Lesson 3
The schism between Catholicism, Orthodoxy, and Protestantism was not always present. The schism between the three is a disagreement rooted in the interpretation of Scripture.
The oldest and most accepted creed , is the "Apostles' Creed."
The Apostles' Creed was written approximately around A.D. 390.
Creeds are NOT Scripture, nor do they hold the same authority.
The purpose of a creed is to declare what one believes. However, a creed must be examined via the lens of the Bible.
I believe in God the Father almighty, Maker of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary,
who suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried,
descended into hell, rose again from the dead on the third day,
ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty,
who will come again 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.
This creed, while authorship unknown, eloquently synopsizes what Christians believe. While creeds are not Scripture, they should be Scripture affirming. If a creed does not align with Scripture, it is to be ignored.
Creeds have traditionally been written to affirm Scripture, and speak out against heresy. The most infamous of such would be Arianism. Arianism denies that the Son has always been, which contradicts Scripture (John 1:14, Hebrews 13:8, Revelation 1:8, John 1:1).
Nicene Creed of 325 A.D.
The creed of Nicene was created by the First Council of Nicaea and it was adopted in 325 A.D. and then edited by the First Council of Constantinople in 381 A.D..
We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of the Father the only-begotten; that is, of the essence of the Father, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
By whom all things were made both in heaven and on earth;
Who for us men, and for our salvation, came down and was incarnate and was made man;
He suffered, and the third day he rose again, ascended into heaven;
From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
And in the Holy Ghost.
But those who say: 'There was a time when he was not;' and 'He was not before he was made;' and 'He was made out of nothing,' or 'He is of another substance' or 'essence,' or 'The Son of God is created,' or 'changeable,' or 'alterable'— they are condemned by the holy catholic and apostolic Church.
The revised Nicene Creed
The creed was revised. Not to add or remove anything, but rather to provide further clarification. But why was clarification needed? The Nicene Creed was created to oppose the Arianism heresy. "Arianism" states that Christ was created by God, and has not always been apart of the God head. Arianism goes against the fact that God (The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit) has always been, will always be, and is never changing (John 1:14, Hebrews 13:8, Revelation 1:8, John 1:1).
We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds (æons), Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
by whom all things were made;
who for us men, and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary, and was made man;
he was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried, and the third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father;
rom thence he shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead;
whose kingdom shall have no end.
And in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of life, who proceedeth from the Father, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.
In one holy catholic and apostolic Church; we acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; we look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
The Chalcedonian Creed, also referred to as the Chalcedonian Definition, was written with the purpose of clarifying the belief that Jesus Christ is both fully God and man. This was to combat the disagreements that some had that Jesus had/has both natures.
Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards his Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards his manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the God-bearer; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of him, and our Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the fathers has handed down to us.
For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. "There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God's one and only Son.
We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.
These are not the only verses that tell us who the church is.
Romans 8:2 and 1 Corinthians 1:10-13 are other passages in the Word that tell us who the church is.
To put it simply, the Church is those who are saved through faith in Jesus Christ.
This means that the Church includes people of any denomination, for it is not denomination that dictates whether one is saved or a member of the Church, but rather faith in Jesus.
The understanding of "who" the church is is a foundational block to all of WDM's curricula. It has been opted to feature this lesson as the first to get us all on the same page. The primary reason for this decision is the biases between some denominations. There are denominations that declare they are the "true Church" and anyone who is not part of said denomination is not saved. According to the Word, this is not the case. People of any denomination can be part of the Church and earthly church leaders do not dictate the Church, but rather faith does.
So while we go through the lengthy history of the Christian Church and its impact, lets keep in mind that one's salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ, not denominational membership.
TheWestminsterStandard. The Chalcedonian Creed – The Westminster Standard. https://thewestminsterstandard.org/the-chalcedonian-creed/. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
See a problem?