We Believe. This is a confession. We have confessed together many things already as we go through this confession. It is interesting that starting from article 10 every article starts with these words. “We believe.” Have you ever thought who the we is? It is the church of Jesus Christ. It is your brothers and sisters through the centuries. Your brothers and sisters around this world. Your brothers and sisters yet unborn. Together we believe. We stand united in the faith. And this faith is not some idea, or feeling it is filled with content. These confessions lay out the content of faith. The Faith is a body of knowledge which we must hold onto.
And one of the things that we are called to hold onto today that is greatly under attack in our culture is the creation of all things, especially the angels. It is amazing that this document was written so long ago, and yet is so relevant in our day. It is because the truths of Gods word are timeless. Satan just tries to attack different points of doctrine in every time, but his end goal is the same if you can get them on one thing then the whole structure will fall down. These doctrines that we are going through here are interrelated. And often depend and build on one another. So, let’s not think we can let this world or Satan have one inch or he will take the it all. We stand alone on the Word of God. Every bit of it. Also, the doctrine of creation. For if we lose sight of this then our whole ide of new creation will also be warped.
The creation of all things:
We believe that eh Father through the Word, that is his Son, has created out of nothing heaven and earth an all creatures…” Notice who it says created. The Father through the Word. Not God, but a Father. A relational God. Genesis 1:1 says, ‘in the Beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Here we have that God defined as Father. That means before, “In the beginning” there was not nothing. There was God. Indeed, the New Testament also attests to that in John 17:24 Jesus says, “You have loved me before the foundation of the World.” Or in John 17:5 Jesus asks the Father to glorify him “with the glory which I had with you before the world was.” So before “In the beginning Christ existed and he had glory with the Father, and he was loved by the Father.” Also, this is a personal God of thought and will. As we read in Ephesians, “God has chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world.” The same is said of Christ death in 1 Peter 1:20 where it says, “the death of Jesus was foreordained before the foundation of the World.”
This is tremendously important to believe that God not only created, but that a personal God who is Father created all things through the Son in the power of the Spirit. So when we read, “In the beginning,” we say that something existed before that beginning, and that something was personal not static, the father was loving the son, they were glorying in each other, there was a plan, there was communication. There were promises made before the creations of the heavens and the earth. And it was this God that spoke the universe into being. Without the trinity creating, Christianity would not have the answers that modern person needs. We cannot be so busy defending the doctrine of creation over against evolution that we forget to actually defend the Doctrine of the God who created. It is he that makes all the difference. Love, and thought and communication – personality were there before the creation of the universe.
This is also what our confession stresses when it says that all things were created by the Father through the Son. The Father created through the Son all things out of nothing.
Out of nothing. That is what we believe about creation. Ex nihilo means there was nothing but God. Obviously, we cannot imagine that. Because we are bound by space and time. WE cannot imagine life without space and time. Because that is a life that only belongs to God. And God alone. He stands outside of Space and time.
In the book of Romans, Paul speaks of the uniqueness of God, who alone can bring something out of nothing and life out of death (Rom. 4:17). Paul tells us that the energizing power of God’s Word is that which raises us from spiritual death and translates us from the kingdom of dark- ness into the kingdom of light. God can assure His church that His Word will not return to Him void because it contains His power (Isa . 55:11) . We stand in awe that our Creator formed the entire vast universe out of nothing by the sheer command of His voice.
We learn in Scripture never to identify the universe or any part of it with God Himself. To confuse the Creator and the creature is to fall into pantheism, which obscures the clear distinction between creature and Creator. Until the Enlightenment, the most firmly established article of Christian faith in the secular world was that of creation. It had been established not only by revelation but also by reason, not only by religion but also by science. To medieval philosophers, the idea of something coming from nothing was absurd, unscientific, and illogical. If something exists, it must either have the power of being in itself or it must come from something that has the power of being in itself. Otherwise, nothing at all could exist. This point is important because atheists and secularists in recent centuries have focused their attention on creation. If they can undermine our certainty that we live in a created universe, they can undermine any argument for the existence of God. If you do away with creation, you do away with the Creator.
Yet we confess with the Apostle Paul, citing Greek poets, that “in him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). God stands outside and yet sustains all of it. For our very existence we are utterly dependent on the sustaining power of God. That which He creates, God holds in existence. We depend on Him not only for the original act of creation but also for existence from moment to moment. There is no life apart from Him.
In fact he did not only create life, but we believe there is a purpose to all things. As we read, “And he has given to every creature its being, shape, and form, and to each its specific task to serve it creator.” This is beautiful. He created the world and every creature with its task. It is no wonder that eco-systems are so interdependent. Each animal, every insect, every plant doing its God ordained task, fulfilling its God-ordained purpose. There is no life apart from him. There is only death, deterioration, and decay. We see this even as a result of our sin. And yet despite sin God still graciously sustains and governs all of life according to his providence and by his infinite power to serve man, to the end that man may serve his God.
That is important there. To serve man in order that man may serve his God. If many is not serving God then creation may still serve his purpose but to a wicked end, and to the destruction of both man and creation. But if man serves God then he is also a good steward of creation. And so under his care creation and man both flourish in the way that God intended it.
The creation of the Angels
All things, means all things. There was simply just God before the creation of the Word. This means the entire spiritual realm was also a creation by God. Angels are creatures as we are creatures. They just happen to be spiritual and we are physical and Spiritual. And it was this heavenly realm of beings that fell first into condemnation. This is closely connected with the doctrine of creation. Because either you get to two extremes. Under materialism and naturalism there is a complete rejection of all Spiritual, including God, and we as western people can begin to think and live this way living in a kind of dangerous ignorance as to the cosmic battle that has been raging and is still raging.
On the other hand, there is also a tendency in some Christian circles to see a demon behind every sin, and attribute to Satan some kind of omniscience. That he can be every where at once. Satan is a creature. He does not know the thoughts and intentions of the hearts, and he cannot be everywhere at once. Only God can do that and be that. It does not mean that he is a powerful adversary having thousands of years of experience he has a pretty go idea of what the human heart is thinking. It was he who led Gods creation into the wilderness of death away from the garden of life. It was he that tempted Adam and ever to join him in rebellion and usurp Gods power. It is he who still makes for himself thousands of children. Jesus himself identifies some of these in the pharisees. Calling them children of their father the devil, or a brood of vipers.
Therefore, we must be careful not to put our head in the sand, but also not to overestimate or think it is all the devil’s fault when we sin. Maybe its just our fault.
So, who are these angels and what do they do? The Bible is where we need to go. They fight, they serve, they protect, and they worship. We see angels in scripture being messengers from god such as the angel Gabriel. We see them protecting like that time when Elisha prays for his servant when his servant is afraid the enemy is going to conquer the town, they are in. We read that Elisha prays, “O LORD, open his eyes so he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” A mighty host of angels protects even just one of Gods servants here. And we see them serving. We read in Hebrews, “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” Notice... sent to serve those who will inherit salvation. That’s you and me he is talking about.
Sent to serve you and me. We do not serve the angels; the angels serve the image bearers of God who are being remade into the image of Jesus Christ. This does not mean they angels are less powerful. We always have this worldly idea that the less powerful serve the more powerful. But in the kingdom of God all serve all. That means even the most powerful of angels like Michael or Gabriel stand read to protect and guard the weakest and more fragile of Gods children. And we need this constant protection, for we are in a cosmic war.
As we confess in our confession, “Some of these [angels] have fallen from the exalted position in which God created them into everlasting perdition. The devils and evil Spirits are so depraved that they are enemies off God, and all that is good. With all their might they lie in wait like murderers to ruin the church and all its members and destroy everything by their wicked devices. These destroy, ruin, violate, are filled with malice and hate. And all their power is focused at the people of god.
We have a very real adversary who roams around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour (1 Pe 5:8). As the apostle Paul explains, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph 6:12). The Devil is bent on destroying Christians and their testimony and stopping the progress of the gospel. It is not the world they are worried about, it is us – the church of Jesus Christ – the Pillar of truth that he wants to destroy with his lies.
It is important then not to fight in our own strength – for we would fall in an instant. We are told even the most powerful of Gods angels, the arch angel Michael, did not fight in his own strength when fighting against the devil, but invoked God’s name (Jude).
May we enter this Spiritual warfare fully prepared in the armor the LORD has given us, and stand firm facing down the enemy with the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the sandals of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. And may we pray in the spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. For it is only in the Lord and his might power that we will stand.
For He is Afterall the Creator – also of all the Spiritual realm. There is no power that he is not in total control of. The powers of darkness cannot touch the saints of God. That is the big point here in this article. These are not two opposing forces like the ying and yang of Confucianism. It is not as if god and Satan have been in a battle since the beginning and no one was sure who would win. They have been at war, but the victory was always completely guaranteed. And that just shows how blind sin and evil really is. How foolish that it would still fight even when it knows it has no chance. And his victory is sure beloved. But that does not mean we can rest from our warfare just yet! No he still prowls around like a hungry lion seeking to destroy who he can.
Dear brothers and sisters. may we pray for the day of his return when he will sentence these wicked, and depraved creatures who have led so many of our race to eternal death to their own judgement – eternal damnation and horrible torments.
Until that day you are engaged in a fight every day of your life. A fight for your life. Angels are real. Demons are real. Evil Spirits are real. Our warfare in our hearts, in the church and in culture is against he evil spirits of this present evil age. And we will lose if we do not fight in Gods strength, so we pray. May this be a year of standing firm. Of constant prayer. Of victory. May this be year which you feel the sustaining power of your creator father providing you with all things, and may you be secure in his strength and power over all creation – even the wicked angels.
For still our ancient foe
Doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and power are great,
And, armed with cruel hate,
On earth is not his equal.
Did we in our own strength confide,
Our striving would be losing;
Were not the right Man on our side,
The Man of God’s own choosing:
Dost ask who that may be?
Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth, His name,
From age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.
And though this world, with devils filled,
Should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed
His truth to triumph through us:
The Prince of Darkness grim,
We tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure,
For lo, his doom is sure,
One little word shall fell him.
That word above all earthly powers,
No thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours
Through Him who with us sideth:
Let goods and kindred go,
This mortal life also;
The body they may kill:
God’s truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever.
Amen.