What We Believe
The Foundation of our Beliefs
The bylaws of the First Baptist Church of Morehead, Kentucky affirm the following:
The Greatest Commandment
(i) Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and (ii) love your neighbor as yourself.
The Scriptures
The Holy Bible is divinely inspired by God and is the foundation of our beliefs.
The Church
We voluntarily band ourselves together as a body of baptized followers of Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, and commit to sharing his Good News of God’s grace for all.
What does it mean to be Baptist?
Our church comes from the Baptist tradition. That mainly means we don’t have a single boss or headquarters telling every church what to do (there’s no Baptist “Pope”). Instead, Baptist churches are guided by a few core freedoms that shape how we believe and how we make decisions.
1) Bible Freedom
We believe the Bible matters. Each Christian is encouraged to read Scripture, learn it, and follow it—trusting the Holy Spirit to guide them. We also believe we do this best together, with the church helping one another grow in understanding.
2) Soul Freedom
Each person is responsible to God for their own faith. No one can believe for you—not a pastor, not a church, not the government. This is sometimes called the “priesthood of all believers,” meaning every Christian has direct access to God.
3) Church Freedom
Each Baptist church governs itself under Jesus Christ. Our congregation makes decisions about membership, leaders, beliefs, and how we live out our mission. We can also choose to partner with other churches for work we can do better together.
4) Religious Freedom
We believe everyone should have the right to worship (or not worship) without the government forcing or controlling religion. Real faith can’t be forced. Religious freedom protects people of every faith—and people with no faith—so everyone’s conscience is respected.
The Creeds of the Christian Tradition
Baptists aren’t always known as lovers of creeds. Throughout our history, we’ve tended to emphasize the authority of Scripture itself rather than requiring formal confessions for church membership. In that same spirit, First Baptist does not ask new members to recite or officially affirm any creed in order to belong.
At the same time, we also recognize that the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed are rich, time-tested summaries of the Christian faith that have shaped the Church for centuries. These two confessions are embraced across many Christian traditions, and most members and regular attenders of First Baptist would gladly affirm the truths they proclaim. They help us stand in line with the great cloud of witnesses who have confessed Jesus Christ as Lord throughout the ages.
As you read them, you’ll notice the phrase “the holy catholic Church.” In these historic creeds, “catholic” simply means “universal”—the whole, worldwide body of Christ—and does not refer to the Roman Catholic Church.
We offer these creeds not as requirements, but as beautiful expressions of the faith Christians have cherished for generations, and as reminders that we are part of something larger, older, and deeper than ourselves.
The Nicene Creed
I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
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.
I 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 adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
The Apostles’ Creed
I believe in God,
the Father almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth,
and 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 into hell;
on the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into 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 catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.
Amen.