At FBC Bagdad, we believe all our teaching should come from God’s inspired Word. To help systematically teach God’s word, we use creeds, catechisms, and confessions. Here are a few important documents we believe are tremendously helpful for teaching God’s Word to God’s people.
Creeds
- The Apostles’ Creed
- The Nicene Creed
- The Athanasian 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
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 christian1 church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
We believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
begotten from the Father before all ages,
God from God,
Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made;
of the same essence as the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven;
he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary,
and was made human.
He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered and was buried.
The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures.
He ascended to heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again with glory
to judge the living and the dead.
His kingdom will never end.
And we believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life.
He proceeds from the Father and the Son,
and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified.
He spoke through the prophets.
We believe in one holy christian1 and apostolic church.
We affirm one baptism and the forgiveness of sins.2
We look forward to the resurrection of the dead,
and to life in the world to come. Amen.
Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the christian1 faith;
Which faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish everlastingly.
And the christian1 faith is this:
That we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity;
Neither confounding the persons nor dividing the substance.
For there is one person of the Father,
another of the Son,
and another of the Holy Spirit.
But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit is all one,
the glory equal, the majesty coeternal.
Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit.
The Father uncreated,
the Son uncreated,
and the Holy Spirit uncreated.
The Father incomprehensible,
the Son incomprehensible,
and the Holy Spirit incomprehensible.
The Father eternal,
the Son eternal,
and the Holy Spirit eternal.
And yet they are not three eternals but one eternal.
As also there are not three uncreated nor three incomprehensible,
but one uncreated and one incomprehensible.
So likewise the Father is almighty,
the Son almighty,
and the Holy Spirit almighty.
And yet they are not three almighties, but one almighty.
So the Father is God,
the Son is God,
and the Holy Spirit is God;
And yet they are not three Gods, but one God.
So likewise the Father is Lord,
the Son Lord,
and the Holy Spirit Lord;
And yet they are not three Lords but one Lord.
For like as we are compelled by the Christian verity3 to acknowledge every Person by himself to be God and Lord;
So are we forbidden by the christian1 religion to say;
There are three Gods or three Lords.
The Father is made of none,
neither created nor begotten.
The Son is of the Father alone;
not made nor created, but begotten.
The Holy Spirit is of the Father and of the Son;
neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but proceeding.
So there is one Father, not three Fathers;
one Son, not three Sons;
one Holy Spirit, not three Holy Spirits.
And in this Trinity none is afore or after another;
none is greater or less than another.
But the whole three persons are coeternal, and coequal.
So that in all things, as aforesaid, the Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity is to be worshipped.
He therefore that will be saved must thus think of the Trinity.
Furthermore it is necessary to everlasting salvation that he also believe rightly the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and man.
God of the substance of the Father,
begotten before the worlds;
and man of substance of His mother,
born in the world.
Perfect God and perfect man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting.
Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, and inferior to the Father as touching His manhood.
Who, although He is God and man, yet He is not two, but one Christ.
One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh,
but by taking of that manhood into God.
One altogether,
not by confusion of substance,
but by unity of person.
For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man,
so God and man is one Christ;
Who suffered for our salvation,
descended into hell,
rose again the third day from the dead;
He ascended into heaven,
He sits on the right hand of the Father, God, Almighty;
From thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
At whose coming all men shall rise again with their bodies;
and shall give account of their own works.
And they that have done good shall go into life everlasting
and they that have done evil into everlasting fire.
This is the christian1 faith, which except a man believe faithfully he cannot be saved.
Catechisms
At FBC Bagdad, we remind ourselves of foundational truths of scripture through the use of catechisms. During our Sunday school hour we regularly recite from Spurgeon’s Catechism. Within these 82 questions, we find much of the fundamentals of the Christian faith highlighted. By regularly reminding ourselves of these truths, we may guard ourselves from interpreting the Holy Scriptures according to the times and refocus ourselves upon the proofs documented within this short but helpful teaching aid.
For those new to using a catechism, we wholeheartedly recommend A Catechism for Boys and Girls, adapted from the Baptist Catechism by Erroll Hulse, as a more approachable and digestible alternative, especially for family worship with young children. Simple statements affirm God’s creation, help to understand sin, highlight the necessity of salvation, and exhort young minds to greater knowledge of the Scriptures.
‘“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. ‘
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (ESV)
Confessions
Modern Baptists tend to be “non-creedal” in favor of upholding the Bible alone. At FBC Bagdad, we believe the Bible is the sole source of authoritative truth. Yet, we find confessions (or statements of faith) to be a helpful tool to guide our membership in understanding what the Bible teaches on a wide variety of subjects while also being organized in a systematic way. And while they may not be perfect, they are a wonderful defense against the false teachers we are warned to keep watch for all throughout the Scriptures.
FBC Bagdad is a Reformed Baptist Church and affirms the Second London Baptist Confession. While this confession is substantially aligned with the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Second London Baptist Confession represents FBC Bagdad’s practice of credobaptism and congregational church government. This time-tested confession of the faith is a tool used in the education of FBC Bagdad to ensure our teaching is in alignment with the Scriptures, the historic church, and the many brothers and sisters around the world seeking to worship God in Spirit and in truth.
FBC Bagdad is a Southern Baptist Church and affirms the Baptist Faith and Message (2000). The Baptist Faith and Message seeks to honor the confessional roots of our denomination while also updating our language to address pervasive issues in our culture, including anti-supernaturalism, Biblical inerrancy, and scriptural teachings on the family (Baptist Faith and Message Preamble). This confession seeks not to be a comprehensive and final summary of every topic addressed, but to guide the reader toward the Scripture that has informed each and every article.
‘Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you. ‘
2 Timothy 1:13-14 (ESV)
- For modern clarity, we have replaced the word “catholic” with the word “christian.” In both cases we recognize there is one true universal church of God comprised of all who have been saved in the name of Jesus Christ. ↩︎
- The original text of the Nicene creed states, “We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins;” a direct reference to Acts 2:38 and Ephesians 4:4-6. This slight change is intended to preserve the original meaning while carefully acknowledging false teachings of baptismal regeneration or baptism as a saving work as opposed to a commanded ordinance of God’s people. ↩︎
- Verity – A true belief or principle. ↩︎
