Review: The Nicene Creed: Why You Need To Know About The Most Important Creed Ever Written By Kevin DeYoung

by on October 9, 2025 | Comment

This year, 2025, marks the 1700th anniversary of the Nicene Creed, which is the whole Christian church’s most foundational statement about the Trinity. Protestants (of the sound varieties), Roman Catholics, and the Eastern Orthodox all share agreement that the doctrines coming from Nicaea are non-negotiable aspects of confessing who the true God is. In that respect, every Christian needs to know something about the Nicene Creed.

Kevin DeYoung has mastered the craft of distilling top-shelf, complicated doctrine into simple, digestible form for ordinary Christians to process. In his little book on the Nicene Creed, DeYoung puts those skills on full display as he walks readers through key features of this classic statement of belief in the Trinity. This book is easy to read, accessible, and also deep in how it brings us to a better understanding of Nicene teaching. It is also a very manageable read; some will likely be able to handle it in one sitting.

The key feature of this book is its focus on the truths that the Nicene Creed distinctly propounds. In that respect, it does not give a line-by-line exposition of this Creed. Rather, it reflects upon each major section to show how the Nicene Creed made new contributions to the church’s understanding of Scripture’s teaching about God and his works. In some ways, it gives less attention to what we might take for granted from the Apostles’ Creed and instead explains how this Nicene formula expands and deepens what we confess as a church in that short statement. Rather than taking us through each point from scratch, DeYoung shows us what the Nicene Creed distinctly adds to our understanding of the Christian faith.

Another strength in this point is the book’s historical awareness. I was impressed with DeYoung’s take on how Christianity’s creedal posture contrasted with the religious defaults of the Roman Empire. In Rome, religion was political. The practices of pluralist paganism were part of participation in the wider society. Religion had a social function of holding culture in place and solidifying certain values and practices.

By contrast, Christianity emphasized and emphasizes what we believe. We are concerned with doctrine and with instructing disciples in the faith. Theology is a key part of growing as a Christian. Our faith is not focused on gluing a society together or on providing a nexus for political agreement. Rather, we want people to know God, to know what he has done in Christ, and to relate to him as he has provided the ordinary means of grace in the church.

Another aspect of this book’s historical awareness concerned the development of the Nicene Creed itself. The original Nicene Creed was finished in 325 AD at the Council of Nicaea. After several more debates arose in intervening years, the Council of Constantinople expanded the Nicene Creed in 381 AD. The final version we tend to confess in our churches is technically the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. That title being a mouthful, we usually just keep the shorthand “Nicene Creed” as a way to refer to the final version of this confession of Trinitarian faith.

DeYoung keeps up with the various ways this later revision modified the original Creed and walks us through the debates and issues involved in those changes. At the same time, with his usual style, he keeps us from getting lost in the weeds of historical intricacy. Even for seasoned students of the history of the creeds and Trinitarian debates, DeYoung’s book provides very helpful ways of capturing the main contours in incredibly succinct fashion. As he elaborates on those areas of revision and expansion, he helps us to see what the Creed was concerned to uphold and why it is still important for us today.

Accordingly, DeYoung also gave right emphasis to the doctrine of the church in the Nicene Creed. The closing statements that address how the Spirit creates the church were not included in the original 325 version of the Creed and are the Creed’s most extensive changes. DeYoung marks how this expanded section teaches us that a true Trinitarian faith cannot lose sight of the church as the place where God works upon and among his people.

Further, DeYoung may also have the best treatment of the Nicene Creed’s statement on baptism that I have seen. Although brief, he examines some of the issues of translation and provides a rationale that ought to relieve any concerns and also help people rejoice at what it means to be baptized into God’s triune name.

Kevin DeYoung’s little book on the Nicene Creed is a great way to find out what is special about this essential statement of Christian faith. It is clear, rich, and practical as it brings theology to bear upon the heart. If you have never studied the Nicene Creed before, this book is certainly the place to start. If you have, it is a great reminder of why you should help first-time students dive into it.

©Harrison Perkins. All Rights Reserved.

Kevin DeYoung, The Nicene Creed: Why You Need to Know about the Most Important Creed Ever Written (Crossway, 2025).

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