I believe in God who is Father

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10 October, 2021Pastor Mark SchultzAncient Creed Living Faith

Unboxing! It's all the rage. Unbox your new computer. Unbox the parcel that has turned up on your door step and video the unboxing.  It's the new entertainment as people record their first interaction with and experience of every new product they unbox. There's an excitement and a thrill about unboxing something that is new. And "new" is what we value today - new ways of thinking, new ways of being, new technologies and new innovations. But sometimes in our quest for the new, we are oblivious to the treasure that is right in front of us. It's been there for centuries, gives wisdom in every era and shapes our everyday lives today. It's an Ancient Creed that has united people across generations and ethnicities. It's an Ancient truth that continues to be a rock of certainty on which we can stand in a shifting society. It's an Ancient framework that gives us a secure refuge in a stormy world. It's an Ancient witness that propels us into a modern world with a Living Faith that can transform people, one life at a time. And it begins with the boldest of declarations. I believe in God who is Father….we'll explore that today.

#1 in series: Ancient Creed Living Faith

Psalm 103

Praise the Lord, my soul;

    all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

Praise the Lord, my soul,

    and forget not all his benefits—

who forgives all your sins

    and heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from the pit

    and crowns you with love and compassion,

5 who satisfies your desires with good things

    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

The Lord works righteousness

    and justice for all the oppressed.

He made known his ways to Moses,

    his deeds to the people of Israel:

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

    slow to anger, abounding in love.

He will not always accuse,

    nor will he harbor his anger forever;

10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve

    or repay us according to our iniquities.

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

    so great is his love for those who fear him;

12 as far as the east is from the west,

    so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

13 As a father has compassion on his children,

    so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;

14 for he knows how we are formed,

    he remembers that we are dust.

15 The life of mortals is like grass,

    they flourish like a flower of the field;

16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,

    and its place remembers it no more.

17 But from everlasting to everlasting

    the Lord’s love is with those who fear him,

    and his righteousness with their children’s children—

18 with those who keep his covenant

    and remember to obey his precepts.

19 The Lord has established his throne in heaven,

    and his kingdom rules over all.

20 Praise the Lord, you his angels,

    you mighty ones who do his bidding,

    who obey his word.

21 Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts,

    you his servants who do his will.

22 Praise the Lord, all his works

    everywhere in his dominion.

Praise the Lord, my soul.


Luke 11:1-13

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

He said to them, “When you pray, say: “‘Father,

hallowed be your name,

your kingdom come.

Give us each day our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins,

    for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.

And lead us not into temptation.’”

Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7 And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.9 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 


10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

11 “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

As a father has compassion on his children,

    so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;

for he knows how we are formed,

    he remembers that we are dust. Psalm 103:13-14

From start to finish, the heart and focus of the creed is relationship with a God who always has desired and always will desire you to experience him completely and fully.

  1.  For what would you bless the Lord today?
  2. What does your relationship with the heavenly Father mean to you?
  3. "I believe" is a statement of trust. If I truly believed in God who is Father, then ____________ (finish the sentence). How can you make the evident in your life this week?

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