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God the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth

Text: James 1:16–18
Preacher: Pastor Alex
Date: September 27, 2026

Sermon Summary

The first article of the Creed was shaped early against an error: Marcion, an early second-century teacher, could not reconcile the suffering he saw with a good God, so he concluded the Creator of the Old Testament was a lesser, blundering deity and cut the Old Testament, and most of the New Testament except for Luke and some of Paul's letters (which he edited). The church answered by making it unmistakable: the Father we confess is the very same God of the Old Testament who made heaven and earth. The sermon looked to James 1:16–18 to answer our questions about the Father.

As Maker of heaven and earth, James tells us first that the Father is the eternal source of every good and perfect gift. Jesus adds in Matthew 5-7 that he is self-emptying and generous, gentle and not domineering.

As the Almighty, James calls him "the Father of lights", which means he is the power over all power (Latin, omnipotentem). But James also says there is no variation in him due to change, which means that the Father is also the power under all, holding everything together (Greek, Pantokrator). When we struggle to understand how evil can exist before our generous and almighty Father, we remember the cross of Jesus where we see his perfect will bringing forth the fruit of the gospel. God does this same work in us.

Finally, we approach the Father as "Our Father", like Jesus taught us to pray. He brought us forth by the gospel, the word of truth. As his children, we are called to the same generosity and faithfulness towards others.

Discussion Guide

Ice Breaker

  • Light: What's the best gift you've ever been given, and who gave it to you?
  • Deeper: Growing up, who was the most generous person you knew, and what did they do that stuck with you?

Discussion Questions

1. Remember the Truth: The words "maker of heaven and earth" were added to our confession very early, to answer a man who blamed the God of the Old Testament for the suffering of this world. What answers would James offer to Marcion about the Father?

2. Understand the Truth: Look at James 1:17-18. Every good and perfect gift comes down from the Father of lights, "with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." How would you explain to a friend what that verse says about what God is like? Bring in any other passage that helps (especially from Matthew 5-7)

3. Test the Truth: A common comfort offered today is that God didn't want this and is as grieved and surprised by it as you are. Where does that come near the truth, and where does it part ways with James 1:17–18? Consider this against Jesus' exampe in Acts 2:23, or what Paul says about us in Romans 8:28-39.

4. Be changed: Most of us quietly picture God with the face of some earthly authority: a father, a boss, someone harsh or distant or hard to please. If the Father's real heart is the one we see in Jesus, generous and pouring himself out, what changes in the way you come to him?

5. Be changed together: We're known for being welcoming in the foyer. What would it take for that generosity to reach further, into this group, toward someone who is in a hard stretch right now?

6. Be sent: In the world, whoever is in charge is assumed to be worth more. In God, the Father holds all authority and empties himself. Wherever you lead or serve, at work, at home, on a team here, what would change this week if you used what authority you have the way the Father does?

Supporting Scriptures

  1. Genesis 1:1: The Bible opens with the God we confess as Father making heaven and earth, the claim Marcion denied.
  2. Deuteronomy 32:6: Moses joins the two titles together, asking whether the Lord is not the Father who created and established his people.
  3. Nehemiah 9:6: The Lord alone made heaven and earth and preserves them all, both the power over all and the power under all.
  4. Psalm 103:13: The Lord's compassion toward those who fear him is a father's compassion for his children.
  5. Matthew 5:43–45: We love our enemies because the Father sends sun and rain on just and unjust alike; his generosity is the pattern for ours.
  6. Matthew 6:9–13: Jesus teaches us to address God as our Father and to ask him for daily bread, forgiveness, and deliverance.
  7. Matthew 7:9–11: If flawed fathers give good gifts to their children, how much more the Father in heaven, the point James makes in another key.
  8. Acts 17:24–28: Paul tells Athens that the God who made the world needs nothing and gives everyone life and breath; in him we live and move.
  9. Romans 8:15: The Spirit of adoption teaches us to cry "Abba, Father," making the confession relational rather than formal.
  10. 1 John 3:1: The Father's love is lavish enough that we are called children of God, and that is what we actually are.
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