In every cul\u00adtu\u00adre the\u00adre are cer\u00adtain prin\u00adci\u00adples of how socie\u00adty is struc\u00adtu\u00adred. This includes eva\u00adlua\u00adtions of what is good or bad, how to behave in public and what a suc\u00adcessful life looks like. But in every cul\u00adtu\u00adre the\u00adre is a blind spot, an area whe\u00adre God\u2019s good plan for his crea\u00adti\u00adon is not fol\u00adlo\u00adwed. When a blind spot is dis\u00adco\u00adver\u00aded, it is neces\u00adsa\u00adry to start the\u00adre and to right this wrong. Peo\u00adp\u00adle quick\u00adly fall into the dan\u00adger of giving the pre\u00adser\u00adva\u00adti\u00adon of crea\u00adti\u00adon the hig\u00adhest prio\u00adri\u00adty. But as God\u2019s crea\u00adtures, we are to wor\u00adship the Crea\u00adtor and give Him all the glo\u00adry. Through rela\u00adti\u00adonship with the Crea\u00adtor, our love for crea\u00adti\u00adon grows. This is how fol\u00adlo\u00adwers of Jesus lovin\u00adg\u00adly and mer\u00adciful\u00adly tre\u00adat God\u2019s good creation.<\/p>\n
As see\u00adtal chi\u00adle this year we are loo\u00adking at the annu\u00adal the\u00adme Crea\u00adtio \u2013 Hope and Respon\u00adsi\u00adbi\u00adli\u00adty. I don\u2019t know how you feel when you hear this the\u00adme or how you feel when you see the teaser for the ser\u00admon. What emo\u00adti\u00adons come up in you? I think the\u00adre are main\u00adly three groups of peo\u00adp\u00adle with us here at see\u00adtal chi\u00adle. The\u00adre are tho\u00adse who are like a Tef\u00adlon pan. They stay cool, look at what\u2019s coming, but not\u00adhing sticks to them. But they get invol\u00adved. Then the\u00adre are tho\u00adse who react with gre\u00adat enthu\u00adsi\u00adasm. They think: \u00abIt\u2019s about time we dealt with the envi\u00adron\u00admen\u00adtal issue! But the\u00adre is also a third group that reacts rather annoy\u00aded. \u00abNow they\u2019\u00adre start\u00ading to do it too!\u00bb. In today\u2019s ser\u00admon we want to turn to this the\u00adme of the year on the basis of Romans 1:25. \u00abThey exch\u00adan\u00adged the truth of God, which they knew, for lies, and wor\u00adship\u00adped what God had made ins\u00adtead of the Crea\u00adtor Hims\u00adelf, to whom be glo\u00adry for ever and ever. Amen\u00bb (Romans 1:25 NLB<\/span>). \tIf you app\u00adly Bay\u00ader\u00adhaus\u00bb tri\u00adpo\u00adlar sche\u00adme to your cul\u00adtu\u00adre. Whe\u00adre do you see divi\u00adne, human and demo\u00adnic realms? In every cul\u00adtu\u00adre the\u00adre are cer\u00adtain prin\u00adci\u00adples of how socie\u00adty is struc\u00adtu\u00adred. This includes eva\u00adlua\u00adtions of what is good or bad, how to behave in public and what a suc\u00adcessful life looks like. But in every cul\u00adtu\u00adre the\u00adre is a blind spot, an area whe\u00adre God\u2019s good plan for his crea\u00adti\u00adon is not\u2026<\/p>","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":7045,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","wpfc_preacher":[79],"wpfc_sermon_series":[81],"wpfc_sermon_topics":[],"wpfc_bible_book":[],"wpfc_service_type":[12],"class_list":{"0":"wpfc_preacher-cedric-bruegger","1":"wpfc_sermon_series-creatio","2":"wpfc-sermon-single","3":"post-6765","4":"wpfc_sermon","5":"type-wpfc_sermon","6":"status-publish","7":"has-post-thumbnail","8":"hentry","11":"wpfc_service_type-gottesdienst"},"acf":[],"sermons_blog_filters_topics":"\t\t\t\t
\n1. dis\u00adco\u00adver your cul\u00adtu\u00adral blind spots!
\nI am very inte\u00adres\u00adted in histo\u00adry. When some\u00adthing inte\u00adrests me, I lite\u00adral\u00adly soak up the infor\u00adma\u00adti\u00adon. When I was at school, histo\u00adry was one of my favou\u00adri\u00adte sub\u00adjects. I still remem\u00adber when we went through slavery in the US<\/span>. I found this topic very exci\u00adting and was quite hor\u00adri\u00adfied how peo\u00adp\u00adle were hun\u00adted down in Afri\u00adca, cap\u00adtu\u00adred and then brought to Ame\u00adri\u00adca by ship, packed tight\u00adly tog\u00ade\u00adther. Once the\u00adre, a ter\u00adri\u00adble future most\u00adly awai\u00adted them. They had to work hard and were often trea\u00adted bad\u00adly by their owners. Slavery was com\u00admon and, abo\u00adve all, very lucra\u00adti\u00adve. Today, this is uni\u00adma\u00adgi\u00adnable to us and is right\u00adly con\u00addem\u00adned. The slave trad\u00aders tramp\u00adled on the truth that every human being has digni\u00adty and exch\u00adan\u00adged this for a lie. The lie was: slaves are objects and have no rights. The histo\u00adry of slavery repres\u00adents a tre\u00admen\u00addous blind spot in Wes\u00adtern cul\u00adtu\u00adre from the midd\u00adle of the last mill\u00aden\u00adni\u00adum until around 1850.
\nI am extre\u00adme\u00adly sho\u00adcked by this. How can it be that peo\u00adp\u00adle who often still cal\u00adled them\u00adsel\u00adves Chris\u00adti\u00adans cal\u00adled other peo\u00adp\u00adle their pro\u00adper\u00adty? On the one hand, I can hard\u00adly belie\u00adve it, on the other hand, it makes me con\u00adcer\u00adned mys\u00adelf. Whe\u00adre do you think our cul\u00adtu\u00adral blind spots are today? Whe\u00adre have we exch\u00adan\u00adged truth for lies? Often blind spots are much more obvious to us in other cul\u00adtures or at other times in world histo\u00adry. But I am con\u00advin\u00adced that the\u00adre are blind spots in our Chris\u00adti\u00adan-based cul\u00adtu\u00adre as well.
\nHow then do I dis\u00adco\u00adver blind spots in my life? In my stu\u00addies at STH<\/span> Basel, I encoun\u00adte\u00adred an exci\u00adting approach to asses\u00adsing a cul\u00adtu\u00adre. This is Peter Bey\u00ader\u00adhaus\u00bb tri\u00adpo\u00adlar sche\u00adme. It says that every cul\u00adtu\u00adre can be divi\u00added into three are\u00adas. This sche\u00adme is based on some ver\u00adses from Romans 1: \u00abSin\u00adce the crea\u00adti\u00adon of the world, men have seen the earth and the hea\u00advens and all that God crea\u00adted, and by them they can cle\u00adar\u00adly see him, the invi\u00adsi\u00adble God, in his eter\u00adnal power and divi\u00adne natu\u00adre. The\u00adr\u00ade\u00adfo\u00adre, they have no excu\u00adse for not having known about God. Alt\u00adhough they knew about God, they did not want to wor\u00adship Him as God or thank Him. Ins\u00adtead, they began to form non\u00adsen\u00adsi\u00adcal ide\u00adas about God and their minds dar\u00adkened and beca\u00adme con\u00adfu\u00adsed. Clai\u00adming to be wise, they beca\u00adme fools\u00bb (Romans 1:20\u201322 NLB<\/span>).
\nThus a cul\u00adtu\u00adre can be divi\u00added into a divi\u00adne, human and demo\u00adnic realm. Every cul\u00adtu\u00adre has a divi\u00adne dimen\u00adsi\u00adon, which cor\u00adre\u00adsponds to the God of the Bible. It is important to empha\u00adsise this and to point it out, as this also cor\u00adre\u00adsponds to the Chris\u00adti\u00adan faith. In Switz\u00ader\u00adland, for exam\u00adp\u00adle, this is the idea of soli\u00adda\u00adri\u00adty or cha\u00adri\u00adty. In addi\u00adti\u00adon, the\u00adre is a human com\u00adpo\u00adnent, which is neu\u00adtral. Beha\u00adviour, thought pat\u00adterns and ways of life that belong to this cate\u00adgo\u00adry are neither bad nor good. In Switz\u00ader\u00adland, for exam\u00adp\u00adle, this is the poli\u00adti\u00adcal sys\u00adtem or shaking hands when gree\u00adting someone. The third area is the demo\u00adnic dimen\u00adsi\u00adon. The\u00adse are things in a cul\u00adtu\u00adre that do not cor\u00adre\u00adspond to the will of God our Crea\u00adtor. This is, for exam\u00adp\u00adle, bul\u00adly\u00ading, dis\u00adcri\u00admi\u00adna\u00adti\u00adon or prostitution.
\nEach of the three are\u00adas has an impact on the peo\u00adp\u00adle who live in the respec\u00adti\u00adve cul\u00adtu\u00adre. Thus, the demo\u00adnic dimen\u00adsi\u00adon also leads to a cer\u00adtain pat\u00adtern of beha\u00adviour and to the fact that ins\u00adtead of God, some\u00adthing else is wor\u00adship\u00adped. \u00abIns\u00adtead of wor\u00adship\u00adping the glo\u00adrious, eter\u00adnal God, they wor\u00adship\u00adped idols repre\u00adsen\u00adting cor\u00adrup\u00adti\u00adble peo\u00adp\u00adle, or birds, ani\u00admals and sna\u00adkes\u00bb (Romans 1:23 NLB<\/span>). An idol repres\u00adents a lie and is a fal\u00adse repre\u00adsen\u00adta\u00adti\u00adon of God. While idols may have been sta\u00adtu\u00ades that were wor\u00adship\u00adped in anci\u00adent times, today it is other things that rule our lives. This may be a sports club, work, pos\u00adses\u00adsi\u00adons, fami\u00adly, fri\u00adends, an ideo\u00adlo\u00adgy or pur\u00adsu\u00adit of beau\u00adty. Crea\u00adti\u00adon is wor\u00adship\u00adped, but the Crea\u00adtor is left behind.
\n2. deal\u00ading with crea\u00adti\u00adon as a con\u00adtro\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adal topic!
\nDeal\u00ading with God\u2019s won\u00adderful crea\u00adti\u00adon has gre\u00adat poten\u00adti\u00adal for con\u00adflict and here I dis\u00adco\u00adver two blind spots. For the\u00adre are two ways of deal\u00ading with crea\u00adti\u00adon which are oppo\u00adsi\u00adte. I would like to brief\u00adly ela\u00adbo\u00adra\u00adte on the\u00adse. They both have to do with Romans 1:25, the rela\u00adti\u00adonship of wor\u00adshi\u00adp\u00ading the Crea\u00adtor or the creation.
\nWor\u00adship of the Crea\u00adtor with no effect on the tre\u00adat\u00adment of creation
\nPer\u00adso\u00adnal\u00adly, I noti\u00adce a gre\u00adat scep\u00adti\u00adcism towards the hand\u00adling of envi\u00adron\u00admen\u00adtal issues in today\u2019s socie\u00adty, espe\u00adci\u00adal\u00adly cli\u00adma\u00adte chan\u00adge. Per\u00adhaps this stems from a theo\u00adlo\u00adgi\u00adcal atti\u00adtu\u00adde that this earth is doo\u00admed any\u00adway and that the\u00adre will be a new hea\u00adven and a new earth one day any\u00adway. But per\u00adhaps this also stems from a resis\u00adtance. Sin\u00adce this topic is main\u00adly pushed by peo\u00adp\u00adle who are usual\u00adly cri\u00adti\u00adcal of the Chris\u00adti\u00adan reli\u00adgi\u00adon, it is dif\u00adfi\u00adcult for me to go into their reasons. But may\u00adbe it\u2019s also becau\u00adse nowa\u00addays it\u2019s part of being envi\u00adron\u00admen\u00adtal\u00adly con\u00adscious and I have a bit of trou\u00adble with this bra\u00adva\u00addo. So I am always in dan\u00adger of qua\u00adli\u00adfy\u00ading the who\u00adle issue as unim\u00adportant. I pre\u00adfer to focus on God and my rela\u00adti\u00adonship with Him. Per\u00adhaps you also know this in your life. Bible pas\u00adsa\u00adges like \u00abYou shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength\u00bb (Gene\u00adsis 5:6 NLB<\/span>) then give ori\u00aden\u00adta\u00adti\u00adon. The focus is on the rela\u00adti\u00adonship with God. Peo\u00adp\u00adle who focus on the wor\u00adship of God are in dan\u00adger of inter\u00adpre\u00adting the task that man has recei\u00adved in crea\u00adti\u00adon only in terms of man. \u00abAnd God bles\u00adsed them and com\u00admis\u00adsio\u00adned them: \u00abBe fruitful and mul\u00adti\u00adply, popu\u00adla\u00adte the earth and pos\u00adsess it. Rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air and all the ani\u00admals of the earth\u00bb \u00bb (Gene\u00adsis 1:28 NLB<\/span>). When God gives respon\u00adsi\u00adbi\u00adli\u00adty to man, he means it very serious\u00adly. Thus, even decis\u00adi\u00adons made by the who\u00adle of huma\u00adni\u00adty have gre\u00adat con\u00adse\u00adquen\u00adces. For exam\u00adp\u00adle, if fish are exploi\u00adted, who\u00adle spe\u00adci\u00ades of fish die out.
\nWor\u00adship of crea\u00adti\u00adon wit\u00adhout regard for the Creator
\nThe other view of crea\u00adti\u00adon can be that it is ido\u00adli\u00adsed. Then the goal of life is to pre\u00adser\u00adve it at all cos\u00adts. Ever\u00ady\u00adthing must bow to this goal. Saving the earth is an end in its\u00adelf. Man is com\u00admit\u00adted to the who\u00adle earth and its inha\u00adbi\u00adtants. He seeks a sub\u00adsti\u00adtu\u00adte reli\u00adgi\u00adon. In reli\u00adgious stu\u00addies, man is often cal\u00adled homo natu\u00adra\u00adlis reli\u00adgio\u00adsus. This means that man is a reli\u00adgious being. If reli\u00adgi\u00adon is unders\u00adtood as a world\u00adview, this has dif\u00adfe\u00adrent mani\u00adfes\u00adta\u00adti\u00adons. Peo\u00adp\u00adle who have taken up the cau\u00adse of cli\u00adma\u00adte pro\u00adtec\u00adtion, for exam\u00adp\u00adle, are extre\u00adme\u00adly zea\u00adlous. Cli\u00adma\u00adte pro\u00adtec\u00adtion has beco\u00adme their reli\u00adgi\u00adon. They show a zeal that demands a gre\u00adat deal of admi\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon from me. They are con\u00adsis\u00adt\u00adent\u00adly com\u00admit\u00adted to this goal and are pre\u00adpared to fore\u00adgo some of their com\u00adforts. But here, too, Gene\u00adsis 1:28 can be cited as a reason for trea\u00adting crea\u00adti\u00adon posi\u00adtively. For the rule of man does not have to be tyran\u00adni\u00adcal at all. On the con\u00adtra\u00adry, it can also be loving and con\u00adside\u00adra\u00adte. My con\u00advic\u00adtion is that this is what God inten\u00added. He did not want us to exploit the earth and harm creation.
\nBut the path as a fol\u00adlower in this topic lies exact\u00adly in the midd\u00adle. On the one hand, the rela\u00adti\u00adonship with God is the decisi\u00adve thing. It is about get\u00adting clo\u00adse to God again and again. Be it in pray\u00ader, rea\u00adding the Bible or atten\u00adding church ser\u00advices. On the other hand, disci\u00adple\u00adship is also a gre\u00adat task. But this is fed by the rela\u00adti\u00adonship with God. At the moment, some house groups are run\u00adning the Just Peo\u00adp\u00adle cour\u00adse. This is sup\u00adport\u00aded by many orga\u00adni\u00adsa\u00adti\u00adons that are com\u00admit\u00adted to hel\u00adping peo\u00adp\u00adle around the world hear the Good News. But this goes hand in hand with a com\u00admit\u00adment to care for God\u2019s crea\u00adti\u00adon. No mat\u00adter whe\u00adre you stand, this cour\u00adse can eit\u00adher open your eyes to God\u2019s crea\u00adti\u00adon or to Him.
\n3. love for God\u2019s crea\u00adti\u00adon out of clo\u00adsen\u00adess to the Creator!
\nLove for God\u2019s crea\u00adti\u00adon flows from clo\u00adsen\u00adess to the Crea\u00adtor. What do you think of when you hear crea\u00adti\u00adon? I have alre\u00ada\u00addy spo\u00adken about crea\u00adti\u00adon a few times in today\u2019s ser\u00admon. Crea\u00adti\u00adon includes ever\u00ady\u00adthing that God has crea\u00adted. If we belie\u00adve the descrip\u00adti\u00adons in the first two chap\u00adters of the Bible, God crea\u00adted ever\u00ady\u00adthing. The\u00adre is not\u00adhing that was not inten\u00added. Take a look around this room, if you are at home, then may\u00adbe a pic\u00adtu\u00adre that is stan\u00adding around at your place. We humans are also a part of crea\u00adti\u00adon. Crea\u00adti\u00adon is not limi\u00adt\u00aded to plants, ani\u00admals, fun\u00adgi or wha\u00adte\u00adver the\u00adre is. Crea\u00adti\u00adon encom\u00adpas\u00adses ever\u00ady\u00adthing. God loves all of crea\u00adti\u00adon. This includes the unp\u00adlea\u00adsant neigh\u00adbour, the trou\u00adble\u00adso\u00adme class\u00adma\u00adte or work col\u00adle\u00adague, but also the Hom\u00adberg, Lake Hall\u00adwil or the Aare. Fol\u00adlo\u00adwers of Jesus belie\u00adve that God sent his Son Jesus to this world. He died as a sub\u00adsti\u00adtu\u00adte for all my rebel\u00adli\u00adon, for all my self-wan\u00adting. Jesus died so that I do not have to fall into acti\u00advism, but so that I can come befo\u00adre God in worship.
\n\u00abFor God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoe\u00adver belie\u00adves in him should not peri\u00adsh but have eter\u00adnal life\u00bb (John 3:16 NLB<\/span>). Quick\u00adly this ver\u00adse is read and limi\u00adt\u00aded only to the second part. Yes, all who belie\u00adve in Jesus Christ recei\u00adve eter\u00adnal life. But why did Jesus come to earth? Becau\u00adse God loved the world so much. In the Greek it says kos\u00admos. Cos\u00admos includes ever\u00ady\u00adthing crea\u00adted, ever\u00ady\u00adthing that God cal\u00adled into exis\u00adtence at the begin\u00adning. This also includes human beings, but is not limi\u00adt\u00aded to them. So we can also say: \u00abFor God so loved all crea\u00adted things that he gave his only Son, that whoe\u00adver belie\u00adves in him should not peri\u00adsh but have eter\u00adnal life\u00bb.
\nIn Jesus, the love of God beca\u00adme visi\u00adble. Fol\u00adlo\u00adwers of Jesus are cal\u00adled to love too, and this three\u00adfold. Jesus ans\u00adwe\u00adred: \u00abYou shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. Ano\u00adther is equal\u00adly important: \u00abLove your neigh\u00adbour as yours\u00adelf\u00bb All the other com\u00admandments and all the demands of the pro\u00adphe\u00adts are based on the\u00adse two com\u00admandments\u00bb (Matthew 22:37\u201340 NLB<\/span>). Love is shown towards God, mys\u00adelf and my neigh\u00adbour. But the pivo\u00adtal point is love for God. Love for our neigh\u00adbour grows out of this. This love can also show its\u00adelf, among other things, in the fact that it beco\u00admes important to me how workers have to pro\u00addu\u00adce pro\u00adducts. Per\u00adhaps I also care about eco\u00adlo\u00adgi\u00adcal pro\u00adduc\u00adtion. Wha\u00adte\u00adver may beco\u00adme important to you, the decisi\u00adve thing is that it is roo\u00adted in love for God.
\nWhat now? Let\u2019s look back again at Romans 1:25. \u00abThey exch\u00adan\u00adged the truth of God they knew for lies and wor\u00adship\u00adped what God had made ins\u00adtead of the Crea\u00adtor hims\u00adelf, to whom be honour for ever and ever. Amen\u00bb (Romans 1:25 NLB<\/span>). At the very end, a prai\u00adse to God is inser\u00adted. This is to pro\u00adtect us from acti\u00advism. First comes God, to whom be all honour for ever and ever. This state\u00adment is under\u00adli\u00adned again by the Amen. Fol\u00adlo\u00adwers of Jesus Christ are firm\u00adly roo\u00adted in the wor\u00adship of God. But within this is a com\u00admis\u00adsi\u00adon. Just as we humans have been given a man\u00adda\u00adte to rule over the earth, we also have a clear man\u00adda\u00adte as to how we are to live our lives. \u00abYou, human being, have alre\u00ada\u00addy been told what is good and how God wants you to live. He requi\u00adres not\u00adhing of you but to obser\u00adve jus\u00adti\u00adce, to be loving and mer\u00adciful to one ano\u00adther, and to live your lives hum\u00adbly befo\u00adre God\u00bb (Micah 6:8 NLB<\/span>).
\nPos\u00adsi\u00adble ques\u00adti\u00adons for the small group
\nRead the Bible text: Romans 1:25, Micah 6:8<\/p>\n
\n\tWhe\u00adre do you see a blind spot in your life? What can you do about it?
\n\tHow would you clas\u00adsi\u00adfy yours\u00adelf? Are you rather scep\u00adti\u00adcal about the annu\u00adal the\u00adme \u00abCrea\u00adtio \u2013 Hope and Respon\u00adsi\u00adbi\u00adli\u00adty\u00bb or full of joy about it? What is the reason for this?
\n\tWhat is the source of your com\u00admit\u00adment to the envi\u00adron\u00adment? Rather from yours\u00adelf and the reco\u00adgni\u00adti\u00adon you recei\u00adve in your envi\u00adron\u00adment or also from the rela\u00adti\u00adonship and clo\u00adsen\u00adess to God?
\n\tIf you had to explain the word crea\u00adti\u00adon in one sen\u00adtence, what would it be?
\n\tWhe\u00adre do you take a con\u00adcre\u00adte step to shape your life accor\u00adding to Micah 6:8? What does this look like? How can the \u00absuc\u00adcess\u00bb be checked?<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"