God Has Made Me And Preserves Me Out Of Fatherly, Divine Goodness And Mercy.
Which is the First Article of the Creed?
I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and earth.
What does this mean?
I believe that God does all this out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without an merit or worthiness in me.
1. We have learned that God has made me by giving me my body and soul, and that He still preserves me by giving me richly and daily all that I need for life and body, by guarding and protecting me from all evil. Now we ask, Why has God done all this for me? Our Catechism answers: He has done "all this purely out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy." This answer is taken from the Word of God. "The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works." Ps. 145,9.— God is moved by His goodness to bestow His manifold blessings on us. Our God is good. Ps. 118,1. He loves all His creatures, especially those whom in Holy Baptism and through faith in Jesus Christ He has accepted as His children. He wishes to make them happy here on earth and above all, eternally in heaven. He also loves you; therefore He has formed your body so beautifully and given you an immortal soul; therefore He provides you with all that is needed for your life and body, and does this richly and daily.
2. God is moved by His mercy to provide for me and protect me. "His tender mercies are over all His works." Our God is a merciful God. He knows that without Him, without His provident care, we are helpless, unable to support our life, not even for a single day. And He has compassion on us. He does not like to see His children in need and danger. His tender mercies are over you also; therefore He feeds and clothes you through your parents or friends; therefore He guards and protects you, His child.
3. His goodness and mercy is fatherly goodness and mercy. He provides for me and protects me as a father provides for his children and protects them. "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him." Ps. 103,13. Not only in His Word does God assure us that He is our loving Father, but He daily proves it to us by the blessings He sends us. He has given me my beautiful body and a rational soul, that is, powers to think and understand; He daily provides for everything I need; He is at my side in every danger to defend me; from every evil that comes near me He protects me. Surely God is my Father.—His goodness and mercy are a divine goodness and mercy, such as only God has and can have, a perfect and never- failing goodness and mercy. My Father is the Father Almighty, who daily will and can provide for and protect His children. "His compassions fail not. They are new every morning." Lam. 3,22.— Therefore I confess: I believe in God, my almighty Father, that is, I do not only know from the Word of God and from the blessings I am daily receiving from Him that the almighty God is my Father, but with all my heart I trust in Him, I confide in Him, I rely on Him as on my true Father. When I am in need, I trust in Him, my Father; He will and can provide for me. When dangers surround me, I trust in Him, my Father; He will and can defend me. When evil seems to come near me, I trust in Him, my Father; He will and can protect me. To believe in God the Father Almighty means to be fully assured that the almighty God is my Father, and with all my heart to trust in Him who is my Father for Jesus' sake.
4. Whatever God does for His children, He does "purely out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy." His fatherly goodness and mercy— nothing else—moves Him to show us goodness and mercy. He provides and protects me "without any merit or worthiness in me." When a man performs some work for another man, he has done something for him and thereby earned, or merited, payment for such service. We have not given anything to God, so that He would be in duty bound to reward us for it. We have not earned His fatherly love, nor can we ever do so.— When a rich man bestows a free gift upon a poor man, this poor man has certainly not merited this gift, but he may be worthy of the help. His worthiness may have moved the rich man to take pity on him. We are not worthy of anything that God bestows upon us; we do not deserve His fatherly love and kindness. We have transgressed, and daily transgress, His holy commandments. We are sinners. We so often misuse God's kindness and His gifts. If God were to treat us according to our merits and worthiness, He would not be able to bless us, but he would have to punish and condemn us. In us God does not find anything that might move Him to love us and to care for us. It is purely out of His fatherly, divine goodness and mercy that He loves me and provides for me, an unworthy sinner. We must confess with Jacob: "I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which Thou hast showed unto Thy servant." Gen. 32,10.
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