God the Father | Sunday, June 15, 2025

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea... There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God... The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved; He uttered His voice, the earth melted. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge... Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations... (Psalm 46)

In a chaotic world, the creed calls us not merely to believe that God exists, but to trust in the one God who is our Father, the Almighty, the Maker of all things.

Bringing Our Focus Back in a Chaotic World

Looking at all that's going on in the world, you've surely noticed there seem to be a lot of huge, crazy things happening at this present moment. Many of them are of the type that can consume our focus and generate anxiety. That's been the case over the last week or ten days—riots and protests just a hundred miles north of us in Los Angeles, markets fluctuating like a tilt-whirl, and just a couple of days ago, in the pre-dawn hours of Friday the 13th, Israel attacked Iran in a not-so-surprising surprise attack.

These things remind us that we live in a broken world filled with chaos. Most of my life we've been in a 24-hour news cycle. There was a time when, to know what was going on, you had to read the newspaper or watch the nightly news. Now we're bombarded with information constantly. I've been trying to disconnect and be more intentional this year, but when things like this happen, there's a feeling that we need to know, and the world seems to spin out of control.

When it does, I'm drawn to Psalm 46. I love this passage because it brings my focus back into the right place. "God is our refuge and strength"—that one line is worth meditating on this week. Verses 6 and 7 and 10 and 11 really stand out: "The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved... The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge." And then the hard one for me: "Be still, and know that I am God."

That exhortation to be still is hard for me. I'm one of those people who can't stop moving—even sitting down, my leg is shaking, and my wife will grab my leg and say, "Stop." When I'm up here, I can't stand still. God has to bring me to that place of, "All right, be still. Pause for a moment and focus in the right place."

Why We Gather

The chaos of the world is one reason it's helpful and important for us to gather, as the church has done for 2,000 years. In Acts 2, immediately after the church was born, they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine, the breaking of bread, fellowship, and prayers. They gathered corporately on the first day of the week and in homes throughout the week—just as we do with our connect groups and life groups. We gather to disconnect from the craziness of the world so we can connect with God and with one another, to be still and know that He is God and still reigns supreme.

It's when we gather with God's people that we connect with Him in worship, prayer, service, the Scriptures, and sometimes in stillness. And we're reminded that our God is the Almighty God who reigns. He is our refuge and strength, a present help in time of trouble.

The Creed: Defining What the Bible Teaches

For the better part of the last 1,700 years, Christians of every group—Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Protestant—have gathered and quoted the Nicene Creed to be reminded and to affirm corporately who it is they truly believe in. In a low-church, Protestant evangelical church like ours in 2025, that's atypical, but it's certainly not wrong; Christians have done this for centuries.

As one theologian said, "The Bible alone is our final authority in matters of doctrine, but creeds and confessions serve the necessary purpose of defining what the Bible teaches and condemning error on basic doctrines." Many of you have had a knock on the door from a lovely couple from the Watchtower Society or the Latter-day Saints—often a 17-year-old with a badge that says "elder." Both groups hold the Arian heresy this creed was written to address: that Jesus is a created being and not the eternal, everlasting, begotten Son of God.

One of my aims over the next several weeks is to show that everything written in the creed is drawn directly from the Scriptures. The Nicene Council added nothing to what the early Christians were taught according to the apostles' doctrine. While there's much in the Bible that's not in the creed, there is nothing in the creed that's not in the Bible. The creeds were developed to address specific errors—in the late third and early fourth centuries, the unorthodox teaching about the nature of Jesus.

This focuses on who God is as Christians understand Him to be, and that understanding comes directly from the Bible, where He has revealed Himself. We call this special revelation—where God reveals His nature (what He is like) and His will (what He likes, His plan). It serves as a boundary marker, and the creed simply affirms it.

I Believe vs. We Believe

If you were here last week, you'll remember I only got into one word in the original language—translated "we believe" in English. That's as far as I got. This week we'll focus on the first statement: "We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen."

The Nicene Creed, developed in 325 AD, is remarkably similar to a creed that preceded it nearly 200 years earlier in the second century—the Apostles' Creed, which you'll find at the bottom of the "about" section of our website, connected to our statement of faith. The similarity highlights that the faith of Christians is fixed. It has not changed, because it doesn't rest in what the church dictates but in the Scripture God has revealed.

One interesting difference: the Apostles' Creed begins "I believe," while the Nicene Creed begins "We believe." Why? The Apostles' Creed was a baptismal confession. A person who had converted to Christ would, before being baptized, affirm what they individually believed: "I believe in God the Father, I believe in Jesus the Son, I believe in the Holy Spirit."

Why did the church do this? Before Jesus ascended, He commissioned His disciples in Matthew 28: "All authority is given to Me. Therefore go make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." As the gospel spread from Jerusalem into Judea, Samaria, North Africa, Arabia, Syria, Turkey, Greece, and Europe, new converts were baptized and called to affirm their faith: "I believe in God the Father Almighty." That's the individual confession. The Nicene Creed's "We believe" is the corporate affirmation Christians say when they gather—it unites us together as one body, the church.

What Do You Mean by "Believe"?

This raises a question repeated often by someone I find interesting—Jordan Peterson, a clinical psychologist from Canada who burst onto the scene around 2016. What I find fascinating is that he keeps talking about the Bible, God, and Christianity to crowds of secular, agnostic, and atheistic people who don't normally talk about such things. More than a few people I've met came to church because they first started listening to him. What a strange evangelist—a clinical psychologist who kind of sounds like Kermit the Frog.

Christians and non-Christians alike keep asking him, "Do you believe in God?" And almost always he answers, "What do you mean by believe?" That frustrates people; it seems dodgy. But it's a worthy question. The word "believe" has a wide semantic range—it can mean many different things, like the word "love." You love tacos, you love your dog, you love your kids, you love your spouse—hopefully not all the same way.

When someone says, "I believe in God," they might mean they accept as a mental category that this being we call God exists. They've been convinced by the evidence and accept the proposition. For many people in our culture, that's all they mean—they're convinced and accept the assertion that God exists.

"I Believe That" vs. "I Believe In"

But that's different from saying, "I believe in God the Father." Notice the creed doesn't say "I believe that God is the Father" or "I believe that God exists." That would be making a claim about something propositionally true. While Christians do believe that God exists, when they say "I believe in God," they're saying something more.

Let me illustrate. Some of you have met my younger brother Danny. He's crazy—because of his hobby. His current hobby is jumping off cliffs and bridges and out of planes with a parachute. He sent me a video of himself jumping off a hot air balloon in Temecula wearing a wing suit—not flying, just falling with style. Here's the thing: I believe that the parachute can save you. I believe that he believes in the parachute. But I don't believe in it, and neither does my wife. That's why every time he says, "You should do this," she says, "No, no, no, you should not"—though she did tell me to make sure my life insurance is up to date.

There's a difference. That's why Peterson asks the question—I'm not 100% sure he's ready to say "I believe in God," though he might say "I believe that God." So when we say, "We believe in one God," we're not merely accepting an assertion as true; we mean to trust in and commit to.

Point one: the Christian's belief is trust in God, not merely assertions about God. This distinguishes a Christian from a non-Christian. On an average Sunday, we have people here who are skeptical, even atheists—I've met them; they tell me, "I'm an atheist," and I ask, "Why are you here?" "Because I'm interested in these things." That's perfectly fine. But they haven't moved from believing there may be a God to actually believing in Him.

James, who wrote what many regard as the first New Testament letter, highlights this in James 2:19: "You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble." What makes your belief different from a demon's? Demons believe there is a God, and it makes them afraid. But that's different from saving faith, which is demonstrated in how you live—committing to, trusting in, and devoting yourself to God.

We Believe in One God

In the Greco-Roman world where the Nicene Creed was penned, people were polytheistic—they believed in Zeus, Apollo, Hermes, Minerva, and many others, and for centuries they believed Caesar was God, offering incense to his image and saying, "Caesar is Lord." Christians couldn't do that. So here's an interesting fact: early Christians were called atheists by the Romans.

Justin Martyr writes in his First Apology, chapter 6: "We are called atheists. And we confess that we are atheists, so far as gods of this sort are concerned, but not with respect to the most true God, the Father of righteousness and temperance and of the other virtues, who is free from all impurity." Around 110 AD, the Roman magistrate Pliny the Younger wrote to Emperor Trajan describing how he interrogated Christians, suspecting they were seditious because they wouldn't acknowledge Caesar or the gods. He observed that they gathered early in the morning to worship Christ as God, and he would test them by having them offer incense to an image of the emperor—because true Christians could not do it.

We may think we live in a world distinctly different from first-century Rome. We don't. Almost everyone you know is, for all intents and purposes, polytheistic. A god, at a fundamental level, is whatever you trust in and devote yourself to. Every person you know is trusting in something for their future, welfare, and salvation—their retirement account, their job, their kids. We Christians say we are devoted to and committed to God chiefly, primarily, supremely. We believe in one God.

Point two: Christians believe in God as He has revealed Himself in Scripture. The creed uses the common Greek word theos—the word everyone knew, used for Apollo or Diana. The Christians take this word and describe what they mean by it, drawing every descriptor straight from the Bible. Where did "one God" come from? All the way back to Deuteronomy 6:4, the Shema: "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength." Jesus called this the first and greatest commandment, so all His early followers knew it.

God the Father

What is this God like? The first thing that sets Him apart—especially fitting on this holiday—is that we believe in one God, the Father. The Greek word is patēr. For the Romans, that word carried great weight. You may have heard the term paterfamilias—the father held all authority and power over his family and was highly esteemed. So when Christians said, "We believe in one God, the Father," it carried great weight to Roman ears.

But here's the problem. What had great weight 2,000 years ago in Rome has great baggage in 2025 in America. We live in a broken culture with many broken homes. When you tell someone God is Father, it may not mean power, authority, or compassion—it may mean abuse or abandonment. Father is a problem for many Americans today.

So how do we deal with that? The best way is to go to Jesus and ask what He reveals about our relationship with God as Father, because the Father He describes is different from the father many in our culture have experienced. In the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 6, He teaches us to pray, "Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name," and explains that this Father rewards us openly, pours out blessing, and knows the things we have need of: "Do not worry about what you will eat or wear, for your heavenly Father knows."

In Luke 11, He says, "If you ask your father for an egg, what father would give you a stone? Or if you ask for a fish, would he give a serpent? If you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask?" The Father, as Jesus reveals Him, is good, loving, gracious, and compassionate.

The Father of the Prodigal

Perhaps the greatest picture of the Father is in Luke 15—the parable of the prodigal son. He went to his father and said, "I want my inheritance early," essentially saying, "I wish you were dead. Give me my inheritance now." He went and spent it on riotous living. When he came to the end of himself, he realized the servants in his father's house were better cared for than he was, and he was compelled to return.

On the way, he rehearsed what he would say: "I'm not worthy to be your son. Let me just be a servant." He anticipated rejection. But that's not what he found. He found his father waiting with open arms, embracing him, saying, "My son who was dead is alive again." He put the signet ring on his finger and a new robe on him and threw a party, because his son who was lost was now found.

That's the image of the Father—different from the one our culture has. For some, Father's Day is hard because they didn't really have a dad, and it's hard to say Abba, Father—Abba being the Hebrew word like "daddy." But the Father revealed in Scripture is totally different. Point three: God has revealed Himself as the Father of mercies, abundant in compassion and kindness. If you're a Christian, it's much easier to trust in that kind of Father than the one you may have had.

The Almighty, Maker of All Things

Christians continue, "the Almighty." In the Old Testament, "Almighty God" is El Shaddai, the most frequently used title for God. In the book of Job, of all books, Job recognizes God as Almighty 31 times—and he was going through perhaps the worst trial anyone could face. When you're in a trial, it is good to know God the Father is the Almighty One.

What does "Almighty" mean? It means there is nothing over Him; everything is under Him. Psalm 97 says, "Lord, You are most high above all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods." There is nothing superordinate above Him. Point four: God in the Bible is the highest and greatest, reigning over and above all. This is a great thing to remember when, like Job, you go through the chaos of a broken world, and the pressure and anxiety build. You can be reminded: I trust in my Father who is over all things, and what overwhelms me will never overwhelm Him.

The final statement is, "maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen." This brings us to the first revelation about who God is, in Genesis 1:1: "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." But the creed says He created not only the physical realm—the seen—but also the unseen, the spiritual realm: all thrones, dominions, principalities, and powers were put in place by Him. And when you study the Scriptures, you discover these things were created with purpose, with teleology in them.

Point five: the Almighty Father is the Maker, sustainer, and purpose-giver of all things. This is your God if you're a Christian. This is why Christians for thousands of years have said, "We believe in, we trust in, we're committed to" the compassionate, tender, merciful, gracious Father of Scripture—the Almighty One over all things, whom nothing overcomes—the one who created everything for a purpose.

That means though the earth be removed and the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea, we will not fear, because He is our ever-present help in trouble. Many things can overwhelm us in a chaotic and broken world—in recent weeks, months, years, and in the future. But God is our refuge and strength. He is our Father, the Almighty One, the one we flee to for refuge, and in Him we find strength.

Closing Prayer

God, I thank You that we come before You today as Father. For some in this room, they came to You as Father from riotous living like the prodigal, fearful that You might chastise and punish them—yet You welcomed them with open arms and said, "My son, my daughter, who was lost has now been found. The one who was dead has now been made alive." God, we thank You for the life we find in You. We pray that that life would be so abundant and shine so greatly of Your glory and grace that it would cause others we interact with this week to say, "I want to know about that life," because ultimately it is in You that we find life. We thank You for Your grace and mercy, and I pray You would help us, Your people, to represent Your mercy and Your rest to a world in turmoil. We ask this in Jesus' name. And all those who agreed said, "Amen."