Single Pastors and Small Churches, the Holy Spirit and Prevenient Grace

Fourth Sunday after Pentecost, A

July 6, 2014

Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67

A Jewish bride and groom. (Picture via BenEden.Com)

Introduction: Single Pastor Problems, Small Church Problems

Today's Old Testament reading is on the finding of a wife for Isaac. Abraham sent his servant back to his homeland to look for a wife for his son Isaac. Here we can see a picture of God the Father sending out the Holy Spirit to call a bride for his Son Jesus Christ, which is the Church.

Speaking of looking for a wife, as a single pastor I've often been asked, "Pastor, why haven't you gotten married yet?" or "Pastor, have you ever even thought of getting married?" or "Pastor, when are you ever going to give your mother grandkids?" And yes, I've been introduced to or "paired" with one young lady or another. Sometimes I find these questions and good-natured teasing irritating. At this time I don't feel like explaining myself or talking about my past relationships. The sermon is a time to proclaim the Word of God, not to discuss the pastor's love life! (Or lack thereof.) I call this #SinglePastorProblems.

Another “problem” that I have is that I'm often assigned to small local churches. My first pastorate worshiped in a very small house church. I've had a church that meets in a rented apartment; another church that worships in a small building in the boondocks. (Yep, “boondocks” is an English word borrowed from Tagalog.) I've experienced worship services which have dwindled down to four people. And I'd been always asked: "Why hasn't your church been growing?" or "What strategies/projects/programs/activities have you done to make your church grow?" As a then-young, inexperienced, and clueless pastor, deep down inside I felt these irritating and even discouraging. Are numbers the sole measurement of success of a pastor's ministry?

Which brings us to today's Scripture reading in Genesis 24. In the book Becoming Beautiful for God, Betty Honeywell proposes that the finding of a bride for Isaac by Abraham's servant is a picture of how the Holy Spirit calls people to become the Bride of Christ, which is called the Church. In the Bible, the Church is called the Bride of Christ. In describing the relationship between husband and wife, St. Paul compares it with the relationship of Christ and his Church, saying:

This is a great mystery; I mean, concerning Christ and the church. (Ephesians 5:32)

The Tradition of the Church also portrays the Church as the Bride of Christ, our opening hymn today says,

The Church's one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord

She is his new creation by water and the Word

From heaven he came and sought him to be his holy bride

With his own blood he bought her and for her life he died. (UMH 545)

I. Abraham asks his servant to look for a wife for Isaac.

In Genesis 24, Abraham was already very old and "well stricken in years" (v. 1) so he asked his servant (actually his steward--the eldest servant who was in charge of everything that Abraham owned, v. 2) to look for a wife for his son, Isaac: "...go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son" (v. 4). To make a long story short (this chapter is composed of repetitious narratives, which is why the Old Testament reading today is a composite of several separate sections), the servant prayed to the LORD to guide him until he found Rebekah, who would become the wife of Isaac.

This chapter is said to be the origin of the use of matchmakers among Jewish people. This was portrayed in the musical play Fiddler on the Roof where Reb Tevye's daughters sing (with much trepidation) of the village matchmacker, Yente:

Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match,

Find me a find, catch me a catch....

How can this story be possibly relevant for us Christians today?

II. The finding of a wife for Isaac is a picture of the work of the Holy Spirit.

In Becoming Beautiful for God, Honeywell proses that Abraham represents God the Father, Isaac is God the Son, the servant is the Holy Spirit, and Rebekah is the Church.

Just as Abraham sent his servant to look for a wife for his son Isaac, God the Father sent the Holy Spirit to look for a bride for Christ.

But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me. (John 15:26, emphasis added)

Just as the servant was sent by Abraham to look for a wife for a bride for Isaac, the Holy Spirit was sent from God the Father to look for a bride for Jesus Christ. Abraham's servant spoke only of Abraham and Isaac, so does the Spirit speaks only of Jesus Christ:

But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me. (John 15:26, emphasis added)

But when he, the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak of himself... (John 16:13)

So the sending of Abraham of his servant to look for a bride of Isaac is a picture of God the Father sending the Holy Spirit to look for a bride for his Son, Jesus Christ!

III. The work of the Holy Spirit and Prevenient Grace.

Among Methodists, our understanding of grace is as follows: prevenient grace, justifying grace, sanctifying grace, and glorifying grace. According to John Wesley, prevenient grace (or, the original term is "preventing grace") is

...the first wish to please God, the first dawn of light concerning his will, and the first slight transient conviction of having sinned against him. All these imply some tendency toward life; some degree of salvation; the beginning of a deliverance from a blind, unfeeling heart, quite insensible of God and the things of God. (Sermon 85: On Working Our our Own Salvation)

In other words, the grace of God is already present in us before we have loved or even have known God; just as the scripture says,

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

The meeting of Abraham's servant and Rebekah is an example of prevenient grace. Abraham's servant prayed for specific signs of the "damsel" he was looking for and "it came to pass, before he had done speaking" (Genesis 24:15) Rebekah appears at the well and gave him water and his camels as well. Rebekah did not choose to be the wife of Isaac; even before she knew Isaac, she was chosen to be his wife, just like what Jesus said, "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you..." (John 15:16).

Prevenient grace does not force itself on people. When Abraham's servant narrates his mission to Rebekah's family, the final decision was not with anyone but Rebekah herself:

And they said, We will call the damsel, and enquire at her mouth. And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go. (Genesis 24:57-58)

Excursus: Lest the foregoing statement be used as an argument in favor of predestination, while it can be argued that Rebekah was chosen the bride of Isaac, she can refuse the offer, cf. Genesis 24:5 and 8. In the same way, the Holy Spirit can also be resisted, Acts 7:51. John Wesley also taught that prevenient grace can be resisted:

Every one has, sooner or later, good desires; although the generality of men stifle them before they can strike deep root, or produce any considerable fruit. Everyone has some measure of that light, some faint glimmering ray, which, sooner or later, more or less, enlightens every man that cometh into the world. And every one, unless he be one of the small number whose conscience is seared as with a hot iron, feels more or less uneasy when he acts contrary to the light of his own conscience. So that no man sins because he has not grace, but because he does not use the grace which he hath. (Sermon 85: On Working Our our Own Salvation, emphasis added)

Conclusion: Single Pastors (or Lay People) and Small Churches

Which leads us back to single pastors (or lay people) and small churches. At this point I cannot really offer much advice to single people (like myself) except that getting a life partner is a mystery that involves both the will of God and the will of the other person (similar to the Doctrine of Synergism among the East Orthodox Christians). In other words, it is ultimately the Holy Spirit who brings people into our lives who could be a potential life partner. (Of course, if you are a guy, you should take the steps to court her. And if you are a girl and you feel that this is the one that God has given you, it your part to say, “yes”.)

As for small churches, many people think that programs and activities will lead to church growth, such medical missions, evangelistic crusades and contemporary-style services. Again, I cannot offer much advice here because I am not especially gifted in mission and evangelism or in church growth. But I believe it is ultimately the work of the Holy Spirit that moves people to receive Christ and become members of his Church. 

Amen.

The God Who Sees

3rd Sunday after Pentecost, A

June 29, 2014

Genesis 22:1-18

Introduction

Our Old Testament reading for today is known as the testing of Abraham among Christians or the binding of Isaac among Jews (Hebrew, Akeidat Yitschak, or simply Akeidah). This is the well-known story of how God tested the faith of Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his only and beloved son, Isaac.

The illustration above was painted by the great 17th century Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn. It was said that when Rembrandt was researching on how to depict the sacrifice of Abraham, he went to the marketplace to see how Jews slaughtered animals. He observed how a sholchet--a kosher butcher--would slit the neck of a chicken in order to drain its blood according to Jewish Law (see Leviticus 17:13). So he painted Abraham not as about to stab of Isaac but as about to slit his throat.

I. God tests our faith. (Genesis 22:1-2)

"And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham..." (v. 1). In the Bible, the word for 'to test' is the same word as the word for 'to tempt'. In Hebrew, the word used here is נִסָּה nisah, which both means 'to test' or 'to tempt'; while the Greek word used in the New Testament is πειράζω peirazo, which also means 'to test' or 'to tempt'. (The word used here in the Septuagint is επειραζεν, epeirezen, which is the intensive of the word πειράζω peirazo.)

But in English, 'to test' has a positive connotation while 'to tempt' has a negative connotation. For example, in that famous passage in the Epistle of St. James, πειράζω peirazo is translated as 'trial', as in the New International Version:

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you face trials (πειρασμός, peirasmos) of various kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. (James 1:2-3)

and also later in verse 12:

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial (πειρασμός, peirasmos), because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God promised to those who love him. (NIV)

But in the very next verses, πειράζω peirazo is translated as 'to tempt':

When tempted (πειραζομενος, peirasomenos), no one should say, "God is tempting (πειραζομαι, peirazomai) me." For God cannot be tempted (απειραστος, apeirastos) by evil, nor does he tempt (πειραζει, peirazei) anyone; but each one is tempted (πειραζεται, peirazetai) when by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has been conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. (James 1:13-15, NIV)

Regarding the word "temptation", W. E. Vine says,

[I]n a good sense, [peirazo is] said of Christ and of believers. Heb, 2:18, where the context shows that the temptation was the cause of suffering to Him, not a drawing away to sin.... [S]o in a similar passage in 4:15; in all temptations which Christ endured, there was nothing within him which answered to sin. There was no sinful infirmity in him.... [I]n Heb. 11:37, of the testing of O[ld] T[estament] saints, in I Cor. 10:13, where the meaning has a wide scope, the verb is used of testing as permitted by God, and of the believer as one who should be in the realization of his own helplessness and his dependence upon God.... (W.E. Vine's Concise Dictionary of Bible Words, Article: "Tempt")

Sa Tagalog, ang salitang 'pagsubok' ay may positibong kahulugan ngunit ang 'tukso' ay may negatibong kahulugan. Tungkol sa salitang 'pagsubok', ayon sa Tagalog Topical Study Bible,

Samantalang pinipilit ni Satanas na pahinain ang ating pananampalataya at tuksuhin tayo upang magkasala, sinusubok naman ng Diyos ang ating pananampalataya upang palakasin ito. Maari at madalas na ang dulot ng pagsubok ay sakit at paghihirap ngunit nais ng Diyos na lumapit tayo sa kanya at magtiwala na ang kanyang ginagawa ay para sa ating kabutihan.

Tungkol naman sa salitang 'tukso',

Ang tukso ay hindi dapat ipagkamali sa pagsubok ng Diyos sa ating pananampalataya bilang paraan ng pagpapalakas, sapagkat hindi tayo tutuksuhin ng Diyos upang magkasala sa kanya.

God uses trial and testing (the foregoing expression used here as a hendiadys) in order to prove our faith. In his trial of Abraham, he asked him to sacrifice his own son,

Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains I will tell thee of. (Genesis 22:2, emphasis added)

God often asks us to take what we value most and asks us to sacrifice it to him. "Take now your (fill in the blank), who/which you love...and offer it as an offering." For example, can we sacrifice God a little time for prayer and Bible reading? God often tests our obedience by asking us to sacrifice the thing that is most dear to us.

II. Abraham is an example of obedience. (Genesis 22:3-10)

When God commanded Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son, Isaac, we do not read that of Abraham resisting or hesitating. He was prepared to obey God until the end. He traveled to Mount Moriah (future site of the Temple in Jerusalem) on donkey and took with him Isaac and the wood upon which his son would be sacrificed.

The (attempted) offering of Isaac can be seen as a prefiguring of the offering of Jesus Christ. Both Isaac and Jesus were only and beloved sons (cf. Matthew 3:17). When Abraham placed the wood of the burnt offering on the back of Isaac (v. 6), it reminds us of when Jesus bore on his back the wood of the Cross (cf. John 19:17). Just as Isaac was bound and placed upon the wood (v. 9), Jesus was also placed upon the wood of the Cross in order to be sacrificed. It may also be interesting to add that rabbinical teaching says the Isaac did in fact die of shock as Abraham was about to slay him, but the voice of the Angel of the LORD brought him back to life. If so, this is an interesting parallel with Jesus Christ, we literally died on the Cross and rose again from the dead on the third day. Even our Christian New Testament carries the idea that Isaac figuratively died and rose again:

By faith Abraham, being tried, offered up Isaac, and he that had received the promises, offered up his only begotten son: Of whom it had been said, In Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able even to raise him from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure (παραβολη, parabolē). (Hebrews 11:17-19)

III. God blesses obedience (Genesis 22:11-18)

As Abraham "stretched forth his hand and took the knife to slay his son" (v. 10), the Angel of the LORD called out to him and ordered him to stop the sacrifice.

God recognized the obedience of Abraham:

"Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me." (v. 12)

God also blessed the obedience of Abraham by renewing his promise to him:

By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. (vv. 16-18)

God is a God who recognizes obedience and blesses it!

Conclusion: Adonai Yireh, the God Who Sees/Provides

When the Angel of the LORD stopped Abraham from sacrificing his son, he also provided a ram that would be sacrificed in lieu of Isaac. Once more, this is a picture of the substitutionary death of Jesus on the Cross. He is both the sacrificed Son and the ram of offering. Thus, Abraham called the name of the place יְהוָה יֵרָאֶה Adonai Yireh, 'The LORD will see'.

This name is sometimes rendered as "Jehovah-Jireh" in English and translated as "The LORD Will Provide", the interpretation of which was popularized in Don Moen's praise song "Jehovah-Jireh". The word "Yireh" means 'will see' (third person imperfect aspect), which comes from the root word ראה raah, 'he sees' (third person perfect aspect). But also "yireh" is used in other places in the Hebrew Bible as 'will provide' (see v. 8: "The LORD will provide [yireh] himself a lamb for a burnt offering...").

There is no real contradiction between the translation "God will provide" and "God will see". God saw the obedience of Abraham so he provided a ram which was offered in place of Isaac. God sees the need of his people, and thus he will provide their needs. Amen.

The God Who Hears

Second Sunday after Pentecost, A

June 22, 2014

Genesis 21:9-21; Matthew 10:26-33

Introduction

Last Sunday, the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity, I said that I would be beginning a new sermon series based on this year's Old Testament readings based on the Revised Common Lectionary (according to the usage of The United Methodist Church--the UMC uses an independent lecta continua stream for the Old Testament, Epistle, and Gospel readings during Ordinary Time while other churches like the Roman Catholic Church uses a lecta selecta approach where the Old Testament reading is related to the Gospel reading). Last Sunday we studied the story of Creation in Genesis chapter 1. Today we continue with an episode in the life of Abraham the Patriarch.

As we can recall, Abraham (formerly Abram or Avram) was a man from Ur of the Chaldees whom God called and made a covenant with (Genesis 12). Among the things that the LORD promised Abra(ha)m was that God would make him into a "great nation" (Genesis 12:2). But we also read that ten years after God called Abra(ha)m to move into the land of Canaan and promised to make him a great nation, Abraham has yet to have a single child (Genesis 16). So Sarah his wife gave him her Egyptian maid Hagar to be his wife so that Hagar can bear a child on Sarah's behalf.

We need to acknowledge that today's Old Testament reading is a difficult text and we need to eliminate certain misconceptions and clarify certain things in order to fully understand the text.

I. Hagar was not an "other woman" and Ishmael was not an "illegitimate child"

I believe that Hagar and her son, Ismael, have suffered much injustice under "Christian" (read: Western) biblical interpretation; viz.: Hagar is Abraham's "other woman" and that Ismael was his "illegitimate child". And that Abraham having a child with Hagar instead of with Sarah is their attempt to make a "shortcut" of God's plan, so God's blessing was not upon him. (It also does not help that St. Paul compared slavery to the Law with Hagar in Galatians 4:24-25.)

In Jewish Law, illegitimate children are called mamzerim (singular, mamzer). Among Christians, children are considered "illegitimate" when they are born outside the bond on marriage (e.g., between unmarried people or a married person with someone not their spouse). But in Jewish Law, the only children considered mamzerim are those born from forbidden relations, which are listed down in Leviticus 18. According to the orthodox Jewish website, Mechon-Mamre,

The offspring of such marriages [those prohibited in the Torah--G] are mamzerim (bastards, illegitimate), and subject to a variety of restrictions; however it is important to note that only the offspring of these incestuous or forbidden marriages are mamzerim. Children born out of wedlock are not mamzerim in Jewish law and bear no stigma, unless the marriage would have been prohibited for the reasons above. Children of a married man and a woman who is not his wife are not mamzerim (because the marriage between the parents would not have been prohibited), although children of a married woman and a man who is not her husband are mamzerim (because she could not have married him).(http://mechon-mamre.org/jewfaq/marriage.htm#Forbidden)

Therefore, Hagar is considered a "secondary wife" to Abraham and her son Ishmael is a legitimate son of Abraham! Looking at our text, we can read that God acknowledged Ishmael as a son of Abraham and that God will bless Ishmael and make him into a great nation (Genesis 21:13)!

II. What does it mean that Ishmael was "mocking"? (v. 1)

The Hebrew word translated as "mocking" in verse 1 is a difficult word to understand--even among Jews! The word used here is מְצַחֵק m'tsacheq, which is often translated as "mocking", but also 'to laugh at' (Genesis 17:17) , 'to play' (as in Exodus 32:6) and 'to make sport' (Judges 16:25; but see also Genesis 26:8 where Isaac was probably "making out" with his wife Rebekah). One rabbinical interpretation says that this means that Ishmael was biting Isaac on the neck to suck his blood! But is interesting to note that the word m'tsacheq is related to the name of Isaac: יִצְחָק Yitschaq, which means 'he laughs'. Whether Ishmael was merely playing with or mocking Isaac, this incurred the wrath of his mother Sarah.

III. Could Hagar carry Ishmael on his back? (v. 14)

In this chapter, Ismael appears to be portrayed as still a boy. In some translations of the Bible, Abraham places the skin of water and puts it on Hagar's shoulders together with Ishmael (v. 14). When the water in the skin ran out, the text says that Hagar placed him under a shrub and he was crying because of thirst (vv. 15-16). But Ishmael was around 14 to 15 years old at this time (Abraham was 86 years old when Ishmael was born, Genesis 16:16, and 100 when Isaac was born, Genesis 21:5; plus one year for the time Isaac was weaned).

Perhaps the difficulty can be eliminated when verse 14 is translated as

And Abraham arose up early in the morning, and took bread and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away; and she departed, and strayed in the wilderness of Beer-sheba. (Jewish Publication Society version, emphasis added)

--Meaning, that it was the water skin that was placed on Hagar's shoulder, and she and Ishmael were send away. Ishmael was not placed on his mother's shoulders.

But this does not completely remove the difficultly. In verse 16, Ishmael was called a "child" (יָּלֶד yaled) but a "lad" (נַּעַר na'ar) in verse 17. One rabbinical interpretation is that Ishmael grew up into a young man in the space of one verse!

Hagar and Ishmael represent those who have been cast out, but God's blessing is upon them.

Thus, for me, when Hagar and Ishmael were cast out, they represent 1) the cast-out ones (v. 10); 2) the poor ones, whose resources are limited (only a skin of water, v. 14); and 3) the helpless ones (when the water in the skin ran out, vv. 15-16). And they also represent those whom God hears and delivers (vv. 17-20).

First of all, God heard the voice of the child (v. 17). The name Ishmael means 'God will hear', the name given to him by the Angel of the Lord before he was born (Genesis 16:12) (which proves that the child was not "illegitimate" and therefore not blessed). When the outcast are cast out, God hears them!

Second, God provided a spring of water so that Hagar can refill their water skin and drink (v. 19). When the outcast have their resources exhausted, God provides for their needs!

Third, God was with Ishmael as he grew up (v. 20). When the outcast are cast out, God comforts them with his own Presence!

Conclusion

In today's Gospel reading, the Lord Jesus sent the twelve Apostles to mission "to the lost sheep of Israel" (Matthew 10:6). The Apostles were not cast out by the Lord but in their mission, but they ran into a chance of being rejected ("whosoever shall not receive you", v. 14). They also had very limited resources (they were not to bring money, bags, extra clothes and shoes, not even a walking staff, vv. 9-10). And yet the Lord promised that their needs will be taken care of ("For the workman is worthy of his maintenance", v. 10, John Wesley New Testament). What Jesus said to the Apostles when he sent them out in mission bears repeating:

And be not afraid of them who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; but rather be afraid of him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall to the ground without your Father. Yea, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.

Amen.

The Trinity and Creation

The First Sunday after Pentecost, A
Feast of the Most Holy Trinity
June 15, 2014
Genesis 1:1-2:4a

Introduction

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity, the First Sunday after Pentecost or Ordinary Time. Today we celebrate our faith in one God in three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Bible does not mention the word "Trinity" nor is there any verse that says "The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is one God." Rather, we come to believe in the Trinity by taking into consideration what the whole Bible says. The Bible says that there is only one God, as contained in the ancient Jewish declaration, the Shema:

שְׁמַע, יִשְׂרָאֵל: יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ, יְהוָה אֶחָד.

Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one. (Deuteronomy 6:4)

At the same time, the Bible teaches that Jesus Christ is God; for example, in Philipians 2:6: The words "in the form of God" does not mean the same thing as "the image of God". The Greek word for "form" is μορφη, morphē, which in the whole New Testament applies only to Jesus himself (cf. Mark 16:12). But the Greek word for "image" is εικον, eikon, which applies to humans (e.g., I Coirnthians 11:7 and 15:49, & c.) but which can also apply to Jesus (e.g., Colossians 1:15 and Hebrews 1:3). In other words, "the image of God" applies to both humans and Jesus because Jesus is also human; but "the form of God" only applies to Jesus because he is divine.
 

Meanwhile, the Bible is also clear that the Holy Spirit is God, because he is called "Lord": "Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (2 Corinthians 3:17).

Today, I would like to begin a sermon series on the Old Testament, specifically on the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. For Year "A", the Revised Common Lectionary (according to the usage of The United Methodist Church) gets the Old Testament readings from the Torah (plus Joshua and Judges) during the Season after Pentecost (or Ordinary Time), which stretches from June to November. No many Christians, the Old Testament is a "closed book"--even though it comprises two-thirds of the Bible! In the coming months, we will unlock the riches of the Old Testament (the Jewish Scriptures) and see its relevance to us Christians today.

What is the role of the Holy Trinity in Creation?

I. The Father

In Genesis chapter 1, God the Father is the Creator: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (v. 1). This is the basic affirmation of the Bible.

God creates out of nothing (creatio ex nihilo): "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep" (v.2). This does not mean that there is something existing before Creation; that there was already "earth" and "waters" before Creation. This is simply the Bible's way of saying that there is nothing before Creation; and out of this Nothingness nothing can come. In other words, something cannot come out of Nothing.

God creates by his Word. "And God said, Let there be light, and there was light" (v. 3). It is through his Word that God brings something out of nothing (creatio ex nihilo).

God affirms that his creation is good. "And God saw the light, that it was good..." (v. 4). When God creates out of nothing, he creates good. Nothing good can come out of Nothingness; only God can bring good out of Nothingness.

But God the Father was not alone in Creation. The Holy Spirit was moving upon the face of the waters (v. 2). In the Creation of man, God said, "Let us make man in our own image, after our likeness..." (v. 26). The Son and the Holy Spirit have their role in Creation.

II. The Son

Jesus Christ was existing before Creation, just as the Father existed before Creation. "In the beginning existed the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1). This Word was Jesus Christ. By his Word the Father created all things, and this Word was Jesus Christ. Everything was created through Christ, and without Christ nothing could be made: "All things were made by him, and without him was not one single thing made that was made" (John 1:3).

Jesus Christ was not only involved in Creation, but also in the making of all things new. The Bible tells us that Creation was ruined because of sin. But "if any one be in Christ, there is a new creation: the old things are passed away" (2 Corinthians 5:17).

III. The Holy Spirit

In Genesis chapter 1, we read that in the beginning, "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep"--that is, nothing existed except Nothingness. But we also read, "And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters" (v. 2). According to Bishop Emerito Nacpil, in his book "A Spirituality that Secularizes" (Vol. 1),

The Spirit is God reaching out to the formless void, the deep covered with darkness... This reaching out of the Spirit which is of God and from God is what establishes...the binding bond between God and the heavens and the earth... (p. 35). [It] means making creation possible out of its non-possibility in the pre-creation condition, which is Nothing (p. 36).

The Bible also says that the Holy Spirit is involved for the renewal of nature. Psalm 104 tells us of the beauty of Creation and of God provides for all his creatures, whether animal of human. After describing death, the taking away of breath and the returning to dust, the psalm tells us in verse 30, "Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth." The Holy Spirit is not only involved in Creation, but also in it's renewal!

Conclusion

One of the stories in my Philippine Literature class is the Bikol epic-fragment entitled "Ibalong" (see the story in my educational blog and my review of the play staged by Tanghalang Pilipino). It is the story of a ruler named Handiong and his son Bantog who came from a faraway place and settled in the rich land of Ibalong. In order to make room for their people, they cleared the forest and killed all the monsters that lived there. They were resisted by the snake-woman Oryol and the monster Rabot but they were defeated by the humans. The golden age of Ibalong came with the founding of a town and the invention of agriculture, cooking, writing, & c. But in the end the town was swept away by floods and earthquakes, as if the destruction of nature was so much that it destroyed them.

As Christians, part of our responsibility to Creation is to recognize that it is created by none other than the Triune God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And since Creation is made by the Triune God, it is our responsibility to take care of it. Amen.