Scripture: Genesis 2:7; Psalm 8
Theme: Humankind
Title: The Glory of Living Dirt
INTRO:
Grace and peace from God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit!
I want to talk to you today about humans. In other words I want to talk to you today about you, me and everyone else that has lived, is alive and will be alive on this magnificent planet we call earth.
How many of you this morning grew up watching nature shows?
How many of you still watch nature shows?
Growing up, my family would sit around the TV and watch a show called Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom. Each week the show would focus in on some part of the animal kingdom around the world as well as promote Mutual of Omaha’s insurance plans.
Some of you may remember that program. Two of the main characters that starred on the original shows were Marlin Perkins and Jim Fowler. Each week they would take us with them on their journey to some faraway land. They would show us the natural habitat of some animal, bird or reptile. One week it might be a show about lions living in Africa. The next week it might be about elephants or crocodiles. Each week would be filled with knowledge and intrigue as they would encounter all kinds of animals.
You can still watch some of the original shows on RFD TV or by going on Mutual of Omaha’s website. You can also learn about Mutual of Omaha’s insurance plans as well.
The show was instrumental in increasing ecological and environmental awareness in our country. It taught how to be better citizens and caretakers of our planet. And it paved the way for other shows and today we have such channels dedicated to nature like the Discovery Channel and Animal Planet.
One of the things those shows did not spend a great deal of time with is with us humans. I can’t remember a show that focused exclusively on humans. In more present times, if you watch nature shows, we (humans) are often seen as the main problem in nature. Sometime during the show there will be something said about how we humans are harming the birds, the animals and the fish in the sea. There are some that believe that if there was a way that we could be removed from the planet everything would be perfect; that the real problem with our world is us; humans.
Now, as they say all of that, not many of them are doing anything to get rid of themselves. Not many of them are saying well I am going to do my part and then remove myself from the equation.
Of course, we don’t want that. We don’t want anyone harming themselves. And there are some very specific reasons why we don’t want anyone to hurt themselves. The Bible is clear in sharing with us that the greatest creation that exists on this planet is us: humans. There is no debate about this if you read the Bible. God is clear in saying this over and over again.
I love the way that the Holy Spirit impressed upon the writers of the book of Genesis to record our creation. Let’s take some time this morning and look at exactly what the Bible shares with us.
I. We are Dirt – We come from the Dust of the Ground – Genesis 2:7
We are told first that we were created from the dust of the ground. The word used in verse seven can mean dirt, clay, mud or simply earth.
We were not spoken into creation like the sun, the moon and the stars. We were not spoken into creation like the oceans, the rivers and streams. We were not spoken into creation like the birds, the animals, the reptiles and the fish. We were not spoken into creation like the mountains, the hills and the valleys.
God reached down and so to speak put his fingers into the earth and formed us. The words used here are later used to describe the work of a potter (Isaiah 45:9; 64:8). God lovingly formed us out of some dirt or clay. We are the work of His handiwork.
At first all of this may sound rather odd. Why were we not spoken into existence? Why use dirt of all things? Why not use some gold or diamonds? Why not use some parts of trees or even parts of other animals?
Why dirt?
I don’t have a definitive answer.
All I do know is that of all the things God created on our planet and around us we are different. We are different in design and in purpose. And we come from dirt and as the Bible tells us our physical bodies will go back to the dirt.
In other words there is a part of us that is bound to the ground. We come from the ground and we work with the ground. Almost everything around us comes from the dirt. We are dirt creations who also create with dirt.
John Muir, the old Scottish naturalist that helped with the creation of a great many of our national parks made this statement:
“Of all the paths you take in life, make sure some of them are dirt.”
I think John had a great insight into why we are created from dirt.
In just a few moments, we will look at the other side of this coin of our creation. That side speaks of some amazing and wonderful things. But this side – this dirt side reminds us of some things that we all need to understand and receive.
I believe that perhaps God created us out of dirt to for us to always remember to be humble. While the rest of creation can boast about being brought into existence by the word of God, we have to humbly state that we were formed from earth’s dust and that one day our physical bodies will return to earth’s dust.
It is good for us at times to remember that we come from dirt. It is good for us to get a healthy look at our ego and to remind ourselves that we started out as dirt; God’s dirt.
I don’t say that to put us down. For as we will see in just a few minutes being God’s dirt is both glorious and majestic.
But it is true that our beginnings are rather simple and humble. We come from this planet. We are one with this planet. When we put our toes into the earth it is from such earth that God created Adam and Eve (since Eve came from Adam she too comes from the dirt).
We owe our existence to the earth. When we think of things in that way it is to help us be humble and modest. It is to remind us that God used the very lowest of substances to create us.
God didn’t do that to degrade us. He didn’t do that to make us look down on ourselves. And God certainly would not want us to see ourselves as some living Dirt Bags.
The Bible wants us to understand the very opposite. God always takes that which is simple, humble and plain and in His hands they become glorious, majestic and amazing.
Being made from dirt is only part of our amazing story. There is the other side of the creation coin so to speak.
II. We are also Glorious, Majestic and Amazing – Genesis 2:7; Psalm 8;
If we were just dirt then we would be most pitied. If we were just dirt then our story on this planet would be rather depressing and sad.
But that is just part of the verse. For as we continue to read we see where our dirt becomes this glorious, majestic and amazing living, breathing and senescent being.
God takes His dirt creation – His Adam Clay Man – and does something that we don’t see anywhere else in all of creation.
God breathes life; God breathes His own life giving breath into Adam and he becomes this unbelievably incredible and magnificent living human being.
Now, let’s don’t go away from that part.
Let’s allow that reality to ramble around in our brains and hearts.
You and me and every other human being started off with Adam: God’s dirt. We are in essence God’s Dirt Creation.
We are dirt that has been lovingly shaped by God’s hands. Dirt that has at its very core the supreme intelligence and finger prints of God.
Listen to how the Psalmist describes all of this:
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well. –Psalms 139:13-15
And the writer of Isaiah agrees:
But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. – Isaiah 64:8
Over the years, I have enjoyed the opportunity to go to various places where they make pottery. In some of those places the pottery has been almost unworldly in its grace and beauty. The potters have some dirt/clay from the ground and with their hands been able to create the most exquisite bowls, cups and other pieces of pottery. As you look at some of them you can see and feel the wonder of creation and the spirit of the potter in the pottery.
I think it is the same with us. When God made humans we were perfect; we were made in His likeness and in His image. Adam and Eve had no flaws, no blemishes and no imperfections.
When God breathed His breath into us we came alive; alive differently than all the animals, all the birds, all the trees and plants. For when we came alive we not only possessed physical life but we were given spiritual life. God breathed Himself into Adam and therefore into all humanity.
In the hierarchy of creation we occupy a special place above all the rest. We were created to
+Enjoy a special relationship with God here on this earth.
God loves all of his creation. But, truth be told, He loves us most. That is not to make us arrogant (remember we are dirt) but to just reveal the truth. You and I are God’s most precious creation.
We are greater than the mountains, the hills, the oceans and the streams. We are greater than even the angels. That may be hard to fathom but the Bible tells us that one day we will be over the angels (1 Corinthians 6:3).
We were created by God Himself, formed by His hands and brought to life by His breath. We were created to be in a deep and intimate relationship with God. We were created to talk to God, to learn from God and to be One with God.
No other part of creation was created to do those things to the depth that we are able to do it. Again that is not to brag but it is just to share the truth.
You and I were created to listen and talk to God. We were created to walk in the cool of the day with God. We were created to share our thoughts with God and receive from Him continually insight, knowledge and wisdom. We were created to do exactly what He first did on this earth – create. God put within our hands the ability to create a world that was to look like the Garden of Eden.
Now, before I go any further, I am sure that some of you might want to remind me that because of the Fall (Sin and sins) all of that has been changed. Today, humans are no longer perfect; we are now fallen, broken and damaged.
The Bible would agree with you. But being fallen, broken and damaged did not stop God from reaching out to us. Verse seven reminds us who we were created to be and the stories in the Bible reveals to us that it is possible in the midst of the Fall to connect and lean into God.
All we have to do is open our Bibles and we will find story after story of human beings reaching out to Lord and the Lord reaching out to them. We will find story after story of fallen, broken and damaged human beings connecting with God. All you have to think of is of Seth, Enoch, Noah, Ruth, Hannah and Mother Mary.
+We were created to have a special relationship with one another.
Eve comes from Adam and Adam comes from God’s dirt.
We are different. Women and men are different. We are not the same. We are male and female. That is a fact.
But we were created to understand one another and to be in the most intimate and beautiful relationship with one another.
That is what we read about in Genesis 1-2. Adam and Eve not only were created to have this wonderful and special relationship with God but with one another. They were designed to share life with one another.
Again, you may once again say that the Fall changed everything. Men and women were changed. We don’t always understand one another and at times it seems like we don’t even like one another. Men and women seem to be at odds with one another.
But what happened after the fall is not what God intended for humanity. God intended men and women; males and females to be one; to enjoy a type of oneness that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit enjoy.
Every now and then you see this slipping through in a group of people. We see it in Acts 4:42 - 47 in the Early Church. They worshipped together, they learned together and they shared together. They prayed together, they ate together and they “had all things in common”.
There is a oneness that does exist between a couple. But there is also a oneness that can be shared among a group of people. This is one of the beautiful things about the Church; especially the local church.
Now, we can be separate units coming to a particular location that spend some time together singing songs and listening to a message. We can be separate units that even gather around a table sharing food.
But if that is all we do then we are living below the level that God wants us to live. A true church is one who meshes heart, mind and soul to one another. A true church is one who allows their lives to melt together as we see in the New Testament.
Remember the story of the woman caught in adultery or the woman at the well or even the story of the leper who comes to Jesus?
All of those stories have a common theme running through them.
All of those individuals were seen as outcasts. They were seen as people who while they were made by God and were given life by God were also seen as nothing more than human garbage by those who lived around them.
Some of them had brought all of this upon themselves. Others were mere victims of the actions of others.
Remember how Jesus treats all of them? He forgives. He lifts up. He embraces. He brings healing and wholeness into their lives. He brings them back into the community. He restores them into people of value and worth. He reminds everyone that every human being is valuable. Made from dirt – Yes. But breathed life into by God Himself.
This morning one of the most beautiful pictures that is on our earth is when a group of people embrace their dirtness alongside their godliness; when they become one with God and one with one another. When they reach out and create a community that struggles, argues, laughs, cries and melts together as they encourage one another, love one another, forgive one another and share life with one another.
This is our mission. This is our commission as we work with the Holy Spirit.
God didn’t give up on his dirt creations after the Fall. Instead, He walks out of the Garden with them. He then walks all the way to Calvary and gives His life so that humanity could be rescued and redeemed. The Lord gives His life so that we could be restored into His image.
God didn’t give up on us, He instead made a way for His Spirit to be breathed back into us. That is what happens when we are Born Again. We are made into a New Creation – not just a dirt creation but a creation that one again has God’s Holy Spirit breathing new life into us. God’s Holy Spirit then teaches us and guides us on how to live a life here on this earth that can only be described as amazing.
This morning, human beings are amazing. All human beings are amazing.
We are made from dirt. Remember that and continue to allow that to help us stay humble. Every now and then pick up some dirt and remind yourself that you came from this and one day you will return to this. I believe that if we will do it will help us see life in a better way.
But at the same time we are made from dirt by the hands of God. We are not by accident. We did not come from the rest of creation. We were wonderfully fashioned by God Himself. He is our maker. We are made by His hands. And even more wonderful than all of that is the fact that we have life today because God breathed life into us when we were born again.
And even more amazing that all of that is what Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 4:7 that we are God’s jars of clay. We are God’s jars filled with His Holy Spirit. We are God’s jars that the LORD calls the light of the world and the salt of the earth. We are God’s jars that have been given power and authority to transform life around us.
We may be dirt but we are dirt filled with the power of the Lord God Almighty. We may be dirt but we are dirt that can move mountains and that can bring healing and wholeness. We can be transforming agents.
Paul saw himself as God’s dirt. But he also saw himself as being empowered by God to transform Jerusalem, the Roman Empire and the entire world. He believed that his dirt could help bring everlasting life to other dirt. He believed that in Christ he could transform the Empire and the entire world.
And you know what?
He and the others that have followed the LORD did just that. They took a world that started off with just Jesus and a few followers and today there are over 2.5 billion people who call Jesus Christ Savior and LORD. There are over 2.5 billion people living with the Holy Spirit inside of them guiding and teaching them how to live a righteous and holy life on this earth.
But you may ask what can I do as just an individual jar of God’s clay?
Let me close with this little sign pointer or reminder.
In John 12:1-8, the Apostle shares with us an encounter that the LORD had with a woman by the name of Mary. John shares that this woman took an alabaster jar of expensive ointment and anointed the feet of Jesus. All of this happens just a few days before Jesus is arrested and crucified.
Mary is just a young woman. At this time she is neither married nor engaged. She is a follower of Jesus. She is a person who loves Jesus so much that she is willing to give up this costly perfume to use it on Jesus’ feet.
This scene is one of the most beautiful passages in the Bible. It is the scene of amazing sacrifice and unbridled love. It is the scene of a person who wants another person to know that they are totally committed and dedicated to them.
It is also the scene of what a jar of clay can do when it wants to worship and adore its Maker. Mary knew who Jesus was. She knew Jesus was the Son of God, the Anointed One. She knew that He was the Creator and Savior of the World.
And so as a jar of clay; made from God’s dirt but infilled with God’s Holy Spirit she changes the very atmosphere in the room with her actions, with her love and with her gift of sacrifice. The ointment she uses not only makes Jesus smell fantastic but as she used her own hair she shares that amazing smell.
Now, don’t get caught up in all the little particularities of the stories like Judas did or others have done through the ages trying to portray this as a waste or some type of sordid event. It was neither.
It was simply a person who had been created by God (out of dirt) and was filled with God’s breath (living both physically and spiritually) allowing themselves to be used in such a way that changed everything around them. The room was changed. Jesus was changed. Mary was changed. Those that were witnessing it were changed.
And the story has stood the test of time. A story of when one of God’s clay jars lived in such a way to be a light unto the world, a sweet smelling fragrance to those all around and a witness of agape love forever.
Yes, we are dirt. We come from dirt and we will return to dirt. But in the midst of our dirt God has put within us His breath.
Sadly, there are some that will spend their life doing nothing more than starting off as dirt and ending up as dirt. They will never know what it means to experience everlasting life. They will not be able to enjoy life on the New Heaven and New Earth. That will happen because sadly they will reject Jesus Christ as Savior and LORD.
For those we pray for and for those we share the message of Salvation through Jesus Christ alone. We never give up sharing, loving and praying for those who do not yet know Jesus.
Thankfully, there are and will be billions more who accept Jesus Christ as their Savior and LORD. There will be billions that will confess their need for Jesus, who will allow Jesus to renew their minds and will receive forgiveness and redemption. There will be billions that will be filled with His Holy Spirit. Billions that will understand that all we need to do is to repent. Billions that will understand that all we need to do is to turn towards Jesus and allow Him to cleanse us, redeem us and infill us with His Holy Spirit.
As we close this morning how is your jar of clay?
Is it filled with God’s Holy Spirit?
Do we know what it means to be born again; rescued and redeemed by the blood of the Lamb?
Do we know what it means to be led and guided by God’s Holy Spirit?
Are we enjoying the Abundant Life that Jesus promised us?
Time for invitation/prayer/blessing
