Re: The Early Christians: Creed, Confession and Scripture

I believe in one God,
The Father almighty
And in his only begotten son
Jesus Christ, our Lord,
And in the Holy Spirit,
Giver of new life,
And in the resurrection of the flesh,
And in one only, apostolic, holy church everywhere,
Which is his church.

Earliest Coptic baptismal formula 
(still shorter in several other Egyptian texts).

We confess our faith:
In the Father, the ruler of the whole world,
And in Jesus Christ, our savior,
And in the Holy Spirit, the representative advocate,
And in the holy church,
And in the forgiveness of sins.

The Epistle of the Apostles 3-5; ca. A.D. 150-180 

> What did the first Christians believe? Despite the diversity that
> marked the early church, and despite the lack (at that time) of a New
> Testament canon, there emerged a basic common confession of faith in
> "one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one
> God and Father of all..." (Eph. 4:4-6). In our day, formalized
> expressions of religion are often looked at askance. To early
> believers, however, the "rule of faith" was regarded as a yardstick by
> which to measure and shape all thinking and conduct. Embraced by
> recent converts, it bespoke apostolic authority and thus illuminated
> their search to understand - and promulgate - the new faith.
>