...from the desk of Rande Wayne Smith D.Min., Th.M., M.Div.

The Apostles’ Creed - 2

... IN GOD THE FATHER ALMIGHTY

Jeremiah 9:23-24
“The wise should not boast of their wisdom, nor the strong of their strength, nor the rich of their wealth. If any want to boast, they should boast that they know and understand me.”

May the Lord grant that we may engage in contemplating the mysteries of His Heavenly wisdom with really increasing devotion to His glory and our edification.  Amen.

She arrived in class wearing a diamond ring. R.C. Sproul, who was a college professor at the time, looked at her and asked, “So Mary, did you just get engaged?” And Mary turned to John, who was seated at the desk adjacent her, and got this big cheesy grin on her face, and nodded her head “yeah.” And R.C. Sproul, who is not only the greatest living theologian, in my opinion, but also a big tease, asked, “So why do you love John?” She thought about it for a moment, “Well, I love John because he’s so handsome.” She looked at John and smiled. R.C. said, “Well, what about Bill over there? Bill was elected to escort the campus queen. Isn’t he handsome?”

Mary looked and acknowledged, “Yeah, he is. But John is so intelligent.” R.C. says, “Bill is the President of the National Honor Society.” She said, “But John is an athlete.” “Bill lettered in 3 sports.” “John is a gentleman.” “Are you suggesting that Bill is rude?”

The rest of the class was really enjoying this. Mary started fidgeting. And finally Sproul gives it one last shot. “Tell the class, Mary, what one single characteristic most attracted you to John? Why do you love him?” She said … “I love John because he’s so, he’s so, he’s so, he’s so John.”

I love John because he’s so John … we need to understand what she’s saying has nothing to do with the name on a birth certificate. When Mary says, “I love John because he’s so John,” what she means is John, the name, sort of summarizes everything he is. It provides a context for the whole relationship that she has with John.

God’s name similarly, or I should say, God’s names, because He has many names in Scripture, reveal to us so much of who He is. God’s names tell us something about the relationship that He invites us to enjoy with Himself.

We’re in the second week of our series on The Apostles’ Creed, which is a summary of what the Scriptures teach us about God. Followers of Jesus have been reciting The Apostles’ Creed for over 1,600 years. Last week we began with the opening phrase “I believe.” This week we’re going to look at the rest of the sentence, “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.” There’s so much to learn about God through these 3 names … Father, Almighty, Maker.

Now you probably know that those aren’t the only names by which God goes in Scripture. He’s called the Bread of life, Bright morning star, Faithful and True, High Priest, Immanuel, Life-giving water, Light of the world, Lord of lords, Reaper, Redeemer, Refiner, Refuge, Unchanging, Warrior, Wonderful; and I’m just beginning. (I’ve put a list out on the information table of many of the names of God in Scripture. So if you’re tired of your prayers beginning simply “dear God” … and want to fill it out a bit more, if you want to know this God in greater depth pick up the list and keep it with your Bible.) I was reading this past week, “a flea could wade in the depth of knowledge about God that’s in the mind of the average Christian.” Is that true? Is our knowledge about God embarrassingly shallow?

Now we know a lot about a lot of things. We know a lot about golf. We know how to read a green, we know how to straighten out a slice, we know which club to use from which distance … how does that compare with knowing God?

We know a lot about gardening. We know a lot about computers. We know a lot about the latest movies. We know a lot about the Bears and Cubs and White Sox. We know a lot about gourmet food, and auto mechanics, and investments, and so on. We know a lot about a lot of stuff. But if we aren’t avidly pursuing a knowledge of God, if we aren’t learning as much about God as we possibly can … we’re foolishly wasting our lives. What could possibly be more important than knowing God?

The Lord Himself puts it this way through the prophet Jeremiah. “The wise should not boast of their wisdom, nor the strong of their strength, nor the rich of their wealth. If any want to boast, they should boast that they know and understand me.”

“If you want to boast about something,” God says, “then boast about how well you know me.” One of the coolest things about the Men’s Monday Evening Bible Study for me is here is a group of men who are actively pursuing a knowledge of God. If you were to ask them if they know a lot more about God then when they started attending, I guarantee that they would all say they do. And I suspect that the same could be said of our women’s studies as well. That’s part of our mission here … to know Christ.

So this morning, what can we know about God from the 3 names in the Apostles’ Creed? First … He’s a loving Father. “I believe in God the Father.”

There’s a song that goes “With God as our Father, brothers all are we, let me walk with my brother, in perfect harmony.” Are you familiar with that?

Nice song … terrible theology. Did you know that Scripture never teaches the universal fatherhood of God? Nowhere within its’ pages. Membership in God’s family is not automatic. The Apostle John describes for us how it takes place. He says if you want to be a member of God’s family, if you want the right to address Him as Father, you need to believe in Jesus and receive Him into your life. “Some, however, did receive him and believed in him; so he gave them the right to become God’s children.”

How do you become a child of God? By believing in and receiving Jesus in a personal way. A little later, Jesus Himself will say that this believing and receiving is like a spiritual rebirth. He tells Nicodemus that you have to be born again. The way you become born into God’s family is by putting your trust wholeheartedly in Jesus Christ. And when that happens it’s a wonderful thing.

In fact, Scripture tells us that when that happens the angels rejoice. Have you ever caused a party in Heaven? Has there been a specific moment when you have bowed your knee before Almighty God, and you put your hope and trust in Jesus to forgive your sins, and asked Him to become your Savior and your Lord? Have you been born again? Because, until you have been born again, you have no right to call God “Father.”

That right is reserved for those who have become members of His family. And the door to membership is His Son, Jesus.

Now, once you do that you begin to discover some amazing things about this Father. Your Heavenly Father knows you … because fathers know their kids. “As a father is kind to his children, so the LORD is kind to those who honor him.”

Our Heavenly Father knows everything about us. “You know everything I do; from far away you understand all my thoughts. You see me, whether I am working or resting; you know all my actions. Even before I speak, you already know what I will say. … Your knowledge of me is too deep; it is beyond my understanding.”

In fact, Scripture teaches that our Heavenly Father saw us when we were developing in our mother’s womb!

Now, it’s not always true that earthly Dads know their kids. But our Heavenly Father knows us intimately. I love the piece that compares Moms and Dads. “A Mom knows all about her children. She knows about dental appointments, and romances. She knows about best friends, and favorite foods. She knows about secret fears and hopes and dreams. A Dad is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house.” Earthly Dads can be clueless, sometimes. But our Heavenly Father knows us intimately.

“I Dared To Call Him Father” is a biography of a woman, Bilquis Sheikh. Bilquis was a Muslim. She was married to one of the highest officials in Pakistan. Along the way Bilquis had this driving desire to know God intimately. Now you don’t know God intimately in Islam. God is very aloof. God is distant. God is stern. Allah may be many things, but Allah is no father … never referred to, ever as a father. Bilquis wanted to know God intimately.

A Christian friend gave her a N.T. and she began to read it on her own. And she started looking for a way to meet the God of this Book. One day her Christian friend suggested, “Why don’t you just call Him Father?” She got down on her knees that night, and as tears began to well up in her eyes, Bilquis said, “Oh Father.” And as she said it, it was like a dam burst inside. She put her hope and trust in Jesus. She dared to call Almighty God “Father”. Bilquis discovered that just as He knows her … He wanted her to know Him. That’s part of what being a Dad is all about. Your Father knows you intimately today. Regardless of whether your earthly father knows you or cares about you. Your Heavenly Father loves you so much. He knows the hairs on your head.

The second truth that comes out of this is that your Heavenly Father provides for you. Listen to the words of Jesus. “Do not be worried about the food and drink you need in order to stay alive, or about clothes for your body. After all, isn’t life worth more than food? And isn’t the body worth more than clothes? Look at the birds: they do not plant seeds, gather a harvest and put it in barns; yet your Father in heaven takes care of them! Aren’t you worth much more than birds?” Jesus is saying that your Heavenly Father is going to meet your needs.

Did you come here this morning with a need? Maybe you’re facing a huge decision and what you need this morning is wisdom. Maybe you’re in an unbearable situation and what you need is patience. Maybe you’ve got an addiction and what you need is deliverance. Maybe you’re facing a financial situation and you need faith. Maybe you have a physical illness and you need courage. What do you need? Whatever it is … your Heavenly Father can provide for you. Your Heavenly Father’s resources are limitless. What are your needs?

Jesus says this is why you ought to pray. He says, “As bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” Pray, Jesus says, because you’ve got a Father who loves to provide for your needs.

Third truth … our Heavenly Father also disciplines us. (You’re thinking … this is one I could do without.) No you can’t. The writer of Hebrews says, “Our human fathers punished us for a short time, as it seemed right to them; but God does it for our own good, so that we may share his holiness.” Our Heavenly Father disciplines us for our own good.

We need the constant correction, as unpleasant as it may sometimes be, of a loving Heavenly Father, who is continually steering us back on the right path. He does this through a variety of means. He does it through nagging trials. He does it through relational conflicts that we get ourselves into. He does it, sometimes, through frightening crisis that drive us into His arms. He does it with things just not going our way. He’s got a 100 ways to accomplish His purposes.

We sometimes don’t recognize it, but He disciplines us because He loves us, so much so, that He wants to see His character formed in us.

Next, I believe in God the Father … Almighty. That’s #2, our God is a powerful King; He’s Almighty … not a God to be taken lightly.

Almighty means that He is omnipotent; it means He is all powerful; it means that He rules. Let’s talk about what it means for Him to rule. It means that God rules everywhere. Historically, cultures believed that their gods were local deities. They were like regional sales people. They had some territory that they were supposed to cover. Your god might be the god of the plains, or the god of the mountains, or the god of the seas. If you won battles on the plains, but lost them up in the mountains that was a sure tip-off that your god wasn’t the god of the mountains.

Now they weren’t only localized territorially, they were also localized according to their abilities. Your god might be the god of thunder, or the god of fire, or the god of love.

Now along comes the God of Scripture, and do you know what’s said about Him? He is God Almighty! He is God who rules everywhere. “O LORD God of our ancestors, you rule in heaven over all the nations of the world. You are powerful and mighty, and no one can oppose you.”

God is in Heaven; His vantage point is over everything.

“God’s power is so great that we cannot come near him; he is righteous and just in his dealings with us. No wonder, then, that everyone is awed by him.”

“The Almighty God, the LORD, speaks; he calls to the whole earth from east to west.”

Last spring, our granddaughter Jaylee was up here for a week. Several weeks later, we were down in Indiana, and saw her at her home. Later that day we saw her at the Mall. Jaylee looked at her Mom and said, “Dad Dad is everywhere!” Well, it may have seemed that way to a 3-year-old, but …. We worship an Almighty God who rules everywhere.

Second, God rules everyone. That’s Good News to those of us who submit to His leadership, because we want His direction. We welcome His authority. But it’s bad news for God’s enemies, and those who resist His rule, which you may be doing this morning … trying to hold God at arm’s length. Guess what … He rules everyone. And you’re no exception. “How wonderful are the things you do! Your power is so great that your enemies bow down in fear before you.”

In the Gospels Jesus frequently encounters people who are demonized, and Luke sums up those clashes this way. “With authority and power this man (Jesus) gives orders to the evil spirits, and they come out!” He rules everyone.

And I need to warn you this morning, the Scriptures teach that one day every knee will bow and every tongue will “proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” But for some that confession will come too late. It won’t be a confession that brings salvation; it will be a submission to the One who is Lord and Judge of all.

You can submit today, welcome Him as the Lord of your life, or one day your knee will be bowed against your will.

Thirdly, He rules everything. There are many Scripture passages of God’s power over this and over that; His power over sin. If you’re looking to break the strangle hold of some sin … God rules over that. You can draw upon Him for power and strength. He rules over physical dangers that threaten us. He rules over illnesses. He rules over impossible situations … maybe you’re facing one of those today. Our God is Almighty.

My favorite story, well one of my favorites, is the encounter that Sarah has with God in Genesis 18. Sarah has no children and God comes to her when she is 90-years-old and says, “I’m going to give you a son.” What do you think her response would be? … (She laughs.) So God asks, “Why are you laughing?” (I love the interchange here.) “‘I didn’t laugh,’ she said.” (It sounds like conversations with our kids when they were young … “I wasn’t laughing.”) “‘Yes, you were,’ (God) replied. ‘You laughed.’”

And so a year later 91-year-old Sarah gives birth to a son … “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” … and names him Isaac, which means “laughter.”

Do you understand why it’s so horribly irreverent to say “God Almighty” as an expression of disgust? Or as an exploitive? Don’t let that ever come out of your mouth. You are talking about the One who rules everything, everywhere, everyone. He is a great king. He is a powerful king.

Last name in this opening line, “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.” Our God is a wise Creator. It’s interesting to note that one of God’s attributes that’s frequently attached to His role as Creator is wisdom. Does God’s creation display His power? Of course it does. Does God’s creation display His majesty? Absolutely! But Scripture tells us repeatedly that God’s creation is also a showcase for His wisdom.

“LORD, you have made so many things! How wisely you made them all! The earth is filled with your creatures.”

I’m imagining the Psalmist walking through the Brookfield Zoo, looking at all those animals, and thinking, “How does He come up with these ideas? Where did He get the aardvark? How wisely He made them all!”

“Don’t you know? Haven’t you heard? The LORD is the everlasting God; he created all the world. He never grows tired or weary. No one understands his thoughts.” This God who created everything must be a God of incredible understanding.

How about Job? Job faces one problem after another and he begins to wonder if God is really capable of managing things? He says, “God, you’re dropping a few balls here.” Listen to God’s response.

“Were you there when I made the world? If you know so much, tell me about it? (When God uses sarcasm, look out.) Who decided how large it would be? Who stretched the measuring line over it? Do you know all the answers? What holds up the pillars that support the earth? Who laid the cornerstone of the world?”

“In other words, Job, just in case you’re confused, I’m capable of multitasking. I have some experience in creating and managing a large organization. I think I can take care of your problems.” And what should our proper response be to this wise Creator? First, God deserves our worship. Hugh Ross has a Doctorate in Astronomy from the University of Toronto, and has written a book, “Creation And Time.” He says, “When David penned the lyrics of his song in Psalm 19, ‘How clearly the sky reveals God’s glory! How plainly it shows what he has done!’ he could see about 5 other planets, and maybe about 600 stars because that’s all you can see with the naked eye. Today, with our telescopes we’ve learned that our galaxy has about 100 billion suns in it. And there are about 100 billion galaxies out there. So when you add it all up you come up with 10 billion trillion stars.”

Dr. Ross says, when we say “How clearly the sky reveals God’s glory! How plainly it shows what he has done!” we ought to do it with awe and worship. What a God! We ought to lift voices. We ought to raise our hands. Saying the words from The Revelation, “Our Lord and God! You are worthy to receive glory, honor, and power. For you created all things, and by your will they were given existence and life.” You are worthy of our worship because you have created everything.

Second, God deserves our stewardship. “The world and all that is in it belong to the LORD; the earth and all who live on it are his.”

The next verse goes on to describe why that is … because He made it. We are His creation. When you say, “I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of Heaven and earth,” what you’re saying is “I believe God made me.” And if you say, God made you, then you have to acknowledge that everything you have, your talents, every dollar you have in the bank, every beat of your heart, every minute of your day, belongs to God. He owns it all.

Your job is to manage it in the way He wants it managed. He’s the owner … you’re the manager. It isn’t your stuff. It’s His stuff. That’s why I talk about tithing. God’s Word says that the first 10% of your income needs to be returned to the Lord, that’s God’s rule. He’s the owner, and you’re the manager. (Some of you are unemployed right now, what is it that you can put in the offering plate when it’s passed?) To not do that is to mess with God’s resources. Now is a good time to start practicing this. Begin honoring Him with “the first fruits” as Scripture puts it, especially as we enter our stewardship and budget planning.

I was reading this week in Exodus, the Lord says, “Never come to worship me without bringing an offering.” This is a great God … we don’t approach Him empty-handed, because everything we have comes from Him.

Now since God is Creator, He also has final authority over His creation. Someone has said, “To believe in God means that the rules will always be fair, and there will be surprises.” God is dependable without being predictable. He can intervene in human affairs; He can intrude upon apparent “laws of nature” to fulfill His purpose. These surprises are what we call miracles.

But whether or not God chooses to perform a miracle in our lives, never forget that He is the God of providence … Jehovah-jireh … “the Lord provides.”

This universe we inhabit is neither random nor chaotic, uncaused nor accidental. For the follower of Jesus to say, “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth” means trusting in the God who provides for His creation and especially for His children.

MARANA THA