アイザック・ニュートンは科学者としての自分というものをこのように表現しました『私は砂浜を散歩する子供のようなものである。 私は時々美しい石ころや貝殻を見つけて喜んでいるけれど真理の大海は私の前に未だ探検されることなく広がっている』
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全能の父なる神を信じる ２０１１年４月１０日
全能なる神
私達は使徒信条において「全能の神を信じる」とその信仰を唱えています。「全能」というのは「何でもできる」ということです。確かに言われてみればそうです。神様が太陽は造ってみたけれども、その運行や維持に関しては力が及ばない、魚は造ったけれども、その繁殖については何もできないというのであるならば、私達はその存在を全能なる神と呼ぶことはできません。聖書はまずその神の全能ということを「はじめに神は天と地とを創造された」(創世記１章１節)という言葉で始めています。なぜなら、このことが聖書を読むにあたり、大前提としてあるからです。このたった１６文字の言葉の中にこれまでの、そして今も続いている人間の探求全てが含まれています。
あのアイザック・ニュートンは科学者としての自分というものをこのように表現しました『私は砂浜を散歩する子供のようなものである。 私は時々美しい石ころや貝殻を見つけて喜んでいるけれど真理の大海は私の前に未だ探検されることなく広がっている』
私達はこの神を前に今、礼拝を捧げているのです。イエス・キリストは言われました「空の鳥を見るがよい。まくことも、刈ることもせず、倉に取り入れることもしない。それだのに、あなたがたの天の父は彼らを養っていてくださる」（マタイ６章２６節）「野の花がどうして育っているか、考えてみるがよい。働きもせず、紡ぎもしない」（マタイ６章２８節）。
時々、公園の鳩にパンくずをまいている人や、花壇の花に水をまいている人を見かけますが、その鳩や花が地球上の全ての鳥、花ではありません。イエス様がここで言われた「空の鳥」そして「野の花」とはこの地球上に生息する全ての鳥や花のことを指して言っているのであって、それらは刈ることも取り入れこともなく、働きも紡ぎもせずに養われているというのです。すなわちフロリダに生息しているペリカンもアフリカにいるダチョウも、私達の庭先に飛んでくるハミングバードも全て神が養っているというのです。
そして言うまでもありません、地球の生き物は鳥や花だけではありません。ミトコンドリアから鯨にいたるまで、あの巨大なセコイヤの木から渓流の石にこびりついている苔にいたるまで、これら全てのものは全能の神の御手の中にあり、その命は保たれているのです。神の全能は果てしなくおよび、私達人間が把握できるものなどは、その僅かな部分に過ぎません。
イエス様はまた弟子たちとの会話において、この神の全能についてこんな角度からも自ら話しておられます。マタイ１９章２３節‐３０節を読んでみましょう。
23それからイエスは弟子たちに言われた「よく聞きなさい。富んでいる者が天国にはいるのは、むずかしいものである。24また、あなたがたに言うが、富んでいる者が神の国にはいるよりは、らくだが針の穴を通る方が、もっとやさしい」。25弟子たちはこれを聞いて非常に驚いて言った、「では、だれが救われることができるのだろう」。26イエスは彼らを見つめて言われた、「人にはそれはできないが、神にはなんでもできない事はない」。
このところでは「富んでいる人」ということが指摘されていますが、もう少し広く解釈しますならば、それは実際に財産をたくさん持っている人ということに限らず、「神様以外のもので心がいっぱいに満たされている人」ということが言えるでしょう。そのような人が天国にはいるよりは、らくだが針の穴を通る方がやさしいというのです。イエス様は時々、このような極端なことを言われましたが、確かにこの言葉は大げさではなく、今日の宣教の現状ということを考えますならば頷けるところが大いにあるように思います。
さて、このような大胆な言葉を聞いた弟子達は驚いてイエス様に聞くのです「それでは、誰が救われることができますか」。そうです、私達の脳裏にも浮かぶ疑問です。しかし、イエス様はしっかりと確信をもって彼らを見つめて言われたのです「人にはそれはできないが、神にはなんでもできない事はない」。
イエスの弟子達は言ったのです。「それでは誰が救われることができるのだろう」そうです、人は本来、自らを救うことなどはできないのです。このことは聖書も言っている、「私達は自分の努力や精進によっては到底、救いを得ることなどはできない」ということであり「いや、それでもがんばれば、なんとかなるのではないか」という人間の思いに対して、神様は「それは無理なのだ、できっこないのだ」ということを実証させるために、天地創造からイエス・キリストまでの長い長い時間を人間に与えられたのです。そして、その結果として、アダムとイエスの間に生まれては死んでいった無数の人間達の生き様、試みが人の内には救いはないということを証明しているのです。
旧約聖書の中にはアブラハムという人がいます。今やキリスト教、ユダヤ教、イスラム教において「信仰の父」と呼ばれている人です。彼はその年７５歳という、これから限られた残りの余生を生きようという時に神の声を聞き、信仰によって住み慣れた故郷を出て行った人です。しかし、その歩みにはいくつもの失敗があったということを聖書は包み隠さずに記録しています。
そんな彼が９９歳になった時に、神様は彼にあらわれてこう言ったのです「私は全能の神である。あなたはわたしの前に歩み、全き者であれ」。神様は彼を前にその失敗や彼のいたらなさというものを数え上げて、責めたてるのではなくて、ただこう言ったのです「我は全能の神なり」。アブラハム、お前は確かに色々な失敗をした。わたしはそのあなたに向かって今、言う、「わが前に歩みて全かれよ」。しかし、それはお前に「がんばれ」といっているのではない。お前が自分の力でそれができるとは思わない。お前もそう思っているに違いない。ただ、このことは忘れるな、「私は全能の神である」
神は天地を創造し、人間というものを創造されました。しかし、一つ手をつけなかったことがあります。それは人間の自由な意思です。そこには神様は手をつけませんでした。それは各々の人間に任せられたのです。なぜなら、そこに手をつけるということは、私達がロボットを愛して、恋に落ちることがないように、神と人間の関係に「愛」というものが排除されるからです。神は私達人間との間にこの愛の関係があることを望まれたのです。
しかし、それはとてつもないリスクをともなうことでした。なぜなら、それは人が神のことなど考えずに、各々が自分の思いのまま、欲望のままに生きることができる自由が与えられたということだからです。実際に私達はその自由さの中で、好き勝手に生きる者なのです。そして、悲しいかなその自由が実は私達を不自由にしている、そんな現実の中を私達は生きています。
そこで、神はこの地上に一人子イエス・キリストを送られたのです。私達は天に手を伸ばし、自ら神様に近づくことができるように、触れることができるように虚しい努力をし続けました。しかし、それは全く無理なことであり、そのことを重々、承知しておられた神様はあちらから、こちらに神の一人子イエスを送ってくださったのです。それがクリスマスの出来事であり、その神の子なるイエス・キリストは人類の罪を一身に負い、人類といいますと人事のように思えますが、はっきり申しますならば、あなたや私の罪の身代わりとなることをよしとされたのです、ここにまさしく頑なな私達のような者にまで救いを届けてくださる、神の全能というものの究極の姿があるのです。
そうです、実際にこの言葉通りにおびただしい数の人間が神によって救いを与えられています。これらの人達の心はかつては「神以外のものでいっぱいになっていた」のです。かつては神などは入る余地がなかったのです。思いも、考えもしなかったのです。人事のように言っていますが、私自身も、そして皆さんだってそうでしょう。しかし、ある時、ある事を通して、その状況は一人一人異なるでしょうが、ある方達は「その心に人の力が及ばない世界がある」ことを知り、またある方達は「目に見えないことの中に真理があるのではないか」ということが示され、その先にある神のことが思い起こされ、やがてイエス・キリストを個人的に知り、救いへと導かれたのです。実にこのようなところに余すところなく神様の全能はあらわされているのです。
二つ目のことをお話します。それは「全能の父なる神を信じる」ということです。
全能の父なる神を信じる
私達は「全能の神」について見てまいりました。しかし、既にお気づきのようにここには「全能の神」ということだけが記されているのではありません。ここには「全能の父なる神を信じる」と書かれているのです。そうです、神は全能であるということと同時に私達の「父」だというのです。
この「父よ」と言う言葉をイエス様も使っています。どこでその言葉を使っているのでしょうか。そうです、ゲッセマネの園での祈りの中でイエス様は「アバ、父よ」と祈ったのです。その時のことを記しているマルコによる福音書１４章３２節から３６節まで読んでみましょう。32さて、一同はゲツセマネという所にきた。そしてイエスは弟子たちに言われた、「わたしが祈っている間、ここにすわっていなさい」。33そしてペテロ、ヤコブ、ヨハネを一緒に連れて行かれたが、恐れおののき、また悩みはじめて、彼らに言われた、34「わたしは悲しみのあまり死ぬほどである。ここに待っていて、目をさましていなさい」。35そして少し進んで行き、地にひれ伏し、もしできることなら、この時を過ぎ去らせてくださるようにと祈りつづけ、そして言われた、36「アバ、父よ、あなたには、できないことはありません。どうか、この杯をわたしから取りのけてください。しかし、わたしの思いではなく、みこころのままになさってください」。
イエス様はこの時、何に苦悩していたのでしょうか。悲しみのあまり死ぬほどであるということはどういうことなのでしょうか。そうです、この時のイエス様は十字架にかけられる数時間前だったのです。ご自身、これから自分は捕らえられて、鞭打たれ、侮辱され、十字架にかかることを知っていました。それは、ご自身に何か罪や不手際があったからそうなったのではなくて、全ての人間の罪をその身に負い、十字架にかかるのです。その苦悩の中、イエス様はそこで祈られたのです。そしてその時に魂の深みから搾り出すように出てきた祈りの言葉が「アバ、父よ」という言葉だったのです。「アバ」とは皆さん、ご存知のように子供が父親を呼ぶ時に使います「ダディー」とか「パパ」というような言葉です。
そして、驚くべきことに私達もこのように神様を呼んでよろしいと聖書は言っていますローマ８章１４節‐１５節にはこのような言葉が書かれています。「14すべて神の御霊に導かれている者は、すなわち、神の子である。15あなたがたは再び恐れをいだかせる奴隷の霊を受けたのではなく、子たる身分を授ける霊を受けたのである。その霊によって、わたしたちは「アバ、父よ」と呼ぶのである」
なぜ、これは驚くべきことなのでしょうか。まず第一にこういうことです。私は今、国籍としてはアメリカ人となりましたが、その心は日本人であると自分で思っています。このような者ですと、この国に住んでいても年上の人をやはり「さん」づけで呼びます。アメリカ社会では、父親のような人に向かっても「マイク」とか「ボブ」と呼ぶ社会です。「郷に入っては郷に従え」ですから、当然、私自身もそう呼ぶことはできると思いますし、そう呼んでくれと言われることもあります。確かにアメリカ生活もトータルで１７年になりますから、色々なことでアメリカナイズされたものも自分の心にはあります。しかしながら、これだけはなかなか変えることができないのです。いつか変わるかもしれませんが、いつのことか分かりません。
私達はここで人間のことではなく、神様のことを取り上げています。全能の神のことを取り上げているのです。「年上年下」というようなことではないのです。このお方は神なのです。そのお方を私達はダディーと呼ぶことができる。これはなんとすごいことでしょうか。
またこのようにも考えられます。私には三人の子供がいますが、彼らは私を日本的に「パパ」と呼びます。しかし、この子達以外の子供が私を「パパ」とか「ダディー」とは呼びません。これがそう呼ばれてしまうと、とても複雑な状況となります。ですからこの呼び方というのは、全ての人が言えるようなものではなくて、限定されている者達だけに許されているものなのです。
皆さん十戒には何と書かれていたでしょう「神の名をみだりに唱えてはならない」です。旧約聖書の時代にはその名をみだりに唱えてはいけなかったのです。しかし、今や私達はその神をダディーと呼ぶことができるのです。なぜ私達は今、天地の造り主なる神をダディーと呼ぶことができるのでしょうか。神は私達を特別な者として見ていてくださるのでしょうか。
今を生きる私達ですらそんな疑問を持つのですから、２０００年前に人々は同じ疑問を持っていました。ガラテヤ４章１節‐７節においてパウロはそんな疑問に答えています。1わたしの言う意味は、こうである。相続人が子供である間は、全財産の持ち主でありながら、僕となんの差別もなく、2父親の定めた時期までは、管理人や後見人の監督の下に置かれているのである。3それと同じく、わたしたちも子供であった時には、いわゆるこの世のもろもろの霊力の下に、縛られていた者であった。4しかし、時の満ちるに及んで、神は御子を女から生れさせ、律法の下に生れさせて、おつかわしになった。5それは、律法の下にある者をあがない出すため、わたしたちに子たる身分を授けるためであった。6このように、あなたがたは子であるのだから、神はわたしたちの心の中に、「アバ、父よ」と呼ぶ御子の霊を送って下さったのである。7したがって、あなたがたはもはや僕ではなく、子である。子である以上、また神による相続人である。
「神の名をみだりに唱えてはいけない」という時代に、人々は神様のことを「主」とよびました。主とは日本語で読みますとはっきりしますように「あるじ」ということであり、それを呼ぶ者にとっての関係は、このガラテヤ書７節にも言及されているように、「主人」と「僕」のようなものでありました。もちろん、今も私達は主という呼び方を使いますが、私達は今日、同じ神を父と呼ぶことが許されているのです。
なぜ、許されているのか。ここに書かれていますように、神の子なるイエス・キリストが私達たちをその罪から救い出してくださった故であり、そのことによって私達は神の子たる身分を授けられているのです。それゆえに私達もこの神をキリストと同じように「アバ、父よ」と呼ぶことができるのです。もはや私達は神の僕ではないというのです。
ルイス・マクバーニーというクリスチャン・リーダーとして有名な精神科医がいますが、彼は「人々の神へのイメージは彼らの父親に対する感情と重複し、鏡が光を反射するように、その思いを反映します」と言っています。父親が愛情深くて子供に適切な言葉をかけ、子供の言葉に真剣に耳を傾けて精神的な必要を満たすと、その子供は、神は父親と同じように取り扱ってくださると思うようになるそうです。自分の父と神を重ね合わせてイメージするのです。
あのマルチン・ルターは長い間「天の父」という表現を嫌いました。父という言葉を聞くだけで震え上がったそうです。この父は学と名誉を得させるために、息子ルターに法律への道へと進ませます。しかし、それはルター自身が願った道ではありませんでした。父を恐れたルターは、やはり天の父を恐ろしく感じるようになりました。ルターは言っています「父と母を敬えという戒めを守る人は聖人だ」。
人の心はガラスのようにとても繊細で、ガラスのコップについている傷がいつまでも消えないように、私達の心の傷というものもその心に残ることがあります。特に幼少時代の親との関係というものは、真っ白な心に刻まれていきますゆえに、それが成長してからもその人に大きな影響を与えることが多々あります。
ルターもそのような傷をもって育ったのだと思います。その厳格な父親と父なる神が重なってしまい、彼は苦しみました。しかし、彼はその人生を通して、自分の肉の父と父なる神との違いというものを知っていったのです。その違いとは何でしょうか。肉の父は自分が彼の望む道を歩むなら喜んでくれましたが、そうでないなら、彼は厳しく咎められました。しかし、この父なる神は自分がその神の意にかなわない罪人であるにもかかわらず、その一人子イエスをお与えくださるほどに自分を愛してくださった、その事実を信仰をもってかみしめていった時に彼の心は癒され、解放されたのです。彼はこの全能なるお方を「ダディー」と呼んでいいのだということを知った時に、どんなにその心に喜びが溢れたことでしょうか！
最後にもう一つ、驚くべきことをお話して終りましょう。このガラテヤ書によりますと子とされた私達は「子である以上、相続人だというのです」（７節）。時々、私達は心臓の鼓動が激しくなることがありますが、それはこういう時になるべきです。「ワァオー」とか「エェー」という驚きの表現がありますが、それはこの言葉に対して発するべきことです。この言葉を文字通り受け止めますならば、自分でいうのもなんですけれど「なんて自分はリッチなんだろう」と思います。最近、どこかの州で何百万ドルという宝くじが当たったなんてニュースがありましたが、私達のリッチさはそんなものと比較になりません。
だから自分自身、リッチな顔して生きていかなければならないと思います。「どこかに何か落ちていないだろうか」というように下を向いて生きるのではなくて、天地を造られた神を父に持つ、その相続人である自分、その驚くべき特権をもっともっと喜んで人生を歩んでいかなければなりません。それは自分で獲得したのではなくて、これもまたあちらから全て与えらたもの、すなわちイエス・キリストの私に対する無償の愛によって与えられたものであるということを思いますならば、本当になんともったいない話なのかと思います。自分自身、もったいないと思いますが、父なる神は、イエス・キリストはそれをもったいないなどと思っていない。ひとり子イエスを与えるほどに、わたしたちを大切な存在としていてくださる、私達を愛していてくれる、このことをしかと受け止めて生きていくことができるとは何と幸いかと思います。
皆さん、これら今日、お話したこと全てをもって私達は唱えるのです。「我は天地の造り主、全能の父なる神を信ず」。この一言だけで私達は神の愛と恵みに圧倒されてしまうのです。お祈りしましょう。
Believe in God, Our Almighty Father
April 10, 2011
God Almighty
In the Apostles’ Creed we confess our faith by saying “I believe in God, the Father Almighty.” Almighty means having unlimited power. This is true indeed. If God created the sun, but did not have control over its movements and radiation, or created fish, but could not control its life cycles, we could not call him God Almighty. The Bible first states his omnipotence in Genesis 1:1 with the words “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” This is because these words form the major premise of our understanding of the Bible. These ten words encompass mankind’s quest for truth from past to present.
This is how Isaac Newton described himself as a scientist. He said, “I do not know what I may appear to the world but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”
Right now we are gathered to give worship before this God. Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26) “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.” (Matthew 6:28)
Every now and then we see someone feeding the pigeons at a park or watering the flowers in a garden, but these pigeons and flowers are not every bird and flower on earth. “The birds of the air” and “the flowers of the field” Jesus is saying here are the whole species of birds and flowers that exist on earth, and they do not sow or reap, nor do they labor or spin, but they are all being taken care of. Therefore the pelicans of Florida, the ostriches of Africa, and the hummingbirds that fly into our yards are all being fed by God.
Needless to say, birds and flowers are not the only life forms on this planet. From mitochondria to whales, giant redwoods to mosses in a mountain stream, these are all in the hands of our God Almighty, and by him all life sustains. God’s power is infinite, and what we humans can fathom is only a small portion of it.
In one of the conversations with His disciples, Jesus spoke of God’s omnipotence from another perspective. Let us read from Matthew 19:23-26.
23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?” 26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
Here He talks about “someone who is rich”, but if we are to interpret it in a broader sense, we may understand this person as not just someone who has a lot of money, but someone whose mind is occupied with something other than God. Therefore it means it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for this kind of person to enter heaven. Sometimes Jesus made extreme statements like this, but when we think of our missionary work today, this is not an exaggeration and we certainly agree with what He is saying.
Then, after hearing this bold statement the disciples ask Jesus, “Who then can be saved?” We too ask this same question. But Jesus looked at them and said with conviction, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
“Who then can be saved?” is what the disciples said. Indeed, there is no way for one to save oneself. The Bible says this, and this means we cannot save ourselves with our efforts or practices. When people thought “if we try some way, somehow it will work out”, God proved that it is impossible by giving mankind the long period between Creation and the arrival of Christ. And as a result, the many attempts of those who lived between Adam and Jesus proved that there is no salvation inside a man.
In the Old Testament there is a man named Abraham. Today he is called the “Father of Faith” in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. He was a man, who at the age of seventy-five, when one thinks of how to spend the rest of his life, heard God’s voice and by faith left his hometown. But the fact that he made many mistakes during his life is not hidden and written clearly in the Bible.
When he was ninety-nine years old, God appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless.” Instead of counting Abraham’s mistakes and shortcomings and chastising him, the LORD spoke to him and said, “I am God Almighty.” Abraham, indeed you have made many mistakes. Knowing this, I say to you, “Walk before me and be blameless.” But I am not telling you to try harder. You cannot do this by your own power. You too, know this. Just do not forget, “I am God Almighty.”
God created the heavens and the earth, and created what we call mankind. But there is one thing he left untouched. It is our freedom of will. This he let it be. He entrusted this to each individual person. This is because if he controlled our will, like a robot is unable to love us and we cannot truly fall in love with them, there will be no love in our relationship with God. God’s will was to have a relationship of love with us human beings.
But this also came with a great risk. Because this means that we could forget about God and each of us have the freedom to live anyway we want, doing whatever we desire. In fact we have lived carelessly within this freedom. And sadly, this freedom actually kept us bound, and we face this reality in our lives.
This is why God sent us his only son, Jesus Christ. We as humans have tried to reach up to the heavens, to get closer to God, and tried in vain to reach him. But this is an impossible and futile act, and knowing this all too well, God sent us his son Jesus Christ from his world into ours. This is the miracle of Christmas, the one and only son of God Jesus Christ bearing all of mankind’s sins upon Him, when I say mankind it sounds as if it is not our own problem, but if I am to speak the truth, He did not hesitate to bear my sins and your sins, He even grants salvation to us who are stubborn, this is where we see the absolute form of God’s almightiness.
And indeed, countless many people have been led to salvation by God in this way. The hearts of these people were once filled with things other than God. Before, there was no room for God in their hearts. They never even thought about it. I say this as if it was someone else’s business, but you and I have also been this way. Then one day, through a certain event, though the circumstances may vary, one realized that “there is a world inside where no human has power over”, while another noticed that “the truth is inside something our eyes cannot see”, then we were reminded of the existence of God who was beyond all these, then we were led into a personal relationship with Jesus, and were saved. We truly see the majesty and sovereignty of God revealed in these events.
Now I will talk about our next topic, which is to believe in God, our Almighty Father.
Believe in God, Our Almighty Father
Up to this point we learned about God, the Almighty. But as you notice, there is another term written here with God and Almighty. It is written that we “believe in God, the Father Almighty.” Not only is God the Almighty one, but at the same time he is our Father.
Jesus also used the word “father”. Where did he use this word? In the garden of Gethsemane, where He prayed, saying “Abba, Father”. Let us read from Mark 14:32-36 where this is written. 32 They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” 35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36“Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
Why was Jesus distressed and troubled? What does it mean He was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death? This was only hours before Jesus was nailed to the cross. He Himself knew that He will be captured, whipped, humiliated, and crucified. This was not because He has sinned or made a mistake; He took all of our sins upon Himself and was put on the cross. In His distress and sorrow, He prayed in the garden. And the word that came out from the depth of His soul was “Abba, Father”. The word “Abba” as we know is the same as the words “dad” or “daddy” that a child uses to call his father.
And the amazing thing is that the Bible tells us that we too can call God in this way. In Romans 8:14-15 it is written, “14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.””
Why is this an amazing thing? Let me tell you from my perspective. Today I am an American citizen, but I still think I am Japanese in spirit. So even though I live in this country, I still call someone who is older than me with the honorific title “san”. In American society, we casually call each other by our names, like “Mike” or “Bob”, regardless of age. One must follow the customs of the land, so I can address my peers in this way if I try, and sometimes I will be asked to do so. I have lived in the States for a total of seventeen years now, so there are many things inside me that have been Americanized. Yet this is a difficult thing to change for me. It may change one day, but I do not know when.
Here we are dealing not with people, but God. We are dealing with God Almighty. It is not a matter of age difference. He is God. And we can call him “dad”. How amazing is that?
And we can think of it in this way also. I have three children, and as most Japanese children do they call me “papa”. Apart from them no other children call me “papa” or “daddy”. If that was to happen, it will be a very complicated situation. So this way of calling is not for everybody and is only allowed for a chosen few.
Do you remember what is written in the Ten Commandments? It says “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God.” In the times of the Old Testament his name could not be uttered carelessly. Yet now we are allowed to call him dad. Why are we allowed to call the creator of heaven and earth our dad? Does God consider each of us special?
We wonder how this could be in our times, and so the people that lived two-thousand years ago had the same question. In Galatians 4:1-7 Paul gives the answer to this question. “1 What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. 2 The heir is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. 3 So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. 4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. 6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.”
In the days when people feared the misuse of God’s name, they called him the LORD. The word lord means ruler or master, and when one used this term, as it is written in verse 7, his relationship with God was that of a master and slave. We of course still use call him the LORD, but today we are allowed also to call him our father.
Why are we allowed to do so? As it is written here, it is because Jesus Christ the son of God saved us has forgiven us of our sins, and by this we are given the right to be a child of God. And for this we can call God “Abba, Father” as Jesus did. We are no longer a slave of God.
A famous Christian psychologist named Louis Burney once said that people’s image of God is paralleled by their thoughts their father, and as a mirror reflects light it reflects their feelings. When a father shows love toward his child, speaks to him with understanding, and meets the spiritual needs of his child by listening carefully to what he says, the child comes to believe that God will take care of him as his father did. He imagines God to be like his own father.
For a long time, Martin Luther disliked the term “Heavenly Father”. It is said that he shuddered just by hearing the word father. His father made his son study law with the hopes of him achieving knowledge and honor. But this was not the path Luther wanted to follow. Luther feared his father, so he became fearful of his Heavenly Father. He once said that “one who follows the commandment to honor your father and mother is a saint.”
Our heart is very delicate like glass, and like a scratch in a glass cup does not disappear, our hearts stay scarred after it is wounded. A child’s heart is like a blank page, so our relationship with our parents during childhood can have a big impact on us even later in life.
I believe Luther grew up with this kind of wound in his heart. He struggled because his image of his strict father paralleled with that of his Heavenly Father. But as he journeyed through life, he came to know the difference of his earthly father with the Father Almighty. What then, is this difference? His earthly father was happy when Luther did what his father hoped for, but when he did not, he was harshly chastised. But his Heavenly Father loved him so much that even though he was a sinner that went against God’s will, he sent his son Jesus Christ, and when Luther believed in this and felt his Heavenly Father’s love, his wound was healed and he was freed. How much he must have rejoiced when he realized that he could call this Almighty being his “dad”!
Lastly, let me talk about another amazing thing. According to this passage in Galatians, “since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.” Sometimes we get so excited that our heart starts racing, and this is surely something we should be excited about. There are words we use like “wow” that express our amazement, and they should be uttered when reading this passage. When I take these words literally, it is strange to say it myself, but I think of how rich I am. The other day I heard about someone winning the lottery for a several million dollars, but this pales in comparison to the wealth we have received.
So I myself feel that I have to live like I am rich. We have to stop facing down, looking to see if there’s anything on the ground, we have to live more joyously for we are the children and heir of our Almighty Father who created heaven and earth. This is not something we gained ourselves; this is also granted to us, and when we think that this is given to us for free through the love that Jesus has for us, we cannot but notice how much of this grace we are wasting. I myself feel I have been wasteful, but God, Jesus Christ does not think this is a waste. He loves us so much that he gave us his only son; we are precious to Him, and it is such a blessed thing to know and live inside this love.
Brothers and sisters, with all the things we learned today, we say, “I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.” We are awed by God’s love and grace just by saying these words. Let us pr
Believe in God, Our Almighty Father
April 10, 2011
God Almighty
In the Apostles’ Creed we confess our faith by saying “I believe in God, the Father Almighty.” Almighty means having unlimited power. This is true indeed. If God created the sun, but did not have control over its movements and radiation, or created fish, but could not control its life cycles, we could not call him God Almighty. The Bible first states his omnipotence in Genesis 1:1 with the words “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” This is because these words form the major premise of our understanding of the Bible. These ten words encompass mankind’s quest for truth from past to present.
This is how Isaac Newton described himself as a scientist. He said, “I do not know what I may appear to the world but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”
Right now we are gathered to give worship before this God. Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26) “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.” (Matthew 6:28)
Every now and then we see someone feeding the pigeons at a park or watering the flowers in a garden, but these pigeons and flowers are not every bird and flower on earth. “The birds of the air” and “the flowers of the field” Jesus is saying here are the whole species of birds and flowers that exist on earth, and they do not sow or reap, nor do they labor or spin, but they are all being taken care of. Therefore the pelicans of Florida, the ostriches of Africa, and the hummingbirds that fly into our yards are all being fed by God.
Needless to say, birds and flowers are not the only life forms on this planet. From mitochondria to whales, giant redwoods to mosses in a mountain stream, these are all in the hands of our God Almighty, and by him all life sustains. God’s power is infinite, and what we humans can fathom is only a small portion of it.
In one of the conversations with His disciples, Jesus spoke of God’s omnipotence from another perspective. Let us read from Matthew 19:23-26.
23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?” 26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
Here He talks about “someone who is rich”, but if we are to interpret it in a broader sense, we may understand this person as not just someone who has a lot of money, but someone whose mind is occupied with something other than God. Therefore it means it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for this kind of person to enter heaven. Sometimes Jesus made extreme statements like this, but when we think of our missionary work today, this is not an exaggeration and we certainly agree with what He is saying.
Then, after hearing this bold statement the disciples ask Jesus, “Who then can be saved?” We too ask this same question. But Jesus looked at them and said with conviction, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
“Who then can be saved?” is what the disciples said. Indeed, there is no way for one to save oneself. The Bible says this, and this means we cannot save ourselves with our efforts or practices. When people thought “if we try some way, somehow it will work out”, God proved that it is impossible by giving mankind the long period between Creation and the arrival of Christ. And as a result, the many attempts of those who lived between Adam and Jesus proved that there is no salvation inside a man.
In the Old Testament there is a man named Abraham. Today he is called the “Father of Faith” in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. He was a man, who at the age of seventy-five, when one thinks of how to spend the rest of his life, heard God’s voice and by faith left his hometown. But the fact that he made many mistakes during his life is not hidden and written clearly in the Bible.
When he was ninety-nine years old, God appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless.” Instead of counting Abraham’s mistakes and shortcomings and chastising him, the LORD spoke to him and said, “I am God Almighty.” Abraham, indeed you have made many mistakes. Knowing this, I say to you, “Walk before me and be blameless.” But I am not telling you to try harder. You cannot do this by your own power. You too, know this. Just do not forget, “I am God Almighty.”
God created the heavens and the earth, and created what we call mankind. But there is one thing he left untouched. It is our freedom of will. This he let it be. He entrusted this to each individual person. This is because if he controlled our will, like a robot is unable to love us and we cannot truly fall in love with them, there will be no love in our relationship with God. God’s will was to have a relationship of love with us human beings.
But this also came with a great risk. Because this means that we could forget about God and each of us have the freedom to live anyway we want, doing whatever we desire. In fact we have lived carelessly within this freedom. And sadly, this freedom actually kept us bound, and we face this reality in our lives.
This is why God sent us his only son, Jesus Christ. We as humans have tried to reach up to the heavens, to get closer to God, and tried in vain to reach him. But this is an impossible and futile act, and knowing this all too well, God sent us his son Jesus Christ from his world into ours. This is the miracle of Christmas, the one and only son of God Jesus Christ bearing all of mankind’s sins upon Him, when I say mankind it sounds as if it is not our own problem, but if I am to speak the truth, He did not hesitate to bear my sins and your sins, He even grants salvation to us who are stubborn, this is where we see the absolute form of God’s almightiness.
And indeed, countless many people have been led to salvation by God in this way. The hearts of these people were once filled with things other than God. Before, there was no room for God in their hearts. They never even thought about it. I say this as if it was someone else’s business, but you and I have also been this way. Then one day, through a certain event, though the circumstances may vary, one realized that “there is a world inside where no human has power over”, while another noticed that “the truth is inside something our eyes cannot see”, then we were reminded of the existence of God who was beyond all these, then we were led into a personal relationship with Jesus, and were saved. We truly see the majesty and sovereignty of God revealed in these events.
Now I will talk about our next topic, which is to believe in God, our Almighty Father.
Believe in God, Our Almighty Father
Up to this point we learned about God, the Almighty. But as you notice, there is another term written here with God and Almighty. It is written that we “believe in God, the Father Almighty.” Not only is God the Almighty one, but at the same time he is our Father.
Jesus also used the word “father”. Where did he use this word? In the garden of Gethsemane, where He prayed, saying “Abba, Father”. Let us read from Mark 14:32-36 where this is written. 32 They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” 35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36“Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
Why was Jesus distressed and troubled? What does it mean He was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death? This was only hours before Jesus was nailed to the cross. He Himself knew that He will be captured, whipped, humiliated, and crucified. This was not because He has sinned or made a mistake; He took all of our sins upon Himself and was put on the cross. In His distress and sorrow, He prayed in the garden. And the word that came out from the depth of His soul was “Abba, Father”. The word “Abba” as we know is the same as the words “dad” or “daddy” that a child uses to call his father.
And the amazing thing is that the Bible tells us that we too can call God in this way. In Romans 8:14-15 it is written, “14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.””
Why is this an amazing thing? Let me tell you from my perspective. Today I am an American citizen, but I still think I am Japanese in spirit. So even though I live in this country, I still call someone who is older than me with the honorific title “san”. In American society, we casually call each other by our names, like “Mike” or “Bob”, regardless of age. One must follow the customs of the land, so I can address my peers in this way if I try, and sometimes I will be asked to do so. I have lived in the States for a total of seventeen years now, so there are many things inside me that have been Americanized. Yet this is a difficult thing to change for me. It may change one day, but I do not know when.
Here we are dealing not with people, but God. We are dealing with God Almighty. It is not a matter of age difference. He is God. And we can call him “dad”. How amazing is that?
And we can think of it in this way also. I have three children, and as most Japanese children do they call me “papa”. Apart from them no other children call me “papa” or “daddy”. If that was to happen, it will be a very complicated situation. So this way of calling is not for everybody and is only allowed for a chosen few.
Do you remember what is written in the Ten Commandments? It says “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God.” In the times of the Old Testament his name could not be uttered carelessly. Yet now we are allowed to call him dad. Why are we allowed to call the creator of heaven and earth our dad? Does God consider each of us special?
We wonder how this could be in our times, and so the people that lived two-thousand years ago had the same question. In Galatians 4:1-7 Paul gives the answer to this question. “1 What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. 2 The heir is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. 3 So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. 4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. 6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.”
In the days when people feared the misuse of God’s name, they called him the LORD. The word lord means ruler or master, and when one used this term, as it is written in verse 7, his relationship with God was that of a master and slave. We of course still use call him the LORD, but today we are allowed also to call him our father.
Why are we allowed to do so? As it is written here, it is because Jesus Christ the son of God saved us has forgiven us of our sins, and by this we are given the right to be a child of God. And for this we can call God “Abba, Father” as Jesus did. We are no longer a slave of God.
A famous Christian psychologist named Louis Burney once said that people’s image of God is paralleled by their thoughts their father, and as a mirror reflects light it reflects their feelings. When a father shows love toward his child, speaks to him with understanding, and meets the spiritual needs of his child by listening carefully to what he says, the child comes to believe that God will take care of him as his father did. He imagines God to be like his own father.
For a long time, Martin Luther disliked the term “Heavenly Father”. It is said that he shuddered just by hearing the word father. His father made his son study law with the hopes of him achieving knowledge and honor. But this was not the path Luther wanted to follow. Luther feared his father, so he became fearful of his Heavenly Father. He once said that “one who follows the commandment to honor your father and mother is a saint.”
Our heart is very delicate like glass, and like a scratch in a glass cup does not disappear, our hearts stay scarred after it is wounded. A child’s heart is like a blank page, so our relationship with our parents during childhood can have a big impact on us even later in life.
I believe Luther grew up with this kind of wound in his heart. He struggled because his image of his strict father paralleled with that of his Heavenly Father. But as he journeyed through life, he came to know the difference of his earthly father with the Father Almighty. What then, is this difference? His earthly father was happy when Luther did what his father hoped for, but when he did not, he was harshly chastised. But his Heavenly Father loved him so much that even though he was a sinner that went against God’s will, he sent his son Jesus Christ, and when Luther believed in this and felt his Heavenly Father’s love, his wound was healed and he was freed. How much he must have rejoiced when he realized that he could call this Almighty being his “dad”!
Lastly, let me talk about another amazing thing. According to this passage in Galatians, “since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.” Sometimes we get so excited that our heart starts racing, and this is surely something we should be excited about. There are words we use like “wow” that express our amazement, and they should be uttered when reading this passage. When I take these words literally, it is strange to say it myself, but I think of how rich I am. The other day I heard about someone winning the lottery for a several million dollars, but this pales in comparison to the wealth we have received.
So I myself feel that I have to live like I am rich. We have to stop facing down, looking to see if there’s anything on the ground, we have to live more joyously for we are the children and heir of our Almighty Father who created heaven and earth. This is not something we gained ourselves; this is also granted to us, and when we think that this is given to us for free through the love that Jesus has for us, we cannot but notice how much of this grace we are wasting. I myself feel I have been wasteful, but God, Jesus Christ does not think this is a waste. He loves us so much that he gave us his only son; we are precious to Him, and it is such a blessed thing to know and live inside this love.
Brothers and sisters, with all the things we learned today, we say, “I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.” We are awed by God’s love and grace just by saying these words. Let us pray.
Translated by Keita Machida
本日のおもちかえり ２０１１年４月１０日
１）聖書の巻頭、創世記一章一節には「はじめに神は天と地とを創造された」と書かれています。あなたはこの天地万物のものが偶然に出来あがったものだと思いますか。「創造」という言葉にはどんな意味が含まれるでしょうか。
２）マタイ６章２６節、２８節を読みましょう。膨大な数の「空の鳥」や「野の花」はどのように養われているのでしょうか。「食物連鎖」という言葉があり、その構造は肉食で強い動物を頂点にピラミッドの形をしていると言われますが、この形は何を意味しているのでしょうか。このような生き物同士の関係は偶然の産物なのでしょうか。あなたは自然界の中でどんな神様の創造に感動したことがありますか。
３）マタイ１９章２３節‐２６節を読んでみましょう。なぜ富んでいる者が救われるのは極めて難しいことなのでしょうか。人は実際のところ、どうしたら自らを救うことができるのでしょうか。それは可能ですか。
４）「人にはできないが、神にはなんでもできる」と記されていますが、神様は人が救われるということのために、その全能をあらわすために何をなさいましたか。
５）ローマ８章１４節‐１５節を読みましょう。あなたが天地万物を造られた全能の神を「お父さん」と呼ぶことができるというこの聖書の言葉を読む時に、何を感じますか。なぜ、私達はそうすることができるのですか（ガラテヤ４章１節‐７節）。
６）７節にあるように「子である以上、相続人だというのです」という言葉を聞く時に、あなたはどんな思いになりますか。全能の神を父と呼ぶことができ、しかもその相続人なのだということを知りながら生きる時に、あなたはどんな毎日を送ることになるでしょうか。
