judge the living and the dead;
And in the Holy Spirit;

the holy universal church, the communion of saints;

the forgiveness of sins;

the resurrection of the body;

and life everlasting.
Amen.

Supporting Scriptures

1. Leviticus 21:10: The high priest is the one among his brothers on whose head the anointing oil is poured, so the office belongs to a brother.
2. Deuteronomy 17:15: Israel's king must be chosen from among her own brothers, never a foreigner.
3. Deuteronomy 18:15: The prophet like Moses will be raised up from among their brothers, completing the pattern Jesus fulfils.
4. Isaiah 7:14: The sign of a virgin conceiving and bearing a son called Immanuel, God with us.
5. Isaiah 8:17–18: The words Hebrews places in the Messiah's mouth — I will put my trust in him, and here am I with the children God has given me.
6. Matthew 1:20–23: The angel tells Joseph the child is conceived of the Holy Spirit, and names Isaiah's sign as fulfilled.
7. Matthew 26:39: In the garden, a human will submits to the Father's — not as I will, but as you will.
8. Galatians 4:4–5: God sent his Son, born of woman and born under the law, so that we might receive adoption.
9. Philippians 2:5–8: The form of God and the likeness of men stand or fall together, and between them lies the emptying.
10. Hebrews 4:15–16: Because our high priest was tempted as we are yet without sin, we come to the throne of grace with confidence.