IN THE BEGINNING
(Genesis 1:1-25)
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth?(1:1).
Welcome to the study of Genesis. Martin Luther said, "Genesis is the womb of Christian faith and all its doctrines." In Greek, Genesis means "beginning" or "origin." Genesis tells us about the origin of the universe, of mankind and civilizations. It also tells us about the origin of sin and God’s redemption, and of God’s covenant with his chosen people. Through the study of Genesis, we can understand the foundation of our lives. We can also understand where the crisis of modern culture began.
Today’s passage teaches us about God the Creator. There is an "egg first or chicken first" kind of question: "Should man know who he is to know God?" or "Should man know who God is to know himself?" What do you think? The author of Genesis proclaims, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Then he explains how the world came into being through God’s creation. Apparently the author guides us to know who God is. Let us think about who God is.
I. In the beginning (1).
What was in the beginning? This is more than a scientific question. This determines a person’s worldview and his whole value system. Nearly one and a half centuries after Darwin, scientists have begun to realize that the theory of evolution is faith rather than reality. At the recent seminar of the most prestigious Evolutionary Morphologists at the University of Chicago, one professor who had been working on evolution for 20 years asked, "Can you tell me anything you know about the truth of evolution?" After a long silence, one person said, "Yes, I do know one thing: It ought not to be taught in high school." In spite of the collapse of the theory of evolution, I presume many people will still hold onto the faith that the world came into being from lifeless material somehow. One biologist at Cornell University, acknowledged the logical end of such a worldview: "No life after death; no ultimate foundation for ethics; no ultimate meaning for life; and no free will."
Man cannot live without meaning. I don’t know if a dog thinks about meaning in life, but certainly man does. We were made to know God and we need to know him. Anthropologists testify that man by nature is incurably religious. Ecclesiastes 3:11 states that God has set eternity in the hearts of men. There is a "God-shaped vacuum" inside each person. He designed us so that we wouldn’t be happy unless he himself fills the void within. St. Augustine gave us this often quoted prayer: "You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you."
Genesis 1:1 declares, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." This verse tells us that the universe came into being by God’s creation. The word "created"(H: bara) is used in the Bible only for God’s act of creating something out of nothing. Here the beginning refers to the beginning of time, space and matter. Mathematics affirms a beginning. Philosophy affirms a beginning. The science of astronomy and physics affirms a beginning. Before the beginning, God was there. God is eternal. God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM" (Ex 3:14) "God" in Hebrew is Elohim which means "The Mighty Ones," a plural noun that always accompanies singular verbs. The name Elohim is the first revelation of God to man. It reveals the mystery of the Trinity that God is three Persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. "The heavens" refer to the universe and "the earth" to our planet. Though the earth is like a speck in the vast universe, it is the center of God’s creation, for it is a place for living creatures and man to live in.
Genesis 1:1 excludes atheism, polytheism, or pantheism. It also excludes materialism that assumes eternity of matter. In addition, it excludes humanism that puts man at the center of the universe. Humanism is the polluted fountain from which postmodernism has drawn situational ethics and relativism that denies absolute truth. No one is born an atheist, for all man has an innate knowledge of God (Ro 1:18-21). Psalm 14:1 says, "The fool says in his heart, ’There is no God’." When one denies God, his existence becomes a mere accident. The world becomes a jungle in which he only struggles and perishes. But Genesis 1:1 teaches us that we are God’s children. We are here with absolute meaning and purpose in life. We must know God because he is our Creator and eternal Father.
II. God’s creation (2-25).
Look at verse 2. "Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters." The initial state of the earth was chaos. It was formless, empty, and pitch dark. But there were two things that express God’s special concern for the earth. First, waters. Here "waters" refer to the huge mass of water that exists on earth. Seventy percent of the earth surface is covered with water. Do you know how deep is Lake Michigan? The deepest part is about 900 feet deep. The deepest part of the Pacific Ocean off the Marianas islands is about 7 miles deep. Water (H2O) is a simple but wondrous substance. Water circulates everywhere--in the air, on the surface of the earth, underground, and in the body of living being. About three quarters of our body is water. Water sustains life. God created the earth with abundant water so that life can flourish. Second, the Spirit of God. The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. The word "hovering" describes a mother bird that fertilizes her eggs through her warmth or cares and protects her young under her wings. The Holy Spirit is the power of God that created the universe and sustains it. The Holy Spirit fills the universe and is indeed powerful enough to govern the movements of everything in it. At the same time, the Holy Spirit is so gentle and personal like a loving mother. The Spirit of God knows the deepest need in us and does his recreation work in us with his love and power.
Look at verse 3. "And God said, ’Let there be light,’ and there was light." In this chapter, the phrase "God said" is repeated 9 times in all of God’s actions of creation. God is a person who speaks, not a mere energy or power. God personally speaks to us through his words and listens to our prayers. We can speak to God and listen to him. The power of his word is confirmed by the phrase "And it was so." The phrase or its equivalent is repeated 7 times. God’s word has almighty power. Man’s words often fail, but God’s word never fails. The authenticity of the Bible rests on the absolute power and authority of God’s word. We can believe God’s promises in the Bible because of the power and authority of his word. John 1:1-3 tells us who the Word is. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made." Here the Word is God the Son, Jesus Christ. God the Father created all things through the Son by the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is not only our Savior and Lord, but also our Creator. The Triune God all worked together to create us. And they are always working together to recreate man.
"Let there be light"--this is the first word of God in the Bible. God is light; in him is no darkness (1Jn 1:5). Light is the source of energy that nourishes life. Light was created before the sun, moon and stars. This proves that the truth in Genesis surpasses all ancient pagan religions that worshiped the heavenly bodies. Jesus is the light (Jn 8:12). John 1:9 says, "The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world." Jesus gives the light of life to every man. God’s work of recreation begins when one accepts his light.
God’s creation was to form and fill. For the first three days, God formed environment--sky, land, and sea. The next three days, God filled it with creatures. On the third day, God created vegetation on the land. On the fourth day, God created sun, moon and stars. On the fifth day, God created fish and birds and God blessed them. On the sixth day, God created livestock, living creatures on land and man and God blessed them. Notice God blessed sensible or moving creatures. God loves all fish, birds, animals, and especially man. They prosper under God’s blessing. We should also love and bless them. In this way, God created a beautiful and fruitful world out of chaos. What does the creation tell us about God?
III. Who is the God of creation?
First, God is Almighty. Think about the greatness and power of God. His greatness and power is best manifested in the universe. The solar system we are in is spinning around the center of the Milky Way at an incredible speed of 130 miles per second. Still it needs 200 million years to make one rotation. And there are over one billion other galaxies just like ours in the universe. All stars are moving in amazing order. Our God is a great and awesome God. God revealed himself to Abraham as God Almighty, El Shaddai (Ge 17:1). When Abraham was in depression due to his childlessness and fear, God visited him and took him outside and said, "Look up at heavens and count the stars, if you can count them.’ Then he said to him, ’So shall your offspring be’."(Ge 15:5) This is God’s first explanation why he created the vast universe--to display his greatness and power. Abraham believed the Lord and, by faith, received the promised son when he was as good as dead. This Almighty God liberated the people of Israel from the iron hand of Pharaoh. He divided the Red Sea and produced water from the rock. When Moses led the people to the wilderness, he worried about food for 600,000 people. God said to him, "Is the LORD’s arm too short? You will now see whether or not what I say will come true for you" (Nu 11:23). God fed the Israelites with quail and manna for forty years until they entered the promised land. We must believe that our God is an Almighty God. Jesus said to his fearful disciples, "Have faith in God" (Mk 11:22). He also said, "Everything is possible for him who believes"(Mk 9:23). We must not limit God. We must believe his power and expect great things from God and attempt great things for God.
Second, God is the God of order. God’s creation reveals that our God is the God of order. We can see a progression in God’s creation--material things out of nothing, life from lifeless, personality from impersonal life. The material world is made for man; man is made for God. In this chapter, the phrase "according to their kinds" is repeated 10 times for all living beings. The Bible excludes evolution across species. This is proven by nature. God demonstrated his power, wisdom and creativity in the vast array of living creatures. There are 1.2 millions species in animals, 400,000 species in plants. There are a variety of kinds in one species. For example, there are 15,000 kinds of butterflies and 5,000 kinds of ants. Each has its own beauty and character. None of artists can imagine such a variety of design. Our God is the God of order. Just as he put order in the universe, he also set a moral law for man. No life can survive against the law of nature. Likewise, man must keep his moral law to have life.
Third, God is love. 1 John 4:8 and 16 says, "God is love." God’s love is manifested in his creation. God prepared the best environment for each of his creatures to live in. God did not create living beings like a factory manufacturer. He created each one personally to have unique character and beauty. There are no two persons exactly the same. There are no two ducks exactly the same. Even twins are different. God created each one personally and cares for it.
Fourth, God is Redeemer. God worked out to bring light, beauty, harmony, meaning, life and joy to a formless, empty and dark world. God’s work is redeeming from the beginning. The initial state of the earth reflects the inner life of a fallen man. His inner life is dark, empty and lifeless. God sent his only Son to bring forgiveness and the light of life to the world. Anyone who believes in him and repents receives eternal life. God, through his words and the Holy Spirit, sanctifies him and recreates him into a child of God. God restores in him the meaning and purpose in life, and enables him to bear fruit for God’s glory. As we know, the Apostle Paul was once a murderous and selfish man. But the Risen Christ visited him and revealed his light to him. Since then, Paul was restored as a new man, who was most humble and loving. He testified in 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"
We often despair about ourselves due to our weakness and sinfulness. We also despair when we see the weakness and sinfulness of others. But we can always have hope in God our Redeemer. Paul served the early Christians with many problems. But he never despaired. He taught them the word of God and prayed for them, for he was confident that God would complete his good work in them. He said in Philippians 1:6, "The who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." There is no hopeless man in God the Redeemer. Even today, God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are working together to redeem sinners. His redeeming work will continue until we, God’s children, put on the glorious resurrection body and all creation is liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God (Ro 8:20-21). This is our living hope. Praise God our Redeemer!
IV. The purpose of creation.
Look at verses 4, (10, 12, 18, 21) and 25. "God saw that the light was good." God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.?After each day of creation except the second day, God confirmed his creation with words, "And God saw that it was good." The reason why this confirmation was omitted on the second day when God created the sky is not certain. One interesting explanation is that Satan fell on that day and became the prince of the air. The Bible does not clearly say when the angels were created and when Satan and his angels fell. Anyway, this omission does not affect the meaning of the phrase. The phrase tells us about two things:
First, God created the world for his glory. God was pleased with his creatures because they revealed his divine glory. Look at beautiful flowers, birds, fish, and animals in varieties of shape and color. Look at the streams and lakes, rainbows, and oceans. We cannot but praise God the Creator for their beauty, majesty and glory. Psalm 19:1 says, "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." The purpose and meaning of existence of all creatures is to reveal the glory of God. This teaches us the purpose of man. Man is the crown of God’s creation and the supreme glory of God. God created man to manifest his glory and also receive glory through his life. This is possible through a love relationship between God and man. In this humanistic society, living for God’s glory sounds alien. We should accept that we exist for God’s glory and live for his glory.
Second, the absolute value of man. Think about the phrase, "And God saw that it was good," again. This tells us about the value and meaning of God’s creatures. This tells us that all creatures were intrinsically good in God’s eyes. They are objects of God’s love. This teaches us that each of us was created according to God’s perfect plan and will and is good in his eyes. Due to sin, we have many weaknesses. Nevertheless, God’s image and his gifts are in us. God loves each of us and values each of us as the best in the world. Our beauty and dignity does not depend on man’s reputation. We are absolutely precious because God says so. When we accept this, we can have self-esteem. We can also be freed from fatalism and work hard for the glory of God.
In this chapter the word "God" is repeated 30 times. God "created, said, saw, called, made, set, and blessed." Everything came from God. God is the Owner and Sovereign over his creation. God is our Owner and Lord. We are his creatures. We cannot make ourselves the center of the universe. God is our Father. He redeemed us to make us his children. We should remember his love and majesty and live for his glory.
