Creation Series, Part 4
Genesis 1:14-19
Introduction
- We are right in the middle of a series discussing the Creation of everything we see
- So, to bring everyone up to date allow me to give a short recap of where we are
- 1) We have a Creator, He is God, and He has given us a clear account of His story
- 2) What we find ourselves in is a situation that separates all of us: Do we believe?
-- If you do not believe this account, you fall into one of these two categories:
- Theistic Evolutionist: Believes that God is real, yet He used evolution to evolve all things in this world to include the creation of mankind
- Naturalistic Evolutionist (which most non-believers are): Believes that everything evolved by accident, and that there is no God nor Creator
-- Evolution uses the formula: “Nobody times Nothing equals Everything!”
-- This is absolutely the wrong angle for us and is at the heart of our beliefs
- There is no middle ground on this issue and it is here we must answer for ourselves
- Before we can even see the Redeemer, who is Jesus, we must see the Creator
-- We must see the Glory of a Creator who specifically put each thing into place
- APP: If we cannot see the work of the Creator; can we see the work of a Messiah?
- As a believer, we have to be willing to refute the commentaries of today
- Scientists, teachers, and pundits from all walks of life wish to denounce Creation
- It is critical that we are able to demonstrate a clear logic in our thinking
-- But, not only clear logic … but a Biblically based explanation to the Creation account
- Evolution has NEVER been observed, documented, or recorded with any factual basis
- It is a formula used by those seeking to discredit God; and it is a false doctrine!
- Last week, we discussed the formation of dry land, the seas, and the awesome power of God which provided vegetation in one (1) 24 hour time frame
- Evolutionists want to give you all kinds of theories about how things came into be
-- How we were once apes, before that we were fish, before that we were slime
- Creatures on this Earth (regardless of how created) – MUST produce their own kind
- This is a fact of science, which biologist confirm, and geneticists stand on
-- IMP: He doesn’t use these words just once, but 10 times in Genesis Chapter 1
-- The words are, “according to his own kind …”
- Naturally, you can have some cross-pollination, but you don’t get a totally new species
-- If you breed a flower and a blade of grass you don’t get a pine tree; you get nothing!
- IMP: There is NOTHING in scripture that supports something evolved from anything
- Let’s read up to our text so we have the complete view of where we are
- Stand and read Genesis 1:1-19 (Today’s focus starts at v14)
- Pray
Point 1 – There are Lights in the Heavens
- God created dry land; called the seas to their place, and created the atmosphere
- And now, we see His craftsmanship again to create the celestial bodies above
- Back on Day 1 God created “light” but this light that was created was NOT the sun
- How do I know? Verses 2-5 are missing critical phrase, “It was so”; thus, not fixed
- When God says “it was so”, we see items that are fixed and permanent in their location
-- “It was so” is used in verses: 7, 9, 11, 15, 24, and 30 – but not in verses 2-5
- Therefore, the light in verse 3 is “light”, and it separates the darkness, but not the sun
- Note that (v14) God said (command of the universe) … Let there be lights (plural)
-- This is different from v3, let there be light (singular) – this is the key to note here
- God commands that these bodies would be given to serve (to be signs) in the heavens
- These were to demonstrate the seasons, days, and years: dividing the time
- Based on the tilt of the Earth (remember it has an odd rotation) it determines:
-- Seasons, years, months, days; it is a God placed and the Romans 1st recorded this
-- This calendar recorded on a 10 month basis in 700s BC by the ruler, Romulus
- More simply: 24 hours makes up a day, and the sun and moon are what sets the day
- That’s it, there is nothing magical and mystical in this; it records a length of a day
-- Evening in Hebrew is “ereb” and morning in Hebrew is “boqer”
-- Each of these are used over 100 times in the Old Testament = 1 24 hour period
- Now, here is a great revelation right from scripture, ready? (say Amen)
-- The calendar is set by the sun and moon; it tells when we rise and when we rest
-- We see the sun and moon that sets the seasons … but where do we get a week?
-- Why does humanity live by weeks? Gen 1 says God created the universe in _____?
- APP: There is no magical mystery, we don’t have to be geniuses; its right HERE!
-- This is where we get our weeks from, and it is perfect in its design & application
Point 2 – How great is our God?
- (v14-15) When God spoke for these lights to be in existence, He was specific!
- But, let’s re-examine something that we talked about in the first message for context
- Our sun is our closest star, but it is an average size star compared to others
- As a comparison to our planet for reference: 1.3 million Earths could fit inside the Sun
- Arcturus is visible with the naked eye in the sky, and is 20xs larger than the sun
- The universe holds over a billion, trillion stars – more than we can ever comprehend
-- Now, consider the words of Psalm 147:4, “He calls the stars by name”
- God gives a very clear purpose for the why there are lights in the sky
- God created the lights in the firmament (expense) to separate the day from night
- But, MANY take this to the extreme and begin to insert their own theories into this
-- The stars were not put in place so that mankind could use them as a prophetic chart
-- The stars are not based on a Zodiac chart; simply: there is no mystical meaning
-- In its best case this is a silly logic … in its worst case it’s demonic in nature
-- Some even sillier though, spend their time worshiping the sun, moon, stars, as gods
- However, this idea of pagan worship and sun/star worship is not something new
-- Ezekiel 8:16 shows us Israelites in the temple, worshiping the sun like it was a “god”
- (v16) shows us that God made two great lights; he made them purposely for His use
- Can you imagine the hand of God at work here? (To make the sun and mold it?)
-- Psalm 8:3-4, “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?”
-- APP: Plainly, the stars were put there by God who said, “It was so” … PERIOD!
- Go with me to Psalm 136 (5-9) – let’s examine God’s awesome work confirmed
5) who by his understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever.
6) who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever.
7) who made the great lights, His love endures forever.
8) the sun to govern the day, His love endures forever.
9) the moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.
Rev John Macarthur gave great insight to this: “20 billion dollars has been spent to explore the origin and the evolution of the moon; and they are no closer to having any explanation of how or why.” (Well, you can see it right here in Genesis 1!) “Scientists tell us that the solar system was created b/c a star passed close to our sun and was torn apart. No explanation for where the sun came from, nor where the star came from, or how this star magically developed an orbit … “ (but here’s my favorite):
- Scientists say the solar system formed from a cloud swirling gas, dust, and particles
-- Yet, there is no explanation of where this gas, dust, and particles ever came from
-- But, if this were true, then they all came from & are made from the same stuff – right?
-- So, why is 98% of the sun made of hydrogen and helium & less than 1% of Earth is?
- UniverseToday.com says, “Our Sun is made up of elements left over from the Big Bang, elements formed from dying stars, and elements created in supernovae. That’s pretty amazing.” (Yeah, I’d say that was pretty a pretty amazing line of nonsense!)
- C.S. Lewis gives us this great insight: “If the solar system was brought about by an accidental collision, then the appearance of organic life on this planet was also an accident, and the whole evolution of Man was an accident too. If so, then all our present thoughts are mere accidents - the accidental by-product of the movement of atoms. And this holds for the thoughts of the materialists and astronomers as well as for anyone else's. But if their thoughts - i.e., of Materialism and Astronomy - are merely accidental by-products, why should we believe them to be true? (Get this) I see no reason for believing that one accident should be able to give me a correct account of all the other accidents. It's like expecting that the accidental shape taken by the splash when you (spill) a milk-jug should give you a correct account of how the jug was made and why it was (spilled).”
- Critical APP: We have a Creator that cared so much for us, that He created everything
- “Evolution” violates the entire 1st chapter of the Word of the Lord and is dangerous ground for any part of the creation to be standing on; b/c it violates God’s 1st direction!
-- What is the first direction? Exodus 20:3, “You shall have no other gods before me.”
- With every head bowed and every eye closed … Ask yourself, “How great is God?”
- Do you believe that you have a Creator and He is the only God of this universe?
- Or, are we still trying to convince ourselves how majestic and awesome we are?
- Can you imagine the disappointment of a Creator who seeks to redeem such rebellion?
- Before you can ever see Jesus and His work, we MUST believe the work of His Father
