'This Is What I Believe' Complete Lyrics Guide: Full Verses, Chorus, Meaning, and Faqs

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The song mirrors the three-part Trinitarian architecture common to both the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed (promulgated in 325 AD and expanded in 381 AD). Rather than poetic metaphor, each stanza serves as dogmatic confession.

Verse 1 establishes God the Father as sovereign Creator ("The all creating One, God Almighty") before addressing the Incarnation. The line "Through Your Holy Spirit, conceiving Christ the Son" directly quotes the Latin phrase conceptus de Spiritu Sancto, defending the orthodox doctrine of Christ's dual nature: fully human through Mary, fully divine through the Holy Spirit.

Verse 2 deals with the atonement and Christology. The text highlights Christ's role as both "Judge and our Defender," balancing holy justice with merciful advocacy. The phrase "Descended into darkness" reflects the contentious clause in the Apostles' Creed, descendit ad inferos ("He descended into hell" or "the realm of the dead"). Instead of engaging in sectarian debates about the nature of the harrowing of hell, the lyric frames this descent as Christ's complete entry into human death before His decisive bodily resurrection.

The Outro incorporates the ecclesiological portions of the creed: affirming the "saints' communion" (the spiritual unity of all believers across time) and the "holy Church" (the universal body of Christ, rather than a single earthly denomination). By preserving these historic tenets, the song operates as sung catechesis for younger churchgoers who may rarely encounter classical liturgies.