I Believe in God the Father Almighty The Apostles' Creed 2/13

This article was first published in French at TPSG.

The Apostles’ Creed opens with the phrase “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and earth.” The phrase seems simple and straightforward enough, but when we take the time to consider its import, we discover that it holds far more meaning than we may have initially imagined. 

 

The Collective “I”

Although its first word is “I,” the Creed was never intended to be an atomized, individualistic prayer or declaration. Rather, it was to be recited in community by the people of God. For, at its core, it’s a confession of faith that unites all true believers.

 

What is Belief?

Next, we notice the word “believe.” The word “creed” itself comes from the Latin “credo,” which means “to believe.” This word speaks of more than mere intellectual ascent, of an acceptance of a set of facts. Rather, it conveys the idea of commitment, trust, surrender. And considering that the Creed was born during a period of persecution, those who professed their faith through the waters of baptism and confessed so with their lips were putting their lives on the line. Few indeed would die to defend a set of propositions, but many would and did die for the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ.

 

God is

The following phrase of the Creed introduces God assuming his existence. We thus see echoes of Genesis 1:1 – “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Yet, unlike the opening words of Scripture, the Creed identifies the first person of the Trinity by name, “God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.” 

 

God is Father

The word “Father” may bring to mind the prayer Jesus taught his disciples, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name…” And while we affirm wholeheartedly that God is our Father, the Creed speaks first and foremost of the Father in relation to the Son. For, in context, the very next phrase goes on to speak of “hisonly Son our Lord.” God did not become Father when he saved us. Rather, his Fatherhood makes up part of his essence and of the mysterious interworking of the Trinity. Before God the Father brought us into his family as his adopted sons and daughters, he existed in eternity past as Father, in perfect harmony with the Son and the Spirit. 

 

God as Mother?

Before going any further, it’s worth mentioning that God is Father and not Mother. The Bible presents God using exclusively male pronouns. This does not, however, mean that God intends to portray God as manly as opposed to womanly. After all, he created both men and women in his image and likeness (Genesis 1:27). Not only that, but Scripture freely employs feminine metaphors to describe God. In fact, in 

Isaiah 66:13 we read, 

“As a mother comforts her child, so will I (God) comfort you.” 

And Isaiah 49:15 states, 

“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I (God) will not forget you!” 

These touching verses that show a tender side of God by no means prove that he is our mother. The prophet is simply employing poetic language to express an idea. But his words do challenge the notion that certain character traits are by nature feminine or masculine. As his image bearers, both men and women are to reflect all of his communicable attributes, and that includes being nurturing.

 

Does his Power Trump his Love?

The first adjectival phrase attributed to God in the creed is “Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.” Does that mean that his power is greater than his love or his wisdom? By no means. To understand why this attribute of God is at the forefront we need to remember the context in which the Creed was written. One of its purposes was to solidify the core doctrines of the Christian faith in response to Gnosticism. This heresy affirmed that the material world was evil, and that God did not create it. The creed, therefore, declares that God, indeed, is the Almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth. Far from vilifying the material world, the Scriptures elevate it. Indeed, the creation account in Genesis 1 repeats the word "good" 11 times. And even after the fall, God does not reject the world he has created. On the contrary, he implements a great rescue plan that includes the entire created order. As it says in Romans 8:19-2:

19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

To be continued…

In future articles, I will explore how the Apostles’ Creed goes on to provide further insights into the nature of the God we love and confess. If you’d like to learn more, you can follow this series of articles, and you can tune into Chrétienne and the series Aurélie and I are doing on the Creed.