Day 10: The Folly of “No Creed but Christ”

Scripture Reading:

“Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you exhorting that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.” – Jude 3, LSB

The cry of “No creed but Christ” may sound spiritual, but it is misleading and harmful. It suggests that doctrine divides and that loyalty to Christ alone is all that matters. But Scripture shows us that we cannot honor Christ without holding fast to the doctrine He gave us.

Jude urges believers to “contend earnestly for the faith once for all delivered to the saints.” Notice that he does not say “contend for feelings” or “contend for personal experiences.” He calls us to contend for the faith—a definite body of truth revealed by God and entrusted to the church. This is doctrine.

John Calvin observed, “Doctrine is not an affair of the tongue, but of the life” (Institutes, 3.6.4). To claim Christ while rejecting doctrine is to claim a Christ of our own imagination. R.C. Sproul warned, “A creedless Christianity is a creed in itself, and usually a very poor one” (Essential Truths of the Christian Faith, p. 5). To say “No creed but Christ” is itself a creed—and it denies the necessity of truth.

Creeds and confessions do not replace Scripture. Instead, they summarize and safeguard its truth. When the early church battled heresies about the deity of Christ, the Nicene Creed upheld the biblical teaching that Jesus is truly God. When the Reformers confronted corruption in Rome, they confessed justification by faith alone in documents like the Augsburg Confession and the Westminster Confession. These creeds protected the church by proclaiming what Scripture teaches.

The danger of rejecting doctrine is that it leaves the church vulnerable to error. Without creeds, every person becomes their own authority. This was Israel’s error in the time of the judges: “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). The result was confusion and chaos. Sound doctrine, expressed in faithful confessions, keeps us united in truth.

Dr. Joel Beeke explains, “Confessions are the church’s public witness to the world and her bulwark against error” (Living for God’s Glory, p. 78). To despise creeds is to despise the wisdom God has given His church throughout history.

Beloved, “No creed but Christ” is folly. The Christ we confess is the Christ revealed in Scripture, and that truth must be defended, proclaimed, and cherished. To love Christ is to love the doctrine about Christ. To reject doctrine is not humility but rebellion. Let us instead contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints, holding fast to sound doctrine for the glory of Christ and the protection of His church.

Personal Reflection

1. Why is the statement “No creed but Christ” appealing to some people today?

2. How does Jude 3 show that doctrine is a defined body of truth?

3. What role have creeds and confessions played in protecting the church throughout history?

4. How can your church use faithful confessions to strengthen unity and guard against error?