Well, you can open your Bibles to the first verse of the Bible, Genesis 1 verse 1. That is the opening chapter of the Bible at verse 1. I will read chapter 2 verse 3 to set the context. Let us begin.
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void. And darkness was over the face of the deep. And the spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
And God said, let there be light. And there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness.
God called the light day and the darkness he called night. And there was evening and there was morning the first day. And God said, let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters and let it separate the waters from the waters. And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse.
And it was so. And God called the expanse heaven. And there was evening and there was morning the second day. And God said, let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place.
And let the dry land appear. And it was so. God called the dry land earth and the waters that were gathered together he called seas. And God saw that it was good.
And God said, let the earth sprout vegetation. plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth. And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
And there was evening and there was morning the third day. And God said, Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and for years. And let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.
And it was so. And God made the two great lights, the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night and the stars. And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.
And there was evening and there was morning the fourth day. And God said, let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens. So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on earth. And there was evening and there was morning the fifth day. And God said, let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds, livestock and creeping things, and beasts of the earth according to their kinds. And it was so.
And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds, and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them.
And God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. And God said, Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit, you shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food. And it was so.
And God saw everything that he made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.
So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation." Well, let us pray. Dear Heavenly Father, the maker of heaven and earth, the one who deserves glory and praise and honor from your creatures, God, forgive us when we do not do that. Forgive us when we do not honor you, Lord God. We just pray that that would change, Lord God, that we would give honor and praise to you for what you have done, both physically and spiritually, Lord God.
We just thank you so much for the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. that he lived, died, and rose again, Lord, that he fulfilled your perfect and holy law, God. We just appreciate that so much. We thank you that he died as that perfect sacrifice on the behalf of sinners, Lord God. We just give you praise and honor for that.
Help us to take heart in that, to be cheerful in that, knowing that our sins are forgiven in the Lord Jesus Christ, God. I just thank you so much for your daily provisions, Lord God. I know in my own heart I forget to praise you for that. I pray that you would forgive me of that, Lord God, for you grant many blessings to us, just little blessings.
Help us to see that in the work of creation. Help us to see your goodness, see your wisdom, and see your power, Lord God. in the work of creation, how you form the world in six days. And we just appreciate that so much. Forgive me of my pride, Lord God.
Forgive me of my arrogance. I pray that you would increase this day and that I would decrease, Lord God. We pray that at this time you would be glorified. I pray that the saints would be edified, and I pray that sinners would be saved this day, Lord God.
I pray that you forgive us all of our sins, help us to cast them upon the Lord Jesus Christ, and help us to think rightly concerning who you are as the great majestic creator. We pray all these things in your name, Lord God. Amen.
Catechism Study
Well, question 11 of our Baptist Catechism asks, what are the decrees of God? The answer is this. The decrees of God are his eternal purpose, according to the counsel of his will, by which for his own glory he has foreordained whatever comes to pass. The primary proof text that's found in the catechism for this statement is in the book of Ephesians, where the apostle Paul praises the triune God for this sovereign plan.
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory." Question 12 then asks, how does God execute His decrees? And the answer is God executes his decrees in the works of creation and in the works of providence. That is, to steal the words of Pastor Greg Nichols, what God plans in eternity comes to pass in history. And this certainly includes creation.
And that's what question 13 talks about. What is the work of creation? The work of creation is God's making all things out of nothing by the word of His power in the space of six days in all very good. I think our confession in chapter four, paragraph one, amplifies this answer very well.
It highlights each person of the Trinity and the divine attributes that are manifested in the work of creation.
Confession Study
In the beginning, it pleased God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for the manifestation of the glory of His eternal power, wisdom, and goodness to create or make the world and all things therein, whether visible or invisible, in the space of six days and all very good." Now, both in secularism and unfortunately in Christian circles, this traditional definition of the origins of the world have been challenged by both the scholarly folk and the laity alike. Biblical ex nihilo cosmogony. Cosmogony just simply means origins of the world, how the world was formed, how the world started. This biblical form is usually exchanged primarily for Big Bang evolutionary cosmogony.
And usually this idea or this deviance can be traced back to a person's, I'm sorry I'm using big words, but epistemic authority. Epistemic authority just means how you know what you know. how you understand, what are the grounds for the things that you think of or the thoughts that you have. And so I'm just trying to say right now that this plays a huge part in what one person thinks. Some prefer to use senses as their source, others use their mind.
Unfortunately, some use their feelings, and others prefer to be told through divine revelation. And I think most of us in this room probably resonate with the last one. I'm not saying the other ones are bad, but the other ones, when they trump Holy Scripture, that's when it becomes inappropriate and wrong. And this is the position I hold is through divine revelation.
The Bible certainly is my epistemic authority, since it is the inspired, infallible, inerrant word of God, and as we shall see, its claims are quite contrary to modern thought. Thus, according to Scripture, creation is a supernatural act of God, as opposed to a natural process in which He formed the world according to His good pleasure and everything in it, in six literal 24-hour days to manifest His wisdom, his power and goodness, in order that he alone might be glorified."
Introduction
With this doctrine in mind, let us look specifically at the opening verse of the Bible. I just want to make just one or two comments concerning the book of Genesis itself. As most of you know, it's the first book of the Bible and the first book of the Old Testament. It's also the first book of the Torah, which simply means the law of God, or the Pentateuch, I think one commentary highlights the importance of the placement of Genesis in the Bible.
Gordon Wenman says this, the narratives in Genesis teach ethics and theology just as much do the laws and theological sermons found elsewhere in the Pentateuch. And for this reason, these also belong to the Torah. And as we shall see, God certainly is the rightful lawgiver as the creator of the world, and certainly as the rightful lawgiver, His law should be. be followed and we should take heed of it. The opening three chapters can be outlined in this way.
I call the first part cosmic creation or the creation of the world in general in Genesis 1 verse 1 to 2 verse 3. Then what I call anthropological creation is found in the rest of Genesis chapter 2. And then we have the fall of mankind into sin in Genesis chapter 3. So let's look again now at the actual first verse.
I find Matthew Henry's comment on this verse most encouraging. He states that the first verse of the Bible gives us a surer and better, a more satisfying and useful knowledge of the origin of the universe than all the volumes of the philosophers. Genesis 1.1 is the topic sentence for the rest of the creation account. It gives us the time of the event, the active agent in it, how he did and what it is he did.
And then Genesis 1.2 to chapter 2.3 expounds this opening verse a little bit more specifically. Now to highlight more how the authors writing this narrative, I just want to make a few comments concerning biblical narratives in general. I'm going to go into a little bit of Hebrew here, but I think it's helpful to see, and it's something that the English really doesn't tell us a whole lot about. And yes, I said narrative, because Genesis 1 is a narrative, and it's very clear with the thing I'm about to say.
There's a relationship between two certain verbal forms, and you wouldn't see it in an English reading. We have God created, something that has happened in the past. And then in verse 3, we have God saying. He said.
They look like they're the same verbal form in English, but they are not. The one in verse 3 is the one that's quite actually most important. The one in verse 3 actually is something called the past narrative. And what this verbal form does is it typically is used in past time narrative to highlight a sequence of events going on in narrative.
And when you understand the relationship between he created and he said, you see first of all that the past narrative is highlighting the foreground of the narrative. This is what the author wants you to see. So that being said, Genesis 1 verses 1 and 2 actually are the background building up to verse 3. And as we'll see, he sets the stage in verse 1.
And usually in storytelling, It's usually what happens. People introduce the characters, introduce the setting, then introduce, and then they go into the plot of the story. And this is exactly what's going on here. And with that said, the past narrative, he said, permeates the book of the opening chapter of Genesis.
It's there, it's clear, it's a narrative. That's what Moses wants you to see. And he wants you to see how God creates the universe. And we will see that in just a moment.
When God Created the World
This brings us, first of all, to when God created the world. This is some top-notch exegesis here. In the beginning. In the beginning.
And usually when we hear the word beginning, we usually equate it with the commencement or starting of something, do we not? And this is exactly how it's used in the rest of the Bible. In Jeremiah 26 verse 1, 27 verse 1, and 28 verse 1. Jeremiah introduces his prophecy by announcing the setting in which he's prophesying.
He says, in the beginning of the reign of various kings. And usually what are we thinking? It's the start of the reign of various kings. Again, relating to this story idea.
When we hear once upon a time, naturally bells go off in our minds, telling us that the tale is about to begin. And we're excited and we're ready. Same thing in a race, when the judge shouts, on your mark, get set, go! It's time to go.
So what I'm trying to say, it's really quite clear that the world had a beginning. It was not eternal, it is temporal. And certainly the predicate of Genesis 1 highlights what it is that begins the heavens and the earth, but we will get to that in just a moment. Oh, excuse me.
Who Created the Heavens and Earth
Now let's look now at who did it. Who created the heavens and the earth? Shocker. God.
God created the heavens and the earth. It did not start with a big bang. It wasn't the god of deism who just decided to start the world through evolutionary process and then step back for a little while It was carefully and thoughtfully crafted by the true and living God. And the term used, I'm going to spend some time on this, but I think it's a beautiful term that Moses employs when he talks about God in this.
The term used is Elohim. The term used is Elohim. And it is a plural form that is used countless times in the opening of Genesis. Again, what does the author want you to see?
I think I counted 29 times in the opening chapter of Genesis. God did it. It wasn't evolution. I didn't come forth from this pulpit.
I didn't pop out of a fish. God handcrafted mankind, the first man at the beginning, and through procreation has formed us each in his womb in a special way. And I think, as I'll get to in a moment, it will highlight the dignity of mankind. Now, there is a bit of a discrepancy from among the commentators concerning where Elohim comes from.
As I've said, it is a plural form of the word God, but where it comes from, there's a little bit of debate. Matthew Henry thinks it comes from the word L. Now I know you've all heard the word L before because it's in my name. Mike L, who is like the Lord.
And don't worry all you Mikes out there, it's a question, not a statement concerning your godliness. It's more to point you to the one who is the Lord. So with that said, there's El, which highlights might or strength. Matthew Henry seemed to think it refers to might or strength.
Certainly the one who created the world must be mighty and strong. But I think I tend to lean with some of our other brothers, especially John Gill, concerning where it actually comes from. It actually comes from the word Eloah, which is a derivative from the word Ala, meaning to worship, to adore, to be stunned or smitten with fear. One of the lexicons defines it as to go to and fro in perplexity or fear.
And even to further this idea of majesty, of one who is to be feared, of one who is sovereign, One grammarian defines this plural form of the word as a plural of respect. It is a plural word that refers to a single, honorable, or fearful object or person. A single, honorable, fearful object or person. And it is usually used with a singular verb.
And that's how it is here. God created. The one who is to be worshipped. The one who is to be glorified.
The One who is to be magnified created the heavens and the earth. That's what the author wants you to see. The majestic nature of the One who shapes the heavens and the earth and who glory should be given to. Many of us know the covenant term Yahweh, which is actually found in Genesis 2 verse 5, I believe.
I'm just going to double check to make sure I get that right. 2 verse 5. Sorry, 2 verse 4. These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created in the day that the Lord God, Yahweh Elohim, made the heavens and the earth. But we primarily know it in Exodus 3.14, which is the well-known burning bush account where God speaks with Yahweh for the first time.
And certainly that is more of a covenant term. It's used more specifically with Israel. Elohim has more of a cosmic or universal flair to it. Scholar Gordon Wenham states that Elohim implies that God is the sovereign creator of the whole universe, not just Israel's personal God.
Unbelievers pay attention here. This is concerning you as well. You are supposed, as believers are, to give praise and honor to the one to whom it's due. To whom it's due.
That's what Moses is trying to get at. It's not just for the people of Israel, but even for the people of Israel saying, look, worship this one, follow his laws, trust in him, glorify him. Glorify Him. Now, some commentators have speculated Elohim being a plural term if it highlights the Trinity in it.
Some have said yes, some have said no, but certainly the rest of the Bible indicates that God created, that the Triune God was involved in the creation of the world. Yes, Triune God. Excuse me for a moment. There we go.
Forgive me.
The Triune God in Creation
Let's look at the Father first of all. The book of Hebrews opens up the treaties on the supremacy of Christ by highlighting how the Father created the world through the Lord Jesus Christ. Notice how God and the Son, the Father and the Son, are mentioned in tandem with one another, highlighting a distinction between the two persons of the Godhead. The Apostle writes, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom he also created the world.
So we see the Father involved in creation. Now the second person, the Son. The Son is also attributed in the work of creation. And certainly in the opening chapter of the fourth gospel, the Apostle John actually borrows language that is similar to Genesis 1.
Actually, if you read the Septuagint, which is the Greek translation of the Old Testament, it's identical. in the beginning. That's what John wants you to see. He wants you to see the preeminence of the Lord Jesus Christ in the beginning. In the beginning was the Word.
And the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All were created through Him, and not a thing was created without Him in all things He created. All were created through Him, and not a thing was created without Him in all the things created.
The Apostle Paul also sets forth the preeminence of the Lord Jesus Christ in Colossians 1, verses 15 and 16. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities, all things were created through him and for him. And the Spirit is mentioned in Genesis 1 verse 2.
And the Spirit of God hovered over the face of the deep. The Spirit of God was hovering, was brooding over the face of the primeval waters. Amidst the earth's chaos and darkness, the Spirit of God is hovering, prepped and ready to form and shape it. Listen to Matthew Henry.
Now there is hope concerning this thing, for the spirit of God begins to work. And if he work, who or what shall hinder? God is said to make the world by his spirit. Psalm 33, six, which we read this evening, Job 26 verse 13.
And by the same mighty work, the new creation is affected. As Henry has said, Job 26 indicates the Spirit's involvement as well. And certainly if the above passages do not evidence the Trinitarian creative act, Genesis 1 verse 26 may shed some light on the threeness of the Godhead, the three persons of the Godhead. As I've already said, Elohim is generally used with a singular verb, but in Genesis 1 verse 26, a first person plural verb is used, us.
Us, when it comes to the creation of man. Let us create man in our image. There is a oneness in essence, but threeness in function, and this is evidence in creation. All three persons of the Godhead are involved in the wonderful act of creating the heavens and the earth.
God as Rightful Lawgiver
I just want to draw out some lessons concerning the one who created it. The One who created it certainly is the rightful governor of it. He is the rightful law giver. His laws abound.
His laws are the ones that should be followed. His laws are the ones that should be followed. I certainly have already quoted Gordon Wenham on the place of Genesis in the Pentateuch, but I actually want to further enhance this idea. He's commenting on the form and structure of Genesis chapter 1, and it actually was very eye-opening for myself, and I just think I'd like to share it with you.
Genesis 1 is characterized by a number of recurrent formulae. First of all, the announcement of the commandment, and God said. Secondly, there's order. Let there be.
Thirdly, there's fulfillment formula. And it was so. Fourthly, there's an execution formula or description of the act. And God made.
There's an approval. Fifthly, there's an approval formula. God saw that it was good. Sixthly, subsequent divine word, either of meaning or blessing.
Seventhly, is the mention of days. Even the prophet Isaiah says something concerning Israel's Lord. For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king. He will save us.
Who is the giver of the law in Exodus 20 at Sinai? There is only one law in this universe, and it is the Lord's. And Moses is trying to highlight that, not just for Israel, but for everyone. Elohim is the one who should be worshipped by all of humanity.
God as Proper Object of Worship
And this brings us to my second lesson drawing out of the idea of God is the proper object of worship. The fact that God is the active agent in creation indicates something about where we should direct our praise and our adoration. Certainly when a builder is building a custom home, he consults the homeowners about what they want done in their home. Should it not be the same for the house of the Lord?
Should we not consult the Lord God Most High about He wants to be worshipped? Listen to Gil's words concerning this idea, this meaning of Elohim and its focus on worship. The word used is Elohim. He's one of the brothers who I consulted concerning the idea of where Elohim comes from.
The word used is Elohim, which some derive from another, which signifies power, creation, beginning and active almighty power. but it is rather to be derived from the root in the Arabic language, which signifies to worship, God being the object of all religious worship and adoration. And very properly does Moses make use of this appellation here, to teach us that he who is the creator of the heavens and the earth is the sole object of worship. As he was of the worship of the Jewish nation, at the head of which Moses was. I used to attend a church where our regulative principle of worship really wasn't taken into account.
If the Bible did not forbid a certain act in the house of the Lord, then it was permissible. But this is really not what the Bible says, is it? It's what God prescribes. That's how we are to conduct ourselves in the house of the Lord. and it's preaching the Word of God, preaching the truth.
What's one of the criteria for being a pastor in Titus chapter 1? It's you must hold fast to the trustworthy Word as taught, that you may give instruction in sound doctrine and rebuke those who contradict it. Rebuke those who contradict it. We're supposed to do what the Lord God prescribes.
Let me ask you, what is the sin of Jeroboam in 1 Kings chapter 12? You can turn to 1 Kings chapter 12. I would like you to see this. 1 Kings chapter 12 at verse 26. Let's listen to his thoughts.
And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now the kingdom will turn back to the house of David, if this people go up to offer sacrifices in the temple of the Lord at Jerusalem. Then the heart of this people will turn again to their Lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah. At this time, the nation of Israel had split into Israel and Judah. Rehoboam in the south, king of Judah, and Jeroboam in the north.
And they will kill me and return to Rehoboam, king of Judah. So the king took counsel and made two calves of gold. And he said to the people, you have gone up to Jerusalem long enough. Behold, your gods, O Israel. brought you up out of the land of Egypt, and he set one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan.
Then this thing became a sin, for the people went as far as Dan to be before one. He also made the temples on high places, and appointed priests from among all the people who were not of the Levites. And Jeroboam appointed a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the feast that was in Judah, and he offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he made.
And he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he made. He went up to the altar that he had made in Bethel in the fifteenth day in the eighth month, in the month he had devised from his own heart. And he instituted a feast for the people of Israel, and went up to the altar to make offerings." What does the Lord prescribe in the book of Deuteronomy? Go to the place that I have chosen.
What's Jeroboam doing here? For political reasons? He's setting up two different worship sites. I believe, if I could be wrong, but I believe one was at the one edge of the country and the other was at the other edge of the country.
That way, people from Israel didn't have to go to Judah to worship. And certainly this sin is repeated throughout the rest of the Kings. This thought, this idea, is repeated throughout the rest of the book of the Kings. The idea is, usually when they think of the kings of Israel, when they describe the king, they announce who he is, how long his reign was, his relationship before the Lord, whether he did evil in the sight of the Lord, or whether he did what was right in the sight of the Lord.
And then the author amplifies that a little more, saying he either took down the high places, or he did not take down the high places. Worship is a prevalent thing throughout the Bible, both the beginning, in the middle, and in the end. And even before the Apostle Paul condemns homosexuality in the opening chapter of Romans, he highlights the greater problem, which is what? Idolatry.
They worshipped and served the creature rather than the creator. They worshipped and served the creature rather than the creator. Do you know what the best remedy for idolatry is? And this is for Christians as well when we become idolatrous.
The best remedy for idolatry is theology. Studying who our God is. Doesn't the Apostle Paul say this in Colossians chapter 3? If you've been raised with Christ, then seek the things that are above, where Christ is, at the right hand of God.
Set your mind on the things that are above, and not on the things of this world." Matthew 6, 33. Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. I don't think it's any wonder that our society, unfortunately, is plunged into homosexuality and abortion. It starts with denying the Creator.
It starts with denying the Creator. Certainly the Lord and His providence is in control, but if we're speaking on a human level and speaking from a biblical level, that's what happened. We denied the Creator. We attributed creation to randomness instead of the wisdom and the beauty of our Lord God Most High.
And He is the one who should be worshipped.
How God Created: Ex Nihilo
Let us look now thirdly at how He did it. He created it. He created the heavens and the earth. I think this is crystal clear.
The word means to create, to shape, or form. Create, to shape, or to form. Which implies what? Ex nihilo, out of nothing, out of nothing.
Calvin, I think, perceptively points out the difference between two certain Hebrew words, to create and to frame. This is Calvin. He moreover teaches by the word created that what before did not exist was now made. For he has not used the term yatsar, which signifies to frame or form, but bara, which signifies to create.
Jesenius provides a further explanation regarding the meaning of yatsar, which is concerning the frame or the shape of man. It means literally to straighten or to make narrow. Barah, on the other hand, means to cut or to carve. It has this idea of creating out of nothing.
And it actually is used only in connection with the Lord God Most High. God created. No other being is attributed with creating but Elohim. But Elohim.
He created things out of nothing. And notice how he does it. He doesn't say, let one organism start and start sprouting forth other organisms till we have fishes coming from little things to goats to pigs to humans. It doesn't work that way.
It doesn't happen that way. God spoke. Genesis 1 verse 3 God said as I've said this is what Moses is This is the foreground of the narrative God said let there be let there be light and this highlights the power of our God This idea of speaking is found in verse 3, verse 6, verse 9, verse 11, verse 14, verse 20, verse 24, verse 26, and verse 29. God said, the point is clear.
He spoke and it was so. Let's think about something. Can you utter a word and have it come to pass? Can you want something right away and it happens for you?
Not at all. I would like some steak right now. I can't just say I just want some steak. It just doesn't work that way.
Only the Lord God Most High has that power. Omnipotence is an attribute only the divine one possesses, and it is on full display in the inauguration of creation. He just spoke. He just uttered.
He just said. Sometimes we read that so quickly and we don't stop to ponder that. His majesty, his brilliance, and his power involved in it is just mesmerizing. It's just mesmerizing indeed.
And certainly, as we see that his power involved in it, it is a wretched thing to deny creation to the one who actually authored it. In our society, plagiarism is a major no-no. Is that not correct? Serious consequences actually arise from cheating, copying, or presenting your work as your own.
I remember in grade 10 socials class, my teacher told us a story that drilled home the idea of cheating and how bad it was. A professor was marking some papers one day. And while he was marking this one male student's paper, something fishy was in his mind concerning this paper. Bells were going off and he realized he had read this paper before.
He reached back into his archives and found the paper of a female student. And it turns out she had copied that from somewhere else. And by this time, she had moved up, graduated from her bachelor, got her bachelor's degree, graduated, and was studying at the University of Hawaii. Word came to the University of Hawaii concerning her plagiarism.
And it turns out that her undergrad institution revoked her bachelor's degree. And because they revoked her bachelor's degree, she was no longer eligible to be a student at the University of Hawaii. Her academic endeavors crushed by cheating. And certainly, most of us in this room would think serves her right.
Let's be honest. A lot of us would think that way. Yet when people commit a cosmic plagiarism, it is somehow legit. Let me tell you, it is not okay.
And I tell you this, this doctrine will most definitely come back to haunt those who worship and serve the creature rather than creator. I know I'm being harsh, I'm being mean, but it's just the reality. Hear the polemical statement of Matthew Henry. Atheism is folly, and atheists are the greatest fools in nature.
For they see there is a world that could not make itself, and yet they will not own there is a God that made it." Doesn't the Bible say this in Psalm 14? The fool says in his heart, there is no God. And let's muse for a moment philosophically concerning this idea of atheism. When someone makes a negative statement, what are they claiming?
Are they not claiming omniscience to a certain degree? For an example, if I'm trying to search for my wife in this church, I must search the entire church. Say I look in the fellowship hall and realize she's not there, I can make that negative statement, she's not there. I would have to have searched the entirety of the fellowship hall to make that statement.
What's an atheist saying? They've searched the universe and there is no God. That is simply not the case. God is the one who created it.
And sometimes I think God just made the world ginormous to demonstrate his infiniteness, just to show us how big he is and how really little and insignificant we really are. how insignificant we really are. He has no limits, and we certainly do. He has no limits, and we certainly do.
What God Created: Heavens and Earth
Let us look now at what it is he created in the beginning. So we've seen his powerful act, and now let us look at what he did. The text reads, the heavens and the earth. The heavens and the earth.
The word for heavens actually can be rendered sky as well, but usually heavens and earth coupled together means the whole of creation. One commentator says that on their own, each word has a more focused meaning, heavens being the dwelling place of the Lord, while earth refers to man's home. In Egyptian, Akkadian, and Ugaritic texts, heaven and earth may also be used to denote the universe. Heavens and earth simply means the created order, what we see, what we touch, what we taste, That's what it's referring to, the order and the shaping of the universe as a whole.
And I think the rest of the cosmic creation, up to 2 verse 3, highlights this very much so. It highlights this idea in day 1. We see day 1, first of all, he what? He created light.
Days 1, 2, and 4, we see the Lord placing things within the heavens. In days three, five, and six, God works with the earth. Thus, as I've said already, heavens and earth refer to those things which the eye of man can see the whole universe. Isn't that beautiful?
I just actually love day four. Day four. And God said, at verse 14, let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days.
And let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth. And it was so. And God made the two great lights, the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night, and the stars. We can look up and see the stars and know that our God created it on day four.
And he just uttered it. I just still am blown away by that. I think this idea of heavens and earth highlights something about the temporality of the world. The earth is temporary.
The world and universe was not eternal, but had a beginning, and it was created by God. Some say verse 2 may indicate that the earth was eternal because there's no explicit explanation on how the world necessarily was created. It just says the earth was without form and void. But certainly, verse 1 helps us presuppose that the earth was without form and void on the first day.
Even verse 5 says there was evening and there was morning the first day. The world is temporal. It was created on day one by Elohim. And just an aside, some have posited that day doesn't necessarily mean literal 24-hour day.
They're wrong. I'm just going to tell you that right off the bat. Day just means literal 24-hour day. Yom is day.
It's primarily used for that. And sometimes we have thick skulls. And thankfully, the lexicons that I've consulted and the major lexicons used in Hebrew even give you a verse reference. So they say literal 24-hour day and they have Genesis 1 verse 5 right there.
So that's helpful to know, right? It is a literal 24-hour day. And certainly when I say day, I hope you're having a good day. I don't mean a thousand years.
I mean, I hope you have a good day today. And certainly, the temporality of the world highlights something about the eternality of our God. The eternality of our God. Verse 1 presupposes this.
In the beginning, God. There was a time when we were not, there was a time when the world was not, but there has never been a time when God was not. What does the rest of scripture say concerning this? The psalmist says in Psalm 90 verse 2, before the mountains were brought forth, or you form the world by your hand, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
And the Apostle highlights this as well in 1 Timothy 1 verse 17. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. Does this highlight even more the majesty of our God and our King?
So he is, the world is temporal, God is eternal, And there's one more lesson I want to draw out from this idea, two more lessons I want to draw from this idea of heavens and earth.
God's Wisdom and Goodness in Creation
I think it highlights the wisdom and the goodness of our God. The wisdom and the goodness of our God. Listen to this statement again. I really like Matthew Henry considering this section.
He had a lot of great statements and here's another one. The world is a great house consisting of upper and lower stories, the structure stately and magnificent, uniform and convenient, and every room well and wisely furnished. And is this not true of the created order? Look at the correlating structures in the days.
Day one, he creates light. Day four, the signs as lights in the world. Day two, sky and seas. Day five, inhabitants of the skies and the seas.
Day three, the land. And day six, the inhabitants of that land. And should, look at, the wisdom is just brilliant. And should this not, for us, be a model in our daily lives?
Shouldn't we use our noggins just a little bit? We have been created in the image of God. in righteousness, in holiness, and in knowledge. Unfortunately, in our mystical age, the Church and the world rely on feelings as their source of knowledge instead of using our minds. So this serves as a reminder for us to stop and think for a moment, to ponder, and sit down just quietly.
I don't care when you do it, just do it. It is sometimes it's as if what is not logical is right just for that reason alone. Is that not true? Well, it doesn't make any sense.
So? Use your head! And unfortunately, this is very much true in the Christian circles. It's a denial or disregard for the providential work of God." Again, Henry highlighting the relationship between creation and providence.
The creator could have made his work perfect at first, but by his gradual preceding, he would show what is ordinarily the method of his providence and his grace. What is ordinarily the method of His providence and grace?" God normally works through historical means. I don't know sometimes what's going to happen in the future. I should just still, like, the Lord's leading and guiding.
He'll shut doors and open doors through historical means. I don't have to sit down and set the mood and fill my mind with spiritual, and we should fill our mind with spiritual things, but just to create a trance that's almost pagan, that is not right. We need to use the mind that the Lord God has given us, and this is certainly, God's wisdom is certainly manifest in this. And certainly, if his wisdom and power do not provoke us to worship, should not his goodness in it.
While I was reading Stephen Charnock's The Existence and the Attributes of God, That Puritan pastor enlightened my mind concerning his goodness and how it relates to creation. In my own selfishness, it never occurred to me that the whole act of creation, while it certainly is to demonstrate the glory of God, It's really for us. It's really for us. Notice Genesis 1 verse 29 and 30. 1 verses 29 and 30.
And God said, speaking to man, Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. Not only that, he gave us light!
We can see things. I just find that just mesmerizing. The Lord God gave us light. He gave us things that we can see.
He gave us things that we can hear. Good things that are pleasing to our mind. And even in creation, He gave us a day of rest. You know, we have it pretty cushy in our day and age.
We get two days off. It's really supposed to be just one, but praise the Lord in His goodness and His kindness, He does give us two in our day. And certainly even for us in North America, with the modern conveniences that we have. I was musing with my wife the other day.
I just don't know how you can have a camera looking at me right now and recording exactly what I'm doing. Like, that's just mind-blowing. Maybe, Jonathan, you can explain it to me after, but I just find that amazing. Or the idea that we can sit in our cars and drive distances.
Like, sometimes we just forget God's goodness in the little things. Even in that wonderful poem, roses are red, violets are blue. He gave us variety. What does He say in creation?
Each according to its kind. He could have made it dull, He could have made it boring, but He made it pleasing. He made it good. He made it wonderful.
And He saw that it was good. And this is just an example of some little pleasures that God gives us in His goodness. And certainly His wisdom, His power, and His goodness should cause us to praise and thank Him.
The Dignity of Mankind
This brings us to, I think, my last lesson before I recap and close. The dignity of man. The dignity of mankind. Isn't it honoring to know that we were created in the image of God?
Does ever evolution offer this sort of dignity? You see, when my sister and I were kids and a nature show about gorillas came on, my dad would joke by saying, hey kids, look, there's your cousins. Of course he was joking. It was all in good fun.
But isn't this kind of true when it comes to evolution? You can kind of go fishing and catch your cousin and then eat him. That's just kind of weird in my mind. It's almost like a form of cannibalism, which is kind of weird.
You know what I'm saying? There is no dignity coming forth from a fish. But how wonderful knowing it is that we were formed and shaped in the image of God. Thanks be to Him that we were shaped in knowledge, in righteousness, and in holiness.
And as I've said already, Genesis 1, verse 26, there's that shift, let us make man in our image. The entirety of the Godhead is involved in that, and certainly the idea of image is involved in the institution of capital punishment in Genesis 9, 6. For man was created in the image of God. That is an important thing to our Lord God Most High, and praise Him that we have dignity in Him.
Application
And certainly, to recap, we see the extraordinary act of God calling things out of nothing into being. We observe His power, His wisdom, and His goodness in it. He did it in the beginning of time, according to His most wise and holy counsel, for the glory of His name. And this doctrine highlights his rightful place as the sovereign king, the rightful lawgiver, and the proper object of our worship.
Moreover, God's goodness is especially prevalent in creating man in his image, explicating our dignity. And certainly, although this doctrine is a discussion on the creation of the physical universe, it has implications for redemption. We know that after God created the world and everything in it, He placed Adam and Eve in the garden and commanded them not to eat from one tree. They could eat from every other tree except this one.
Isn't God's goodness manifested here as well? He could have laid down the Ten Commandments right there. Instead, He just says, just don't eat from this one tree. Just don't eat from this one tree.
Unfortunately, we know in Genesis 3 that man disobeyed God, promulgating the world into sin and misery. Thus, man requires a savior, one who can fulfill the laws of the lawgiver in perfection, and one who can die as that perfect sacrifice. And this is promised in Genesis 3.15 right after the fall. It's eventually fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now, unbeliever, you need to take seriously the right view of the doctrine of creation. You need to take seriously this view. The reality is this. The doctrine of creation renders you inexcusable for your rebellious actions against a thrice holy God.
One day, you will stand before the judgment seat of God to give an account for your sin against Him, and He will say to you, The heavens declared my glory. The skies proclaimed my handiwork. My eternal power, my divine nature, have been clearly perceived in creation. Thus, you are without excuse.
You worshipped and served the creature rather than creator. You suppressed the truth in unrighteousness. In unrighteousness. I know again, I know you know that He exists, but you continue to disregard Him, to deny Him, and suppress Him.
Your idolatry is sin. And I may sound harsh, and I may sound mean, but I say these things because I want you to be saved. I love you, and I want you to be saved. I want you to believe on the One who can save you from your sins.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Believe on that One who lived the Law, imperfection. So even though creation renders you without an excuse, as I've said, creation is not sufficient for saving knowledge, which is the need for that special revelatory knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ vis-a-vis the Bible. Come on believer, believe that He is The Lord Jesus is, or you will die in your trespasses and sins, and creation will be the evidence against you.
Let us pray.
Closing Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for this day, Lord. We just thank you for your work in creation, Lord God, how you created it in the space of six days, God, manifesting your immense power, Lord God, and your brilliant wisdom. and your exceptional goodness, Lord God. We just want to praise you for those things, Lord God. Forgive me.
I know that I do not praise you enough for your goodness and your wisdom and your power, Lord God. I thank you for the little blessings that you do give to us, Lord God. Pray that you forgive us all of our sins, Lord God. We pray that we would give you right praise and right honor and right worship concerning that you're the one who created the world, Lord God.
We pray that sinners would be saved, Lord God. that they would see their need for You, the need for the Lord Jesus Christ, and they might look to the Lord Jesus for aid, Lord God. I pray that You would bless us as we go into the world this week. I pray that You would strengthen us, cause us to praise You, to look to You for aid. Sanctify us by Your Spirit, God, that we may walk in Your ways, that we might put on the Lord Jesus Christ this week, Lord God.
And we just want to praise Your glorious name, Lord God, in Your name. Amen.