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“Make it Good”
Genesis 1:1-2:4a
A Sermon preached by The Rev. Douglas M. Donley
First Congregational Church
Here we are at our second in a series of reflections on recreation. Hilary, Eric and I decided to look at four of the Biblical creation stories to see if they give us any clues about how we might claim or reclaim our place in God’s order, or at least do things that are in line with God’s intended plan for humanity. I get to look at the first creation story recorded in the Bible. It is one of three creation stories in Genesis. Can you name the other two? (Adam and Eve and the flood.) Like all of the creation stories, this one has its origins in older stories held by other cultures. Let’s look at what the Biblical writer said happened in this creation story and how God is uniquely portrayed. It might just give us new insight on our role in this world.
The first thing we need to know is that this is not history that is being portrayed here. It is mystery. The author is not trying to scientifically explain creation. The writer is trying to show us the mystery and awesomeness of God and of creation. Karen Armstrong reminds us, that the “authors are not interested in historical accuracy. Instead, they bring to the reader’s attention important truths about the human predicament that still reverberate today.”(In the Beginning, 1996:7)
The second thing we need to know is that the God in this story is named Elohim. In the second chapter, God is named Yahweh. This is a clue that it was a different author, speaking with a different concept of God. Most scholars posit that Genesis 1 was written in the 6th century BCE around the time of the exile. It comes from the priestly school of thought. The priestly writers of the Hebrew bible were interested in dealing with people’s hopelessness and despair. They did so by writing about order and concreteness. All of the lists of kings and lots of the Levitical rules come from the priestly writers. The people needed structure. They needed order since their lives were in chaos. And that’s what this creation story gives them.
The good news to the exiles is that life in God’s well-ordered world can be joyous and grateful. The relationship between God and humanity is one of trust. There is no coercion, only free gracious commitment and invitation. The purpose of creation is unity.
In Genesis 1, God is distant. God is omnipotent. God has no opponents. God speaks and creation happens. And creation is good. It is said over and over again. It was good. And when humanity was created on the sixth day, God said it was very good.
As we join God in the creative process in the steamy summer months, how might we find encouragement by this God who makes things good? It often seems that people who think like us are in exile from the power structures out there. The media don’t pay us any mind. We are laughed at by most of Christendom. Most of Christendom does not believe that creation is good, but that creation is part and parcel of the fall and the introduction of sin. We’ll get to that next week. How might we need to be recreated to make things good again? Hold that thought. We’ll get back to it in a few minutes.
To
understand the goodness of creation portrayed in this story, we need to
understand how it is different from other creation stories. This story is where a troubled
Look at how this creation story opposes itself to other ancient accounts of creation:
The theology of Genesis 1, says
Claus Westermann is one of blessing. There is no sense of fallenness. There is no sense that we need to be saved
from anything. In creation is God’s
goodness, God’s blessing, God’s image. This is unique. It does not exist in ancient near eastern
texts. It is derived from the faith-life
of
In Genesis I, God creates good out of chaos. And yet for all of the popular focus on creationism, it seems that we are bent upon making the world into chaos once again. We cut down rain forests. We delude ourselves into thinking that nuclear waste will be safely stored anywhere for eternity. We burn up fossil fuels at an astonishing rate. We foster mistrust between people and nations and cultures, and the list goes on and on.
There is a Kenyan proverb which states, “treat the earth well…it was not given to you by your parents…it was lent to you by your children.”
Creation did not stop on the sixth day. It is continuing right now. Each time you look with fresh eyes and a fresh spirit upon the face of the deep cauldron of chaos and call forth God’s spirit, you are participating in the creative process. Each time you act out of gratitude to God by turning off the faucet while brushing your teeth, turning off an unnecessary light, picking up a piece of litter, writing to your elected official about your concern over environmental issues, or the mounting absurdity of public policy, each time you take seriously Jesus’ admonition to love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, you are helping to turn the tide toward creation and away from chaos. It is God who made all things and originally called them good. We need to make all we do good for us, for the earth and for our fellow human beings. That is how we join in the creative process with God. That is one way we recreate ourselves and our world. When we do this, we tap the everlasting well of the one who makes all things new.
In Genesis 1, God creates order out of chaos and majestically watches over a universe that is called to rest. This was very important to a people with no homeland, no sanctuary. Seeing God does not require a temple. Seeing God requires rest. That Sabbath rest is our recreation. When we reconnect with God on our Sabbath, then we are recreated. We are ready to face the next week of chaos assured that God rules over the chaos and made it all good. We are called to regroup on the Sabbath. We are encouraged to reconnect with the goodness of God. We are encouraged to reconnect with the goodness of creation and of people.
But we are prone to ignore this, aren’t we? We’re too busy to sit back and rest. We have too many activities to stop and pray. But remember, all prayer is is calling God into consciousness and reconnecting. Maybe when we do that, we can remember that God made it all (and all of us) good.
Amanda (our five-year-old) has been reminding us of the lessons we taught her. When she hears of people calling other bad guys, Amanda pipes in “there’s no such thing as bad guys, only people who do bad things.” It’s so easy to put people in the good guys, bady guys categories. Her reminding me of that lesson over and over again helps me recreate myself as a less violent person in my tongue, thoughts and heart.
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel spoke of the Sabbath this way:
“The meaning of the Sabbath is to celebrate time rather than space. Six days a week we live under the tyranny of things of space; on the Sabbath we try to become attuned to holiness in time. It is a day on which we are called upon to share in what is eternal in time, to turn from the results of creation to the mystery of creation; from the world of creation to the creation of the world…The seventh day is like a palace in time with a kingdom for all. It is not a date but an atmosphere.” (Talking about Genesis, 1996:29,30)
The God we follow is not one who begins with violence. The God we follow is the one who starts out making everything good, including all people. If we get back to this kind of creation, then we are truly seeing a new kind of God, a new view of humanity.
Sisters and brothers, as we continue to recreate ourselves and our world, take some time during the chaos of our lives and remember that God is there nudging you toward wholeness. This month, sit back on a lake drinking in the beauty of creation. Watch the tomatoes blush on the vine and taste their long-anticipated sweetness. Watch children playing in sprinklers and maybe even join them. Stop and take notice of the beauty of a loved one, your neighbor, or even a stranger on the street. And remember that amidst all of the chaos and confusion of life, God is there reminding us of the goodness of creation.
God is there calling people good.
God is there bending the long arc of history toward justice.
God is there as close as a whisper, nudging us and reminding us, “Make it good. Make it good.” We don’t have to succumb to the gods of chaos and violence or those who speak for God in oppressive and abusive ways. “Make it good,” says God.
“On the Sabbath day,” we might imagine the story continuing, “the people gathered together and for an hour or so, they recognized the good in creation and in each other. Inspired by that goodness, they decided to have better and more healthy relationships. They decided they had the power to affect change in their lives and in the lives of others. They chose to think of others not as enemies, but as people in need of healing as they had been at one time. They started to dream dreams. They cleared their eyes. And they decided to make it good from then on. And God looked down on all that God had created and said, “They’re getting it. They’re finally getting it.” And it was very very good.”
Amen.