Which God?

November 21, 2020

It’s Saturday night. Tomorrow, we will gather together to worship God. We will begin the service with the Apostles’ Creed, the ancient statement of faith that declares which of the many gods of this world we Christians worship. The Creed begins with "I believe;" in Latin "Credo," obviously where we get the term. This single word begs the question: What do I really believe? Sometimes we need to remind ourselves of the beliefs we hold to be most important. That which is most easily apparent to us-the physical world in which we live doesn't really give us much in which to believe, but it has the ability to drown out the still, small voice of God. In our postmodern world, the heavens don't declare the handiwork of God, they have become for us simply stars, gas, and empty space that just happened to burst into existence all on it own billions of years ago. Even our terminology-"the Natural World"- has detached us from the eternal significance of Creation. 

What do I really believe? And why do I believe it? Do I accept this Creed merely because I was raised by Christian parents who took me to church and made sure I was taught certain things? Would I believe differently had I been born in India, Iraq, or Indonesia? It's hard to say, but it does no good to speculate about hypothetical situations. This much I know: I believe in God, the Father Almighty. Each word is significant, and even the comma is important. 

There are many gods worshipped in this world. The word "God" is pretty generic. It's the modifying phrase that identifies the God in whom I believe: he is the Father Almighty. It was Jesus who taught us that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is not some distant deity, but a loving father. And this fatherly God is also Almighty. We don't often juxtapose those two concepts, but for Christian faith to be authentic and apostolic, both are necessary. A god who is a loving father but not almighty would be a pushover, indulgent and ultimately incompetent and unnecessary. A god who is only almighty would be unapproachable, fearsome and cold. Our God  is both Father and Almighty, able to do all he purposes to do, including loving and forgiving his erring children. This is our God; there is none like him. In a world where "Allahu akbar" is often followed by some murderous atrocity, I am grateful to be a follower of a different God, "the Father Almighty."