1 24 5 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/16105fcfb52711c7b1298a2fa6e50841.pdf 48a46a1b7fe4ed1bf576a89d7fac57c6 PDF Text Text Creation: God’s Risky Decision – Dream or Nightmare? The Genesis Story of the People of Israel Text: Genesis 9:8-11 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan Pentecost XVIII, September 25, 1994 Transcription of the spoken sermon "Then God said to Noah... I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you... and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth." Genesis 9:8-11 The Bible is a forbidding book. In order to get some handle on it, let's try for a few Sunday mornings to look at large chunks, with broad strokes, in order to see how those large chunks fit into a whole to tell "The One Story of the Bible." Our beginning is with the first eleven chapters of Genesis. But those first eleven chapters, while they speak of the beginning of all things, are not really the beginning of the biblical story. To go to the beginning of the biblical story, we would have to go to the book of Exodus, to the birth of the people Israel. Here we find Moses leading the Israelites out of the slavery and bondage of Egypt, through the wilderness, and into the Promised Land. The Exodus, the movement from Egypt and slavery to the land flowing with milk and honey, that was the founding story of this people Israel. The Creation story is the story of this people. This people Israel, like every people, told stories. They told stories in order to understand themselves, who they were, and to communicate that understanding to the rising generations. They told stories of beginnings, like every people. They told stories of the ancient past. They told stories in order to understand themselves in the broad scheme of things. They told these stories in order to understand how they related to the whole cosmic reality and the whole human history, how they as a people related to all other peoples. They told stories in order to explain why life was like it was, and how to respond to it, and from what perspective to interpret it. They told stories. The first eleven chapters of Genesis are the stories that this people Israel told in order to explain what they believed—what they believed to be true about the world, about history, and about themselves, and about God. This people Israel told their stories in order to give expression to their faith, for they were first of all a people of faith. © Grand Valley State University   �Creation: God’s Risky Decision – Dream or Nightmare? Richard A. Rhem Page 2   Perhaps you will then say to me, "Well, then these stories in the first eleven chapters of Genesis are human creations? Are they simply stories that people told?" And I would say, "Yes .. . and No ..." Yes they are human creations, they are stories that this community told, that expressed their faith. But whence did those stories arise? They arose out of the experience this people had with the One who was transcendent, the One who was beyond them, the One whom they understood to be the source of all life—Creator of all. Their stories arose out of their encounter with the Living God. So there's a sense in which you could say yes, these biblical stories are human creations, but they are more than that; they speak of human experience of being encountered by God. Out of that encounter they gave witness to the things that they believed about the God who encountered them. As the centuries went by and the nation of Israel developed, the stories they told in an oral tradition eventually became written down and gathered together. So, we have today the Hebrew Scriptures or the First Testament. (Rather than the Old Testament. To say the Old Testament it sounds as though the New Testament superseded the Old, as though Israel has been surpassed. I think that that is insensitive and I don't really believe that to be the case. I think more and more we come to see that we, with Israel, worship this one God who creates all and is full of grace.) So, the Hebrew Scriptures or the First Testament will be our primary focus for a few weeks. And that Hebrew scripture begins not with the beginning of the Hebrew people—that's told us in the book of Exodus – but what they believed about the Source of all things. They said there is, because God said, "Let there be." That is the creation story told poetically by James Weldon Johnson, expressed marvelously by Franz Josef Heyden, recorded here by the First Testament writer in the first chapter as a creed of creation. This story is recorded in the midst of Israel's exile and despair, as an affirmation of faith, that a Creator created all things. Why is there anything, rather than nothing? They said, there is something rather than nothing, because God said, "Let there be." The unraveling of that creation story is simply the explication of the fundamental decision of faith that what is—is, not by accident or chance or an eternal cycle of things, but is the consequence of the Living God who is the creative source of all, who decided in a risky decision to bring into being all that is. That's what they believed. Then they went on to say, "But how—now that we have located ourselves in this cosmic scheme of things, the consequence of God's creative word—how should be feel about the world and the created order?" They went on in their storytelling to reiterate that statement of God, "It is good," a positive affirmation, a positive affirmation of human life. They said, "Who are we and how are we related?" The storyteller said, "We are related to God, for we are created in the divine image, and with profound insight." This story also helped them to see that the human person, created in the divine image, self reflective, created with freedom and responsibility, was also shaped © Grand Valley State University �Creation: God’s Risky Decision – Dream or Nightmare? Richard A. Rhem Page 3   out of the mud of the earth—dust, humus. After the rain the worms buckle up the soil—that's humus, the excretion of the worm. The humus is the stuff that God shaped to make the human person. Humus. Its root is in the word humility; the root of humility is the root of humor. In God's good humor, God making a joke, created a being out of humus that had a spirit that could soar with God's own so the human person beckoned upward, pulled downward, lives in this constant tension. The Israelite tradition said, see, that's why we are like we are. But someone else said, "But why? This God is good, and if this God created humankind in God's own image, why all the disease and all the dis-ease? Why all the trouble, the anguish and the pain? Why does it sometimes seem that this creation is not a dream, but a nightmare?" The answer was: Not God's fault. The Creator called the creature to live in freedom within limits, in harmony with creation, and the Creator. But the risky part of it was that the creature had the potential to say, "No," and with arrogant pride to usurp the place of the creator, to seek human autonomy. All of that is in those primitive stories. The writer was trying to give expression to the conviction of Israel that creation is good because God is good, and God called it forth. The human person is good because it is shaped after the image of God, yet rooted in the earth, full of conflict, set always before choice, called always to choose life, to choose the way of wisdom. But again and again and again, say the storytellers, these persons choose wrongly, bringing on alienation, disharmony, grief, death. The third chapter of Genesis, following on the story in the Garden of Eden, tells us about Adam and Eve and the trees and the temptation to eat from the tree. And the choice to do what God had said they should not do, to eat from the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. But that's not a story that happened at 6:00 a.m. on the first day of creation, because these are not historical narratives as though day one is in chapter one, and day two is in chapter three, then day four, or month six, or whatever. No, these are a series of little stories, a series of portraits, of snapshots. So, in chapters two and three we have a human couple, created for a garden of paradise, an Eden of delight, who usurped their limits of the freedom and brought grief upon them. Then, it is not as though from that point on there is no more human possibility to choose rightly. In the fourth chapter there are two brothers, Cain and Abel. Cain gets an angry eye over against his brother and he becomes jealous of his brother. He has hatred growing in his heart, and he rises up and he kills his brother. But the word of the Lord comes to him and says you did that because your mother and father sinned, therefore, you are a sinner and are totally depraved; you can't help yourself. Sin crouches at your door, but you can master it, but you didn't. If you want to call that the "fall" in Genesis 3, then you have a second "fall" in Genesis 4. There the writer tells us that human civilization and culture developed, and with the developing culture of the civilization there was an increase in wickedness on the earth until God shook his head and he said, "I wish I wouldn't © Grand Valley State University �Creation: God’s Risky Decision – Dream or Nightmare? Richard A. Rhem Page 4   have done it. I took a risk. I wish I wouldn't have taken a risk." The storyteller uses anthropomorphic words– so child like, so profound—revealing the anguish of a God who is engaged and involved, who says, "I will wipe it out." Ah, but we're told, there's Noah. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. He was a righteous man. God snatched Noah and his family out of the abyss of the flood, and when the floodwaters passed away God said, "You know, I'm never going to do that again. I am going to make a covenant pledge with the created order and every living being and humankind. I'll never destroy it again and I am going to put a rainbow in the sky to be reminded every time I see it that I am pledged to stick with this risky experiment all the way to the end. I'll never let it go." Such grace! Then you have Noah's sons and their trouble, and the final story in these eleven chapters is the story of the Tower of Babel where they begin to build this tower toward heaven. Again with such profound wisdom and insight the storyteller is telling us that it is the human project to usurp the place of God, to build the secular city, to organize all of life without regard to the Creator, to break the limits. So we have the dispersion of the people due to the confusing of their tongues. Because, when communication breaks down, community is impossible and the world becomes hell. That's how this people Israel related themselves to the total cosmic scheme of things, to the whole flow of human history, to God whom they affirmed to be the source of all life, and how they understood the reason there was so much pain and trouble in the world. Not blaming God, and never letting themselves off the hook as though, "We're just human, and we are fallen; therefore, marred forever and it can't ever be any different." Always calling themselves back to choose life, to live obediently – that was their understanding and their goal in the telling of these stories. Those eleven chapters are foundational for the rest of the story because, you see, what the writer did was say "We, as this peculiar people of Israel, are who we are, chosen by God because in the beginning—Adam and Even, Cain and Abel, the people of Noah's generation, the Tower of Babel—again and again and again human failure, human cussedness, human obstreperousness was the choice." But God says, "I can't let it go. I'll never abandon my people, so I am going to have to do something." What follows is the story of Abraham. Does the writer just happens to tell us that Abraham's wife, Sarah, was a woman with a barren womb? I don't think that the writer slipped that in order that there might be a wonderful trivia question some generations later. The writer was using a metaphor to tell us that Israel would be born as a new creation of God, out of a barren womb which only God could do in order to be a people to bring light and truth to the nations on behalf of the God who was the Creator of all. Out of the womb of Sarah that was barren, and at her age as wrinkled as a dried prune, God would bring a people as numerous as the stars of the heaven and the sands of the sea. But I am anticipating next week—so for now let me say just two things. These marvelous stories answer the fundamental question: All that is, is because God said, "Let there be." © Grand Valley State University �Creation: God’s Risky Decision – Dream or Nightmare? Richard A. Rhem Page 5   I received a magazine at my Wednesday night class, brought by one of my friends. The Scientific American, a special issue, October 1994 celebrating 150 years of continuous publication. The theme, "Life in the Universe," has marvelous articles about the latest bits of knowledge we have about the earth, the evolutionary process, the human person, the extra-terrestrial investigations, the environment, all of that. Marvelous! Now I want to say there is nothing in this [magazine] that is in conflict with this [Bible]. The tragic history of the conflict between religion and science has done irreparable damage to the cause of Christ and the mission of God for the world. This [magazine] talks about how, when, by what means— maybe this, maybe that. It speaks of baffling questions yet unsolved, yet a continual probing, searching, reflecting. This [Bible] says nothing about what this [magazine] says, except that there would not be this [Bible] if there were not One who said, "In the beginning, let there be." It states that in the beginning, God created. It is the affirmation of faith, the absolute affirmation of faith, and it is the primary goal of this book to say only that. This is a book of faith by a people who believed that all that is is because God said, "Let there be. That's all! And that is everything! With such a faith we can relax, say, go to it ,all you scientists. Unravel the mysteries, tell us the exciting news that brings ever more awe to the human mind as secrets are revealed." Tuesday and Wednesday this week at Hope College there is a Critical Issues Seminar on Human Genetic Engineering. The chief of the whole project from Washington, DC will be there Tuesday night. Medical questions, ethical decisions, all of those things need to be figured out. All this book [Bible] says is that the reason that you seek the answers is because you seek the God who is the ultimate source. Now, use your minds, your best judgment. Find the path of wisdom. Choose life." And there is free rein to uncover the secrets of this marvelous universe, whose complexity is but a witness to the wonder of the Creator. One further word, those opening chapters are eloquent in their statement about human wrong headedness, wrong heartedness, wrong choices, pride, arrogance. Are you a cussed people? Oh my, are you ... and I with you. The Hebrew Scriptures point to the hopelessness of the human person, but never in a hopeless kind of way. There is no "fall" that marks generations from thereon. That's an imposition on the stories. That's a doctrinal system that has done terrible disservice to the human person, robbed the human person of dignity, stripped the human person of self esteem, put the human person under a load of shame and guilt. And it doesn't come from these scriptures. It is imposed upon it. Do we make wrong choices? Yes, we do. Have we in the past? Yes. Will we in the future? Yes, we will. But God says, "I won't give up, and when you fall down I will pick you up and put you back on the road." These chapters, we understand them in the Hebrew tradition, are terribly honest about the human condition. We are hopeless, but not without hope because God is full of grace. Well, a risky decision like that might seem a nightmare. But God will never abandon the dream. Thank God. © Grand Valley State University � https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/eb8d54aedb5ea401aac429378a88796c.mp3 d1ea75fb892dee4c74c4518c1d8a7e10 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Pentecost XVIII Series The First Testament Scripture Text Genesis 9:8-11 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19940925 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1994-09-25 Title A name given to the resource Creation: God's Risky Decision - Dream or Nightmare? Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on September 25, 1994 entitled "Creation: God's Risky Decision - Dream or Nightmare?", as part of the series "The First Testament", on the occasion of Pentecost XVIII, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Genesis 9:8-11. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Covenant Creator Faith Forgiveness History of Israel https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9d7800acae3b5bd83bb29ad9928a4823.mp3 710779491cc81b9a94703b56fdb79ad6 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/fc0f432b876419c49ee8237d5cb017f5.pdf e12b99ed207ef16593a54d2f65cb8e4d PDF Text Text Creation’s Goal: Sabbath Rest From the summer sermon series: Faith’s Foundation Text: Genesis 2:2-3; Isaiah 65:23, 25; Revelation 21:3; 22:2-4 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan July 24, 1988 Transcription of the spoken sermon On the sixth day God completed all the work He had been doing, and on the seventh day He ceased from all His work. God blessed the seventh day and made it holy...Genesis 2:2-3 They shall not toil in vain or raise children for misfortune... they shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, says the Lord. Isaiah 65:23,25 Now at last God has His dwelling among humankind! Revelation 21:3 ... the leaves of the trees serve for the healing of the nations. Every accursed thing shall disappear. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be there and His servants shall worship Him; they shall see Him face to face. Revelation 22:2-4 In the beginning, God. And in the end, God. And in the meantime, every seven days, the Sabbath in which to rest and to contemplate the God of our end and of our beginning. In the midst of its history, Israel told its story over and over again and finally wrote its story down - the center being the story of God's mighty act of deliverance from the bondage of Egypt, the freeing of God's people, and the bringing of them to their own land. As they reached back to trace their own history, they appended to the story of their history a prologue, the story of the Patriarchs. And then, in order to connect themselves to the whole cosmos and the whole human race, they appended a series of stories in which they gave expression to their understanding of the universal human condition and the creative purpose of the Eternal God, of the relationship of God and human society, of their understanding of the life and the existence in which they were participating. Genesis 1, "In the beginning, God," expressed the bedrock of their conviction that all that is, is because God said, "Let there be ...," that there is something rather than nothing because God said, "Let there be...," and that the totality of reality is a consequence of a creative intention and design of the One © Grand Valley State University   �Creation’s Goal: Sabbath Rest Richard A. Rhem Page 2   true and eternal God. They went on to speak of the human situation - the story of Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden in chapters 2 and 3. Not a story of two ancient individuals, but your story and my story, the human story, the story of the God Who calls us to vocation, grants us freedom, sets certain limits and boundaries and waits for our response. Genesis 2 and 3 tell us that the tragedy and the tears and the toil of the human situation are the consequence of the human creature usurping sovereignty, taking one's life and destiny into one's own hands, trying to manage and control that which only God can manage and control. Consequently, the disaster and the tragedy that is a very real part of the human situation. We looked last week at the Garden of Eden and the story of Adam and Eve, and we saw the setting and the test and the failure and the consequence, but even in that dark story there were hints of grace. Even there there were indications that God was not through, and that the disobedience of the creature would not finally disrupt the intention of the Creator. In the day that they ate thereof, they did not die. Driven from the Garden, to be sure, yet amidst toil and tears, carrying on a meaningful existence, raising a family, God graciously clothing them, covering the shame of their nakedness, giving us hints of grace and the sense that God was not through with this creature, and that the creature's disobedience would not finally disrupt the Creator's intention. Indeed, the sense we get is that the Creator will bring creation to the consummation of His original intention. That was the faith of Israel. That was the conviction of the Old Testament people of God. The Creator will bring creation to the realization of the Creator's purposes of love and grace. So, Israel appended these stories to its own history, these stories which had universal application and were the common store of all humanity. Israel appended those stories in order to give expression to its own understanding of who it was and what it was called to be and why the human situation was like it was. When it seemed to be all lost at the end of the third chapter, we have the hints of grace, and we ask ourselves, "What now? Where will it lead? What's going to happen? What's next? Who will win - the 'No' of the creature, or the 'Yes' of God?" And we set ourselves up for this breathless drama that will unfold before us. Well, it's not only an ancient question, you know. Is there any hope? Has history any meaning? Is the world going anywhere? What's it all about? What now? What next? In a year of election politics we're going to have many easy answers to the world's dilemma. If you'll pardon just a bit of pastoral cynicism in the wake of a political convention, let me ask the question whether there’s anyone here this morning that really thinks that either Michael Dukakis or George Bush can really change the intransigence of the Pentagon. Is there anybody here this morning that really believes that Gorbachev and perestroika and glastnost will change the © Grand Valley State University �Creation’s Goal: Sabbath Rest Richard A. Rhem Page 3   face of the Soviet Union? Is there anyone here this morning that believes that the hopelessness of the homeless and the hunger of the hungry and the thirst of the thirsty, the despair of the despairing and the lostness of the forsaken will simply be taken care of by the wave of the wand of a new administration? Is there any hope? Where is it going? Where will it end? Might not one, seriously reflecting on the human condition, on the national scene, on the international prospect, come to a sense of futility and hopelessness? And if that's true in the most powerful nation in the most affluent society, in the summertime in western Michigan with sand and surf and blue sky, then what must it have been to the people in exile in the sixth century, the people of Judah living under the oppression of Babylon ready to throw in the towel, ready to say that the gods of Babylon have it? Where is our Lord and God? Is there any hope? It was to that situation that some person of God stood up and said, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, and God spoke and it was so, and God looked and said it's good, and the evening and the morning were the first day. And when God was done, God rested from all His work of creation and took delight in it. He blessed the seventh day and made it holy." And to those exiles in Judah, forlorn and despairing in hopelessness, mantled with a sense of futility, they heard the creed of creation put together by some very, very astute weaver of words and ideas which made a powerful statement in their darkness and said, "Our God in the beginning spoke and called all things into being. Our God is the source of light and our God is the source of life. Now, lift up your hearts and wait on the Lord, Who after all of the work of creation, rested, ceased from His work, caught His breath, contemplated the work of creation and said it is good." By putting that seventh day, a day in which God created nothing but tranquility and serenity and peace at the conclusion of the creed of creation, the writer was saying that in the end God will have His way. Genesis 1 was written probably 500 years after Genesis 2 and 3. Five centuries later some prophet of God took it and put it in front of Genesis 2 and 3 in order that Genesis 2 and 3 and everything that followed would be read in the light of Genesis 1, "In the beginning, God," so that there would never be any question in the minds of the people of God that the God that they worshiped was the God of Creation, that the God of their salvation was God alone, the One Who held the whole world in His hand and held their destiny in His hand and in His heart. There was a vision of the Creator Who would bring creation to consummation. That's what Sabbath meant, and that's why every seventh day Israel was called again and again to remember God, to cease from their labor, to desist from their acquisition and their feverish activity, to let go and contemplate God and to worship and to rest and to take delight in God's world. There was a vision by which that people lived through all their days, and in their darkest moments a dream kept them alive. It was the dream of the Creator Who was the redeemer, Who would be the consummator. And what was the dream? Well, around the © Grand Valley State University �Creation’s Goal: Sabbath Rest Richard A. Rhem Page 4   same time that Genesis 1 was written there was a prophet speaking to the exiles in Judah who said, "In the name of God, behold I create a new heaven and a new earth, and the former things will not be remembered. And there will no longer be a child born living for a few days, dying in infancy. And they'll not toil in vain. They'll build houses and live in them. They'll plant vineyards and eat the fruit thereof. It's going to be a beautiful new world, a new heaven and a new earth. Why, he said, it will be such that all toil and all tears and all tragedy will be removed and they'll not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain. Shalom. Peace." Right in the midst of their darkness, one prophet said, "In the beginning, God," and another prophet said, "I create a new heaven and a new earth." It didn't come, and it didn't come, and it didn't come. But, one day Jesus came, and Jesus announced the sovereignty of God, the kingdom of God. And Jesus called to repentance all of those who were living by relative values, called them to God and the kingdom of God. Of course, Jesus was crucified, but God raised him up, raised him up on the first day of the week, and the Early Church moved its worship from the seventh day to the first day, but with exactly the same intention, because they called it the Lord's day, the Lord's day. In the Old Testament the day of the Lord was the day of the End, and what the Church was saying was that the Lord's day is the anticipation of the day of the Lord, of the End, of the Judgment, of the Consummation. What did they believe would be true at the End? Well, we read the magnificent vision, that vision given by Jesus to John when he was in exile for his witness to Jesus when the Roman Empire was mighty in the world, as mighty in its world as the U.S. of A. in ours, or the Soviet Union in our day. And when the persecuting fires of Rome were burning and raging, there was one who had the audacity while he himself was in exile, to bear witness to a vision he had, a dream. What was the dream? The dream was of the heavens opened and the throne of God and of the Lamb, and he heard them singing, "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God Almighty, Thou art worthy to receive power and glory and dominion, for Thou hast created all things, and Thou hast power to reign." And the vision went on, scene after scene, and he saw that time when the angel would proclaim the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our God and of His Christ. He saw all of the events of the consummation coming to their climax and he heard a voice out of heaven saying, "I create a new heaven and a new earth," and he heard a voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling of God is with human persons. And he will dwell with them and they shall be His people and He will be their God. And He'll wipe away every tear from their eyes, and pain shall be no more, nor crying and death shall be no more, for all the former things shall pass away. Behold, I make all things new." And then he saw the City and he saw a river sparkling like crystal coming down the midst of the city, and on its banks was a tree with leaves and the leaves were for the healing of the nations. And the throne was there, the throne of the Lord and of the Lamb and His people worshiped. He wrote His name on their foreheads, and they didn't need the sun or the lamp, for the Lord Himself is their light, and they shall reign forever and ever. © Grand Valley State University �Creation’s Goal: Sabbath Rest Richard A. Rhem Page 5   A dream. A vision spoken into the darkness, spoken into circumstances that seemed to deny it, into a human situation that seemed to betray it over and over again, but a dream and a vision, nonetheless. Every seventh day, people of God cease from their labors, let go, rest as God rested, receiving the world and life as a gift, all of grace, being free for each other, free for God. One seventh of a human person's existence given over to the contemplation of God, Creator, Redeemer, Consummator. One-seventh of our lives carved out in order amidst all of the pressures that press upon us and all of the forces that beat us down and all of the darkness that would enshroud us, one-seventh of our lives to stop, to be still, and to know that He is God, the God of the beginning and the God of the End, the God Who will make good on all His promises, the God Whose yes is stronger than any human no. The God before Whom every knee will bow and every tongue confess, the God Who will finally win and not be defeated. When we join with myriads and myriads and thousands of angels and the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders and the whole created order and sing, "Hallelujah, the Lord Omnipotent reigns." There's a parable at the beginning; there's a parable at the end. There's a garden at the beginning; there's a city at the end. And both of them point us to the deepest, most profound truth that we can ever come to contemplate: the God of our beginning will be the God of our end. That's why every seventh day there is nothing more wonderful than resting in the presence of God. The day of all the week the best, emblem of eternal rest. Alleluia, blessed be His holy name. Amen. © Grand Valley State University � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Pentecost IX Series Faith's Foundation Scripture Text Genesis 2:2-3, Isaiah 65:23, 25, Revelation 21:3, 22:2-4 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19880724 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1988-07-24 Title A name given to the resource Creations' Goal: Sabbath Rest Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on July 24, 1988 entitled "Creations' Goal: Sabbath Rest", as part of the series "Faith's Foundation", on the occasion of Pentecost IX, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Genesis 2:2-3, Isaiah 65:23, 25, Revelation 21:3, 22:2-4. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Creator Divine Intention Grace Hebrew Scriptures History of Israel Nature of God Sabbath Shalom https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1457f7f572c90827a5783eef3d2c4407.mp3 f9cf3a39871b1f101155fe4f0c81bb44 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9259f1630daf2d1881bd95005839e647.pdf f1dadf7ecec7f9251fe4c1954f69bb8f PDF Text Text His Light, Our Life Text: John 1: 4-5, 9; Isaiah 9: 2 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan Christmastide II, January 5, 1986 Transcription of the spoken sermon All that came to be was alive with His life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines on in the dark, and the darkness has never mastered it…. The real light which enlightens every man was even then coming into the world. John 1: 4-5, 9 The prophet, announcing the birth of a child destined to be a Deliverer of his people, a foreshadowing of the Child the Deliverer, cried out, The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light: Light has dawned upon them, dwellers in a land as dark as death. Isaiah 9: 2 The world has always known darkness, darkness that describes the tragedy and disaster that seems in every age to be present, a people living under the shadow of death. There is always enough darkness to go around. People cannot find their way; nations threaten, posture, and maneuver. One-upmanship is common in interpersonal relations. Anxious people, driven people, ruthless people, restless people. The world certainly knows enough darkness to go around. The newspapers and news magazines are full of the chronicle of the world's darkness. It is darkness that makes for news and we are bombarded with it daily— on the hour—even in continual stream from the news networks. Terrorism is the darkening shadow over our world. Ironically, it would seem that the super powers are at a standoff; we've looked at the horror of a nuclear winter and realized a nuclear war cannot be won and must not be fought, to use our President’s words. But what will we do with Khadafy? What if it is proven that it was Libyan agents that engineered the brutal murders at Rome and Vienna? Saudi Arabia has warned against military retaliation, claiming it will only escalate the round of terrorist activity and, I must say, I think they are right. © Grand Valley State University   �His Light, Our Life Richard A. Rhem Page 2   A Jew once said, "They that live by the sword shall die by the sword," but Israel has determined she will live by the sword and we stand in admonition of her ability to retaliate. But does that stop terrorism? Does it not only move it up a notch? Where will it end? Last evening’s news showed the most recent graduates of a splinter PLO group for whom Arafat is not militant enough. Their training complete in the Syrian mountains, they are ready to die for the cause of Palestinian liberation; their commitment is total, their fanatical zeal frightening. Khadafy says if we strike Libya he will bring the war to the streets of Middle America. And, of course, he will. Darkness. There is always enough personal darkness to go around, as well. Tension, betrayal, brokenness, grief—pain of a deeply personal nature is carried about by so many. Few of us escape deep wounds; most of us inflict deep hurt along the way. Darkness. This is the twelfth day of Christmas. This evening is called Twelfth Night. In some places gifts will be exchanged. Tomorrow is the day of Epiphany. The word means “manifestation.” The sign is a star; the central motif is "Light". Epiphany follows hard on Christmas because Christmas is the celebration of the Incarnation—The Word became flesh—and the Word in flesh was Light to the World. The prophet announced the birth of a boy who would be a King and Deliverer. A ray of light scattered Israel's darkness. The Psalmist sang of the Lord, His Light and His salvation in the midst of life's severe testings. Light is a major theme of John's Gospel. Darkness shrouds, hides, mystifies, provides a cover for all manner of evil. Light reveals, clarifies, opens up, illuminates. Some years ago while traveling in California we were driving to Yosemite National Park where we had reservations for the night. Being unfamiliar with the territory and trying to do too many things along the way, night came and darkness fell before we reached our destination. Road signs were few. I thought I was going in the right direction but I was uncertain. It was very dark and totally unfamiliar; I proceeded with all the anxiety that accompanies such uncertainty. We twisted and turned and traveled on, seeming to be descending. And we were. Although I did not know it, we were descending into a cavernous canyon with walls of sheer rock. © Grand Valley State University �His Light, Our Life Richard A. Rhem Page 3   I had never before "felt" the darkness. It was almost tangible. Finally we came on a light, a sign, and we arrived at the lodge. But where we were or what the environment was, I had no idea except that it was the blackest darkness I had ever known. In the morning I stepped out of the room to see where in the world I was and it was a startling moment, for I stepped out in dazzling sunlight and found I was in a very deep canyon. Behind the lodge was a wall of sheer rock towering skyward. And falling from its height was a magnificent waterfall. The whole world was transformed by the rising sun, the coming of the Light. The darkness was dissipated; no more was there a sense of foreboding. Everything was transformed; the light had come. Epiphany is the celebration of the Light that came into the world at Christmas. The Word was made flesh and the flesh was the person of Jesus who said, "I am the Light of the world". John's Gospel uses certain ideas with which to tell the story of Jesus. Two words used in close cooperation are light and life. The prologue to the Gospel (verses 118) is a magnificent portrayal of God's movement out of eternity creating the cosmos, our time and space, and then moving into that very time and space to claim creation as her own. The themes with which John will build his Gospel find expression in this opening section and here we find his claim that the Word was life and that life was the Light of humankind. Listen: All that came to be was alive with His life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines on in the dark, and the darkness has never mastered it….The real light which enlightens every man was even then coming into the world. John 1: 4-5, 9 Beginning before creation, portraying creation as the cosmic framework for the revelation of Himself, building to the climactic statement of verse 14, "The Word became flesh", we have the deepest truths of God, the cosmos and the human family revealed. What an amazing story is here unfolded; here we have the miracle and mystery of Christmas and Epiphany conjoined. Here we are told that God is the source of the world's life and that in the revelation of Himself we have light. In the climactic statement of 1:14, "The World became flesh", or, as we might more simply state it "The Word became a human person" we have an amazing declaration. We are told that the mind and heart and deepest being of God came to expression in the humanity of Jesus. The first movement from the depths of God's being out of the depth of eternity was the movement of creation. John's claim is that what came to expression in Jesus, in the beginning, had come to expression in creation itself. God's Word—His mind, creative intention, will and © Grand Valley State University �His Light, Our Life Richard A. Rhem Page 4   loving nature was expressing itself in the creation of the world. We cannot miss this for John begins as Genesis begins: In the beginning… God is manifesting Himself in the creation of the world. God is manifesting Himself most fully and completely in the creation of Jesus—In Jesus what comes to expression in the fullest expression of God's intention in creation. In the film, "The Creation of the Universe" run recently on public television, the most eminent scientists of the world, some studying the cosmos through radio telescopes and some studying the intricacies of the nuclei of the atom, spoke of the quest for the one unifying formula or concept that lies at the mystery of the structure of all reality. They declared that when discovered it will be both profoundly beautiful and profoundly simple. A spark of energy, smaller than an atom, we are told, exploded into the Big Bang and the whole expanding cosmic drama continues as its unfolding. Those standing on the threshold of reality's secrets evidence an appropriate awe before the mystery and grandeur of the creation. Some seem open to spelling the heart of the mystery GOD. The God who in the beginning called all things into being was giving expression to His idea, His Word, His will. The Logos, the mind and heart and will of God, were expressing themselves in the creation of the cosmos. The inner Being of God was flowing out into the world. At the critical moment, in the fullness of time, the Inner Being, the Logos, the Word became flesh. The Word became a human person! That is the miracle of Christmas. God in human form; God within the structures of time and space; God in our history, one of us. Emmanuel. The creative movement of God in creating the cosmos moved even more dramatically in that the very Being of God now became incarnate in Jesus. Thus the amazing truth is that Seeing into the face of Jesus is seeing into the heart of God. This truth was expressed by the writer of the Hebrews: When in former times God spoke to our forefathers, he spoke in fragmentary and varied fashion through the prophets. But in this the final age he has spoken to us in the Son whom he has made heir to the whole universe, and through whom he created all orders of existence: the Son who is the effulgence of God’s splendor and the stamp of God’s very being. Hebrews 1: 1-3 The same theme is sounded here as in John's prologues. © Grand Valley State University �His Light, Our Life Richard A. Rhem Page 5   Paul wrote the following: The whole universe has been created through him and for him and He exists before everything, and all things are help together in him…. For in him the complete being of God, by God’s own choice, came to dwell. Colossians 1: 17-19 That is an amazing conception of things! Again the same theme is expressed. The God whose idea, reason, Word brought into being creation, now finds expression in Jesus, a human person. Again: Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom all being comes, towards whom we move; and there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came to be, and we through him. I Corinthians 8: 6 And again in one of my favorite statements: For the same God who said, “out of darkness let light shine,” has caused his light to shine within us, to give the light of revelation – the revelation of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. II Corinthians 5: 6 The One, True and Eternal God is the Creator, and is our Saviour! Out of the abyss of His Being flows creation's wonder, the human family in His image, and, Jesus, in whom His fullness dwells and in whom we see into the Father's heart. Light is the symbol of God's life giving, creative action. The light took the human form of Jesus, and, now here is the great, hopeful affirmation of the Gospel The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. John loved to use words with a double meaning. The word "overcome" can also mean "comprehend". The text could be translated that way, meaning the world simply does not understand God's action. And that is true. At the darkest moment of human history, as He was being crucified, Jesus prayed: "Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing." And they didn't. And we so often do not. And the terrorists do not. And the darkness reigns. But not completely; for the promise of the Gospel is—now translated "overcome"that the light shines on in the darkness and the darkness has not—nor ever will it—overcome the light. © Grand Valley State University �His Light, Our Life Richard A. Rhem Page 6   Child of God, the world is still full of darkness; but the light shines on, and will shine on until that day when all the earth and the whole cosmos will be ablaze with Light. Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world. He who believes in me will not walk in darkness, but will have the Light of life.” (John 8:12) His life, our Light, now and forever. Thanks be to God Who gives us the victory through our Lord, Jesus Christ! Amen. © Grand Valley State University � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Event Christmastide II Scripture Text John 1:4-5, 9, Isaiah 9:2 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19860105 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1986-01-05 Title A name given to the resource His Light, Our Life Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 application/pdf Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on January 5, 1986 entitled "His Light, Our Life", on the occasion of Christmastide II, at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: John 1:4-5, 9, Isaiah 9:2. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Christmastide Creator Divine Intention Jesus Light Mystery https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/d97c24fd462fe79bf66c65813cf8428d.pdf 9e467acb12c4513d6e3c141e6a3a20d3 PDF Text Text God, Humanity and Cosmos From the sermon series on the Cosmos Text: Psalm 8: 4-5 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan November 15, 1981 Transcription of the spoken sermon What is man that thou art mindful of him, …dost care for him? Yet thou hast made him a little less than God. Psalm 8: 4-5 Through a happy coincidence, this was an exciting week in the old U.S. of A. as we once again accomplished a great triumph of science and technology, sending into space again our Spaceship Columbia, watching it blast off with all of the drama of those moments, and then, in order that we might report its safe return this morning, the mission was shortened, and they came back yesterday. Exciting, really, isn't it? And doesn't it boggle the mind to think about the human potential, to think about what human intelligence is able to effect? Isn't it amazing, really, when you contemplate the nature of such events? Truly it is thrilling. Yet we become so easily accustomed to the dramatic and the sensational. If we were to tell our forefathers that these things were happening, they wouldn't believe it. They would say it was impossible. At best they might say, "Well, it's a miracle." Well, it is a miracle, in a sense. But in another sense, it is simply that the human mind has been able to probe the secrets of reality in order to accomplish a mission like that and continue the exploration of the cosmos. I kidded about them bringing the spacecraft home early so that we would know this morning that they were successful, but, as a matter of fact, that decision was made, though not for that reason. As I was thinking about Psalm 2 and the psalmist's reflection upon the cosmos and then upon himself, who he was in relationship to God, I thought that decision was a rather nice illustration of the second Psalm, for a choice was made in favor of human life over the probing of the cosmos. If the psalmist was impressed with the cosmos, then how much more you and me? If he was impressed with what he could see, which was but an infinitesimal fragment of what there is, if he was impressed with his smallness over against the vastness of space and the eons of time, which are becoming more and more clear to us, then how much more must we be impressed with our smallness and our insignificance? And yet, when one of the three fuel cells of that spacecraft failed, a decision had to be made as to whether to let the mission run its course, or to bring it home early. Two fuel cells were enough to allow the © Grand Valley State University   �God, Humanity and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 2   mission to take its full run. But then, down to two, if one should fail, the mission and human life would be in jeopardy. And so, at headquarters, discussion was held and the decision was made. They came home early, even though involved were scores and scores of people, and millions and millions of dollars and all of that which is at stake. They brought that mission home early because in this nation, standing in the biblical tradition, we know the value and the sanctity of human life. And when it comes to taking a risk and succeeding with a few more scientific experiments, but placing at the same time, human life in jeopardy, there is really no question, because we know in the face of space's immensity and time's ever-rolling stream, that there is still one thing that counts supremely, and that is a human being. Now that is really the same kind of conclusion that the psalmist came to. On the one hand, he said, Lord, when I consider the heavens, the moon and the stars which you have ordained, what is man that you are mindful of him? And the son of man, that you care for him? He felt his smallness and his insignificance. He was overwhelmed by the immensity of the heavens overhead, and he recognized that his days were but a brief span of time. His littleness in the vastness of it all gave him such a sense of insignificance and smallness. As I said, if he felt small, how about us? We have to say that in our own day there have been a lot of people who have been unable to move with the modern conception of the universe and maintain a faith in God the Creator. The psalmist had a correct intuition. I mean, who are we, really, when you think of it? Fifteen to twenty billion years in the process, and now we are here, threescore years and ten, perhaps. Why, our lifespan is a blink of the eye. And when you realize, as Carl Sagan says in his book, Cosmos, that the earth is a speck of dust, circling a humdrum star, our sun - just an average old humdrum star - you begin to realize the vastness of the cosmos. We are on a speck of dust circling a humdrum star in a corner of an insignificant galaxy; and if we are on but a speck of dust in the vastness of space, so are our days but an instant in the eons of time. When you really stop to think about it, I mean when you really stop to contemplate it, can you still believe that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth? You see, there have been many of our contemporaries who have not been able to make that move and that adjustment. We have opened up the mysteries of the cosmos, and it is a most exciting day in which to be alive. But what has to happen is not only that the cosmos expands before our eyes, but our conception of God must grow commensurately. As J.B. Phillips wrote so many years ago, Your God Is Too Small. We have to admit, too, that in the Church we have not been very good at helping people to make this adjustment. © Grand Valley State University �God, Humanity and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 3   In the most recent issue of Science '81, an excellent magazine which was placed in my hands, there is a centerfold on Creationism – Creationism as opposed to Evolutionism, and all of the controversy that is being stirred up by the fundamentalist wing of the Christian Church today. It recounts how several states have gone to court to get equal time for the doctrine of Creation in their schools. It is a very interesting development. This is a science magazine. And in this report it was stated what we have been saying here over and over again, that all of the scientific investigation of the cosmos, whether in biology or physics or geology or in whatever field - all of these investigations really do not impinge upon whether or not God created the heavens and the earth, and whether or not I can still believe that this is my Father's world. That really isn't at issue. But the problem with the fundamentalist wing of the Church that is stirring up all this controversy is that it is creating, once again, that overagainstness with science, and that mindset in much of the Christian Church that there is something destructive to faith in all of this explosion of knowledge in the natural sciences. That is tragic. We do ourselves a great disservice. If you feel good when you see some television evangelist pounding the pulpit and talking in terms of creation over against a godless, atheistic evolutionism, don't clap, because he is not on your side, if you are on the side of God and Truth. That is a false distinction, that is a false antithesis, and it is deadly. It is deadly because it offends the best minds and the best spirits, and it creates the illusion that to be a Christian you have to take off your head, shut down your mind and refuse to survey the vast amount of data that is there for anyone with any common sense. We can't play that game any longer. We have to admit that what the psalmist saw, the immensity of the universe and the eons of time and all of this which has become even more clear to us will necessitate an adjustment of our understanding of God. We simply cannot have this neat, secure little world, little planet Earth and our few thousands of years and our literal, biblical account of things, because, you see, the biblical writers were not writing physics, were not writing biology, were not talking about geology. The writers of the Bible thought that this was a threestory universe, with heaven above and the waters under the earth. God didn't whisper in their ears and give them some revelation of the mysteries of physics. This is not a science textbook, and you cannot find out about the process of the created order, you cannot find out about the stages which have brought us to this present point by going to the scriptures. The only thing the scriptures will tell you, and of course the only thing that really matters, is that in the beginning was God, and that He will be in the end, and that He is with us in the meantime. When the psalmist looked up and thought, "Oh my goodness, I'm not much," then how much more we, and we simply have to recognize that we need to do some readjusting because, as a matter of fact, this old, cosmological, evolutionary process has been going on for a long, long time. There is no doubt about that. And it has been following a course of natural development which now is more and © Grand Valley State University �God, Humanity and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 4   more understood, with many mysteries still to be unraveled, but which will be unraveled. We live in a day which is right at the crest of a breakthrough that will continue to explode and explode and explode all around us. The more we learn, the more access we have to deeper mysteries, and when you saw Columbia come in and land right on the second and right on the line, that is simply a sign and a finger pointing beyond itself to the most fantastic dreams that are even now welling up in human hearts and minds. Never say never! Because before you die, it will have happened. But the psalmist had another insight, and that is the critical insight, for he not only experienced his smallness and his insignificance, but he went on to say, "Thou hast created him a little less than God. Thou hast crowned him with glory and honor. Thou hast given him dominion over the whole created order." That is the biblical insight. That is the significant fact. That is the uniqueness of being human. That is the religious issue, for it doesn't really matter how long it's been going on, and it doesn't really matter how vast the immensity of space. The fact is that we are here now at this point in the process, and we are human. The psalmist recognized that there is something about being human which is nearly divine. And if I were to put it in a sentence, I would say to you this morning that the message is simply this - You are really something. That's the biblical message. We may be impressed with distance, and we may be impressed with age, but what we really ought to stand in awe before is the mystery of being human, the wonder of what it is to be man and woman, created in the image of God, for what the psalmist was saying here when he said, "Thou hast made him a little less than God," was what the writer of the Genesis account was saying when he said, "God created man and woman in His own image." God created a creature over against himself and made him almost divine. He created a creature with selfconsciousness and with a measure of freedom and self-determination, and with responsibility and the opportunity to fall in worship and adoring praise before the Creator of it all. You are really something! To be human is the greatest mystery reflecting the deepest majesty of the whole cosmological process. When I look at thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou hast established: what is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou dost care for him? Yet thou hast made him little less than God, and dost crown him with glory and honor. Thou hast given him dominion over the works of thy hands… Psalm 8: 3-6 We are created to be the co-laborers with God, partners with God in this creative process. We are endowed with gifts, with human potential, and we have the powers and the ability to reflect the divine image. We can think His thoughts after Him, and we can enter into His creative activity, and with the things that have already been accomplished through the exercise of human intelligence, who © Grand Valley State University �God, Humanity and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 5   would dare say what the frontier finally would be? You are really something, and good religion will affirm human personality. Now, we need to hear that in the Church, too, don't we, because for too long we have spoken disparagingly of human personality. Nothing I say this morning would in any way detract from the fact which we have faced honestly that there is something desperately wrong with us all and we fall short of the glory of God. There is a meanness about us and a contrariness; someone, somewhere has thrown a wrench in the works, and man's inhumanity to man is given eloquent testimony from beginning to end. But in the Church, so often that is where we have left it. We talk about our misery and fail to talk about our grandeur. We talk about our fallenness and fail to take in the destiny to which we have been called. God has dealt with our sin, and by His grace, calls us to realize our destiny and to develop the full potential with which he has endowed us, and to reflect the divine image. You are really somebody. You reflect God. You were created in His image, a little less than Him, and He has created us in order to be in relationship with Him, to live in communion, and to live not only in communion with Him, but in communion one with another, and in interpersonal relationships where there is love and care and forgiveness and grace. There is a little bit of heaven. God and His creature, living in fellowship and communion, one with another and with Him, define the ultimate miracle and the meaning of the whole process. Now, that is terribly important to affirm and it ought to make you feel really good about yourself, because you really are somebody. You have potential untapped, you have gifts yet undreamed of, you have possibilities without limit. You are almost divine, and God calls us to that upward way more and more to respond to that destiny for which he has shaped us, to be prepared for the future that He has for us. Now, when you watch Carl Sagan on Cosmos, be enrapt with him in the excitement of exploring the mysteries of the physical world. And I affirm that, and I love it, and when you study it, as I have more and more, you are so impressed with the simplicity on the other side of complexity. The complexity of the cosmos and humankind seems so apparent. But once the smoke has cleared there appears a simplicity in the created order. All of us and all matter is made up of the same building blocks, the same atoms, the same fundamental elements, whether here on planet Earth or the moon or Jupiter or the sun or your beating, human heart. Everything, being composed of very simple and fundamental elements, seems to reflect a divine intelligence which can hardly be conceived of. But when you watch Carl Sagan and he begins to suggest that that process that has moved through all of the eons of time and all of that evolutionary process to the present moment is purposeless, the product of chance, when he begins to suggest that you are the latest and highest expression, and that there is no one beyond, then don't you believe him, for then he is no longer a scientist; then he is in the sphere of religion. He suggests that maybe the universes are not the © Grand Valley State University �God, Humanity and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 6   dreams of God, but rather, that God may be the dream of man. He is saying that we have come to this point and then we have simply projected out, beyond ourselves the God that we wish were there. When he begins to talk that way, he has lost me. Then he has said that I am simply the consequence of all of that process of development having really no freedom and no unique spiritual character, related to all that went before but missing completely that relationship to Him Who is beyond and above. Then I know that he has missed the ultimate truth. Nothing that he says about our relationship to the cosmos is in any way in conflict to that relationship we have with a God Who spoke and called it into being. But to deny that God and to end up here is to leave me alone without a home and without meaning. Human existence, then, is the chance result of spontaneous reactions along billions of years. His explanation for the first development of life is that in a primeval soup one cell got the ability to reproduce itself and then through billions of years, organizing by perhaps a light ray striking a cell and causing a change, a mutation, and finally organizing and gathering and getting more and more complex, until finally one glob of cells woke up and said, "Well, here I am." Now, that takes faith to believe. When we contemplate what it is to be human, then we need not deny that whole process. But to me, it makes far more sense to believe that in the beginning there was an Intelligence that said, "Let there be..." with a purpose, and a purpose of love that moved the process to a point at which one day there was someone who looked into the face of God and experienced relationship, communion. For finally, what is ultimate and what is important? At NASA this week they made a decision, and a correct decision, for there is really nothing in the whole cosmos, there is no experiment, there is no technological breakthrough so important and so pressing that it would be worth placing in jeopardy one human life, one human life that knows itself as free and in relationship, able to love and to care. A couple of weeks ago when Nancy and I were at Mayo's, we did a lot of sitting and waiting for our names to be called. You watch a lot of people and a lot of people in various states of difficulty and need. It's always obvious when, for example, a son or a daughter has brought an aged parent, maybe in a wheelchair or helping them along to the desk. You think a lot about people and you watch them. Nancy was telling me about two old gentlemen, the one helping the other, hobbling along, finally getting to the desk because his name had been called, and the other who was helping said to the nurse, "Is it all right if I go in with him? You know, he's my brother." Well, you know, to me that's more impressive than a thousand billion galaxies. Isn't it, really? What finally counts? We stand not in any conflict with any scientific probe of the depths of reality. Half of the physicists are mystics, trying © Grand Valley State University �God, Humanity and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 7   to determine the nature of what is. That is an exciting venture; it is a human venture. But we do stand in the midst of the darkness of space and the eons of time to say that, whatever else may be, this is ultimately important — we are, and we know one another, and we have learned to love and to care because into our lives, in our own flesh, has appeared Jesus. Jesus, in whose face we have seen the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, and found Him to be gracious. Ah, you are really something! You are really somebody. There are no limits to the possibilities that await you and, as the writer to the Hebrews recognized, what we see now is only a part. We see Jesus, not yet all things put into subjection to him, but the whole tenor of that New Testament, in the wake of Jesus, tells us that there is a future, the contours of which we have not yet begun to dream about. For eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man to conceive of the things that God has prepared for them that love Him. See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. I John 3: 1f (RSV) And what we shall be has not yet appeared, but we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And throughout all Eternity we will be brothers and sisters with our Lord, lost in wonder, love and praise of the God Who spoke and called all things into being. Blessed be His holy name. Amen. © Grand Valley State University � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Scripture Text Psalm 8, Hebrews 2:5-9 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19811115 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1981-11-15 Title A name given to the resource God, Humanity and Cosmos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on November 15, 1981 entitled "God, Humanity and Cosmos", at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Psalm 8, Hebrews 2:5-9. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Community Cosmic Evolution Creation Creator Creature Grace Image of God Love Nature of God Nature of the Human https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/cc5abf3092be9470597ebd4f018e50e4.pdf 7c753a27862dc35356ca06e21ddb6aba PDF Text Text God and Cosmos From the sermon series on the Cosmos Text: Hebrews 11:3 Richard A. Rhem Christ Community Church Spring Lake, Michigan November 8, 1981 Transcription of the spoken sermon By faith we understand that the world was created by the word of God… Hebrews 11: 3 If you had come past my home last evening about 10 o'clock, you might have thought that I was really desperate, for you would have seen me with my cap and coat, out on the deck with my telescope, gazing at the moon and surveying the stars. And you might have figured that, after a week's vacation, having played all week, at the eleventh hour I was desperately looking for a message in the stars to bring you. Such would not have been the case, of course, for the message was well under way by then. But having reflected all week long on the fantastic cosmos of which we are a part, having already savored the wonder of yesterday - the clear air, the blue sky, the radiant sun; walking along the beach with its lapping water, cold and clear as crystal; having seen the magnificent sun slip into the sea in the West, and then the stars glimmering in the night heavens providing a fit setting for the silvery brilliance of the moon, I thought to myself, why not get out of the study and savor it even more? And so, I did. With my telescope, I gazed at the moon and I located a star or two and thought to myself that it is true O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is thy name in all the earth!... When I look at thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou hast established; what is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou dost care for him? Psalm 8: 1, 3, 4 (RSV) The depth of eternity symbolized in the immensity of space in this vast cosmos of which we are a part, is but a finger pointing beyond itself to Him Who, in the beginning, created the heavens and the earth. I am sure we all identify with the awe, the sense of majesty which is reflected in this psalm of wonder and praise. I am sure we have all had the experience on a starry night when the atmosphere was clear as it was last night and the sky cloudless. We have looked up and we have wondered at it, and then we have © Grand Valley State University   �God and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 2   found peace and comfort in the conviction that this is our Father's world. The glories of the cosmos are a reflection of the glory of God. For, as the writer to the Hebrews says in the words of our text taken from the 11th chapter, By faith we understand that the world was created by the word of God. By faith. It is certainly by faith. It is our conviction that He Who revealed Himself supremely in the face of Jesus and Whom, through Jesus, we have found to be gracious, is the Creator of the heavens and the earth. And, believing that, we have found a home. We know this is our Father's world. This is the first of a series of messages about God and Cosmos. God and Cosmos, in that order, because I do believe that God is prior to Cosmos, and Cosmos is the consequence of the deliberate intention of God to call into being that which was not. All that is, is because God said, "Let there be." I deal with this right now because I am currently viewing the television series, the 13-part Cosmos series, which is written and narrated by Carl Sagan, who must be one of the world's finest astronomers, and who is, besides being an excellent scientist, an outstanding communicator. I hope that you have seen some of that series and, if not, I hope that you will, for it is an amazing production. The photography is thrilling, the technical aspects of it are superbly handled, and the communication skills of Carl Sagan are something to behold. As I view that series, it causes me to look beyond the cosmos to the creator of it all, to experience again what the psalmist experienced, and to say within my heart, "O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth." Carl Sagan would not agree with the psalmist or with you and me that the cosmos is the consequence of the deliberate, creative act of God. Carl Sagan is an excellent scientist and an excellent communicator and I acclaim the job that he has done. I want to go on record as saying that I think it is tremendous that the depths and the deep secrets of the physical universe are being more and more unraveled in this wonderful way through this marvelous medium, by this great communicator. For he is skilled, not only in his understanding of the universe, but in his ability to make the profound simple. And when he is an astronomer, a scientist, and when he is setting forth all of that data which is available through the explosion of knowledge and through the use of instrumentation which is so sophisticated that it boggles the mind, then I listen intently and I learn. This past week I spent the week trying to master the book which is the narration of the video series. It is entitled, Cosmos. It's a very big and beautiful book, and a very expensive book. I recommend it. When Carl Sagan is a scientist and an astronomer, I learn a great deal. When he ceases to be an astronomer and a scientist and becomes a philosopher and a theologian, then he has moved into my territory and I carry on a dialogue with him. As long as he is talking about protons and neutrons and quasars and pulsars and galaxies and all of that, then I am an innocent bystander listening in and learning and eagerly so. When he becomes a philosopher and a theologian, then I say, "Carl, let's talk about that." © Grand Valley State University �God and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 3   Now, a scientist has every right to be a theologian and a philosopher, and I suppose most all of them really are, because all of us finally are. The difficulty comes when the two are so closely intertwined that one hardly knows whether this is the result of the data gathered through some radioscope, testing the outer limits of space, or whether it is the configuration conjured in the mind and heart of the scientist. When he becomes a philosopher and theologian, then I take exception to him, because then he would not agree with our Judeo-Christian tradition, our conviction that all that is, is as a consequence of the Word of God. He would commit Genesis and the Letter to the Hebrews and the great Psalms to that great body of myth and fable which is a part of the common human experience. Every people who have ever lived have had some kind of an explanation, some kind of a myth which explains why there is anything. And Carl Sagan would lump our Biblical tradition with all of those religious and semireligious explanations for the fact that there is something rather than nothing. It is at that point that I would differ with him and call him to account. He is a materialist. Now, a materialist is one who believes that, finally, everything can be reduced to matter or energy. Now, you all understand Einstein's Theory of Relativity, which says that those two are interchangeable, that mass and energy are interchangeable, that finally, ultimately, the building blocks of reality are very simply molecules that can be reduced to energy. So a materialist believes that, finally, you can reduce the whole of reality to energy, electricity if you will, to chemical reactions, so that the emotions that we feel are the result of chemical reactions and nerve connections, and so forth. A materialist believes that the whole of reality and the totality of human experience can be reduced to that which is material, physical. Now, in saying that, he has to deal with the fact that you and I are intelligent and we are conscious. We are self-conscious people. We can reflect back upon ourselves, we know that we exist, we think about ourselves, for better or worse. And we have an intelligence. We can communicate. He would say that there may be intelligent beings in other universes. If there are, we don't know about it. They haven't signaled us yet, nor have they returned our signal. But, be that as it may, as far as we are concerned, and after all we can only deal here with planet Earth, the highest form of the cosmic evolutionary process has resulted in human intelligence and human consciousness . We are the only beings that know that we are. We are the only beings with the intelligence and the self-consciousness to reflect on the cosmic process of which we are a part. And, consequently, if everything can be reduced down to that point of energy or matter, then human intelligence and human consciousness and human emotion, likewise, can be reduced down and be explained in terms of electricity, chemical reaction, etc. And that would mean, of course, that we are at the top of the ladder. This is as far as the process has gotten. And that would mean, of course, that there is no higher rung as yet realized. Who knows what may be up there? One might say that humans have become godlike. Human existence with its intelligence and © Grand Valley State University �God and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 4   consciousness is the highest rung of the ladder at this point and, consequently, with nothing beyond, there can be no one beyond. A materialist explains the totality of the cosmos in terms of the building blocks of reality that are reducible in the laboratory. Human intelligence and consciousness may be praised and affirmed and acclaimed. It is the highest development of the cosmic process. There is no one beyond. Such is the view of the materialist. Such a one is a naturalist. He would be a humanist, too, I suppose. But you and I believe more than that. As long as Carl Sagan is an astronomer and a scientist, we learn; we learn with fascination and with eagerness. We marvel at the ingenuity of the human mind, at the intellectual powers of an Einstein, the exploratory endeavors of Galileo and Copernicus, Kepler and the whole host of those who have probed the depths of reality and given us today such an amazing insight into the cosmic order. It is exciting and fascinating and we ought to affirm that in the Church. When Carl Sagan has said everything he has to say, he has not yet dealt with the religious question. Being a materialist, he has planted his feet squarely within this cosmos, whereas you and I see the totality of the cosmos as the consequence of the creative act of One Who transcends the cosmos, Who is not encased within the system of which we are a part, with our galaxies and our planets and our stars. We look to One Who is beyond, One Who stands apart from and Who spoke and called into being that which did not previously exist. By faith, we believe the worlds were fashioned by the Word of God. That God was, and nothing else was, and God spoke, and it came to be. That is the affirmation of the Letter to the Hebrews, the reflection of that first chapter where he sees the cosmos to the extent that he was able to understand it and he says, …they will perish, but thou remainest; they will all grow old like a garment, like a mantle thou wilt roll them up, and they will be changed. But thou art the same, and thy years will never end. Hebrews 1: 11-12 Or the psalmist who said, "O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth." When I consider the heavens, the moon, the stars which you have made, my worship is not offered, as it has been through so many ages of humankind, to the stars and the moon or the sun or the cosmic order itself, but to the God Who is apart from it and brought it into being. That is the Biblical tradition. That is the Judeo-Christian faith. It is our faith. And so we study the cosmos. As we view such a marvelous presentation as the television Cosmos series, we are fascinated and we marvel at the wonders, the complexity and the simplicity of the created order. But we always look beyond, and then we know this amazing place is our Father's world. © Grand Valley State University �God and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 5   We have learned a lot through the research of astrophysics. They tell us that 15 to 20 billion years ago this universe was formed. Science, itself, has formulated what is today the most accepted model of origin - the ''Big Bang." There was a high concentration of energy and mass, almost a pinpoint. And from that intense concentration of energy evolved a nuclear explosion that scattered the elements in every direction, from which explosion we can still, through very delicate radioscopes, hear the pulsing of radiation. From that Big Bang 15 to 20 billion years ago, this whole cosmic order of which we are a part emanated. They tell us that it is still expanding like a balloon. If you blow up a balloon that has polka dots on it, the polka dots keep getting farther apart, but they remain relatively in the same position on that sphere. And so, this universe is going outward. They tell us if there is enough mass within this expanding universe, the force of gravity will eventually stop the expansion, that it will, in turn, contract so that after the Big Bang will come the Big Crunch. And then, they tell us, possibly with that Big Crunch and that high concentration again, there will be another nuclear explosion that will start the whole process over again. Does it make any difference to Genesis? Does it make any difference to Hebrews or to Psalm 8? Not a smidgin, really. For, who knows what God is up to? Who knows what fantastic things He has in store for this, our planet Earth, which is just a little speck of dust occupying an instant of time in this dramatic, cosmic, evolutionary process. But on this little speck of dust, in this instant of time, we exist, conscious and intelligent, able to reflect on the process and to adore the God Who is behind it all. What we have learned about space is so amazing. For example, they talk about black holes. I wish I understood black holes. In the next life I'm going to conduct great music. The third life I want to be an astrophysicist. I have never had a physics course in my life, and I am really out of my element. But, anyway, try to understand the black holes. Have you ever pulled the plug in a basin of water? You pull the plug in the sink and the water goes down the drain. If you had good drainage, the water was pulled down forming a whirlpool over the drain. Well, they say that where there is a high concentration of energy from the collapse of a great big star, maybe four or five times bigger than our sun, there is such a concentration of gravity that it rushes right out of the universe. Like if you had your hand inside the balloon and pushed it out. That gravity is so great, so intense, that it doesn't even let the light out, so that you look in the sky and there is a black hole. (You can't see the black hole where the star was, but you know that the star was there because there is such a strong emanation of x-rays from that point that they can tell by the radioscopes that it is there.) It is a tremendous source of power. Well, even Carl Sagan says that those black holes might be the shoots that would send us from one universe to another. I was thinking about the book Life After Life, and all the stories of those who have edged right up to death and then come back. They talk about that tunnel of light. Who knows but maybe it's a black hole? It's a black hole from the outside, but © Grand Valley State University �God and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 6   inside, the light is there, you see. Does it make any difference to Genesis, or Psalm 8, or the Letter to the Hebrews? Not a bit. The more we learn, the more we probe, the more we understand, the more wonder, the more sense of awe, because of the majesty, the mind-boggling nature of the cosmic order. Our earth, 4.6 billion years old, part of a cosmic evolutionary process 15 to 20 billion years old. They say if you took a few baseballs and scattered them on the North American continent they would be crowded compared to the stars in space. And our galaxy, the Milky Way, has four billion stars, and our galaxy is in what they call the Local Cluster, a relatively small cluster. There are numberless galaxies. Sagan writes, We live on a mote of dust circling a humdrum star in the remotest corner of an obscure galaxy. And if we are a speck in the immensity of space, we also occupy an instant in the expanse of ages. Cosmos, p. 20f. Can you begin to take it in? I cannot. But whoever said God wasn't big? And whoever said God lacked power? By faith, we understand that the worlds were fashioned by the Word of God, and the more we learn, the more we stand in awe of One Who stands apart from and creates the heavens and the earth and this place for you and for me. When the Bible affirms that God created, it doesn't mean to tell us all of the scientific details about where everything came from, or the process by which it arose. The Church too long has used the Bible that way, as a scientific text. And because of that kind of use of the Bible there has been the unnecessary and tragic conflict between science and religion. The Bible simply is trying to say that God is at the beginning and God is at the end, and whatever exists, this cosmic evolutionary process contains nothing that can be threatening to you and to me, because God is at the beginning and God is at the end. And when the Bible says Creation is good, it simply is saying that it is a good place for us to develop and to grow in the grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ. And when it says that God called into being that which exists from nothing, it is simply affirming that there is nothing in the cosmic order that can be threatening, because God is sovereign and Lord over all. That is really all we are saying, but that is to say tremendous things about our human existence, and the cosmic order of which we are a part. I am excited about this, because I believe too long in the Church there has been an atmosphere of fear and an attitude of defensiveness. I grew up being threatened by science. I grew up fearing every new discovery. I grew up wishing there would be no more explosion of knowledge, fearing that somehow or other, the faith and the things that were most dear to me would be exploded by some new view under a microscope or some distant vista from a telescope. The Church's history is tragic: Catholic and Protestant. Johann Kepler was excommunicated by the Lutheran Church in the 17th Century, and Galileo was put under house arrest the last years of his life by the Roman Church for simply © Grand Valley State University �God and Cosmos Richard A. Rhem Page 7   affirming what he knew was true, that the earth went around the sun rather than vice versa. The Church's record is tragic, to be repented of, and the Church too often continues to react negatively to the increase of knowledge. It stifles creative thought and experimentation and offends its best spirits and drives out its finest minds. I am excited about this, because I believe that we can allow the fresh air, knowledge and research and investigation to flow through the Church, and then, if we have faith enough, we can stand with the psalmist and say, "Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth. When I consider the heavens, the moon and the stars which You have made, then from my heart arises wonder, love and praise." By faith we believe that the worlds were fashioned by the word of God, and whatever is out there of which we are a part, whatever its future, and whatever its past, it is encompassed in the eternal love of God, Who has manifested Himself as Grace and touched us in the flesh of Jesus. Blessed be His holy name. Amen. Father, we revel in the wonder of the Created Order, the mind-boggling experience of the natural world, and we rejoice in the confidence that we have that we have a home here, that this is our Father's world, and that you uphold all things by the power of your word. Receive our adoring worship, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. © Grand Valley State University � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Richard A. Rhem Collection Description An account of the resource Text and sound recordings of the sermons, prayers, services, and articles of Richard Rhem, pastor emeritus of Christ Community Church in Spring Lake, Michigan, where he served for 37 years. Starting in the mid 1980's, Rhem began to question some of the traditional Christian dogma that he had been espousing from the pulpit. That questioning was a first step in a long and interesting spiritual journey, one that he openly shared with his congregation. His journey is important, in part because it is reflective of the questioning, the yearnings, and the gradual revision of beliefs that many persons in this part of the century have experienced and continue to experience. It is important also because of the affirming and inclusive way his questioning was done and his thinking evolved. His sermons and other written and spoken materials together document the steps in his journey as it took a turn in 1985, yet continued to revolve around the framework and liturgies of the Christian calendar. Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Religion Interfaith worship Sermons Sound Recordings Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rhem, Richard A. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://gvsu.lyrasistechnology.org/repositories/2/resources/514">Richard A. Rhem papers (KII-01)</a> Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kaufman Interfaith Institute Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant 1981-2014 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource audio/mp3 text/pdf Sound A resource primarily intended to be heard. Examples include a music playback file format, an audio compact disc, and recorded speech or sounds. Scripture Text Hebrews 1:1-4, 10-12 Location The location of the interview Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context KII-01_RA-0-19811108 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1981-11-08 Title A name given to the resource God and Cosmos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Richard A. Rhem Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a> Subject The topic of the resource Clergy--Michigan Reformed Church in America Christ Community Church (Spring Lake, Mich.) Sermons Relation A related resource Richard A. Rhem - An Archive of Sermons, Prayers, Talks and Stories: http://richardrhem.org/ Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Description An account of the resource A sermon given by Richard A. Rhem (Dick) on November 8, 1981 entitled "God and Cosmos", at Christ Community Church, Spring Lake, MI. Scripture references: Hebrews 1:1-4, 10-12. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Lemmen Library and Archives Awe Consciousness Cosmos Creation Creator Eternal Love of God Faith