Christ and Creation

We are in the middle this summer of a sermon series entitled Christ and Culture.

! Another way to say that is a biblical worldview.

! Gaining a biblical worldview so that in specific areas we can bring glory to God

! by living out the gospel in those areas.

For example, we had money and finances.

We've had work, our vocation.

We've had arts, creativity.

We've had words, words we speak.

We've had patriotism during the fourth couple weeks ago.

How we live in that by not offending but proclaiming the gospel and having a proper biblical worldview

in that.

This morning, our topic is the environment or creation.

What we live in and around and what is around us.

What I want to do is begin by asking you a couple questions.

The first question is, what do you think or feel when you're standing at the highest peak you've ever been on,

the highest mountain you've ever been on, and you're looking out at the most magnificent view?

What do you feel?

What do you think?

What do you think?

Or when you look upon a beautiful flower blooming in springtime?

What are your thoughts?

How do you feel about that?

Are your affections drawn to the creator of that vast valley, that beautiful flower?

Well, how about, what do you think or feel when you drive by a normal field of pine trees?

Or when you see a moth fluttering around the light on your house?

Are your affections drawn to the creator as the same?

Now, every leaf on the tree, every breeze that blows, every flower that blooms participates in a symphony

proclaiming the glory and majesty of Jesus Christ.

Every bit of creation, no matter how mundane, moths, pine trees here in Georgia,

was crafted and made by God.

And this is to point us to the creator.

Turn to Colossians chapter 1.

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

Colossians chapter 1.

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

Colossians 1 verse 15.

Colossians 1:15

He, being Christ, is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

For by Him all things were created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible,

whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities, all things were created through Him and for Him.

And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

Join me in a word of prayer.

Father, we are here gathered together to hear a word from You.

God, I pray that that would occur this morning.

God, that You would use me this morning to speak Your word to all of us.

That they would not be my opinions or my thoughts.

God, they would be Your words to us this morning.

Help us to not grow numb to Your word.

Help us to not take advantage of Your word.

Help us to be moved.

Have our eyes opened to Your truth that affects the way we live and not just gains some knowledge.

We look to You for all things.

None of this can be possible outside of You.

Be merciful to us.

That Your will be done this morning.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Before we dig into Colossians, I want to kind of establish a starting point.

And a lot of you, when I say this first point, you'll go, yeah, of course.

Yeah, got it.

Check.

Which I've actually already mentioned it once already in the introduction.

My first point is that God created everything.

And everything was created for His glory.

Now that's an elementary truth, but I think we need to establish this

so that we can then move forward with our discussion this morning.

God created everything.

And everything for His glory.

Genesis 1 says,

In the beginning, God.

In the beginning, God created.

It was only God.

We have God.

And then we have everything else.

We have God creating everything else.

Everything we see.

Everything we enjoy.

Everything we breathe.

The good and the bad.

God is created by God.

It's very important.

And in the end of chapter 1 in Genesis, God says,

Moses writes that it is very good what He created.

Earlier in chapter 1, He said it was good.

He finishes and says it is very good.

Now, the Olympics are coming up at the end of the month.

And I love the Olympics.

A lot of people, I have a lot of friends who just hate the Olympics.

I love the Olympics.

I just love competition.

And it's very important to be judged by someone who is qualified to judge.

For example, the gymnastics.

They're not going to walk out on the street and say,

Hey, you, come on.

We need to judge.

No, they're going to have somebody who knows what they're looking for

and have the specific scores.

And if you've paid attention to gymnastics at all, it's a little complicated.

So they just can't pull anybody off the street to do that.

They're going to pull somebody who's qualified to judge.

Well, in Genesis chapter 1, verse 31,

Genesis 1:31

God is the most qualified to claim His creation is very good.

Because God is perfect.

He is good.

He is qualified to judge.

He is perfect.

He has no flaws.

And His creation was without flaw.

It was exact as He had designed.

So we can say it was very good.

And because it was perfect,

it was perfect for what it was created.

What it was created to do.

For it was created to bring glory to Him.

See, what makes an artist special, I think, in my opinion, a sculptor, an architect,

is that they make something out of nothing.

They dream up.

And, of course, an architect and an artist do it within the rules of this world.

So if an artist would have a blank canvas,

well, they'd have to have a canvas and paint and color within the creative order.

An architect would have an old dilapidated building.

A sculptor would have a piece of marble.

So they'd have these rules that they would have to abide in.

What makes God so amazing is that He had nothing.

And He created out of nothing.

What we see did not exist.

And God created it.

And God says it was very good.

An artist has a picture in their head,

an idea of what they want to create,

what they want to draw or paint or carve out.

They have this picture, but nobody can see it.

Only the artist.

Only the sculptor.

It's only when that piece of work is finished

that the audience, the people around,

knows what it is

and knows that the work is completed.

It is that moment of completion

when the artist or sculptor is proud of his work

and quite possibly may say,

it is very good.

And that is what God has done.

He has created,

and He says it is very good.

God created everything out of nothing.

When you see a Frank Lloyd Wright house,

and if you don't know who he is,

he's a famous architect,

you know it's a Frank Lloyd Wright house.

When you see a Van Gogh painting,

you know it's a Van Gogh painting.

He just has his own style.

And the painting, the picture, the art,

points to the artist.

The work brings glory to the artist or the author.

And so God's creation then

is to bring glory to Himself.

So He can say,

it is very good for His doing

what it was created to do.

Creation brings glory to God.

It points to the Creator.

Now Jonathan Edwards,

in speaking about relationships,

he's talking about relationships here,

but the principle applies.

Listen to this.

Fathers and mothers,

husbands, wives, or children,

or the company of earthly friends,

are but shadows,

but God is the substance.

These are but scattered beams,

but God is the sun.

These are but streams,

but God is the ocean.

Gifts should point to the giver.

Creation points to the Creator.

God created everything,

and everything is to point to Him.

Now, what about the fall?

Some of you may be thinking,

what about the fall?

What about sin?

Now everything can't be perfect.

All of creation was affected by the fall.

By sin.

This was not just a man issue.

It was not just hearts that had been affected.

The choice of Adam and Eve

affected nature and creation.

They brought devastation upon creation

in the form of things such as

ugliness and corruption.

In Romans 8,

we know that nature is groaning,

awaiting redemption,

awaiting for that time of perfection.

See, creation though is still beautiful.

We can still look out and see

shades of green that we haven't seen before.

We can still see shades of color

that we have not seen.

We can still get our breath taken away by beauty.

But this beauty is limited.

And truthfully,

it pales in comparison to the beauty of Christ.

The beauty of the Creator.

So, now that we have that established,

we're all on the same page

that God created everything,

and everything for His glory.

Everything was created for Jesus,

by Jesus,

and through Jesus.

This is where we dig into

Colossians chapter 1.

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

Now, verse 15 says,

He is the image of the invisible God,

the firstborn of all creation.

He being Jesus.

The heading at the top of this section,

my Bible says,

the preeminence of Christ.

Speaking of Jesus Christ,

He is the image of the invisible God.

Now, this statement here,

the image of the invisible God,

was considered blasphemous

to Orthodox Jews.

The Old Testament forbid images of God

because every image

and every picture

that we tried to create

would fall short

of the beauty

and the awe

and the greatness

of God

and who He is.

So they would ban,

they would allow you,

no,

we do not do images of God.

We do not try to create

a picture of who God is.

So for Paul to say

that Jesus

is the image

of the invisible God,

he's making a statement here.

He is saying

that Jesus is God.

Not just that He's a representation,

not that He's a reflection of,

but He's saying

that Jesus is God.

So Jesus is actually

not just God,

but He is Creator God.

Same Creator

who created everything.

The firstborn

of all creation.

Now, some people

want to make an argument

and say that,

well, see,

Jesus was created,

He comes in second here.

Well, this statement

is not about

Him being born

or created.

It's actually about

His status.

That Jesus is above

all creation.

So Paul has established

in one verse

that Jesus is God

and because He's God,

He's above all creation.

So,

He's making a big,

bold statement here

for all of us readers

to grasp.

Jesus is God.

Now, earlier I said

that God created everything

just a few minutes ago.

And now I'm saying

that everything was created

for Jesus,

by Jesus,

and through Jesus.

So what gives?

Well, the easy,

fast answer

is that Jesus is God.

that's simple.

But let's dig in a little bit

into verse 16.

Verse 16,

it says,

For by Him

all things were created.

By Him

all things

were created.

In John 1,

John 1:3

verse 3,

it says that

all things were made

through Him.

And without Him

was not anything made

that was made.

Hebrews 1,

Hebrews 1:2

verse 2,

says,

Through Him

also He created

the world,

Him being Jesus,

John 1 being

Jesus the Word.

The picture here

in Colossians

and in John

and in Hebrews

is that

the God the Father

is the architect.

He's the designer.

He's the guy

with the dream.

He's the guy.

Don't judge me

on that statement.

God is the architect.

He's the dreamer.

He's the guy

who has the plan.

And Jesus

brings the plans

into existence.

So everything

was created

by Him.

The Father

is the developer

of a property.

Jesus is the builder

of that property.

Both working together

to accomplish creation.

And the Spirit

then does

the actual work

of applying the plans

in a hands-on

relationship

to creation.

So the Spirit

is even at work.

In Genesis 1,

the Spirit

was hovering

over the earth.

The Spirit

does the actual work.

So creation

then is

trinitary.

And this is as deep

as I'm getting

for you,

I promise.

Creation is trinitary

like the Gospel.

Okay?

God the Father

sends,

calls,

God the Son

makes it possible

by His life,

death,

and resurrection.

And God the Spirit

draws and opens

the eyes of the heart.

So creation

is like the Gospel

there,

trinitarian.

Creation

by Him.

Everything

was created

by Him.

What we see

came about

through the working

of Jesus'

power and ability.

Jesus is the power.

He is the agent

of creation.

He brought the plans

into existence.

Look at the end

of verse 16

of Colossians.

It says,

all things

were created

through Him

and for Him.

creation.

This means that

Jesus is the goal

of all creation.

Of all creation.

He is the goal.

Everything exists

to display His glory.

That's the third point

this morning

if you're following along.

Everything exists

to display His glory.

Creation declares

the glory of Jesus.

Now remember the artist,

the sculptor,

creating?

Once the piece

is complete,

those who admire

the finished work

think of the artist

and admire the artist

who imagined

and planned

and accomplished

this work of beauty.

As long as that

sculpture stands,

as long as that

artwork is on the wall

displayed for people

to see,

people remember

and admire the artist.

Jesus is the artist

to be admired.

He is exalted

through creation.

He's the central point

of creation

and He is why we exist.

So when we look out

and we see something beautiful,

we think of Jesus.

We thank Jesus

for it.

Psalm 19.1 says,

The heavens declare

the glory of God

and the sky above

proclaims His handiwork.

So when that cool breeze

in a 90 degree day

hits our cheek,

rejoice,

for Jesus had a hand

in that breeze.

When you visit paradise

here on earth,

wherever that is for you,

when you visit paradise,

thank God for His creation,

for Jesus making it possible.

Don't complain about the weather

that God in His sovereignty planned.

He created it.

He ordains it

for that moment

and that time.

Every time I think of that,

complaining about weather,

my mind goes straight to Facebook.

Facebook has become

the complaining capital of,

I don't know,

it's where we can all

just drop our complaints

and just run away.

We can just say whatever

and just leave.

And it doesn't take very long,

so we had a warm winter

and those cold days we had,

we were waiting for summertime.

And as soon as summer hits,

we're waiting for wintertime.

As soon as winter hits,

we're waiting for summertime.

It's just a cycle.

Well,

why complain?

Because God has created it.

He's ordained it

for us in that moment

and that time.

Martin Luther said,

Our Lord has written

the promise of the resurrection

not in words alone,

which is what we hold

in our laps and in our hands,

but in every leaf in springtime.

So when every leaf comes out

and grows and blooms,

speaks to the resurrection

of Jesus Christ.

And all of creation speaks

to the glory of Christ,

not just a leaf on a tree.

Nature and creation

performs a symphony

for the glory of Jesus Christ.

I want to combine

a couple thoughts here for us.

Now,

if creation,

all of creation

points to Jesus,

if everything

points to Jesus,

so creation is here

and we are to enjoy it

for the glory of Jesus.

It was created

for Him

as the end of verse 16 says.

And the Westminster Confession,

which is not Scripture,

but based on Scripture,

says that the chief end of man,

our Logos question,

what we were made for

is to glorify God

and enjoy Him forever.

We were created

to glorify God

and enjoy Him forever.

We too join

in all of creation

and glorify Jesus.

That's the end there.

We join in all of creation

and we also enjoy Him forever.

And one way we enjoy Him

is by enjoying His creation.

We enjoy what He's created.

We enjoy the weather.

We enjoy a nice flat field

to play football on.

We enjoy these things

that God has created for us.

See, the builder of the boat,

the builder of a boat,

rejoices when that boat

is finally put out in the water

and it doesn't sink.

He rejoices when people

are on that boat

and they're able to have fun

in that boat.

Same way,

God rejoices in us

enjoying His creation.

That points to Him

and is for our joy.

Theologian Joseph Sittler said,

delight is the basis

of right use.

The light is the basis

of right use.

Enjoying Him

is the basis

of right use.

It's not just enjoying creation,

but using it rightly

for His glory and our joy.

We can all think of abuses

used here on earth,

on the earth.

You're growing a field of marijuana.

Well, that's a negative.

That's not good.

If you're cutting down trees

for lumber

to build houses

for people,

that's not necessarily bad.

You've got to kind of balance

and think about

using it rightly.

If creation points to Jesus,

then we can point to Jesus

with how we use His creation,

how we use what He has created

for us.

Now, that does not mean

we all drive Priuses.

It does not mean

that we all recycle

and wear hemp clothing

and live in trees.

It doesn't mean any of that.

But it does mean

that we have concern

and care

for this world.

Apathy is not allowed

where the Gospel is concerned.

Apathy does not work.

Just not care

doesn't fit in the Gospel.

So if all creation

was created for Him,

Jesus,

by Him

and through Him,

let us make much of Him

in the way that we care

for this world.

In the way that we are concerned

for this world.

Now, I expect all of you

to go and sell your cars

after today.

Stop buying fuels.

No.

Here's five practical ways

we can live this out.

And I stole this from

Owen Strand's book

on Jonathan Edwards,

so these five points are his,

but they're right on.

Five practical ways

that we can live this out.

Point number one.

We can appreciate

the design of creation.

We can appreciate

the design of creation.

God's wise design

from spiders,

if they creep you out,

eight legs walking on webs,

that's pretty amazing.

To silkworms spitting silk.

To the human body,

the cell,

just the cell in the human body

that makes up who we are.

God's complexity in His mind.

Appreciate the design of creation.

And this next statement

may hurt some of us,

and it hurts me

just writing it down.

Take a break

from our technologically

saturated lives

to see God's creation

in His mind.

To see His design.

To see His work.

Put praise on God,

to God,

and not on humanity

and our accomplishments.

Because reality check

is our accomplishments

are going to pale

in comparison

to what God has created

and what He has accomplished.

Next practical way.

Marvel at the beauty of nature.

Marvel at the beauty.

We must find time

to consume God in nature

within our busy schedules,

our busy worlds

that we live in.

We must find time

to consume God,

to be with God

outside of four walls

and a roof

and a cubicle

or a cell phone

in our face.

Romans 1.20 says

that God's divine nature

and eternal power

has been clearly displayed

in creation.

Clearly displayed.

We can go out

and see God.

Now hear me,

I'm not saying

God is in nature.

I'm not making up

a new religion here

at Christ Family Church.

We can go out though

and see His creation

and see His mind

and see His design

and enjoy

what He has created.

God reveals Himself

in nature

and His creation.

We can start

by watching

far less TV

or taking in

far less web content.

We can stop

by taking in

our experiences

through a three

and a half inch screen.

I don't have my

iPhone on me

but I can hold that up

and start

reporting you guys

for that.

Get out for a walk.

Enjoy creation.

This does not mean

to go to the Appalachian Trail

and start hiking.

Get outside.

We can get outside

and enjoy His creation.

We can play football

and enjoy His creation.

We can play basketball.

We can do all sorts

of things

and enjoy God's creation

and marvel

at the beauty

of nature.

We can praise God.

We can sing to God.

We can celebrate God

while being in the very realm

that was created

to testify for Him.

Third point.

We can look

for spiritual truth

in nature.

Joseph Sittler,

I quoted him a second ago,

says that nature

is a theater of grace.

Nature is a theater of grace.

We can sit

and just be

in awe of God's grace.

In awe of His creation.

Nature is a theater

of grace.

Psalm 19.1

I quoted a second ago.

The heavens declare

His handiwork.

Look for natural signs

of truth

of the Bible.

Mercy.

Judgment.

Mercy.

A long-needed rain.

A rain that comes

on a drought.

Judgment.

We'll look at the

raging storm

of lightning and thunder.

Raging storms

of tornadoes

and hurricanes.

Jonathan Edwards.

Now,

none of us in here

are Jonathan Edwards.

None of us have the mind

of Jonathan Edwards.

I've got to say this

before I read this.

Okay?

Because this is a little

out there,

but the principle here

we can certainly grasp.

Jonathan Edwards saw

a silkworm

as a type

of Christ.

Listen.

The silkworm

is a remarkable,

this is his words,

the silkworm

is a remarkable

type of Christ,

which,

when it dies,

yields us

that of which

we make

such glorious

clothing.

Christ became

a worm

for our sakes,

and by his death

finished that righteousness

with which believers

are clothed,

and thereby

procured

that we should be

clothed

with robes

of glory.

Jonathan Edwards

saw biblical truth

in a silkworm.

We can look

for spiritual truth

in nature.

Fourth point,

practical ways

we can live this out.

We can care

for creation.

We can care

for creation.

There are,

of course,

extremes of this

on both sides.

We have the guy

who cares too much,

who doesn't

buy a vehicle,

rides a bike,

uses a bullhorn,

and yells at people

who doesn't ride bikes.

We have the people

who are the other side

of that,

who don't care at all,

who litter

and throw their stuff

all over the place

and don't take care

of their property

and do all sorts of things

because,

well,

if we know

the Bible says

that this is not a home,

that this is going

to be perfected,

it's going to all burn up,

well,

let's just leave.

Let's just not

take care of it.

Well,

that's silly

as well.

if we have a God-centered

understanding of creation,

a gospel-centered

understanding of creation,

then we will preserve

and take care

of this creation.

We will manage it.

We will be faithful stewards

of it

because God has given it

to us.

Now hear me here.

we will then possess,

we will then possess

a great opportunity

to witness before people

who too,

love the earth

but have no faith

in the Creator.

It would give us

an opportunity

to share with those

who love the earth

but don't love

the Creator.

Our care for the world,

properly done,

can be both

an act of worship,

worshiping the Creator

for what He has created

and a means

of evangelism,

being able to share

with others

the truth,

the hope that we have

in Christ Jesus.

Finally,

last practical way

we can live this out.

We can yearn,

we can yearn

for a greater realm,

a future glory

to come.

This world

is not our home.

We should look forward

to what's to come.

Not dismissing

what we have here,

not being the guy

who just says

it's all going to burn anyway.

Or thinking selfishly

about the future

and not being concerned

with here.

Thinking,

that day is going

to be great,

right now I'm just

going to get by.

Our future here,

here,

our future home

will be better

because the triune God

will be there.

There will be no need

for the sun.

God's glory will be

the light.

The grass will be greener,

but not because

it's going to be better

for us,

although it will be.

Not because we're going

to gain something,

something selfish

out of it.

It'll be greener

because of Jesus

is there.

And God's glory

is radiating.

It will be perfect,

happy,

and a holy place.

So,

when we see

the effects of sin

in our daily lives,

whether it be

in a person

or in this creation,

we can rejoice

because this is not

our home.

We can rejoice.

We will enter

a place

of beauty

and love.

where God dwells

for all eternity.

And I,

if we have this

proper biblical view,

if we have this

proper mindset

of creation

and creation

pointing to Jesus,

then I know

the way we live

and how we treat

and how we manage

and how we deal.

We would be

conservationists.

We would love

this world

and take care of it

and manage it.

this sermon

was incredibly

convicting for me

because I've been

the apathetic one.

I've been the guy,

just enjoy it.

I've got to cut the grass.

Geez.

Those things.

It's been a burden

to me.

But now,

after studying this

and really seeing

the implications

that everything

was created for Him

and by Him

and through Him,

everything points

to Jesus.

We should revel

in that

and celebrate that

and rejoice in that.

God created

everything

through Jesus Christ

and everything

points to Jesus.

We as Christians

should love creation

more than any,

enjoy it

more than any,

and conserve it

more than any.

We should enjoy it

more,

love it more,

and conserve it more.

That's a biblical worldview

in the arena

of creation

and environment.

So,

Colossians chapter 1,

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

when we read

15, 16, and 17,

which I didn't even

get into,

He, Jesus,

is the image

of the invisible God,

the firstborn

of all creation.

For by Him

all things

were created

in heaven

and on earth,

visible and invisible.

Whether thrones

or dominions

or rulers

or authorities,

all things

were created

through Him

and for Him.

And He is before

all things

and in Him

all things

hold together.

All of creation

points to Jesus.

Our lives

are not compartmentalized.

Nature is not

this thing

that we just

have to deal with.

We live

in God's creation.

We live

in nature.

We can bring

great glory,

great honor

to Him

through the way

that we live.

Not just

with people.

Not just in communication,

but how we live

with creation itself.

Pray with me.