Readings: Psalm 50:1-6, Mark 1:9-15, Genesis 9:8-17, 1 Peter 3:18-22
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, February 21st, 2021
As we travel through Lent, I am taking the theme for our services; “Covenants of Grace.” We shall be looking at some of the covenants that God made with people throughout the Old Testament. Abraham and the walking covenant, Moses and the covenant of the law, Jeremiah, and a covenant of the heart. All that is to come. Today we are beginning the series by thinking about Noah and the rainbow covenant.
These are difficult days we are traveling through. The pandemic. Even as vaccinations are being to roll out, new strains of the virus are being discovered. Climate change has not gone away. Nuclear weapons capable of destroying us all at the push of a button are all over the world and sometimes accessible to people we may not trust. Job security, economics, planning for the future… everything seems up in the air.
It seems there is more as much disinformation out there as there are genuine facts. Thankfully, there are times that provides us with some amusement. That recent case of the lawyer, who had been using his secretary’s computer, with a filter on it, “I'm here live, I'm not a cat." I am sure some of you saw that!
When you think of the word ‘covenant’ it is one that we often think about in a legal setting. A covenant is an agreement between two parties in which promises are made. Sometimes the promises are conditional, so that certain things must be done if the covenant is to be effective and honored. Other times, the promises are unconditional. One party declares that they will act in a certain way, no matter how the other party acts.
Which brings us to Noah and the rainbow covenant. The covenant God makes with Noah has the nature of being an unconditional covenant that bears witness to God's love and grace. It is God who initiates, keeps, and fulfills this covenant.
We read in Verse 14 God says: “When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh.”
The sign of this covenant is the rainbow. “I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth." (Gen 9:13)
This covenant includes Noah's descendants and every living creature. It reminds us that God is concerned about all creation, not just humanity. God created this vast, magnificent universe and God loves it. In the Creation story, God pauses to declare 'This is Good!'
That does not mean that everything that happens in this vast universe, or even our own personal universe is always good. It does mean that God is always ready to help us through and God ‘covenants’ to never give up on us. Rainbows show up after storms. Storms are often not a good experience. When we look up in the sky and see a rainbow, it reminds us, “Hey… we got through another one!” It gives us hope to go forward.
Three reflections on Noah and the Rainbow covenant.
- God is always ready to give us a new start.
- God’s concern is wide ranging – and includes all creation.
- God’s covenant is everlasting.
God is always ready to give us a new start.
While our Old Testament reading today was about the rainbow, our New Testament reading from Mark’s gospel was about Jesus being baptized by John in the River Jordan. At His baptism, a dove appears, and a voice is heard.
In the story of Noah and the Ark, before dry land is found, a dove is sent out. Genesis 8:10 “Noah waited another seven days, and again he sent out the dove from the ark; and the dove came back to him in the evening, and there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf; so Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth.” The dove has become a universal symbol of peace and spiritual hope.
At our baptisms we seek for the Spirit of God to bless our new beginnings. At Jesus baptism, in the Jordan, there is a voice from heaven declaring “You are my Son, with You I am well pleased.” (a phrase that was reiterated on the mount of Transfiguration.) Every baptism service we give voice to the hope that we are all beloved daughters and sons of God, with whom God is well pleased! We seek for God’s Spirit to be with us as we travel through life’s journey.
We are very familiar with the story of Noah and the Ark. A man of conviction leads his family to safety. If you read it from an illustrated children's book, it is worth pausing to look at the artwork that accompanies it. Invariably the picture of Noah and a big boat, and two of every exotic creature is one that sparks imagination. It is a fascinating picture!
For a moment in time, on a boat that is riding out the storm, humanity and all creation are in harmony. All the bad stuff is being washed away. A new beginning is just around the corner. Not surprisingly the Ark has often been used as symbol for baptism.
But, if you follow the story through, after the waters recede and people and animals are back on dry land, you notice that it is not long before harmony is shattered, and things start to get crazy again. Good Noah becomes bad Noah, gets drunk and shames his family. His sons disrespect their father.
Likewise, we are aware that our baptism does not make us immune from the temptations and sins of all humanity. We fall and we fail.
What makes this covenant with Noah significant is its unconditional nature. It is not dependent on our ability to keep it, but upon God's ever flowing grace that seeks to renew us and restore us. The unconditional sign of this covenant is the rainbow. The rainbow that arches over all creation, the indifferent and the ungracious, the forsaken and the forgiving, the repentant and the cold hearted, the good and the bad and the ugly. Whenever we see a rainbow, we can remember our baptism, and recall God is always ready to give us a new start. But it is not just about us.
God’s concern is wide ranging – and includes all creation.
In the book of Isaiah, the prophet is given a beautiful vision of a new heaven and a new earth, a creation once again in full harmony and peace. Natural enemies living together and enjoying each other’s company. Swords are turned to plows. Lions lay down with lambs. It is a restatement of that moment on the Ark when all was in harmony.
In the New Testament we see how through Jesus Christ, God's love will be declared to all creation. His message to the disciples is 'Go into all the world...” Paul writes in Romans 8:22 “For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.” In Christ, Paul tells us “All living things will be made free from the power of death and will have a part with the free children of God in glory." (8:21)
A children's song I remember from a Vacation Bible School program declares... “Whenever you see a rainbow (Woo!) - Whenever you see a rainbow (Woo!) - Whenever you see a rainbow (Woo!) Remember God is love!' I have never lost my fascination or awe and wonder at silly children’s songs or more importantly at seeing a rainbow.
A few years ago, Yvonne and I took a trip to West Virginia for a wedding. We stayed at Hawks Nest Park. After a storm blew through were greeted by the sight of a double rainbow arching over the New River Gorge (pictured above). Photographs really do not capture that beauty. The sun captures drops of water and then white light bursts it into seven different colors: violet, indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange and red.
We are given a visible symbol of unity and diversity; of harmony and beauty and love all working together. The fact that the rainbow is born out of the rain, as well as the sunshine, speaks to our lives. We all face ups and downs, times of storms and struggles, times of quiet and peace. As we open our lives to the influence of God's Holy Spirit, God can make all things work together, even the ugly bits, and produce something beautiful.
The diversity and unity of colors in the rainbow, coming from white light, remind us of how Jesus is the light of the world, of how, on the cross, Jesus drew all of humankind, in all their diversity into a unity as one, big family, as children of God through the water of baptism. Through the baptismal water God, together with the words of promise, makes a New Covenant with us; based upon the life, suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The rainbow reminds us all are welcome in God’s family.
God's love is unconditional in accepting us and receiving us. The right way to respond to such love is to care. Jesus died for us, not so we can sit back and thank God for our place in His plans, but so we can get busy making sure others know that they also are loved and treasured and desired by God.
That care and concern is intended to spread to all creation. Our stewardship of the earth’s resources is a part of that. Taking care of our fragile environment is a part of that. Wise use of land and resources is part of that. Our care towards animals is part of that love.
Taking care of our church facility is part of that. A beautiful garden is part of that. Making sure all have enough to eat and a place to live and a job to work at is part of that. Taking care of each other, without discrimination or preference or prejudice is part and parcel of the mission the rainbow calls us to embrace. It is not either/or, it is all together. It is personal and communal.
God’s covenant is everlasting.
Genesis 9:16 “When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.”
As we move through the Lenten season and head towards the cross, we see that there is nothing that can ultimately separate us from Christ's love. Even that desolate, lonely place was turned to something beautiful through the resurrection. The rainbow is a sign of God's promise that we, and all creation, are not forgotten. We are claimed as God's children through the waters of baptism, just as the whole of creation was claimed and renewed through the waters of the flood.
Yes… these are difficult days. We are traveling through a storm. Our lives are flooded with so many concerns. Concerns for our families. For our Church. For our community. Some days we become tired. Some days we will be downhearted. Some days we need a rainbow to remind us, God is always ready to give us a new start and that God’s concern is as wide ranging as God’s creation.
May God help us to keep in mind all God’s wonderful promises and so may we be inspired to share Christ's love with all people, looking to a day when God's Kingdom shall come, and God's will be done, on earth as it is in heaven; looking to that day envisioned by the prophet Isaiah, when peace and justice shall reign, and harmony be restored to all Creation.
To God be all glory. Amen.
The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.
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