Introduction: Reading of The Creation by James Weldon Johnson
In 1977 Alex Haley’s novel Roots came to life on television and became an instant hit with viewers across racial lines. Many of us sat spell bound throughout that mini-series as we followed Haley on his ancestral tracing. This morning, we begin our summer series, “Classic Chapters of the Bible,” with a return to humanity’s “roots” – Genesis 1.
The poem I just read is James Weldon Johnson’s poem The Creation. Some literary scholars suggest that he wrote it as a tribute to the various African-American preachers that were a part of his life. Now while it may not be theologically correct, it is based on the Genesis 1 story of creation and it is certainly inspirational.
This morning we are going to hear the Genesis account read aloud by several members of our congregation. You can follow along in your Bibles or you can simply listen to the text being read aloud.
(Group reading of Genesis 1:1 – 2:3)
The first thing we notice as we look at this chapter is that it begins with a declarative statement. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” A declarative statement is a statement that announces something matter-of-factly and forthrightly.
These kinds of statements set the tone for what is to follow. For example, we recall a declarative statement in the Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal.”
Our presidents have often made in their inaugural addresses declarative statements that have rallied our nation. For example, FDR said at the beginning of his presidency, “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.” JFK noted, in what would be a rallying point for activism in the 1960’s “Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your county.”
The Bible also contains many declarative statements including Romans 8:1 “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus” and John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.”
But, what is important to remember about this passage is who is being talked about – God. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” The Bible begins with a statement about who created this world and us – it was God, not some random cause or force.
There is purpose in our world and our lives. We were created for more than just to exist for a time and then that’s it. More about this important truth in a few moments.
Another thing that we notice about this chapter is the orderly flow of the Creation. (Overhead 1)
During Day 1 we see that God creates light over the dark empty mass called earth and night and day are created. God calls this new creation of light, “good.” Why?
Let me suggest two reasons: First, we need light to live by. Think about what happens to plants when all they have to exist on is darkness. They can’t exist alone on darkness; they need light to help them survive or they die. And if there were no plants to eat we would not be able to eat corn and beans and rice and such nor would there be feed for the cows, hence no milk or meat. We would be in trouble. We would probably freeze to death, as there would be no spring or summer, just a cold, dark environment. We need light.
Second, light represents what is good and right and true. Jesus would say in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t be stumbling through the darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”
During Day 2 God brings further order to creation as He creates a space called sky between the waters above and the water below. Now what does this mean? In Genesis 2:4-6 we read this interesting segment: “When the Lord God made the heavens and earth, there were no plants or grain growing on the earth, for the Lord God had not sent any rain. And no one was there to cultivate the soil. But water came up out of the ground and watered all the land.”
Some scholars have speculated that “the waters above” refer to the clouds that covered the earth until God sends the flood that, as Genesis 7:11 says, comes from both the rain and the bursting underground waters: “The underground waters burst forth on the earth and the rain fell in mighty torrents from the sky.”
But basically what God is doing here is bringing further order to the creation in order that life becomes sustainable so that humankind is able to exist.
During Day 3 God continues to define and delineate or mark out the various aspects of this new world. And on this day boundaries are given to the earth and sea that enables the earth to produce that plants needed for food for the animals and later for the first humans. Life continues to become more and more sustainable and orderly.
During Day 4 day and night come into existence as the sun and the moon are created in order to “mark off the seasons, the days, and the years.” Further order is developed by which we have learned to live our lives.
Then during Day 5 water and land animals were created. Birds and fish seem to have been, based on verses 20 through 23, created first. Then “livestock, small animals, and wildlife,” came on the scene.
Then on day 6 we read that God says, “let us make people in our image to be like ourselves.” Now who is “us?”
I would suggest that “us” refers to the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Scripture supports this in various passages notably John 1 where we read in verses 2 and 3 about God the Son, Jesus Christ, “He was in the beginning with God. He created everything there is. Nothing exists that he didn’t make.”
So God decides to make people, you and me, like himself. Notice the word like. It is important that we do.
God has created us in His image, as verse 27 says. But, we are not God. Only God is God! We were created to be like God not as God. There is a critical difference.
There are many views and “religions” today that teach we have God in us. That is partially true.
We have been created in God’s image and that means that we have some of the characteristics of God in us – personality, an eternal, or forever, spirit that will never die. But, we do not possess all of God’s characteristics or abilities. Only God does.
Finally we come to day 7 a day in which God rests from all his creation. A day that God calls “Holy.” Why? God set an example for us to follow regarding taking care of ourselves.
I think that we have debated the issue of Sabbath in the wrong direction. We have tended to focus on the “don’t do’s” as stated in the agreement God made with the Israelites. But as Jesus was to say in Mark 2:27, “The Sabbath was made to benefit people, and not people to benefit the Sabbath.”
The issue of rest is part of the Creation story. God created us to rest. We cannot run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We need to rest! Some of us, if not most of us these days, need a break. And we need to create a break in our weekly schedule. We need to make time in which the demands of life are set aside for rest, re-creation, and worship.
There is order to this creation that we have around us. Everything is set in place for a purpose and by reading through the text we see how God step-by-step created the foundational aspects of creation and then built upon them to make life sustainable for both human and the rest of the created order. Everything has a place and purpose from its very beginning.
Another way to study this passage and understand what it means for you and me is to study two important phrases that are used in it: (Overhead 2)
· God said
· It was good
9 times in Genesis 1 we read and hear the phrase “God said.” And this is important because in comparison to other creation accounts, and there are many of them, the Judeo-Christian account, our account, this passage of scripture, says that God, one God, created all of this and all of us by His choice and by His actions.
In contrast to this account, we have other accounts such as the ancient Egyptian account in which many gods, who come to existence out of water, are a part of the creation process, usually through some sexual contact with another god.
Therefore, our faith, the Christian faith, is built on the creative acts of one God, above heaven and earth and not a part of the created order, as is the case with other accounts. Our God is truly God. As we will see in our study of the Ten Commandments, God expects us to “not worship any other gods.”
And not only did God create this world and all that is a part of it, especially humanity, we go on to see that He maintains contact with it on a personal level. The Bible clearly illustrates this at various points.
He walks in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve, the first humans. He deals with Moses at close range through the Burning Bush and on top of Mount Sinai. And most importantly, God the Son, Jesus Christ, walked this earth and dealt with people face to face. The other creation stories have multiple gods who are distant from humanity and do their own thing – often attacking the other gods and being more concerned with keep their place of power. People have to keep appeasing the gods in order to survive. Sound familiar?
6 times in our passage we read the phrase, “It was good.” And in verse 31 we read, “Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was excellent in every way.” Older translations of the Bible have translated this passage as, “It was very good.”
Now why is this important to both understand and believe? It is important to understand and believe because all of us here this morning believe something about God and humankind. And those beliefs are formed from what we have read and choose to believe.
What the Bible in general and this passage in particular teaches us about God and ourselves is that God has created us for His pleasure and His purpose and that we are not simply flung together pieces of skin and bones and fluid and organs. We need to be reminded of what the Psalmist says, “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous-and how well I know it!” We have been created for a wonderful life and a wonderful eternity, not mere existence.
So when you are passed by for a promotion, this passage reminds you that you still matter to God because you are more than an employee; and when you are dropped for someone else because they are better looking or smarter or what other excuse is used, this first chapter of the Bible reminds you that you were created by somebody big and bold and loving and knew what He was doing: and when you have moments in which you feel insignificant and small and unnecessary, Genesis 1 reminds you otherwise, “God said, it is awesome!”
I recently read a poem that says, in part:
You are who you are for a reason.
You’re part of an intricate plan.
You’re a precious and perfect unique design,
Called God’s special woman or man.
You look like you for a reason.
Our God made no mistake.
He knit you together within the womb,
You’re just what He wanted to make.
The poet goes on to acknowledge that in spite of the pain and loss and suffering that many experience in this life we are again reminded,
You are who you are for a reason,
Because there is a God!
In this first chapter of the Bible, a very, very important chapter, we notice the following things: (Overhead 3)
God was “Makin’ A World,” because He had a plan and purpose in mind for His pleasure and for us to enjoy.
God was “Makin’ A Man” and a woman (amen) because as God saw, “it was not good for The Man to be alone.” He created us to have a relationship with other human beings as well as with Himself.
God was “Makin’ A Life!” A life of two kinds – this natural life, that even though it is messed up by sin, God has called it good and new life through what Jesus Christ did on Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
You and I know through both experience and the truth of Scripture this world is not always the “wonderful world” of which Louie Armstrong once sang. It is full of pain and frustration and brokenness and addiction and all sorts of terrible things. But because we read at the start of the Bible, “In the beginning God created heaven and earth,” there is hope and there is possibility because God has not given up on this messy world and our messy souls.
We need to keep this truth of our creation in our minds as we go through the day. We need to remember that we have been created for a purpose far beyond just getting by. We do that in two ways, by having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Because of what Jesus Christ did on Good Friday and Easter Sunday, we can live with our past forgiven and dealt with. We can have peace and hope and forgiveness. If you have never had this personal relationship with Christ, I would be happy to help you take the steps necessary to do so.
Second, we need to remember the truth of creation by constantly reminded one another and ourselves that we matter to God. To help us remember, each of us this morning will get one of these small cards as we leave that says, “I matter because I was created by God!” There is a place for you to sign this and date and keep it in a place where it will be of value to you.
God knows what He is doing in us, around us, and through us. So let us draw real close to Him, because as God said, “it is good!” Amen.
(To request powerpoint for this sermon please contact me at jimkane@maplenet.net and ask for 060803 svgs.)
