The Four Cs Part 3 – The Apostles’ Creed

The Four Cs of Doctrinal History Series

The foundational creed of Christianity is the Apostles’ Creed. Respected church historian Philip Schaff writes in his book The Creeds of Christendom, “As the Lord’s Prayer is the Prayer of prayers, the Decalogue the Law of laws, so the Apostles’ Creed is the Creed of creeds.”¹

The Old Roman Form

The creed has two basic forms. “The Old Roman Form” probably dates to the middle of the second century, and reads as follows:

I believe in God the Father Almighty.
And in Jesus Christ His only (begotten) Son our Lord;
Who was born of the Holy Ghost and the Virgin Mary;
Crucified under Pontius Pilate, and buried;
The third day He rose from the dead;
He ascended into heaven; And sitteth at the right hand of the Father,
From thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
And in the Holy Ghost;
the holy Church;
the forgiveness of sins;
the resurrection of the body;
(the life everlasting).
Amen.

Contrary to its name, the creed was not written by the Apostles themselves. However, everything written in it reflects apostolic teaching, and therefore can rightly be called the Apostles’ Creed.

This form of the creed may have stemmed from an early baptismal formula used when new converts were baptized. Early confessions regarding Jesus Christ are thought to be added to by the early church and eventually known by the term “The Rule of Faith. Early church Fathers such as Irenaeus and Tertullian² speak of this Rule of Faith as being present and key to early Christian orthodoxy.

The Received Form

The longer version of this creed, and the one that is most commonly used today, is called “The Received Form.” The following is how it reads, with the additions to the Roman Form being underlined:

I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth;
And in Jesus Christ His only begotten Son our Lord;
Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary;
Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into hell.
The third day He rose 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.

The origins of this version are more obscure, but one source writes, “Its present form is believed to have originated in Gaul (modern day France) during the fifth century.”³

Most likely, what happened was that the early Roman form was the standard, but that various phrases were added or changed slightly to meet the apologetic need of the day.

There are a couple of words that are worth explaining so that modern Christians do not think wrongly about them.

The phrase “descended into hell” was meant to depict the real death of Christ. Perhaps based on a difficult text of 1 Peter 3:19 where the Greek word for “hell” is the word Hades, which simply means the realm of the dead, or the grave. In other words, do not think that this use of the word “hell” refers to the Lake of Fire. It would be perhaps clearer in our time to say that he “went to the realm of the dead” or “went to the grave.”

The other phrase that sometimes concerns people is “the holy, catholic church.” This should not be thought of as the Roman Catholic Church, as there was formally no such thing until the eleventh century. The word “catholic” simply means “universal,” or “of the whole.” We could easily clarify this phrase by saying, “one holy universal church” or “one holy Christian church” and be true to the intention.

Structure and Theology of the Creed

The Creed has a Trinitarian Structure. It begins with a brief treatment of God the Father, then progresses to a lengthy treatment of God the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. A very brief treatment of the Holy Spirit and subsequent effects of the Spirit in the life of the believer conclude the creed. Perhaps this form is based on the trinitarian words of Jesus in the Great Commission, “baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

Value of the Apostles’ Creed

1. First, it has a unifying value. This creed is the foundational creed of all creeds. As such it is universally supported by both the Roman Catholic church and Protestant churches in the West. Every orthodox Christian should be able to quote this creed without hesitation, confusion, or theological compromise.
2. Second, it has a clarifying value. It helps to clarify orthodoxy from heterodoxy. Early on, it became a succinct standard, or rule, used to help identify and clarify orthodox teaching and therefore discern heresy.
3. Third, it has an educational value. This simple and relatively short creed has been memorized by countless children and believers as a means of teaching them the basic orthodox Christian truth. It has also been used as a basis for structuring several catechisms. But even just the personal memorization of it can be very helpful.
4. Fourth, it has an apologetic value. Various phrases were probably inserted because of heresies that were creeping in.
5. Fifth, there is liturgical value. There is value in having this creed be a part of a worship service. It is similar in function to hymns which affirm doctrinal truth. This creed can be used as a means of affirming our faith together.
6. Sixth, it has historical value. This creed is historically significant because of its believed age. It is the earliest creed, but it already stands out in its Old Roman form in what it teaches about the Trinity and the person and work of Jesus Christ, which are foundational doctrines of the Scripture and the gospel.

The Apostles’ Creed should be held in high esteem by conservative Christians still today. It is an early articulation of the orthodox Christian faith that has been passed down and delivered to the saints. May we appreciate it more than we currently do.

The Four Cs of Doctrinal History Series:

• Part 1: Introducing the Four “Cs” of Doctrinal History – Proclaim & Defend
• Part 2: The Origins, Division, and Authority of the Four Cs of Doctrinal History – Proclaim & Defend

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Taigen Joos is the pastor of Heritage Baptist Church in Dover, NH. Taigen’s article puts into writing a lesson he taught on Jan 26, 2025. The audio is available here.

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Photo by Leo Reynolds License: CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

1. Phillip Schaff, The Creeds of Christendom (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1993), I:14. [↩]
2. “The History and Authority of the Apostles Creed.” Accessed 04/11/2025 [↩]
3. Ligonier Ministries. We Believe (Sanford, FL: Ligonier Ministries, 2023), 5. [↩]