“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
These familiar first words of scripture explain so much.
While some get sidetracked by the mechanics of how creation happened, I find it best to focus on written here: everything we see and know began with God.
We believe God existed before the world as we know it (from everlasting to everlasting), but “before the world as we know it” isn’t within our range of comprehension; all of our understanding is based on what we can see and experience. Even when we imagine what the world was like before we lived, we can only do so using images from what we have seen ourselves.
So if God created everything that exists, it stands to reason that the world has at least the capacity to be what it was created to be. Don’t just take my word for it…read the first chapter of Genesis. As God creates the world, Genesis affirms, he sees it is good.
We know, of course, that things go wrong, and nobody has come up with an airtight explanation of why so much goes wrong later—we’ll talk mor about that later—but it’s important to remember that the world was made by God, we were made by God, and God is still concerned about the world and the people he made.
We know that to a significant degree, God allows us free rein, and we don’t always make good decisions.
I like the phrasing the catechism uses in response to the question, “How does God rule heaven and earth?”
The answer: “God rules with gracious regard for the well-being and salvation of all, to the glory of his name.”
That, and the selection of scriptures that support it, remind us that God is paying attention, and God wants the best for us and all of creation.
All too often people assume an almost adversarial relationship between God and humanity, as though God is looking for an excuse to judge and punish. The biblical witness, though, is of God seeking again and again to restore his relationship with humanity even when we repeatedly turn away. Yes, God is angered by disobedience and intolerant of sin…but he is repeatedly merciful and tolerant of anyone willing to return to him and accept reconciliation.
– Rev. Mark Fleming
This is part of a sermon/reading series in July-August, 2024, looking at some core Christian beliefs, along with distinctive emphases of the Methodist branch of Christianity.
The daily readings are my own, but they are loosely based on the topics covered in the Catechism of the Global Methodist Church. The column at the right contains the questions from the catechism and the sources it lists.
You can find the full catechism and other information about the Global Methodist Church at globalmethodist.org.
I invite you to join us for worship and other church gatherings at China Methodist Church and Forest Park Methodist Church.
Respectful conversation is welcome. Use the comment section at the end of this post.
From the Catechism of the Global Methodist Church:
5. What is God’s relation to heaven and earth?
God is Creator, Sovereign, and Preserver of all things.
Genesis 1:1-31 [The six days of creation. Read it here]
Deuteronomy 4:39 Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other.
1 Kings 8:23 Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way.
Nehemiah 9:6 You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.
Psalm 8:1 Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens.
Proverbs 16:9 In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.
Isaiah 44:24 This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the Lord, the Maker of all things, who stretches out the heavens, who spreads out the earth by myself…
Acts 17:24 The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands.
Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Revelation 4:11 “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”
Confession of Faith, Article I* We believe in the one true, holy and living God, Eternal Spirit, who is Creator, Sovereign and Preserver of all things visible and invisible. He is infinite in power, wisdom, justice, goodness and love, and rules with gracious regard for the well-being and salvation of men, to the glory of his name. We believe the one God reveals himself as the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, distinct but inseparable, eternally one in essence and power.
6. How does God rule heaven and earth?
God rules with gracious regard for the well-being and salvation of all, to the glory of his name.
Exodus 34:6 And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness…
Psalm 104:31 May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works…
Psalm 116:5 The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.
Joel 2:13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.
Micah 7:18-20 Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance?
You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.
You will be faithful to Jacob, and show love to Abraham, as you pledged on oath to our ancestors in days long ago.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Ephesians 2:4-7 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
Confession of Faith, Article I* We believe in the one true, holy and living God, Eternal Spirit, who is Creator, Sovereign and Preserver of all things visible and invisible. He is infinite in power, wisdom, justice, goodness and love, and rules with gracious regard for the well-being and salvation of men, to the glory of his name. We believe the one God reveals himself as the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, distinct but inseparable, eternally one in essence and power.
*Confession of Faith of the Evangelical United Brethren Church, a predecessor denomination to the Global Methodist Church