SECOND SUNDAY BEFORE LENT
In the Beginning

Genesis 1.1  In the beginning, when God created the universe, the earth was formless and desolate.

‘In the beginning’ – what wonderful words they are, and what mind-boggling scenarios they conjure up! Scientists tell us they understand the beginning of the universe to within a tiny fraction of the ‘big bang’, but when it comes, truly, to ‘in the beginning’, our physics breaks down, and we are left floundering in the dark. Those ego deflating words ‘what is man that thou art mindful of him’ (Psalm 8.4) put us firmly in our place once again.

The biblical account of creation may not be of much help to the scientist, but to the faithful it is still the ultimate reference for ‘the way things are’. Quite simply, Genesis affirms that in the beginning ‘GOD created’. God created life to be accountable, to obey God's voice, and God saw the creation as ‘very good’.

We could, of course, bog ourselves down with ‘ultimate questions’. What do we mean by ‘God’? How can we be accountable to the ‘unknown’, let alone listen to ‘his voice’? What if life exists elsewhere? We could grind ourselves into the dust with questions we cannot answer. Personally, I prefer to leave aside the imponderable and focus on what is helpful …

This past Christmas I was given a ‘fun’ present of some ‘Sea Monkeys’. The kit contains a ‘secret ingredient’, which is added to water. Later, one adds a pouch of ‘eggs’. Within seconds, tiny specs become animated, and before your eyes, life takes shape. They (should) grow to 1.8 cm, being, in fact, a form of sea shrimp. Feeding has to be precise or they die.

The interesting thing for me was that although this pack may well have been lurking in the toy store for months, even years, life was there (cryptobiosis is the scientific term), hidden but ready, waiting to ‘come alive’. That to me speaks greatly of God. It seems to me that given the right mixture, life becomes inevitable. God, to me, is the very process that produces life. It is this gentle nudging process that is so fascinating, this "can’t quite see, can’t quite make sense of" nature of God which seems to want to create and push forward. I recall occasions when there has been a disaster of, say, a major oil spillage, and the ‘experts’ remark that the coastline/ecological system will never recover, or it will take a century at least. The same experts marvel when five years later life is blooming and nature has overcome adversity. Mankind may destroy, but in the end, God triumphs.

Today’s readings give four aspects of creation, and in particular, what it is to be human. Genesis makes it clear that creation was an act of God – that is, it wasn’t chance, but an act of creation - and that mankind has dominion over the natural order. We have responsibilities that the rest of the animal kingdom does not have. We are accountable!

The reading from Romans, on the other hand, reminds us that, although we may have dominion, we are still a part of the creation we manipulate. Along with everything else, we struggle and groan to become whatever God has destined us to be. Our future, according to Romans, is to be one of liberty, freedom from the bondage of eventual decay which seems to be the hallmark of the natural order, to become one with God, to be his adopted sons and daughters. Wishful thinking? Maybe, but Paul was writing with the hindsight of his own spiritual experiences. He, along with mystics before and since, seemed convinced of ‘something greater’. The nature of faith is that we take it on trust or discard it!

Psalm 136, puts forth the ‘why’ of creation and human history. It is because of ‘love’. It is because the steadfast love of God endures forever that there is anything at all. That ‘nudging spirit’, that force which gives my sea monkeys their life is an act of love. It wills the best for all life, great and small, whether sea monkey, wasp or child.

And finally, Mathew 6 encourages us to not to worry about life. God will provide.

As I write this, I am aware that people are dying in awful circumstances. As I write this, fire is no doubt enfolding some poor soul, as somewhere else, someone clutches at straws in icy waters. Somewhere a child is lost and in grave peril, and elsewhere thousands of women are screaming in pangs of childbirth. I know this is going on somewhere right now, and will likewise be going on as you read this sermon. This is the real world, a world where life seems arbitrary, something of a lottery, and certainly one of great risk. Does it detract from our readings, our faith in a loving God?

No. I see God’s love as reflected in the will for perfection, not in the pain of creation. Of all attributes, love is the most tested, the most vulnerable. Love can be terribly painful, yet awesomely powerful. To me, the steadfast love of Psalm 136 means God never gives up. Perhaps his love is even remorseless. Perhaps God simply cannot stop loving, and through love, creating. Many, in our darker moments of life’s struggle, might say it would be better if creation disappeared back into whatever it came out of, and perhaps one day it may. But in the meantime, the process – or love – of God never gives up. It will continue to nudge life into being wherever possible, regardless of convenience to other forms and species. Love creates but also moves, and will continue to prick our consciences and remind us that we do indeed have dominion over God’s creation.

It is our immense folly as human beings to so often put greed, personal or national, before the greater good of the wider creation. If our dominion over earth ultimately wrecks it and we fade with the dinosaurs, have no doubt - God will continue to bring life into being.

It is, as Romans states, the nature of God to bring all things to fruition. The only question, really, is to what extent will we be part of it?

[Home] [Back]