The Nicene Creed Part 5 - The Almighty

Ps 103:19
The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.

Ps 47:7-8
For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding. God reigneth over the heathen: God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness.

In the Creed, God is referred to as "the Almighty". According to Strong's concordance, this word is defined as "the all-ruling, i.e. God (as absolute and universal sovereign):--Almighty, Omnipotent. Used only when referring to God.". The nature of God as being sovereign and ruling over all things can be found witnessed to in the scriptures, the writings of the fathers, and catechisms.

We find verses in the Psalms saying that "He ruleth by his power for ever", "All thy works shall praise thee", and "The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.". God even rules "the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them". God's sovereignty over all things is closely tied to the fact that He created all things in verses like "Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast." and "Let them praise the name of the LORD: for he commanded, and they were created.", but my next post will discuss God as being the one who created all things.

St Jerome wrote "God is called Almighty because He possesses rule and dominion over all things." in his Commentary on the Apostles Creed, and St John of Damascus wrote "By nature, therefore, all things are servants of the Creator and obey Him." in his Exposition of the Orthodox Faith. St Theophilus of Antioch wrote to Autolycus in the second century...

But he is... Almighty, because He Himself rules and embraces all. For the heights of heaven, and the depths of the abysses, and the ends of the earth, are in His hand, and there is no place of His rest.

And St Cyril of Jerusalem wrote in his Catechetical Lectures...

For He is Almighty who rules all things, who has power over all things... Nothing then is withdrawn from the power of God; for the Scripture says of Him, for all things are Thy servants.  All things alike are His servants, but from all these One, His only Son, and One, His Holy Spirit, are excepted; and all the things which are His servants serve the Lord through the One Son and in the Holy Spirit.  God then rules all, and of His long-suffering endures even murderers and robbers and fornicators, having appointed a set time for recompensing every one, that if they who have had long warning are still impenitent in heart, they may receive the greater condemnation.  They are kings of men, who reign upon earth, but not without the power from above:  and this Nebuchadnezzar once learned by experience, when he said; For His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and His power from generation to generation.

We also find this in Peter Mohila's Orthodox Confession of Faith...

Q. 14. Why does the first article of faith mention "almighty" or "all-governing" and omit all other attributes?

R. Because by this one expression the property of God is best described, since no creature can be called omnipotent. This is so for two reasons: first, it does not have its essence from itself, but from a creator; secondly, it cannot produce any creature from nothing. Both these traits always pertain to the divine omnipotence, as he speaks about himself in the Apocalypse: "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and end, says the Lord, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty." Similarly, the Archangel in Luke: "No word shall be impossible with God." Nevertheless, this omnipotence is limited only by his own will and good pleasure, so that certainly whatever he himself wishes, only this can he and does he effect, and not that of which he is simply able, as the Psalmist says: "Our God is in heaven; he has done all that he has desired." He could create a million worlds of this type, but this he does not wish. And then this omnipotence must be understood in terms of perfection, removed from all imperfection and weakness, as is evident in this example: God cannot be evil and commit sin, for this denotes imperfection, even as St. Paul gives witness: "It is impossible for God to lie." For if God were evil and had committed sin, then he would not be omnipotent, for these things are evidence in themselves of imperfection. And so, God is omnipotent by virtue of his will and his perfect goodness, as the Psalmist recollects: "Who is the great God like our God? You are the God who does wonders; you made your power known among the nations." Finally, he is called omnipotent, because all things are in his power and he created the world with no difficulty, with no labor, by his will alone.

Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.