We Believe

"Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father..." 1 Peter 1:1-2 (written in approximately AD 60-65, around 30 years after Jesus' death and resurrection.)

As followers of Christ increased in number, the governments got nervous. They feared a movement that might possibly attempt an overthrow.  So they started sending Christians into other parts of the world, hoping to divide and conquer.  But, in one of the biggest backfires known to man, this Dispersion, as it's known, caused an EXPLOSION of Christianity in places it might never have spread otherwise.  Followers of The Way traveled far from home;  they took God's Word with them and it was contagious.  In 1 Peter, the exiles are approximately 540 miles from Jerusalem, in what is modern day Turkey.  Even as the Gospel spread, the Christians faced persecution. God, in His Great Knowledge, was not caught off-guard by any of this.  It was all according to His will, that more people might know Him through His Son, Christ Jesus.  

But, as always, there are those with their own agendas.  False prophets popped up among the exiles, just as they do now.  Less than 300 years after Peter wrote to the homeless church, a controversy started in Nicaea, which is in Bithynia. (1 Peter 1:2)  Arius was teaching against the divinity of Jesus.  He and his boss, the bishop Alexander, could not come to an agreement. Because the "church" was in exile, there was confusion in who to believe.  It was easy to believe any new thing that blew through town.  

So Constantine, the Roman emperor who legalized Christianity and allowed for freedom of worship throughout the empire, assembled a council of bishops to address the division.  He told them to come up with a "creed" that all of Christianity could agree on.  They didn't have the completed Word of God yet, so they needed something to unite them.  

Our churches today are in a form of exile.  We've been sent from meeting in buildings to meeting from home.  Most churches have moved to online services, and we've been given the opportunity to listen to sermons we might not have had the chance to hear otherwise.  But, just as the early church faced, that opens the door to possible false prophets.  No doubt there are people who are using this time of dispersion for their own agenda.  So, fellow Christians, we need to know what we believe.  Just like our brothers and sisters in Christ almost 2000 years ago, we need to know when a line is crooked.  We can only know that if we know what's straight.  So here is the Nicene creed, adopted in 325 by the council of Nicaea, under the order of a Roman emperor who not only declared Christianity legal, he eventually converted to Christianity on his deathbed.  It's still widely used in churches across denominations.  Let's say it together--

The Nicene Creed

Disclaimer--Reciting the words of this or any other creed does not save you.  A creed is merely a recitation of a faith and allegiance already in existence.  If you'd like to know how to have a personal relationship with Christ Jesus, please reach out to me, or anyone you trust to tell you the truth of God's Word.