Oh lancelot, lancelot, this is really sad the way you think you understand not only the Scriptures but the meaning of the Apostle's Creed. From what you conclude you must be a "literalist." This means you understand words/statements "literally" with no room for undrstanding how language works, grammar or even metaphors.
I'll give you an example of what I mean. Jesus said He was the "bread of life" does that mean Jesus is literally a loaf of bread? Of course not? Regarding the Apostle's Creed which btw was not formulated by any of the Apostles how could Jesus have literally go into hell when on that cross He said, "Father, into Thy hands I commed My Spirit." (I suppose you think God the Father has hands huh?)
Now, you also said, "No, I don't think the teaching that Jesus suffered in hell violates any essentials of the faith unless you can show me a creed that says anything about it etc." News flash lancelot, creeds are NOT Sciputure. In fact I'll bet you don't even know the purpose of Creeds? Here is some more of what kenneth copeland stated on one of his audio tapes which I have. "What Happened from the Cross to the Throne" (Fort Worth, TX: 1990 audiotape #02-0017, side 2).
The righteousness of God was made to be sin. He accepted the sin nature of Satan in His own spirit. And at the moment that He did so, He cried, "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me?" You don't know what happened at the cross. Why do you think Moses, upon the instruction of God, raised a serpent up on that pole instead of a lamb? That used to bug me. I said, "why in the world would you want to put a snake up there - the sign of Satan? Why didn't you put a lamb up on that pole?" And the Lord said, "Because it was the sign of Satan that was hanging on the cross." He said, "I accepted in my own spirit, spiritual death, and the light was turned off."[SUP]
4[/SUP] Do you agree with this? But wait lancelot, it gets even better because here is what else copeland said that God Himself told him.
"The Spirit of God spoke to me and He said, "Son, realize this. Now follow me in this and don't let your tradition trip you up." He said, "Think this way: a twice-born man whipped Satan in his own domain." And I three my Bible down, like that, and I said, "What?" He said, "A born-again man defeated Satan, the firsborn of many brethren defeated him. He said, "You are the very image and the very copy of that one." I said, "Goodness, gracious sakes alive!" And I began to see what had gone on in there. And I said, "Well now y ou don't mean, you couldn't dare mean that I could have done that same thing?" He said, "Oh yeah. If you'd had the same knowledge of the Word of God that He did, you could've done the same thing, 'cause you're a reborn man too." (Kenneth Copeland, "Substitution and Identification 1989, tape #00-0202, side 2.)
So lancelot, do you really believe God Almighty through the Holy Spirit told this "blasphemy" to copeland? Or perhaps it was somebody else who put this in copeland's heart? I also find it interesting that you never once addressed anything in my post to you except to give more of you talking points, why is that?
Now, on to something else you said in another post of yours. You said God the Father forsook His Son on that cross which is taken from Matthew 27:46. I don't think so and I base this on Scripture. The words that Jesus said are taken from Psalm 22 starting at vs1. What you have in this Psalm is King David being hunted down by King Saul. If you read it you have David crying out to God and appealing to Him and describing his own feelings of "forsakeness" while King Saul was after him.
The reality is the fact that at vs23,24 David praises God because God did not forsake or abandon him and neither did God forsake or "abandon" His one and only Son. As well Jesus knew before hand that He would be forsaken by His closest friends, still His confidence in His Father was unwavering. Joh 16:32, "A time is coming and has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home. You WILL LEAVE ME ALONE. Yet I AM NOT ALONE, for My Father is with Me."
You also have 2 Corinthians 5:19, "namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself," And at 2 Corinthians 5:21 God the Father treats the sinless Jesus Christ as though He were a sinner. As a side note when I was in Vietnam in January 1968 when the Tet offensive started we were "rocketed" and "shot" at continously and many of us were asking God, "Where are you?" Get us out of this horrible mess, and btw war is "horrible." We too felt forsaken but guess what, here I am dealing with you 50 years later in good health. You better wake up lancelot, and that goes for some others here that are "sympathetic" to wof teachings. I still pray for them on a daily basis that God touch their hearts to do and to teach the truth.
IN GOD THE SON,
bluto