Last time we began to examine the Creed’s description of the object of our faith, viz. the triune
God. The first part of that description concerned “God the Father.” Thus we learned that the God
in whom we believe is a personal (or relational) God. He is the Father eternally, in his being
(i.e. his operations ad intra), in relation to his begetting of the Son. He is also the adoptive Father
temporally, in the economy of redemption (i.e. his operations ad extra), in relation to all he those
he has redeemed from the curse of sin and misery. The Creed further described him as
“almighty,” signaling that his power is unmatched. Nothing lies outside his sovereign authority and strength.
In this lesson we will consider the next part of the Creed’s description of God the Father. He is
“maker of heaven and earth.” The phrase “heaven and earth,” is the Bible’s way of referring to
everything except God. In Genesis 1:1 we read, “In the beginning God created the heavens and
the earth.” The Nicene Creed also adds, “of all things visible and invisible.” The visible is the
material universe. The invisible is any immaterial aspect of the universe, including human souls
and angels. God’s work of creation is one of the two works by which he executes his eternal
decrees. Shorter Catechism question seven asks: “What are the decrees of God?” It answers:
“The decrees of God are, his eternal purpose, according to the counsel of his will, whereby, for
his own glory, he has foreordained whatsoever comes to pass.” Question eight then asks: “How
does God execute his decrees?” And it answers: “God executes his decrees in the works of
creation and providence.” It continues in questions nine and eleven to define these works,
writing: “The work of creation is, God’s making all things of nothing, by the word of his
power, in the space of six days, and all very good,” and, “God’s works of providence are, his
most holy, wise, and powerful preserving and governing all his creatures, and all their actions.”
This is essentially what is being communicated in the phrase “maker of heaven and earth.”
It should be noted that just as with the attribute “almighty,” the Creed does not mean that the
Father does these works to the exclusion of the Son and Holy Spirit. On the contrary, the Son and
Holy Spirit do the works of creation and providence just as the Father does. These are the works
of the triune God, not the works of any particular person of the Trinity exclusively. Nonetheless,
the Bible teaches that the three persons perform different operations in their work ad extra that
correspond to their operations ad intra. God the Father does these works through the Son and by the power of the Holy Spirit (Gen. 1:2; John 1:3; 5:17; Col. 1:16-17; Heb. 1:2-3). Thus it is appropriate to ascribe these works, first, to the Father. God’s works of creation and providence teach us several important things about him.
The Creator-Creature Distinction
God is essentially different from us. We are creatures. He is not. “God is,” as Shorter
Catechism question four says, “a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom,
power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.” We are composite; he is not. We are bodily; he is not. We are limited; he is not. We are temporal; he is not. We are changeable; he is not. This distinction entails our utter
dependence upon him.
Creaturely Dependence
We are dependent upon God for our very existence. God created us from nothing on the sixth
day (cf. Gen. 1-2). We are not only dependent on him for our beginning (i.e. his work of
creation) but also for our continuation (i.e. his work of providence). As the Apostle teaches: “For
in him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). This dependence is true for every
aspect of our being, including our knowledge of him. We are dependent on God’s self-revelation
to know him. We cannot know him otherwise. This makes the Holy Scriptures—God’s special
revelation to us—most necessary. It is interesting that the Creed does not mention the Scriptures.
That is not because the early church viewed them as unnecessary. It is because their necessity
was unquestioned. How do we know the Creed’s teaching on God’s triunity? We know by
depending on the Scriptures, a dependence that the Creator-creature distinction entails.
This distinction also entails our accountability to God. If we owe our existence to him, then we
owe our allegiance to him. We do not belong to ourselves but to him who created us. He is
deserving of all our honor and thanks (cf. Rom. 1:21), because he is most excellent. The Apostle
exclaims, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable
are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or
who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid? For from
him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen” (Romans 11:33-
36). Any rebellion against him is, therefore, condemnable to the highest degree since the one
offended is excellent to the highest degree.
The Creator-creature distinction also entails our ability to rest in the assurance that God “works
all things according to the counsel of his will” (Ephesians 1:11b) and that “For those who love
God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose”
(Romans 8:28b). The God who created all things by the word of his power is “able to save to the
uttermost” (Heb. 7:25) since he is the same “yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb. 13:38).
Further, the Apostle encourages us with respect to anti-Christian spirits, writing, “Little children,
you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the
world” (1 John 4:4). The same power that created the heavens and the earth from nothing is at
work to save us. Nothing can stand in his way. “If God is for us who can be against us” (Romans
8:31b). This should bring us great comfort.
But not only should we be comforted with respect to our salvation, but also with respect to
everything that happens to us in this life. Caspar Olevianus comments on this section of the
Creed, writing, “Whoever is persuaded that by His providence God administers everything most
wisely, and whoever is fully reconciled to Him in Christ, ought to consider whatever happens—
whether public or private, happy or sad—as nothing other than benefits, indeed benefits of God,
for our salvation” (An Exposition of the Apostles’ Creed, p. 48).
As we confess belief in the “maker of heaven and earth,” we confess one of the most
fundamental truths of the Christian faith. God is God; we are not. This should bring great terror
to those who continue in rebellion against him. There is no escaping his final reckoning. But it
should bring great comfort to those who have been reconciled to him through faith in Jesus
Christ.
Review Questions
1. What does the phrase “heaven and earth” mean in the Bible?
2. Which two of God’s works does the word “maker” have in view?
3. Of what prior work are God’s works of creation and providence the execution?
4. What is the difference between God’s works ad intra and ad extra? What is the significance of this distinction? What is the importance of the decree in maintaining this distinction?
5. What is the Creator-creature distinction? Why is it important?
6. What does our utter dependence upon God entail about our knowledge of him? Our assurance of salvation? Our comfort in all circumstances?
