Creeds and Affirmations of Faith

1  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, died, and was buried;

he descended into hell;

the third day he rose again from the dead;

he ascended into heaven,

and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty,

from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost,

the holy catholic church,

the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body,

and the life everlasting.   Amen.

2

We believe in God the Creator.

God made the earth, the sun and all the stars of heaven.

God made things we see and things we cannot see.

God maintains this ever changing universe.

We believe in Jesus Christ the Savior.

Christ was born of the Virgin Mary.

Christ lived, taught his disciples, was betrayed, and put to death.

Christ was buried but rose from the grave.

Christ lives again for us and for our salvation.

Through the death and resurrection of Christ, salvation is made possible.

We believe in the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit is the Lord and Giver of Life.

The Spirit comforts us and guides us.

The Spirit empowers the church.
We are believers and disciples of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

We will pray without ceasing.

We will worship faithfully.

We will read and study the Bible.

We will share the Good News of the Gospel with others.

We will serve our neighbors in and beyond our own congregation.

We will build, maintain and enjoy spiritual friendships with others.

We will and give generously of our time, talent and treasures.

 3

 We believe in God the Creator.

God made the earth, the sun and all the stars of heaven.

God made things we see, and things we cannot see.

God maintains this ever changing universe.

We believe in Jesus Christ the Savior.

Christ was born of the Virgin Mary.

Christ lived, taught his disciples, was betrayed, and put to death.

Christ was buried but rose from the grave.

Christ lives again for us and for our salvation.

Through the death and resurrection of Christ, salvation is made possible.

We believe in the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit is the Lord and Giver of Life.

The Spirit comforts us and guides us.

The Spirit empowers the church.

4  NICENE CREED

We believe in one God,

the Father, the Almighty,

maker of heaven and earth,

of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God,

begotten, not made,

of one Being with the Father;

through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation

he came down from heaven,

was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary

and became truly human.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered death and was buried.

On the third day he rose again

in accordance with the Scriptures;

he ascended into heaven

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father and the Son,

who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified,

who has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look for the resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come. Amen.

5

I believe in God, the Father almighty,

creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,

who was conceived by the Holy Spirit

and born of the virgin Mary.

He suffered under Pontius Pilate,

was crucified, died, and was buried;

he descended to hell.

The third day he rose again from the dead.

He ascended to 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 saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body,

and the life everlasting. Amen.

—Apostles’ Creed

6 This question-and-answer format of the Apostles’ Creed may be used in baptism and

baptismal renewal services.

Do you believe in God the Father?

I believe in God, the Father almighty,

creator of heaven and earth.

Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God

I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,

who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,

born of the virgin Mary,

suffered under Pontius Pilate,

was crucified, died, and was buried.

He descended to the dead.

On the third day he rose again;

he ascended into heaven,

he is seated at the right hand of the Father,

and he will come to judge the living and the dead.

Do you believe in God the Holy Spirit?

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy catholic church,

the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body,

and the life everlasting.

—based on Apostles’ Creed

7

 God is our refuge and strength,

a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,

though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;

though its waters roar and foam,

though the mountains tremble with its tumult.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,

the holy habitation of the Most High.

God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved;

God will help it when the morning dawns.

The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter;

he utters his voice, the earth melts.

The LORD of hosts is with us;

the God of Jacob is our refuge.

Come, behold the works of the LORD;

see what desolations he has brought on the earth.

He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;

he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear;

he burns the shields with fire.

“Be still, and know that I am God!

I am exalted among the nations,

I am exalted in the earth.”

The LORD of hosts is with us;

the God of Jacob is our refuge.

—Psalm 46, NRSV

8

 Lord, you have been our dwelling place

in all generations.

Before the mountains were brought forth,

or ever you had formed the earth and the world,

from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

—Psalm 90:1-2, NRSV

9 

This is the good news that we have received, in which we stand,

and by which we are saved, if we hold it fast:

that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,

that he was buried,

that he was raised on the third day,

and that he appeared first to the women,

then to Peter, and to the Twelve, and then to many faithful witnesses.

We believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Jesus Christ is the first and the last, the beginning and the end;

he is our Lord and our God.

—based on Matthew 16:16; Mark 16:9; John 20:28; 1 Corinthians 15:1-6; Revelation 22:13

10 

We believe there is no condemnation

for those who are in Christ Jesus;

for we know that all things work together for good

for those who love God,

who are called according to God’s purpose.

We are convinced that neither death, nor life,

nor angels, nor rulers,

nor things present, nor things to come,

nor powers, nor height, nor depth,

nor anything else in all creation,

will be able to separate us from the love of God

in Christ Jesus our Lord.

—from Romans 8:1, 28, 38-39, NRSV

11 

Christ Jesus,

though he was in the form of God,

did not regard equality with God

as something to be exploited,

but emptied himself,

taking the form of a slave,

being born in human likeness.

And being found in human form

he humbled himself

and became obedient to the point of death—

even death on a cross.

Therefore God also highly exalted him

and gave him the name

that is above every name,

so that at the name of Jesus

every knee should bend,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

and every tongue should confess

to the glory of God:

Jesus Christ is Lord!

—from Philippians 2:5-11, NRSV

12 

Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God,

the firstborn of all creation;

in him all things in heaven and on earth were created,

things visible and invisible.

All things have been created through him and for him.

He himself is before all things,

and in him all things hold together.

He is the head of the body, the church;

he is the beginning,

the firstborn from the dead,

so that he might come to have first place in everything.

For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,

and through him God was pleased to reconcile all things,

whether on earth or in heaven,

by making peace through the blood of his cross.

—from Colossians 1:15-20, NRSV


 13

We believe in God
Whose love we know
In the beauty of his world,
In daily bread,
In the kindness of human hearts,
And most clearly in Jesus of Nazareth.
We belief that Jesus is the Christ
Whose touch of grace
Makes our eyes to see,
Our ears to hear,
Strengthens us to do all things in him,
And delivers us from death to life.
We believe in the Holy Spirit
In whose power there is peace,
In whose presence there is joy,
And in whose promise we dare to be more.

14  

We believe in God, Creator of beauty,
source of every breath, foundation of every movement.
God leads us beside still waters, 

makes us lie down in green splendor 

and lets nature heal and restore us.
We believe in Jesus, the risen Christ, 

who loved the least, the last and the lost. 

Christ loves us, calls us by name and cleanses us from our sins.
We believe in the Spirit, 

who gathers us into a wonderful and diverse community,

and who inspires us to love one another and to serve our God.

We live as God's people,

filled with everlasting hope and showered with blessing.

We believe in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, 

who for our sake shared human life and human death, even death on a cross.
We believe in the love of God, 

who is the source of all life and whose power raised Jesus from the dead.
We believe in the community of the Holy Spirit, 

who works without ceasing to unite believers of every time and place

in their one Lord, Jesus Christ.
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. Amen. 

15

We believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; 

of Moses and David; of Elijah and Isaiah.

We believe in the God of Sarah, Rebekkah and Rachel;

of Miriam and Ruth; of Deborah and Esther.
We believe in Jesus, the incarnate God,
who visited us at Bethlehem,
who lived with us in Galilee,
who died for us at Calvary,
and who destroyed the power of death on Easter morning.
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
Who is the Spirit of God among us,
And is the Spirit of Christ within us.
This we believe. 

16    An Affirmation Based on Romans 8:31-39

We shall not be separated from God's love that comes to us in Christ Jesus--
Not by life or death,
Not by depression's darkness nor any addiction's snare,
Not by an abusive past or any co-dependent habits.
We are more than conquerors because of the power of God's love for us.
We shall not be separated from the love of God
by a fall from sobriety or a failed marriage,
by painful memories or financial disasters,
by cancer's attack or AIDS' havoc.
God's love is as constant as the rising sun, and there is nothing that can come between us and God's love through Christ Jesus. Believe it and live it. 

17

We are children of God, and we believe in God.

God's love is as constant as the waves on the shore.
God's blessing is as faithful as the stars in the night.
God's comfort is as persistent as the sun's warming rays.
God's passion for justice is as bright as a blazing fire.
God's joy is as exuberant as the swirling wind.
God's generosity is as abundant as a forest.
God's care is as gentle as an evening prayer. 

We are children of God, and we believe!

18 - For Advent

In this Season of Advent, we proclaim our faith in Jesus Christ.  He is the way, the truth and the life.  He is the Son of God and was conceived by the Holy Spirit.  He was born, lived and died.  He was resurrected from the dead.  He lives for us and offers us salvation.  We believe He will come again to judge the living and the dead, and we eagerly wait for His Second Advent when He will return to this world to establish His kingdom.