The Apostles Creed | God The Father Almighty
I believe in God, the Father, Almighty
Ultimately, the Apostle’s Creed comes down to the basic question of “What do you believe?” For the Christian, we must always begin with the confession that we believe in God. While for those of us who have been raised in the church, this claim may not seem to be that radical, the belief of God remains a highly divisive topic. The belief in God, no less the God of the Bible would mean that we allow the other false gods of our life to diminish in the presence of the one true God. The Apostle’s Creed then does not teach any form of self-reliance or any kind of self-help structure. Rather, we believe in God who is greater and beyond ourselves while simultaneously being approaching as a loving parent. To say “I believe in God, the Father Almighty” involves the willful setting aside of our own ego to live for something beyond ourselves but to live for something that invites us to live in deep relationship with that same God.
A Belief in Something Greater Than Ourselves
One of the problems in modern day society comes in the form that We have created idols throughout every aspect of our lives. In fact, it was John Calvin who stated that the hearts of mankind are “idol making factories.” Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesians says “There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” (Ephesians 4:4-6 ESV) God, being above all things stands reigning over creation. There is, in some aspects, an unapproachability of God who is both far off and holy (simply meaning set apart). While God certainly is approachable, a topic which not even the creeds gloss over, we must be careful in our understanding and communication of who our God is to not neglect the holiness of far off nature of God. From the very beginning, mankind could only be in the presence of God because God desired to be in the presence of man. Furthermore, the separation of mankind and God by the introduction of sin left mankind unable to breech the gap and distance between us and our divine creator. It is only through grace that we can bear the presence of God who draws us to Himself first. He is God over all creation, above all and through all.
But not only do we believe that God exists and reigns over all humanity but that this same God is an Almighty God. When we see the reality of our God through His mighty works, we cannot help but proclaim that our God is an Almighty God able to rule and reign over all creation with all ability, all knowledge, at al times. “Therefore David blessed the Lord in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all.” (1 Chronicles 29:10-11 ESV) We believe in the greatness of our God. No one can stand against our God who conquers all things according to His plans and for His glory. To believe in the God of the Bible is to believe in a highly capable and perfect who is unchanging in all He is and immutable in what He is doing. Christians do not believe in a small God but in a God that can rightfully and expertly rule over all aspects of mankind by His sovereign rule that extends over all creation and to the heavenly realms.
A Familial God
Yet, we cannot overlook the statement that God is our Father. There are so many different titles that God could rightfully claim. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords (1 Timothy 6:15). He is the sovereign God over all creation. God is seated on the throne room of God as a high above God who will reign forevermore through all eternity. Yet, the title we are told to approach God with, without releasing the other, is the title of Father. “Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.” (Matthew 6:9, ESV) When we approach God in prayer, we are to do so as a child would approach his Father, no as a vassal would approach a ruthless and cold leader. Our invitation to the follow Jesus Christ comes with an invitation to join the family of God, unified by our identification with Jesus Christ. It goes beyond approaching the King as merely being servants to God, although that would be a blessing unto itself to serve a benevolent God. We become heirs and co-heirs with Jesus Christ with the Father as our heavenly and eternal father.
When God acts as our Father, we can approach God with the same reckless abandonment as a child does to a Father. While we should never give up the idea that God the Father is the High King of Heaven, ruler of heaven and earth, we have the honor of approaching this sovereign Lord as our Father. In truth, God’s works reveal that he eagerly wants to care for us, train us up to be the men and women He created us to be and delight in our submission to His will as a means of worshipping the Lord. Our relationship with God is not a transactional relationship with God but rather one that is foundered upon grace with God the Father wanting us to know Him. Even if our earthly Fathers were absent, abusive or any other abhorrent action, God as our Father is the perfect Father and the standard by which all other should be judged. This Almighty God, for however far off He mat seem to us at the time draws us closer to Himself and brings us into the family of God.
