Creation Day 3

Spring is by far my favorite time of year. It absolutely amazes me how in one week my yard can go from dead, brown and depressing to lush and green. Everything just comes to life. Suddenly the world is painted in bright colors as the azaleas, wisteria, tulips and countless other flowers and trees begin to bloom, and blue jays, robins, and cardinals, become ever more present. Spring is beautiful! Every year it is a fresh miracle to me, and an intense reminder that Creation speaks volumes about it's Creator!

Unfortunately, too often when we study Creation in Scripture we focus on the controversy. I have looked at countless books and commentaries on Genesis and the vast majority focus almost exclusively on how God created the world. Even among Christians there is much debate over the how. Did God really create in 6 literal days or did He use evolution to bring forth life? Were the days actual 24 hours or could they have been ages? Maybe there were ages between the days? There is so much debate over the how that sometimes we seem to miss the miracle, majesty and beauty of God and His creation. It's almost like looking at Leonardo Davinci's Mona Lisa and only seeing the brush strokes, you completely miss the masterpiece.

I told you in the beginning that I would not get into the debate about Creation and evolution. I acknowledge that the debate exists, and I certainly have my own opinions, but that is not what is truly important to me, nor is it the point of this study. God's creation is amazing! Everything that He created hints at it's Creator. Genesis chapter 1 was never meant to be the handbook on how to create life, it is the introduction to the Creator. Today we are going to take the spotlight off the brushstrokes and take a closer look at what Creation tells us about out Creator.


Paul made it clear to the Romans that God's character is visible in His creation.

"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities- His eternal power and divine nature- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." Romans 1:20





Nature declares many of God's attributes. Just look around at you can see that God has a great imagination, He loves variety, and beauty. Science shows us that God uses the smallest of things, the atom (I know string theory has smaller elements but you get the point), as the building blocks for all things and it's more complex then the most complex thing man has ever made. God's wisdom is way beyond ours! Nature shows God to also be omnipotent, omniscient, deliberate, and orderly these three attributes are what we will dig into today.

Our God is omnipotent (all powerful). As we talked about previously, God's creative name, Elohim, conotes eternal power, but it's not just His name that implies this, Creation itself declares it.

"Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere him. For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm." Psalm 33:8, 9

"Praise the LORD from the heavens, praise him in the heights above. Praise him, all his angels, praise him all his heavenly hosts. Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars. Praise him, you highest heavens and you waters above the skies. Let them praise the name of the LORD, for he commanded and they were created." Psalm 148 1-5 (emphasis added)

"You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things and by your will they were created and have their being." Revelation 4:11

God spoke the entire universe into existence! He didn't lift a finger, He didn't strive, He merely spoke and it was done. The power of the ocean, the majesty of the mountains, even the intensity of a storm are nothing compared to the power of God.

Our God is also omniscient (all knowing). Every scientific discovery of our time God knew from the beginning. When Jesus walked the earth He knew the exact temperature of the sun and that the Earth revolved around it. He knew the answer to the most complex math equation, and how the human body functioned. God knows everything including our thoughts and feelings, even the ones we can't put a name to.

"Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give an account." Hebrews 4:13

This is His creation, there is no nook or cranny that is not known to Him. There is no reason to hide from our Creator (even though we sometimes want to) because no one knows us better or cares more for us then our God.

God was deliberate about His creation. He set natural laws in place to govern the weather, the oceans, even animals. He create a world that we could live in and He planned from the beginning a way for us to have a relationship with Him.

"For this is what the LORD says- he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited- he says: "I am the LORD, and there is no other."" Isaiah 45:18

"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.'" Matthew 25:34

God created a planet that was meant to support life, your life. Had the Earth been any closer to the sun it would get too hot, further away and we'd freeze. Our atmosphere blocks out the most harmful of UV rays but lets in just the right amount of heat to sustain life. The Earth is perfectly tilted to encourage crop growth in almost all areas. If the Earth's axis was purely vertical, there would be no seasons and temperatures wouldn't fluctuate. If the tilt was greater, the temperatures would be much more extreme; either way most of the Earth would not be able to produce food to support life. * He planned it all just for us.

God is a God of order. He created in a way that built upwards from chaos to order, laying the foundation to support life before creating life.

"Dominion and awe belong to God; he establishes order in the heights of heaven." Job 25:2

"For God is not a God of disorder but of peace." 1 Corinthians 15:33

What is interesting is that only God can bring order from chaos. The 2nd Law of Thermodynamics is called entropy. The basic idea is that everything decays, that nature left to itself will go from order to chaos to death.** We see this at work in nature as well. The minute you stop mowing your lawn things begin to get wild. Weeds sprout up, vines take over, given over time your beautiful manicured yard will become an overgrown jungle. That's entropy. Life naturally gets worse, not better. God on the other hand took the chaos of Genesis 1:2 and created order.

Take a minute to skim back through Genesis 1:3-31. Notice how God built upward, taking the earth from chaos to order.


God is awesome. His creation shows Him to be awesome. In fact Jesus told the Pharisees that if people didn't recognize the majesty of God then nature itself would cry out praises to the Creator.***

Genesis 1:1-31 is really just the introduction to how awesome God is. It gives us an idea of who God is and why He chose to create. His creation was not about showing off, receiving praise (though He is more then worthy) or because He was bored. God created the universe for us because He wants to love us, to have a relationship with us. He wanted us to be able to recognize Him and want to love Him too. Creation is just the beginning of God's goodness, the introduction to His love letter.

Thank you for joining me this week.

* Gardner, Paul. The New Creationism. Darlington, England. Evangelical Press. 2009. pg. 52-55
** Walter, Jeremy L. "Chapter One" in In Six Day, edited by John F. Ashton. Green Forest, AR. Master Books. 2000. pg. 14
*** Luke 19:40

Creation Day 2

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 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." Genesis 1:1, 2.


I love the Word of God, and it's verses like these that remind me that the Bible is not a book written by men but a love letter written by the hand of God. These two verses that open the entire Scripture are so full of beautiful imagery, mystery, and theology (the study of God)* that I'm pretty sure you could spend a lifetime studying just them. The plain text alone begs a few questions (the beginning of what? Time? Matter? Life? Does a beginning imply an end? How long was the earth formless?), but even the word choices have rich meaning and give a glimpse of our awesome God.

Since it is impossible to fit a lifetime of study into 10 minutes, we're going to focus on 2 important things that God reveals about Himself. First we will see what God reveals about His divine nature in these verses, then we will explore why this is the perfect way for God to begin His love letter.

Genesis is the book of beginnings. It opens the sacred text, offers insight into the beginning of existence, and begins the epic story of God's relationship with mankind. As with any writing the opening statement sets the tone for the whole, and indicates (at least in part) what is most important. The Bible begins with a clear declaration, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." The Hebrew name for God in Genesis 1:1 sets the God of the Bible apart from the pagan gods of other ancient peoples. While in most ancient creation stories the world is created through murder and intrigue among the many gods and yet also forms the boundary in which gods function, Genesis 1:1 declares one universal God that is outside of and not limited by His creation.**

There are many different names for God used in the Bible. The Jews believe that names are more than mere titles or means to address one another;
"The name conveys the nature and essence of the thing named. It represents the history and reputation of the being named."***
The Old Testament in particular uses dozens of different Hebrew words, alone or in combination, as names for God that give insight into God's character and nature. Unfortunately, most modern Bible translations replace the distinct names with more generic ones such as God, Lord, or LORD (there is a huge distinction between Lord and LORD but we'll address that in a later study). In the opening line to Genesis (and the Bible at large) God chose a very specific name for Himself, Elohim.

Elohim is one of the most common names for God in the Old Testament. It implies, "fullness of might; absolute, unqualified, unlimited energy.**** It is often used in the Bible to emphasize God's universal nature and creative power. He is God over all creation and everything that exists was created by Him. Creation did not take any effort of strength, His strength is limitless, it was merely an act of His will.

Sometimes we fall into the habit of thinking of the God of the Bible as the Jewish God, or the Christian God, as though His power and influence is limited only to those that believe in Him, however from the very beginning God declares that He is the God, the only God, His power is unlimited and unequaled. God may have chosen to reveal Himself through Israel, and He relates to those that love Him in a more intimate way, but the name Elohim reminds us that He is universally God, He has no limits.

There is another aspect to the name Elohim that is a bit controversial but bears mentioning. In every dictionary or Bible aid that you could look at Elohim is said to be a plural word (like we) that is used as a singular (like I). Though every reference I looked at agreed that the tense is peculiar the debate surrounds the implications. The question is does the nature of the word imply a triune God (the Trinity), or is that reading too much into a single word. There are valid arguments on both sides and I certainly don't want to imply that I in any way know more than an expert (I am barely capable of diagramming a sentence in English let alone in an ancient foreign language), but I find it intriguing that God would chose such a peculiar word, so we'll quickly explore the possibility.

Throughout the Bible God reveals Himself in three characters, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Each has a distinct nature and function yet they are all fully God (there is no way that I can quickly explain the nature of the Trinity, it is one of the great mysteries of our God, so I will pray that you are at least familiar with the doctrine). Though the Trinity is never explicitly stated, each aspect and its role in the divine nature is woven throughout the entire Bible. In the first two verses of Genesis alone we see clearly both the Father,who created, and the Holy Spirit, who hovered over creation, present. The Gospel of John reveals that Jesus was also present and involved in creation.

"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 had been made." John 1:1-3

We believe (as Christians) in one God who has three parts, not three separate gods. As complex and mysterious as this is, Scripture tells us that it is true. By using a plural name for God in a singular tense it is possible that God was hinting at this Truth of His triune nature from the very beginning.

The name Elohim gives us a glimpse of who our God is from the very beginning, all powerful, creative, and universal, it also gives us a hint as to why God chose to create the universe.

As I mentioned earlier, God did not exert His power to create the world. His power has no limit and the creative act required no more effort from God then if you or I were to draw a picture or read a sentence. It was more an act of will then of strength. God chose to create and then He spoke creation into being.

The fact that God chose to create life is significant. In most ancient religions mankind specifically was created either out of necessity or as a toy. Some pagan gods needed the praise and sacrifice of humanity to give them strength, others desired little more than a fun pastime, toys to pit against each other, or amuse them with their little lives. Scientific theory doesn't even give human life that much meaning. The big bang theory and evolution imply that life was a cosmic accident, there is no meaning.

But in Elohim we have meaning, we have purpose. You were no accident, you were created. You are not here to appease or amuse but to be loved. God wanted a creation He could have a relationship with. A people that He could love and pour Himself out to. You are a manifestation of God's love.

God began His letter to mankind with a simple yet powerful declaration, He created all of it. From the plain text to the definitions of each word God lets us know that He alone is God, and every detail belongs to Him.

Hebrews 11:6 tell us that, "without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him."

* http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/theology
** Arnold, Bill T. Encountering the Book of Genesis. Grand Rapid,MI. Baker Books. 1998. p. 49-51
*** http://www.jewfaq.org/name.htm
**** Cornwall, Judson & Smith Stelman. The Exhaustive Dictionary of Bible Names. North Brunswick, NJ. Bridge-Logos Publishers. 1998. p.82

Creation

You will need your Bible.

You might be thinking that I am crazy to start out with Creation (and you may be right), however I have no intention of getting into all the arguments and controversies about Creation vs. science. There are tons of books and websites wholly dedicated to Creationism and evolution, but that's not what we are going to study here. Remember our goal is to fall in love with the Creator, so we will stick with what Scripture does say and focus not so much on the how but the Who?

Before we get started on our reading for this week I'd like to talk just a little about God's purpose for the Bible. If God had wanted to write a manual on how He created the universe He certainly could have, but He chose not to. Instead He focused only on the things that reveal either something about Himself, or about our relationship with Him, the things that are vital for us to understand so we can have a relationship with Him. It's not the complete history of the universe, it's a love letter from the Creator to His creation. How do I know it's a love letter, well the Bible tells me so.

Let's take a quick look at what the Bible reveals about itself.
Jesus says in John 10:30, "I and the Father are one," and in John 14:18 after declaring Himself the only way to the Father, says that if you have seen Him than you have seen the Father. (There are tons of other scriptures that back up that Jesus and God are one, but I love to use Jesus' own words).
Now lets jump to 1 John 4:8, "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." It's not that God loves, but that He is LOVE. He is the description, the epitome of perfect love! How awesome is that.
So we know that God is love, and that God and Jesus are one, so it would be a safe assumption to say that Jesus is love too. So how does this apply to Scripture? Let's look at John 1:1 & 14. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God." "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us."
Jesus is the Word made flesh. What word? God's Word! Our Bible is the Word of God, Jesus was the Word with flesh on, so if God is love, and Jesus is love than it's reasonable to say that God's Word is love too. It may not always feel like a loving word from a loving Father but it is and that's the lens we will look though to view Creation.

Please read Genesis 1:1-31.

Keep in mind that God wrote this love letter for you.