There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, in all, and living through all.

-Ephesians 4:4-6 (NLT)

Essential beliefs are non-negotiable and unmoving. They are the basic elements that make up and characterize our faith. Historically, these beliefs have been summarized in formal statements known as creeds. Many early church leaders did this in order to express and articulate their faith.

Two of the most popular creeds are The Apostle’s Creed & The Nicene Creed.

👉 The Apostle’s Creed (Contemporary)

I believe in God, the Father almighty,

creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.

He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit

and born of the Virgin Mary.

He 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,

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He 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.

👉 The Nicene Creed

We believe in one God,

the Father, the Almighty,

maker of heaven and earth,

of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God,

begotten, not made,

of one being with the Father;

through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation

he came down from heaven:

was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary,

and became truly human.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered death and was buried.

On the third day he rose again

in accordance with the Scriptures;

he ascended into heaven

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father [and the Son],

who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified,

who has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic* and apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look for the resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Welcome with open arms fellow believers who don’t see things the way you do. And don’t jump all over them every time they do or say something you don’t agree with- even when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently.

-Romans 14:1 (MSG)

We value intellectual honesty, which means there will naturally be some disagreement over issues we refer to as non-essential beliefs. These are beliefs that the Bible is silent on or is unclear about. They include the age of the earth, political views, gender roles, end times theology, consumption of alcohol or tobacco, and infant vs. adult baptism.

If the Bible is unclear as to what Christians should believe about a particular subject, we consider it non-essential and are comfortable with people having different views.

If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

-1 Corinthians 13:1 (NLT)

All of us come from different backgrounds and cultures where we have developed certain beliefs or become accustomed to a way of thinking. These are called preferences.

At Great Lakes Church, there are many things that we do in a certain way because we think it’s good or efficient, or we just like it like that. This includes the color we paint our walls, the type of music we choose and the way we structure our weekly services. Every church is filled with people who sacrifice their preferences for the greater mission, and Great Lakes Church is no exception.

The person sitting next to you may be dressed differently, sing loudly as they lift their hands to the sky, or not sing at all. At Great Lakes Church, that’s not important. What is important is that we are all committed to showing love and grace to each other.