We believe, teach and confess … “that God is one divine essence, who is eternal, without a body, without parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness.
He is the maker and preserver of all things, visible and invisible [Nehemiah 9:6]. Yet there are three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit [Matthew 28:19]. These three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, are of the same essence and power.” (Augsburg Confession I.2-3)
What kind of a person is God the Father? What does He do?
How can we praise, or portray and describe Him, that He may be known? In the Apostle’s Creed, we confess “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.”
[1]What is the force of this, or what do we mean by these words: I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth? Answer: This is what we mean and believe, that each one of us is a creature of God; that is, that He has given and constantly preserves to me my body, soul, and life, members great and small, all my senses, reason, and understanding, and so on, food and drink, clothing and support, wife and children, domestics, house and home, etc. 14] Besides, He causes all creatures to serve for the uses and necessities of life sun, moon, and stars in the firmament, day and night, air, fire, water, earth, and whatever it bears and produces, birds and fishes beasts, grain, and all kinds of produce, 15] and whatever else there is of bodily and temporal goods, good government, peace, security. 16] Thus we learn from this article that none of us has of himself, nor can preserve, his life nor anything that is here listed or can be listed, however small and unimportant a thing it might be, for all is comprehended in the word “Creator”.
17] Moreover, we also confess that God the Father has not only given us all that we have and see before our eyes but daily preserves and defends us against all evil and misfortune, directs all sorts of danger and disaster away from us; and that He does all this out of pure love and goodness, without our merit, as a kind Father, who cares for us that no evil falls upon us.
19] Now, since all that we possess, and, whatever else is in heaven and upon the earth, is daily given, preserved, and kept for us by God, it is readily suggested and concluded that it is our duty to love, praise, and thank Him for it without ceasing, and, in short, to serve Him with all these things, as He demands and has enjoined in the Ten Commandments.
[1] https://bookofconcord.org., Large Catechism, Part 2, Article 1, 13. Note: This passage has been edited, slightly, to enhance the readability and to fit the structure of the website page.
