We are going to wind down August with a brief introduction to the first chapters of Genesis, the creation story.During this past year I have enjoyed an enlightening review of Genesis and have gained a whole new insight into the inspired nature of God’s Word.The book of Genesis truly sets the foundation for the entire plan of God. Let's look at the first two verses of Genesis 1.
“1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.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.”
Wouldn’t it have been nice if God had inspired Moses (assumed by most to be the author of Genesis) to state that the ‘beginning’ occurred on June 23, 2010 BC?But God didn’t do that; thus we can assume that the exact date isn’t critical to His overall plan.For those who are interested, as am I, there are two main theories aimed at determining this date – I’ll briefly mention them here.
The first theory calculates the creation time period by working backward from known dates and chronologies of Biblical characters.This theory assumes that verses 1-3 all occurred on day one (of the seven day creation week), and results in a date of between 3000-5000 B.C. depending on a variety of assumptions.
The second main theory assumes that an unknown amount of time occurred between verse 1 and verse 2, perhaps even millions of years.God then began the more recent creation process only a few thousand years ago.Those who find conflict between science and Christianity seem to be more satisfied with this second theory.To me personally, I am equally content with either theory since my faith is not contingent upon the date that God began His creation.
God does tell us a few specific things however:A) the earth was formless and empty; B) the earth was covered in darkness and with water; and C) that the Holy Spirit was present (later we learn that Jesus was also present). Now let's review the actual creation narrative day by day
Day 1.Verses 3-5. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.And God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light (day) from the darkness (night).
Day 2.Verses 6-8.And God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water.”So God separated the waters below from the expanse above (sky), and it was good.
Day 3.Verses 9-13.And God said, “Let the waters… separate from the ground so that dry land appears, and God said it was good.Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation of all kinds …and let each reproduce according to its own kind.
Day 4. Verse 14-19. And God said, “Let there be lights in the sky to separate the day from night, to mark the seasons, and days, and years, and let them provide light unto the earth. God made two great lights, the sun and the moon, and He made the stars, and God said it was good.
Day 5. Verses 20-23. And God said, “Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let the birds fly above the earth…and let them reproduce, each according to their own kind. And God said it was good.
Day 6. Verses 24-31. And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female he created them.” God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it….” Then God said, “I give you every plant on the face of the earth, and I give you every animal on the earth. They will be yours for food. And God saw all that he had made, and it was good.
Day 7. Chapter 2, verses 1-3. Thus the heavens and the earth were completed. So on the seventh day God rested. God blessed the seventh day and made it holy…
Six days of work, and one day of rest. In our lives today, this is an important teaching to remember: we must work, but we must not over-work. We were created to work, but also to rest. And we are taught by God to remember the seventh day (or more to the point, remember God on the seventh day)! Experience has taught me that one quickly loses efficiency when an attempt is made to 'burn the candle at both ends'. Man was created to require rest at an approximate ration of 1 day in 7.
The first chapter (and including verses 1-3 of chapter two) presents us with an overview of the creation process. And what a process of creation it was! Any process of creation requires three elements: matter, energy, and a designer (a source of intelligence, knowledge, and skill). Consider for a moment the three elements in the creation story:
- DESIGNER: In this case, God was the obvious designer.
- ENERGY: On the first day, God created energy, here signified by light but probably representative of the entire electromagnetic spectrum (heat, IR, visible roy.g.biv, UV, and ionizing radiation).
- MATTER: On the second day God created the basic building blocks of matter that would be needed to proceed, here signified by liquid and gaseous water. God speaks of the process as separation: we start with a formless and empty mass of raw material, then God separates the water from the gaseous atmosphere, and later the water is separated from the dry land.
On day three God created plant life, living, reproducing, energy absorbing and food producing plant life. Three days, and God has produced energy, matter, and now life! And He is only getting started!
On the fourth day God does something special. The narrative indicates that He created the sun, moon, and stars, the vast universe. These things are created to provide energy to the earth. But there is something more, which the narrative alludes to in stating that the sun and moon were created to keep track of days and weeks and seasons. God has just created the concept of time, which hadn't been a factor prior to day four. Besides providing light, these heaven bodies provide the measuring tools (days, years, seasons) for this incredible creation of time. Can you imagine living, as God does, without the blinders of time?
The best way I know to illustrate the difference between our perspective of time and God's perspective beyond time is to mentally visualize a sphere. Imagine the life of each person as a single line forming a circle around this sphere. There can be an infinite number of circles forming the surface of the sphere, but to each individual person the future is always around the curve, the past is a memory, and all they can truly experience is the precise point on which they currently reside - the present. Now visualize God at the center of the sphere. He can look out and see every point (the past, the present, and the future) of every person - all at the same time. And this visual is only an analogy of what God truly experiences!
On day five God creates animal life, all the fish of the sea, and the many birds of the air; each reproducing after its own kind. The creation of animals would not be possible without the creative elements of the first four days; a clear sign of intelligent design. (How could Moses have known that energy, matter, plant life, and time would have been needed to be created PRIOR to the creation of animal life?)
On day six God creates all the animals that live on the earth; most are created for the sole use of God’s most prized creation, man. God created man in His own image and likeness. We cannot begin to fathom what that short statement means. Unlike animals, man has a spiritual attribute (as does the Triune God) an eternal attribute which empowers man to commune with God. Man has also been given a free will, giving him the power to choose to commune with God. God also created man with the ability to love, to hope, to have faith, to understand, to create that which is good and beautiful. From the beginning, God created mankind to be in a relationship with Him! (But as we shall see, a snake, a tree, and man's will got in the way....)
And the seventh day, God rested. From the beginning we were designed to work six days a week and then to rest; to remember, worship, and commune with our awesome Creator, God.
