I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.
What is meant by this Article?
I believe that God has created me and all that exists; that He has given and still preserves to me my body and soul, with all my limbs and senses, my reason and all the faculties of my mind, together with my raiment, food, home and family, and all my property: that He daily provides me abundantly with all the necessaries of life, protects me from all danger, and preserves me and guards me against all evil; all which He does out of pure, paternal and divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me; for all which I am in duty bound to thank, praise, serve and obey Him. This is most certainly true.
I BELIEVE IN, that is, I trust in, I rely upon.
GOD THE FATHER, He is the Father of my Lord Jesus Christ, [Matt. 11:25] and the first Person of the Holy Trinity. Through Christ He is also my Father. [John 20:17, Eph. 1:3+]
ALMIGHTY, He is able to do all things, and to help me in every time of need.
MAKER OF HEAVEN AND EARTH. [Ps. 102:25] He has made all things,—the universe and all that it contains. The world did not come into being of itself or by chance, nor did it exist from eternity. God made it out of nothing. In the beginning He created the heaven and the earth. [Gen. 1:1+, Ps 33:6, 9] They were at first a formless mass; [Gen. 1:2] but in six days God fashioned the formless mass into the world as it now exists. On these six days He created, 1. Light, 2. The Firmament, 3. Land and Sea, 4. Sun, moon and stars, 5. Fishes and birds, 6. Beasts and man. [Gen 1:3-31]
God's Chief Creatures are the angels in heaven and men on earth. All His creatures, as they came from His hands, were very good. [Gen. 3:31] But some of the angels sinned, and became bad angels or devils. [II Pet. 2:4] And man also, though created in the image of God, fell into sin, and lost his original righteousness and holiness. [Gen. 3, Gen. 8:21, Eph. 4:24]
Luther's explanation of this Article in the catechism tells us:
I. What God has done and still does for me,
II. Why God does all this for me,
III. What I owe to God in return.
1. CREATED ME [Job. 33:4+] AND ALL THAT EXISTS; [Neh. 9:6, Col. 1:16+] THAT HE HAS GIVEN TO ME
MY BODY,—WITH ALL MY LIMBS AND SENSES. Though my body, like that of the beasts, is made of the dust of the ground, [Gen. 2:7+] it is vastly superior to their bodies, and is a marvelous piece of divine workmanship, [Ps. 139:14] exquisitely adapted to be the earthly tabernacle of the soul which inhabits it.
MY SOUL, [Gen. 2:7+]—MY REASON AND ALL THE FACULTIES OF MY MIND, by which I am placed so far above the brute creation. God made the human soul to be a likeness of Himself; [Gen. 1:27, Gen. 9:6] that is, He gave to man in a limited measure those powers and faculties which He Himself possesses in unlimited and infinite measure. And while the human mind has become dimmed by the fall, its powers and faculties are still most wonderful.
2. PRESERVES ME. [Neh. 9:6] All that has helped to support my life has been God's gift; namely, MY RAIMENT, FOOD, HOME AND FAMILY, AND ALL MY PROPERTY. I continue to live because He sustains me. [Jas. 1:17+, Acts 17:28+]
HE DAILY PROVIDES ME ABUNDANTLY WITH ALL THE NECESSARIES OF LIFE. [Ps. 115:15-16+] His care for me is a constant, daily care. His mercies are new every morning. [Matt. 6:31-32+, Lam. 3:22-23+]
HE PROTECTS ME FROM ALL DANGER, SEEN AND UNSEEN. [Ps. 34:7, Matt. 10:30] I am beset with perils on every hand. If God withdrew His protecting hand, I should perish immediately.
HE PRESERVES ME AND GUARDS ME AGAINST ALL EVIL. [Ps 121:5, 8+] No real evil can come upon God's children. What seems an evil is meant for a good purpose, and is a blessing in disguise. [Rom. 8:28+, Isa. 55:8-9, Jer. 29:11, Ps. 23:4+]
He does it purely
1. OUT OF PATERNAL AND DIVINE GOODNESS AND MERCY. [Ps. 103:13+] It is
PATERNAL or fatherly [Ps 103:13+] goodness and mercy, because He is my Father through Jesus Christ, and loves me as His child. It is
DIVINE goodness and mercy, because God is love, [I John 4:16+] and only His unspeakable love could move Him to bestow His great benefits upon sinful men, even upon the wicked and unthankful. [Matt. 5:45+]
2. WITHOUT ANY MERIT OR WORTHINESS IN ME. [Gen. 32:10+] I have merited (deserved) nothing and I am worthy of nothing but punishment; for I am a sinful being, [Ps. 51:5] and I have broken God's law many times by thoughts and words and deeds. [Jer. 14:7]
For all His goodness and mercy
I AM IN DUTY BOUND [Ps. 116:12+, Ps. 50:14]
1. TO THANK AND PRAISE HIM. I must not receive God's benefits as a matter of course, but must recognize them as gifts of His grace, and daily thank and praise Him in my heart and with my lips. [Ps. 103:1+]
2. TO SERVE AND OBEY HIM. I must show my gratitude in my life by obeying God's commandments and giving myself with all my heart to His service. [Rom. 12:1+]
THIS IS MOST CERTAINLY TRUE; namely, 1. That all the blessings I enjoy come from God, 2. That they are the gifts of His grace and that I am unworthy of them, 3. That I owe to God the fullest gratitude of heart and life.
QUESTIONS.—1. What does "I believe" mean? 2. Why do we say "God the Father"? 3. What does "Almighty" mean? 4. What has God made? 5. Name His chief creatures. 6. What three things does Luther's explanation of this article tell us? 7. What has God done and what does He still do for us? 8. In creating us, what has God given us? 9. How does He preserve us? 10. Why does God do all this for us? 11. Why are we not worthy of it? 12. What do we owe to God in return? 13. What is meant by thanking and praising Him? 14. What is meant by serving and obeying Him? 15. What is most certainly true according to this article?
SCRIPTURE VERSES.—Eph. 1:3. Blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.
Gen. 1:1. In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
Job 33:4. The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.
Col. 1:16. For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him.
Gen. 2:7. And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
Jas. 1:17. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
Acts 17:28. For in him we live, and move, and have our being.
Ps. 145:15, 16. The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season. Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.
Matt. 6:31, 32 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink, or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
Lam 3:22, 23. It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning.
Ps. 34:7. The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.
Ps. 121:5, 8. The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand. The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.
Rom. 8:28. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Ps. 23:4. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Ps. 103:13. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him.
I John 4:16. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
Matt. 5:45. He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
Gen. 32:10. I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant.
Ps. 116:12. What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me?
Ps. 103:1. Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.
Rom. 12:1. I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
READING.—The Creation of the World, Gen. 1.
ILLUSTRATIONS.—Provides: Manna, Exod. 16:14; Elijah, I Kings 17:6, 14; Feeding the Five Thousand, Matt. 14:15-21. Protects: The Israelites, Exod. 14:19 seq.; Daniel, Dan. 6:22; Paul, Acts 22:12-33; Acts 27: 42-44. Guards from evil: Joseph; Job. Thankfulness: Noah, Gen. 8:20; The Samaritan, Luke 17:15,16.
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