A Story of Hope
Genesis 9:8-17
Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, “As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 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. 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.” God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
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Main Idea: The stories The stories we tell about our world, ourselves influence how we experience the world around us. Some stories are personal, and then some stories tell of our collective experience as a human family. Unfortunately, not all of them have happy endings. And not all of them inspire us with hope to grow. That's the thing about narrative storytelling. It's an art and endeavor that can oppress or set us free. As we begin our Lenten journey, what kind of story are you telling/hearing this season of Lent?
What do we tell ourselves/others? What do others/we tell ourselves?
Ourselves
Oppressive - What do we say about ourselves that binds ourselves?
Freeing - What do we say that is liberating?
Others
Oppressive - What do we say to silence/control others?
Freeing - What do we say to break silence and set free?
Two Stories / Two Endings / Two Perspectives
Ancient Near East (ANE) Mythology
The ancient Babylonians had a story like the Genesis flood that explained why things are the way they are for people who read them today and those in the ancient world. Humans were created because the lesser gods didn’t want to work, so they needed a new labor source (already sets a bleak tone to the narrative).
From their perspective, the flood occurred because the world was overpopulated, and humanity causes such a disturbance that the gods plan to wipe them from the face of the earth. In a dream, one of the wiser gods named Enki reaches out to a man named Atrahasis and warns them of the impending flood.
Atrahasis builds a vessel that provides sanctuary to a select few, but the outcome is no better than the actual flood. The gods exact their punishment and wrath on human beings in the form of catastrophes and natural disasters (ranging from infant deaths, war, disease, etc.). The cycle of violence and despair is ongoing. They might avoid one instance of vengeance, but another will replace quickly enough.
Genesis Flood Narrative
The Genesis account echoes back to the stories of the Ancient Near East. If we were back up to the beginning in Genesis 6, we'd find that it starts with, "When people began to multiply on the face of the ground... The Lord saw the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth." (Genesis 6:1,5) Similar to the ANE flood myth, the trajectory was not looking good.
Unlike the ANE narrative, God in the Genesis flood story finds one person, one family, who is righteous enough to be spared. Noah builds the ark, which will save himself and his family and a variety of animals. Already we can see that this story is different. God cares about creation as a whole, the people, and the creatures.
The ANE story doesn't end with any sign or words of hope. How can it? It's a story that explains the perpetual sufferings that humankind experiences. But the Genesis story is different as we hear today that God provides a sign of hope. It doesn't mean that things get easy, but it does signal that God will walk the hard, difficult road of hope with us.
Breaking The Cycle
This Lenten season we're asking what it means to "interrupt" silence. We're asking how do we interrupt silence on a personal and communal level. Interrupting or breaking this silence relies on us telling the right story. We cannot buy into the fatalistic "this is how it works" story of the world like the ANE. We must tell ourselves the liberating and freeing story of hope that God once told and continues to tell us, God's people.
Breaking the cycle of despair and hopelessness is a biblical mandate. The people of God who were slaves in Egypt, the Black people who were slaves here in our own country, and the countless others who are held by contemporary oppressive stories told by unjust systems in health care, fair housing, education, and many more broke and are breaking the silence to tell a story of hope and God's restorative justice and promises. And that is the story we need to tell.
Conclusion: This first Sunday in Lent, we hear a story of hope that speaks volumes to our hearts today. It's a reminder that this, too, shall pass. It's a reminder that the cycle of silence, pain, and suffering will soon be broken as God gave us a sign of hope to lift our hearts. Who could have imagined the toll that COVID-19 would take on our world? How could we not have noticed that the pandemic would highlight our preexisting conditions of poor housing practices, health care, education, opioids, and vitriolic hate? In the midst of all this, there is a rainbow, a sign of hope, and God's unceasing love. It's a symbol, but more importantly, it's a story that we need to tell. A story of hope, divine hope, that will give us the strength to shatter the stories of old. Let us be bold to tell this story as we change the ground beneath our feet. Amen.