Lesson 15: Ancient Creeds

(1) The student will be able to explain:

• The purpose and use of a creed as a statement of beliefs.

• Some biblical examples of creeds.

• The origins and content of three historic creeds.

• Why modern Christians must hold to historic Christianity.

• A statement of Christian beliefs about the creeds.

(2) The student will value the foundational beliefs of the early church as original Christianity.

► Read 2 John together. What does this passage tell us about the importance of the original doctrines of the church?

The Origin of the Creeds

Athanasius, ca. 296-373,
wrote a famous treatise
“On the Incarnation,”
in which he explained
why the full deity
and the full humanity
of Jesus was so important
to the Christian faith.
He was influential
in the Nicene Council,
from which came
the Nicene Creed.

A creed is a summary of essential Christian beliefs. The early church saw the need to summarize biblical doctrine.[1]

► Why did the church need creeds? Wasn’t the Bible enough?

There are always people who claim to believe the Bible yet teach doctrines that contradict the Bible. The church developed statements of biblical doctrine that distinguished real Christianity from false doctrines.

One of the first statements of doctrine was “Jesus is Lord,” which meant that Jesus is God. The words, Lord Jesus Christ also made a statement, saying that Jesus is the Messiah (Christos) and that he is God. A person who refused to say that Jesus is Lord or use the words Lord Jesus Christ was not a believer.

Later there were people who claimed to be Christians but did not believe that Jesus was truly human. That’s why in the epistle of 1 John we find the creedal statement, “Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God” (1 John 4:2-3). The apostle also said that if a person denies the essential doctrines of Christ, he is sinning and is not of God (2 John 1:9).

The earliest creed that makes several statements is in 1 Timothy 3:16:

[God] was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.

We don’t know all of the issues that the creed in 1 Timothy was dealing with, but it emphasizes the deity and humanity of Jesus when it says God was revealed in the flesh.

[2]These short creedal statements served a purpose. If an early Christian met another person who claimed to believe in Jesus, the Christian could ask, “Do you believe Jesus is Lord?” or “Do you believe that Jesus is God come in the flesh?” If the person said “no,” then the Christian knew that the person did not really know or accept what Jesus and the apostles taught.

During the first few centuries after Pentecost, the church found it necessary to make clear statements about the Trinity, the incarnation of Christ, and the identity of the Holy Spirit. They established doctrinal standards as a defense against heresy. The creeds were intended to be summaries of the fundamental truths that every Christian believed.

The creeds could not cover every issue, but a person would not have been considered a Christian if he denied anything in those early creeds. They were an attempt to define the Christian faith.

Here are three of the early creeds of the church.

I believe in God the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth;

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost and born of the Virgin Mary.
He 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 is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of the saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

The Nicene Creed was established at a church council in 325. Its purpose was to protect the doctrines of the deity of Christ and the Holy Spirit. A few statements were added at another council in 381. This creed deals with some issues that had not come up before.

We believe in one God, the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God,
begotten of his Father before all ages,
God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God,
begotten, not made; of the same essence as the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven;
he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and was made human.
He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried.
The third day he rose again according to the scriptures.
He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead.
His kingdom will never end.

And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life.
He proceeds from the Father and the Son,
and with the Father and Son is worshipped and glorified.
He spoke through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church.

We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and to life in the world to come.

Amen.

► What are some things that you see in the creed that were not in the Apostles’ Creed?

Here we see the statements expanded about all three persons of the Trinity. The full deity of Christ is emphasized in a way to safeguard it against those who claim to believe that Jesus is God yet minimize his deity. He is eternal (from before all ages), not created, and consists of whatever the Father consists of. Jesus is to be called God for the same reasons that the Father is to be called God.

The Holy Spirit is to be worshipped just like the Father and Son, which affirms that he is God.

The Chalcedonian Creed was written in 451. Its purpose was to protect doctrines of the incarnation of Christ. The concern of the writers was to protect the doctrine of the full deity and full humanity of Christ, without either aspect being so minimized as to become meaningless.

At the end the writers stated that they considered these doctrines to be both scriptural and traditional in the church. They were not developing new ideas but defending what the church had always believed.

Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all unite in teaching that we should confess one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,

the same person perfect in deity and also perfect in humanity;

truly God and truly human,

having a rational soul and a body.

He is of the same essence as the Father according to his deity,

and he is of the same essence as us according to his humanity,

like us in all things, but without sin.

Before time, he was begotten of the Father according to his deity.

In the last days, for us and for our salvation,

He was born of the Virgin Mary, the mother of God according to his humanity.

He is one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only begotten,

who is made known in two natures

that are not to be confused with each other, they are unchanging, not able to be divided, and inseparable.

The distinction of his natures is not at all destroyed because of their union,

instead, the attributes of each nature are preserved,

and occur at the same time in one person and in one existence,

not separated or divided into two persons,

but he is one and the same Son, and only begotten,

God the Word, the Lord Jesus Christ.

This is the way the prophets spoke of him from the beginning,

and Jesus Christ himself instructed us,

and the Council of the fathers has handed the faith down to us.

► Do you see some things especially emphasized in this creed?

The deity of Christ was not something that Jesus had only in heaven but not on earth. The early Christians believed that Jesus was truly God in the flesh. He possessed completely the attributes of God and man together while on earth. They considered this nature of Christ to be his unique qualification as Savior.

Centuries have passed since the church began. The world has changed in many ways. Many religious beliefs have developed.

Some people think that there are no doctrines that must stay the same. They feel free to believe whatever they want and still call themselves Christians.

[1]► Is it necessary for us to believe the early creeds of the church?

The God of the Bible, described in the early creeds, does not change. The early Christians knew that God saved them in response to their faith in him. These statements about the nature of God and the means of salvation were basic Christianity from the beginning.

It is possible for a person to be saved without knowing all of these doctrines or understanding them correctly. Not all doctrines are necessary for the gospel. A person cannot deny what he knows is true and still be a Christian, but he may be mistaken in some things.

The ancient creeds in this lesson talk only about essential doctrines. If a church has a view of God that is different from these essentials, they must also invent a different means of salvation, which is another gospel. If they do that, they should not call themselves Christians because they are inventing a new religion.

Of course, every person is free to think what he wants, but if he does not have Christian beliefs, he is not a true follower of Jesus.

In the first few centuries there were not denominations as we have today. There was one church. So the creeds were statements by the whole church. Today, churches that respect the authority of the Bible hold the beliefs of the creeds, though they disagree on many other issues.

The early church knew that relationship with God is the most important thing. They knew that they were saved through their relationship with God. That’s why it was so important for them to make sure that they knew what God is like.

The book of Jude warns us that we must defend the faith that was originally delivered to the church (Jude 1:3). May God anoint his truth as we minister faithfully in preaching the gospel, discipling believers, and training those whom he calls into ministry.

A group of churches united into one organization is called a denomination. There are thousands of denominations that claim to be Christian. There are also thousands of independent churches that are not part of any denomination.

Sometimes denominations begin with evangelism. If there are many converts in a region, and no denomination to take care of them, a new denomination may form. A denomination may begin from the work of a mission organization in a country.

Sometimes a denomination originates with a group of people who believe that an important doctrine is denied or neglected by the church they are in. They start a new denomination with the intention of being doctrinally correct. Over time, they continue to develop their doctrines. Because they understand the Bible differently from other groups of Christians, some of their doctrines are different from other denominations.

Denominations also develop traditions about proper forms for worship and details of Christian living. Denominations differ from one another in their traditions.

Most Christian denominations do not claim to be the only true church. If an organization claims to be the entire church of God on earth, it should not be trusted.

Unbelievers often object to Christianity because of its divisions and variety. Unbelievers think that the various sects of Christianity all contradict one another. Many people of the world think there is little unity among Christians.

A denomination or local church that is truly Christian believes the doctrines of the early Christian creeds. This is the doctrinal unity that exists among all Christian organizations. There is great variety on smaller doctrinal issues and traditions, but we should not say that a church is not truly Christian because of those differences.

As a Christian lives in relationship with God, he develops his understanding of the truth of the Bible. He will not always come to the same conclusions that others have. As he applies truth to daily life, he will develop principles and rules for himself that will be different from what other Christians do.

As an individual thinks about his beliefs, he should not feel free to reject the essential doctrines of early Christianity unless he is deciding that he is no longer a Christian.

A Christian should also be able to believe the established doctrines of his church. If he believes that the doctrines of his church are wrong, it would be difficult to truly commit to the church as a member.

An individual Christian will be guided by the teachings of his church, but he may have personal convictions that differ even from other members of his church. A personal conviction is not something directly stated in the Bible; it is someone’s attempt to apply the Bible’s truth to some issue.

Every Christian should honestly apply the Bible’s truth to his situations, but he should not be quick to judge others by his own conclusions. It is right for us to expect all Christians to hold the doctrines of the early creeds, and it is right for us to expect church members to hold the doctrines of their church, but it is not right for a Christian to expect others to agree with all of his personal beliefs.

► Read the statement of beliefs together at least two times.

Scripture tells us to hold and defend the original doctrines of Christianity. Early Christians stated the beliefs that are essential to the gospel and our relationship with God. Those statements still define essential Christianity.

(1) Passage Assignment: Each student will be assigned one of the passages listed below. Before the next class session, you should read the passage and write a paragraph about what it says about the subject of this lesson.

• 1 Timothy 3:16

• 1 Timothy 4:1-7

• Titus 1:7-14

• 1 John 4:1-3, 14-15; 1 John 5:12

• Jude 1:3-13

(2) Test: You will begin the next class with a test over Lesson 15. Study the test questions carefully in preparation.

(3) Teaching Assignment: Remember to schedule and report your out-of-class teaching times.

(1) What is a creed?

(2) Name two of the first doctrinal statements about Jesus.

(3) What is the reference for the first creed in scripture that makes several statements?

(4) What was the purpose of the Apostles’ Creed?

(5) What was the purpose of the Nicene Creed?

(6) What was the purpose of the Chalcedonian Creed?