Apostles'
creed
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, 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.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic (Universal) Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.
Amen.
What We believe
Scripture
We believe the Old and New Testaments are the inspired and infallible Word of God and the final authority for faith and practice. Scripture governs the doctrine of the Church and serves as the foundation for the life and conduct of mankind (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 2 Peter 1:21).
God
We believe in one eternal God (Deuteronomy 6:4; Psalm 90:2; 1 Timothy 1:17; Revelation 1:8), who exists beyond time as the sovereign Creator and Sustainer of the universe (Genesis 1:1; Colossians 1:16–17; Hebrews 1:3). He is omniscient (Psalm 147:5; Hebrews 4:13), omnipresent (Psalm 139:7–10; Jeremiah 23:23–24), perfectly holy, and perfectly righteous (Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 145:17; Isaiah 6:3; 1 Peter 1:15–16). God eternally exists as one divine Being in three distinct personal realities: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19; 2 Corinthians 13:14).
Jesus Christ
We believe that Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God (John 1:1–3, 14; John 17:5; Colossians 1:15–17; Hebrews 1:1–3), who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:18–23; Luke 1:26–35). Being fully God and fully man, He became flesh to reveal God to humanity and to offer Himself as the perfect and final sacrifice for the sins of the world (John 1:14; Philippians 2:5–8; Hebrews 2:14–17; Hebrews 10:10–14; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 2:2). He was crucified, buried, and bodily raised from the dead on the third day according to the Scriptures (Matthew 28:5–7; Luke 24:6–7; 1 Corinthians 15:3–4). Following His resurrection, He ascended into heaven, where He is seated at the right hand of the Father, reigning with all authority and continually interceding for His people (Matthew 28:18; Mark 16:19; Acts 1:9–11; Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25; Hebrews 10:12; 1 Peter 3:22). Through His sinless life, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection, Jesus Christ is the only Savior and the only way by which sinful humanity can be reconciled to God (John 14:6; Acts 4:12; Romans 5:1–11; 2 Corinthians 5:18–21; 1 Timothy 2:5–6).
The Holy Spirit
We believe the Holy Spirit is fully God and eternally one with the Father and the Son (Matthew 28:19; Acts 5:3–4; 2 Corinthians 13:14). He is actively present in creation, in the life of every believer, and in the Church, convicting the world of sin, glorifying Christ, and empowering God's people for holy living and faithful witness (Genesis 1:2; John 14:16–17, 26; John 15:26; John 16:7–15; Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit indwells every believer, producing spiritual transformation by conforming them to the image of Christ and cultivating the fruit of the Spirit (Romans 8:9–17, 29; 2 Corinthians 3:17–18; Galatians 5:22–23; Titus 3:5–6). He sovereignly distributes spiritual gifts to every believer for the edification, unity, protection, and maturity of the Church and for the advancement of the gospel (Romans 12:4–8; 1 Corinthians 12:4–11; Ephesians 4:11–16; 1 Peter 4:10–11). We believe that every believer has received at least one spiritual gift and is called to faithfully steward each gift in service to the body of Christ and in bearing witness to Jesus Christ (Romans 12:6–8; 1 Corinthians 12:7; Ephesians 4:7; 1 Peter 4:10–11).
Mankind
We believe that humanity was created in the image and likeness of God, uniquely endowed with inherent dignity, value, and worth as the crowning work of His creation (Genesis 1:26–27; Genesis 2:7; Psalm 8:3–8). Humanity was created to know, love, worship, and glorify God by reflecting His righteous character and exercising faithful stewardship over creation (Genesis 1:28; Ecclesiastes 12:13). Through Adam's voluntary disobedience in the Garden of Eden, sin entered the world, bringing guilt, corruption, death, and separation from God to all humanity(Genesis 3:1–24; Romans 5:12–19; 1 Corinthians 15:21–22). As a result, every person is born with a sinful nature and is enslaved to sin, unable apart from God's grace to restore a right relationship with Him (Psalm 51:5; Jeremiah 17:9; John 8:34; Romans 3:10–23; Romans 6:20; Ephesians 2:1–3). Though the image of God in humanity has been marred by sin, it has not been destroyed, and every human being continues to possess inherent dignity while standing in need of redemption through Jesus Christ(Genesis 9:6; Romans 3:23; Colossians 3:10; Ephesians 4:24).
Salvation
We believe that salvation is the gracious work of God, accomplished solely through the person and work of Jesus Christ and received by grace through faith apart from human works (Acts 4:12; Ephesians 2:8–9; Titus 3:5–7). Through His sinless life, sacrificial death, and bodily resurrection, Jesus Christ fully satisfied the penalty for sin, defeated death, and secured eternal redemption for all who believe (Isaiah 53:4–6; 1 Peter 2:24; Romans 4:25; 1 Corinthians 15:3–4; Hebrews 9:26–28). Those who place their faith in Christ are forgiven of their sins, justified before God, reconciled to the Father, and clothed in the righteousness of Christ (Romans 3:21–26; Romans 5:1; Romans 8:1; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Colossians 1:21–22). By the power of the Holy Spirit, believers are born again, adopted into the family of God, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and sealed as God’s own possession with the assurance of an eternal inheritance (John 1:12–13; John 3:3–8; Romans 8:14–17; Galatians 4:4–7; 1 Corinthians 6:19–20; Ephesians 1:13–14; 1 Peter 1:3–5). Believers are made new creations in Christ and are progressively transformed into His image through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:18; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Romans 8:29; Colossians 3:9–10). The inward assurance of salvation is given through the witness of the Holy Spirit, while the outward evidence of genuine faith is demonstrated by a life marked by obedience to Christ and the fruit of the Spirit (Romans 8:16; Galatians 5:22–23; James 2:17–18; 1 John 2:3–6).
Baptism
We believe that all who repent of their sins and place their faith in Jesus Christ are commanded to be baptized by full immersion in water as an act of obedience to Christ and a public profession of their faith (Matthew 28:19–20; Mark 16:16). Water baptism symbolizes the believer’s union with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection, declaring that the old life has passed away and that the believer has been raised to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:3–5; Colossians 2:12; Galatians 3:27). Following the pattern established by the apostles in the Book of Acts, we invoke the name [authority, character, and reputation] of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38; Acts 8:16; Acts 10:48; Acts 19:5), confessing that Jesus Christ alone is the means by which humanity is reconciled to the Father and brought into fellowship with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19, c.f. Ephesians 2:18; 2 Corinthians 13:14).
The Church
We believe the Church is the body of Christ, composed of all who have been redeemed through faith in Jesus Christ and united by the Holy Spirit into one spiritual body (1 Corinthians 12:12–13, 27; Ephesians 1:22–23; Ephesians 2:19–22). Christ is the head of the Church, which exists to glorify God through worship, the proclamation of the gospel, the making of disciples, and the mutual edification of believers (Matthew 28:18–20; Acts 1:8; Colossians 1:18; John 4:23–24; Hebrews 10:24–25). As Christ’s ambassadors, the Church is called to proclaim the gospel to all nations, make disciples, care for one another, and demonstrate the love of Christ through faithful obedience and compassionate service—demonstrating the harmony, love, and justice God originally planned for creation from the beginning (Matthew 5:13–16; Matthew 28:18–20; John 13:34–35; 2 Corinthians 5:18–20).