Our Heritage of Faith
Through the unsurpassed grace of God, the Global Methodist Church professes the revelation of God through the call of Abraham and the Hebrew people, culminating in the confession of Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God, the resurrected Lord of heaven and earth. This confession, expressed by Simon Peter in Matthew 16:16 and Acts 2:36, is foundational. It declares Jesus is the unique incarnate Word of God, and He lives today, calling all to receive him as Savior, and as the one to whom all authority has been given.
This faith has been tested and proved since its proclamation by the women at the empty tomb, Mary Magdalene among them, the first witnesses to the resurrection. It was taught by the apostles and defended by the women and men of the early church, many of whom gave their lives as testimony. Their labor, enabled and inspired by the Holy Spirit, resulted in the canon of Scripture as the sufficient rule for both faith and practice (the Greek word kanon means rule). The church formulated creeds such as the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed and the Chalcedonian definition as accurate expressions of this faith. (GMC Book of Doctrines and Disciplines, pg. 8)
Apostles' Creed (Second Century A.D.)
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,
Is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and 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.
* universal
(The Apostles’ Creed is the oldest statement of faith within the Christian Church, stemming from an older Roman Creed that was in use in the second century, with the earliest written form of this creed found in a letter dated about 341 A.D. It has been employed by the church throughout her rich history for doctrinal clarity and for the lively confession of faith in preparation for the sacrament of baptism.)