"In the Beginning God Created" by bobosh_t is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
This begins a new sermon series. As the first sermon in that series, it starts talking about a “good solid foundation.” Two scriptures not in the sermon sprang to mind as soon as that was said.
8Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of the people,
9if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made well,
10let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by this name this man stands here before you in good health.
11“He is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief corner stone.
12“And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
Acts 4:8–12 (NASB95)
Psalm 118:22
And
16Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
18“I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.
Matthew 16:16–18 (NASB95)
The opening point that was made was this: understand the basics before moving on to the complex. That is sound advice. Pastor Lee referenced the parable of the man who built his house on shifting sand to illustrate why a firm foundation is needed. Here are the words of Jesus telling that very parable.
24“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.
25“And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.
26“Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.
27“The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”
Matthew 7:24–27 (NASB95)
Jesus’ point is that people should do what He says to be considered to have built a house on a firm foundation. The sermon’s message is to begin our house-building on Jesus as the cornerstone. Both messages are exactly right.
As Pastor Lee went on, she said there are truths with a big T and truths with a little t. The Big T truths are those we agree on as Christians. I call these truths salvational. I mean that the Big T truths are required by all Christians as spoken by Jesus. We are to believe He was God made flesh. That Jesus’ sacrifice paid the debt for all sin, for all time, for all people. We are to believe that God raised Jesus from the dead as a pronouncement that it is good, and He now judges the quick and the dead sitting at the right hand of God in Heaven. These are the salvational Big T truths.
The little t truths are the ones that split denominations. These are the things about whether to sprinkle or dunk for baptism. Who can take communion? Can women preach from the pulpit? Should unrepentant sinners walking in their sin be allowed into leadership positions in the church? These are the little t truths. They are not salvational but divisive if we focus on them. This sermon series will be about the Big T truths: God, Jesus, Grace, fruits of the spirit, and the Holy Spirit if I took good notes. She finished this segment of her message with the idea that “storms will come, but we can stand on a firm foundation.”
The scripture for the message came at this point. It is from Genesis 1:1-5. I’ll post this now, but the interesting thing was she didn’t read it. You can, but in a moment, I’ll explain what she did with the scripture that was really cool and impactful.
1In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.
3Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.
4God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.
5God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.
Genesis 1:1–5 (NASB95)
I cannot find the video, and it isn’t posted on the church site. I’ll have to ask for it and see if I can post a link for you. It was really cool. It was a sand art piece on a light table depicting the creation story in an evolving piece of art that you got to watch the artist’s hands create on screen. One image was drawn, and then it became the background for the next image that emerged from the fingertips of the artist as he told the visual story of creation. It was really neat. Pastor Lee said the artist’s name is John Crow, but I can’t find this video.
The art finished with the hands of God cradling the earth, having pulled it from the apple as Adam and Eve watched on from the sides. Pastor Lee’s point was that God is at the heart of everything. He is, and then she read the scripture. After she finished, she reiterated the first words, In the beginning, God. Then she asked this question:
What does the creation story teach us?
She contended that it is a creation story to teach us about God Himself. He chose to create, work, and create us and everything else, but it was all His choice. He is present in all things because He made all things by His active decision. His spirit “moved.” She brought up the Hebrew word behind verse two’s word for “moved,” rahap. There are three uses of this word in the King James Version: Shake, Move, and Flutter. She took this in the direction of “dance.” Her thought was that God “danced” across creation.
What does the idea of God dancing across creation as He chose to make everything convey to us?
If we look at God’s spirit “dancing” across creation, it doesn’t look very much like work, like a chore or unpleasant task. If God danced across creation, He likely enjoyed the task. This brought me to the idea that when I am in the kitchen cooking something, I frequently play my music to pass the time, and I also dance as I work. I enjoy cooking, so I get the image of God enjoying the task of creating everything, but it made me wonder what sort of music God dances to.
God enjoyed creating everything, and that includes each of us. He danced across everything. He moved, He shook, He fluttered to make His creation just the way He wanted it. And he said that it was good, which includes you and me. We are created in His image. The creation was pronounced good, and God had a good time making it all.
Pastor Lee closed with this question; “Will we stand firm on this foundation that In the Beginning, God?” Will we stand firm on God’s delight in His creation, that He enjoyed making it all, which includes us? We should remember that the next time we don’t feel as upbeat or happy as we would like. God bless and Godspeed.