Genesis
1 – 2:3
When
God Speaks, Something Happens!!!!
The Old Testament traces the plan of God from the creation of the
world to about 400 B.C. The Historical Books portray the birth, growth,
development, and discipline of God’s covenant people, Israel. Following their 400 years of captivity in
Egypt, God plants them in the land of Canaan, where they eventually establish a
kingdom. The Poetical Books capture the
emotions and heartbeat of men and women living during this historical period. And the Prophetical Books record God’s
repeated attempts to call His people back to the Godly behavior they
abandoned. The Pentateuch – 5
books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus,
Numbers, Deuteronomy.
Genesis chronicles the beginning of both secular and sacred history,
and introduces key events and people God uses to shape those beginnings. It is the story of the one true God Whose
Word creates a world and Whose watchful care determines the destiny of
mankind. Roughly 1/5th of the
book – chapters 1 – 11 traces primeval history from creation to about 2,000
B.C. The remaining 4/5ths detail the family history of one man, Abraham and
covers a period of about 350 years.
The opening chapters of the Bible are essential for our
understanding of the rest of it. The intent of the creation story is not to
give a lesson in physics or biology, but a lesson in the theological order of
things. In verse 1 The intentional arrangement shows that making
the earth habitable for man is the purpose of the account by improving on the
earth's initial status as desolate and empty.
The first chapter tells of God’s work of creation as He speaks
into existence the universe and arranges its parts into a unified whole. The chapter closes with the creation of man
who as the crown of God’s creation is commanded to subdue the earth and rule
it. In the 2nd chapter we
will see the brief account of man’s creation enlarged into a full length
portrait. The emphasis throughout is on
God’s unique relationship to man as the one who bears His image and exercises
dominion over the rest of His creation.
1:1 “ In the beginning God … One must believe these first four words or
they may as well throw away the remainder of the Bible!
One commentator mentioned that we might say ‘In beginning
God…’ Perhaps in our minds this would
settle our belief!
This first verse answers four f the most basic questions thinking
individuals ever ask: 1. What is there?
2 How did it get there? 3 Did it
have a beginning? 4 What or Who is responsible? The answers are: 1. The heaven and the earth 2 It
was all created
3 Yes 4 God
The Author and the Cause of this great work: GOD!
The Hebrew word is Elohim which tells us the power of God, the
Creator…He is strong, The plurality of persons in the Godhead…a plural name of
God …many though He is one.
READ: verses 1 - 5
Since light and dark were created on day one and the sun, moon and
stars weren't created until day four, what do the day and night of day one
represent? God created TIME! Time
which is measured by the passage of day and night. St. Thomas Aquinas is reported to have asked
"What did God do before He created?" He then he answered his own question
"Nothing, He didn't have the time."
In the beginning of TIME…that is when the clock was first set to
go…time began with the production of those beings that are measured by
time. Before the beginning of time there
was none but that Infinite Being that inhabits eternity. verse 1 parallels John 1:1
1st of all visible beings which God created was
LIGHT! Light is the great beauty and
blessing of the universe. In the born
again/new creation the first thing wrought in the soul is light…the blessed
Spirit captivates the will and affections by enlightening the
understanding…begun the ‘light of the world’.
In Gen. 1:14 God created
the lights/sun and moon to govern and to mark seasons, days, and years.
What about the objection that a perfect God would not make a world
that was "formless and void." This charge loses its force when one
considers the creation account itself. God
converted the uninhabitable land into a land fit for man. He was not seeking to
reverse it from a chaotic state. This is the point Isaiah 45:18 supports by
presenting habitation. The sequence in Isaiah
45:18 parallels that of Genesis 1. There is movement from an earth unfit to
live in (Gen. 1:2 = Isa. 45:18a) to the finished product, to be inhabited by
man (Gen. 1:3-31 Isa. 45:18b). “For thus
says the Lord Who created the heavens, God Himself Who formed the earth and
made it, Who established it and created it not a worthless waste; He formed it
to be inhabited: I am the Lord, and there is no one else.
One could also ask why God did not
make the universe perfect with one command. He surely could have done so. And yet there
was a progression, for He spent six days changing the state described in
Genesis 1:2 into the world as it is now known. One quote states: "That God should create
disorganized matter, only to reduce it to order, presents no more of a problem
than does His taking six days to complete creation instead of instantaneously
producing a perfected universe."
For us to attempt to explain God and His acts is like attempting to dip
the Pacific Ocean into a bucket with a thimble.
We might see the significance of
the process: Unsaved – darkness…empty =
disorder, confusion and every evil work..empty of all good for it is without
God. The Spirit MOVED first.
God FORMED, God FILLED
God had formed the sky and filled
it with heavenly luminaries and flying birds.
He had formed the seas and filled the waters with various aquatic
creatures. Creation reaches its climax
when on the 6th day He filled the land with animal life and then
created the first man who with his wife would have dominion over the earth and
its creatures.
Like the first man, the animals
were formed out of the dust of the ground 2:7 which explains why the bodies of
both humans and animals go back to the dust after death. However, humans and animals are different. No matter how intelligent some animals may
appear to be, not how much they are taught, animals are not endowed with the
‘image of God ‘ as are humans.
BLESSING: V. 22
TRINITY: V. 26 Let US…in OUR image, after OUR
likeness!
FOOD: Plants v. 29
later: 9:3 ‘anything that
moves’/with conditions
HELP MEET: (suitable, adapted, completing) for him
THE SEVENTH DAY 2:1-3 In answer to the ? “If you could have been at
any Biblical event, what would you choose…one man’s answer: “I would like to have been present when God
finished His creation. It must have been
an awesome sight!”
The first Sabbath did not take
place because God was tired from all His creative work, because God doesn’t get
weary. God set apart the 7th
day because His work of creation was finished and He was pleased and satisfied
with what He had created. 1:31
1) No mention of evening and morning
were the 7th day! 2) No
record that He blessed any of the other six days, but He did bless this 7th
day. In blessing it, He made it a
blessing. 3) He sanctified the 7th
day ‘set it apart’ for His own special purposes.
Jehovah is the God of time as well
as the Lord of eternity. It was He who
created time and established the rotation of the planets and their orgits
around the sun. It
was He Who marked out the 7-day
week and set aside one day for Himself.
Every living thing that God has created lives a day at a time!!!
The first Christian believers met
daily for worship and fellowship but they also gathered together on the 1st
day of the week, the day of Christ’s resurrection from the dead. The 1st day was known as ‘the
Lord’s day”.
The Jewish Sabbath symbolizes the
old creation and the covenant of law, first you work, then you rest. The first day of the week…the Lord’s Day,
symbolizes the New Creation and the Covenant of Grace: first you
believe in Christ and find rest, and then you work. In the New Creation, God’s Spirit enables us
to make the entire week an experience of worship, praise and service to the
glory of God. The Jewish Sabbath law was
fulfilled by Christ on the cross and is no longer binding on God’s people. Gal. 4:1-11, Col 2:16-17 [Some believers may choose to honor the
Sabbath Day “as unto the Lord,” and Christians are not to judge or condemn one
another in this matter.]
2:1-3 God saw that all He had
created was GOOD and then HE set apart a day of rest…for HIS honor
Several important facts must be
noted about the origin of humans:
1. We were created by God. We are not the products of some galactic
accident nor are we the occupants of the top rung of an evolutionary
ladder. God made us which means we are
creatures and wholly dependent on Him.
“For in Him we live, and move, and have our being.” Acts. 17:28.
It is very important that we teach our children their
origin!!! Psalm 139 If anyone thinks
that they are an animal, then they believe that everyone is an animal and will
be comfortable in treating others as an animal…”a dog eat dog world!”
2. We are created in God’s image. Unlike the angels and the animals, humans can
have a very special relationship with God.
He not only gave us personality—minds to think with, emotions to feel
with, and wills for making decisions—but He also gave us an inner spiritual
nature that enables us to know Him and worship Him. The image of God in men and women has been
marred by sin…Eph.4:18-19. But through
faith in Christ and submission to the work of the Holy Spirit, believers can
have the divine nature renewed within them.
3. We were created to have dominion
over the earth. He gave us the earth. Psa. 115:16
Our 2nd Adam redeemed what the 1st Adam lost
through his disobedience (SIN). Hebrews
2:5
4. Our wonderful Savior deserves our
worship, praise and obedience. When we
bow at meals to thank Him for the food He provides, when we see the sunshine
and the rain provided at no expense to us, and when we watch the progress of
the seasons, we should lift our hearts to praise the Creator for His
faithfulness and generosity.
5. We must be good stewards of
creation. This means we should respect
our fellow human beings who are all made in the image of God. It means appreciating the gifts we have in
creation and not wasting or exploiting them.
We must accept creation as a gift, guard it as a precious treasure and
invest it for the glory of God.
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