God the Father, the Almighty

I finally did something i’ve been meaning to do for awhile…….. and that’s to watch the hit movie wicked. the movie wicked stars the actress Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, Ariana Grande as Glinda.

Now i’ll just speak for me i won’t speak for you… but when i watch any kind of musical i can sometimes get pretty lost in what i just watched….. and i can have trouble wrapping my head around things. And sometimes when i can’t wrap my head around something ill just give up on the whole thing all together

Well this semester some of the things that we plan to cover there will likely be times where you may not be able to just fully wrap your head around everything that we cover. Let me encourage you…. That is ok! and normal

for example today one point we are going to talk about is how God is infinite. That alone is hard for us to wrap our heads around because everything around us has a beginning and an end. So my hope this semester is that we lean into any questions you might have and that we might as a group grow in our understanding of the God we believe in .

Plans this semester:

Dinner + free time

Game together

Sing together

Quick lesson

Small groups to apply what we learn+ Pray for one another

Next point

This school semester we are going over the apostles creed.

It covers fundamental Christian doctrines, including belief in God the Father, Jesus Christ (his birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension, and return), the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting.

It’s a short statement of belief (the word creed comes from a Latin word meaning “I believe”) that explains the most important truths of the Christian faith—even though the Apostles themselves didn’t write it

I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; he descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting.

Amen.

I believe in God, the Father almighty,

Genesis 1:1 ESV

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:26–29 “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.”

Genesis 1:30–31 “And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.”

How would you summarize everything we just read in 2 sentences?

Why do you think the Bible does not explain where God came from?

The very first verse of the Bible teaches us four important truths about God:

God is eternal God has always existed and always will. Everything else had a beginning—God did not.

God is infinite There was nothing before God and nothing beyond Him. He is bigger than everything He made.

God is omnipotent (all-powerful) God spoke, and creation began. Nothing is beyond His power. (That’s why questions like “Can God make a rock so big He can’t lift it?” don’t make sense—God never contradicts Himself.) - Optional The premise itself is contradictory: an all-powerful being creating something that proves He isn't all-powerful. It's like asking, "Can God create something He can't create

God is independent from creation God didn’t create because He was lonely or needed something. He created as an expression of His love—not because He lacked anything.

Big picture: Genesis 1 tells us who created everything, not every detail of how. The focus is on God as the Maker of all things.

lets now look at Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”

“So God created man in his own image…” Genesis 1:27 Discuss

How does this verse show that humans are different from the rest of creation?

Genesis 2 explains that God personally formed Adam and breathed life into him. Being made in God’s image means: Every human life has value and dignity We are meant to reflect God’s glory and goodness in the world Being made male and female is a core part of what it means to be human. God created men and women together to reflect His glory—and He called it very good.

“God saw all that he had made, and it was very good indeed.” Genesis 1:31 “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.”

Discuss

Why is it important that God calls creation “very good”?

What does this verse say about the physical world and our bodies?

Explain Genesis 1 repeats the word “good” seven times to emphasize something important: Creation is good. Other ancient cultures taught that the physical world was evil or a mistake.

The Bible teaches the opposite: God made the world on purpose God delights in His creation The physical world is meant for enjoyment and worship The Hebrew word for “good” means something that is working exactly as it was designed to.

God is our father

we have been made the adopted children of God in Jesus Christ. He is the natural Son, the eternal Son; we were not sons but we have been made so by grace. Christ always was and is the Son; we were strangers and aliens but now we have been brought near.

We should not define God by our experience with earthly fathers. Even the best human dads fall short. God is the perfect Father, and human fathers are meant to reflect Him—not replace Him.

we have been made the adopted children of God in Jesus Christ. He is the natural Son, the eternal Son; we were not sons but we have been made so by grace. Christ always was and is the Son; we were strangers and aliens but now we have been brought near.

Important Pastoral Note Some students may have painful experiences with their dads. God is not distant nor is he unsafe. He is the Father revealed in Jesus.

Biblical Picture Luke 15:20 “And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.” — the Father who runs to the prodigal

Simple Explanation the best dad’s are really meant to be a small picture of God. God Becomes Our Father Through Jesus - God is not automatically the Father of everyone in the same way. He is Creator of all, but Father by grace to His children. We become God’s children by being united to Jesus, the eternal Son.

Scripture

Galatians 4:4–6 “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!””

Main Takeaway for Students Because of Jesus, God is not far away—And we even have the privilege to call him Father, and we belong to Him. Jesus—the same Word who created the universe—became flesh to redeem us (see Colossians 1:15–20)

ONE SENTENCE FOR STUDENTS TO REMEMBER God made the world good, made me on purpose, and sent Jesus to restore what sin broke.

Next week we will cover the Trinity