Musical Prelude and Service.

Genesis 1:1-25 & John 1:1-15
As we enter the month of September, the church uses this time to reflect on the gift of Creation. The next four weeks constitutes what we call the Season of Creation. It is a time to reflect on the various aspects of God’s creation; God’s gifts, our place in creation, our response to creation and our responsibility to creation.
The theme for today is Earth. But my reflection is going to diverge from that theme in some ways. Earth, depending upon how you hear that word, offers a sense of being rooted in a place. Perhaps we hear ground or the planet. In any case, Earth speaks of this place where we live.
When we reflect on that sense of home; the earth where we live and that it was made by God the creator, I would hope that we are left with a sense of gratitude and a sense of responsibility for it.
Today’s scripture from Genesis speaks of God making the world. God moving the waters of creation to make room for the earth, the ground upon which humanity is breathed into life.
As I have reflected this past week upon this scripture we all know so well, one of the things that has struck me is how God looks upon the void, of the nothingness, and the chaos of that nothingness and brings some order to it. Not complete order of course. Anyone witnessing the way the world works would be hard pressed to claim it operates with complete logic and order. But it does have a sense of rational order. But more than that, God sets about the task of creation with methodical precision.
God creates and then builds upon what came before. Water, then earth, then plants and animals of all kinds. And God looks upon this and sees that it is good.
The task of creation is intentional, it is methodical, it is creative in its nature, and it is good. I will also state than the act of creation is loving.
God’s act of creation is a labour of love. We are told in the Gospel of John that God so loves creation that God chooses to enter into the world in the form of God’s Word. We come to know as Jesus the Christ. God so loves their creation that God chooses to live among us, work and play among us and truly be a part of what God so lovingly created.
Creation is a labour of love.
God labours to bring about the world and all its living things. The plants, the animals, the fish and the birds and the humans. It is done with precision and care. And God looks upon what is being created and declares it good.
Now while today’s scripture does not finish the story of creation, I do want to take a moment to reflect on how the story ends. And on the seventh day, God rested.
So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation. God rested from all the work, God did in creation.
We should not lose sight of that image. Creation was work and it took time. Yes, it was an act of love, but it was also work. And then God rested.
In past years I have reflected on the idea that the story of Genesis is not a work of historical accuracy. Genesis is a theological reflection of how we came to be in God’s world. It is a reflection on God’s work in the world and our relationship to this world and to the God who created us all.
The priests who wrote this story are arguing that we are here, we exist and have a place in the world because of the work of a loving and faithful God. We are not an accident, and all of this was not simply willed into existence with a single thought.
God put in work, creative energy, and affection to make us.
I find that a powerful idea when I take time to consider it.
And God then took time to rest.
We are so often told we must be productive. We are constantly getting a message to not waste time. To make the most of all the time in front of us. We need to be doing something, creating something contributing something. And yes, those are all important. Do something, create something. Contribute something to the world. Absolutely.
But also, rest. God blessed the seventh day for rest.
On a recent vacation, I found myself fretting that I needed to make proper use of my time to take advantage of the opportunities while I was in a new and very different place. To see and do the wonderful things I now had the opportunity to do. But for some reason, my mind and my body weren’t getting with the program. I was being told to sit down; maybe lay down and just be. To enjoy not having any responsibilities or demands upon my time.
It took more than a day to let myself get into that particular rhythm.
The idea of Sabbath is a part of our religious tradition. It is well established in scripture. It used to be regulated and imposed to a far greater degree. I’m not arguing for a return to that way of being, but there is a push for a greater recognition of the importance of Sabbath. At least I am aware that the idea of Sabbath is gaining strength amongst my colleagues.
Again, to be clear. This is not the idea of enforcing Sabbath. Not the notion of establishing a particular day of the week being imposed when everything shuts down. But asserting that all of us need a time for rest. A time when the demands of this world are left behind and we can just be.
A great many of my friends and colleagues have established firm days of Sabbath. A Monday or Friday in most cases, and they turn off everything, including their social media. They are days for rest, and they are seen as necessary for their health, physically, mentally, spiritually and socially.
God saw a necessity in taking time for rest. Why would we be so arrogant to think we can ignore our need for rest?
God created us. God took time, energy, and creative spirit to bring us into being. We are the fruits of God’s loving labour. Let us never forget that. Let us care for ourselves; our physical bodies, our minds, our spirits, our neighbours, and the rest of creation with that same affection, and mirror the love that brought us into being.
And let us take time to rest and to reflect and to once again, witness the wonder and beauty that God’s love has created.
Thanks be to God.

Music provided with permission through licensing with CCLI License number
2701258 and One License # A-731789