On Sunday I stand with other believers and confess, “I believe in God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth.” On Communion Sundays we join in saying, “We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.” The words are slightly different, but we publicly admit that we believe God created the world in which we live and that he created each of us.

Of course, we all know that God did not form each one of us out of the dust, shape us, and breathe into our nostrils the breath of life. We had mothers and fathers, and we are mothers and fathers of our own children. But we still believe that God’s power created all things. We confess as the psalmist confessed that our bodies are “wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14), that they are bodies that can reproduce according to the plan of the Creator.

It’s risky to speak up

In the safety of the worship service, we can make that confession without fear of opposition. No one will stand up and say, “You naive simpletons. You evolved. Science proves it. God had nothing to do with it.”

But more than once, such a sentiment has been expressed outside the church doors. In the public forum, we take a risk when we confess faith in the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth. We risk the condescending and patronizing looks of those who believe that God did not create the world. They believe that all we see and know here is the result of natural and powerful forces, not the result of a wise Creator. We risk not only their quiet condescension but also their disdain and their active verbal abuse. We risk exclusion from serious discussion because we are branded as unintelligent, unscientific, backward, or worse.

Perhaps the greatest risk is that they will not listen when we speak of the God who redeemed us. They conclude that anyone who believes God created the world can’t possibly have any reliable information about anything. That is the saddest part of the public forum. We desire to share the unparalleled beauty of Christ’s love for wayward and disobedient sinners, but they will not listen—dismissing our witness with benign contempt. Then we are left with a prayer that God the Holy Spirit—whom we also confess—will open a heart that has closed its own door.

It’s difficult to explain