The Creed II.The Creed:
The Simple Way a Father Should Present it to His Household I. The First Article: On Creation I believe in God the Almighty Father, Creator of Heaven and Earth.
Q. What does this mean?
A. I believe that God created me, along with all creatures. He gave to me: my body and soul, my eyes, ears and all the other parts of my body, my mind and all my senses. He preserves them as well. He gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and land, wife and children, fields, animals and all I own. Every day He abundantly provides everything I need to nourish this body and life. He protects me against all danger. he shields and defends me from all evil. He does all this because of His pure, fatherly and divine goodness and His mercy, not because I've earned it or deserved it. For all of this, I must thank Him, praise
Him, serve Him and obey Him. Yes, this is true!
Second Article II. The Second Article: On Redemption 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, descended to Hell, on the third day rose again from the dead, ascended to Heaven and sat down at the right hand of God the Almighty
Father. From there He will come to judge the living and the dead.
Q. What does this mean?
A. I believe that Jesus Christ is truly God, born of the Father in eternity and also truly man, born of the Virgin Mary. He is my Lord! He redeemed me, a lost and condemned person, bought and won me from all sins, death and the authority of the Devil. It did not cost Him gold or silver, but His holy, precious blood, His innocent body—His death! Because of this, I am His very own, will live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him righteously, innocently and blessedly forever, just as He is risen from death, lives and reigns forever.
Third Article III. The Third Article: On Becoming Holy I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the community of the saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and an everlasting life. Amen.
Q. What does this mean?
A. I believe that I cannot come to my Lord Jesus Christ by my own intelligence or power.
But the Holy Spirit called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, made me holy and kept me in the true faith, just as He calls, gathers together, enlightens and makes holy the whole Church on earth and keeps it with Jesus in the one, true faith. In this Church, He generously forgives each day every sin committed by me and by every believer. On the last day, He will raise me and all the dead from the grave. He will give eternal life to me and to all who believe in Christ. Yes, this is true!
The Our Father III.The Our Father:
The Simple Way a Father Should Present it to His Household I. Introduction Our Father, Who is in Heaven. (Matthew 6:9) Q. What does this mean?
A. In this introduction, God invites us to believe that He is our real Father and we are His real children, so that we will pray with trust and complete confidence, in the same way beloved children approach their beloved Father with their requests.
The First Request The First Request May Your name be holy.(Matthew 6:9) Q. What does this mean?
A. Of course, God's name is holy in and of itself, but by this request, we pray that He will make it holy among us, too.
Q. How does this take place?
A. It happens when God's Word is taught clearly and purely, and when we live holy lives as God's children based upon it. Help us, Heavenly Father, to do this! But anyone who teaches and lives by something other than God's Word defiles God's name among us. Protect us from this, Heavenly Father!
The Second Request The Second Request Your Kingdom come.(Matthew 6:10) Q. What does this mean?
A. Truly God's Kingdom comes by itself, without our prayer. But we pray in this request that it may come to us as well.
Q. How does this happen?
A. It happens when the Heavenly Father gives us His Holy Spirit, so that we believe His holy Word by His grace and live godly lives here in this age and there in eternal life.
The Third Request IV. The Third Request May Your will be accomplished. As it is in Heaven, so may it be on Earth.(Matthew
6:10) Q. What does this mean?
A. Truly, God's good and gracious will is accomplished without our prayer. But we pray in this request that is accomplished among us as well.
Q. How does this happen?
A. It happens when God destroys and interferes with every evil will and all evil advice, which will not allow God's Kingdom to come, such as the Devil's will, the world's will and will of our bodily desires. It also happens when God strengthens us by faith and by His
Word and keeps us living by them faithfully until the end of our lives. This is His will, good and full of grace.
The Fourth Request V. The Fourth Request Give us today our daily bread.(Matthew 6:11) Q. What does this mean?
A. Truly, God gives daily bread to evil people, even without our prayer. But we pray in this request that He will help us realize this and receive our daily bread with thanksgiving.
Q. What does "Daily bread" mean?
A. Everything that nourishes our body and meets its needs, such as: Food, drink, clothing, shoes, house, yard, fields, cattle, money, possessions, a devout spouse, devout children, devout employees, devout and faithful rulers, good government, good weather, peace, health, discipline, honor, good friends, faithful neighbors and other things like these.
The Fifth Request VI. The Fifth Request And forgive our guilt, as we forgive those guilty of sinning against us.(Matthew 6:13)
Q. What does this mean?
A. We pray in this request that our Heavenly Father will neither pay attention to our sins nor refuse requests such as these because of our sins and because we are neither worthy nor deserve the things for which we pray. Yet He wants to give them all to us by His grace, because many times each day we sin and truly deserve only punishment. Because God does this, we will, of course, want to forgive from our hearts and willingly do good to those who sin against us.
The Sixth Request VII. The Sixth Request And lead us not into temptation.(Matthew 6:12) Q. What does this mean?
A. God tempts no one, of course, but we pray in this request that God will protect us and save us, so that the Devil, the world and our bodily desires will neither deceive us nor seduce us into heresy, despair or other serious shame or vice, and so that we will win and be victorious in the end, even if they attack us.
The Seventh Request VIII. The Seventh Request But set us free from the Evil One.(Matthew 6:12) Q. What does this mean?
A. We pray in this request, as a summary, that our Father in Heaven will save us from every kind of evil that threatens body, soul, property and honor. We pray that when at last our final hour has come, He will grant us a blessed death, and, in His grace, bring us to Himself from this valley of tears.
Q. What does this mean?
A. That I should be certain that such prayers are acceptable to the Father in Heaven and will be granted, that He Himself has commanded us to pray in this way and that He promises to answer us. Amen. Amen. This means: Yes, yes it will happen this way.