Genesis 1:1-2 New King James Version
The History of Creation
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness [a]was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
In the Beginning When Everything Was New …
Today marks the beginning of a new year – 2024.
The turn of the year is a time for new things: hopes, dreams, and resolutions about how we’ll live differently now that we’ve turned the page on the calendar.
Once upon a time, the whole world was new.
Out of nothing, God created the heavens and the earth.
In the first two verses of Genesis the Bible describes the process of creation: God spoke, the world came into being.
And what God made was good.
It shone with delightful diversity, reflecting the richness of God’s character.
We do not always see the goodness and brilliance of God’s creation because sin, brokenness obscures our vision and brings decay to what was once brand-new.
Our awareness, our treasured delights in the newness of God’s work wears off.
Resolved: we each need our attention called back to the character of the Creator.
These opening words of Genesis tells us that God can bring goodness out of chaos, and in this way God assures us that the world is firmly in His control.
In the coming new year, these opening words of Scripture will fade to the back of our minds, we will face times when the newness of our January goals wears off, when the brokenness of our lives keeps us from receiving each day as a gift.
When that happens, let’s be resolved to remember that God made all things good, let’s trust that He has the power to make all things new and good again.
First, Foremost, Utmost, Uppermost: King of Creation
Genesis 1:1-2 Amplified Bible
The Creation
1 In the beginning God ([a]Elohim) [b]created [by forming from nothing] the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was [c]formless and void or a waste and emptiness, and darkness was upon the face of the deep [primeval ocean that covered the unformed earth]. The Spirit of God was moving (hovering, brooding) over the face of the waters.
There was never a time when God did not exist.
Before there was time, before there was anything, there was God.
And since His nature is unchanging, so He has also always existed in the Trinity—God the Father, and God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
When reading the Bible, we discover that each member of the Holy Trinity was indelibly involved in creation: God the Father took the initiative, God the Spirit is described as “hovering over” the proceedings, and God the Son was the agent of creation in all that was made (Genesis 1:2-3; John 1:3).
The eloquent hymn “All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small”[1] should leave us in awe; they were all fashioned by God’s command.
1 Cecil F. Alexander, “All Things Bright and Beautiful” (1848).
And He is not only the Creator of all; He is also the Lord of all He has created.
All of nature is in His hands, under His control.
As we see waves crashing against the shoreline, it’s wonderfully encouraging to know each and every one of them is there as a result of God’s sovereign rule.
God entered in and He has not stepped away from His creation, nor will He ever.
It’s so indelibly important for us all to remember that God is also transcendent.
He is on His throne, above, beyond, and distinct from all that He has made.
This is what distinguishes Christianity from pantheism, the idea the natural world is a manifestation of God, therefore everything is somehow a part of Him.
With this belief, we dare not kill a fly or step on an ant because those insects are divine.
Similarly, we should not chop down a tree or eat meat, because these too are “parts of God.”
Teachings like these are mistaken and misguided and tend to lead to idolatry.
Scripture makes it so abundantly clear that time and time again that people will first choose to worship “the creature rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25).
Romans 1:24-25 The Message
24-25 So God said, in effect, “If that’s what you want, that’s what you get.” It wasn’t long before they were living in a pigpen, smeared with filth, filthy inside and out. And all this because they traded the true God for a fake god, and worshiped the god they made instead of the God who made them—the God we bless, the God who blesses us. Oh, yes!
When we see a great painting, we rightly admire and enjoy the painting, and then we praise the painter. All of creation is God’s canvas, and all of it speaks of “his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature” (v 20).
Romans 1:20-23 The Message
Ignoring God Leads to a Downward Spiral
18-23 But God’s angry displeasure erupts as acts of human mistrust and wrongdoing and lying accumulate, as people try to put a shroud over truth. But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse. What happened was this: People knew God perfectly well, but when they didn’t treat him like God, refusing to worship him, they trivialized themselves into silliness and confusion so that there was neither sense nor direction left in their lives. They pretended to know it all, but were illiterate regarding life. They traded the glory of God who holds the whole world in his hands for cheap figurines you can buy at any roadside stand.
Only God is to be worshiped, for creation exists by His power and for His glory.
His existence, Kingship, knows no beginning or end, and He will reign forever.
He is the King of all Creation.
Be it resolved today to praise, honor, worship, exalt Him as He alone deserves.
Go for an extended walk, go for an extended drive, look out of the window open our hearts wide, praise Him as we see His beauty displayed in ALL He has made.
First, foremost, utmost and uppermost, Praise Him, Thank Him as He ALONE continues to rule over His creation, holding you and me in His sovereign hand.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 150 New King James Version
Let All Things Praise the Lord
150 Praise[a] the Lord!
Praise God in His sanctuary;
Praise Him in His mighty [b]firmament!
2 Praise Him for His mighty acts;
Praise Him according to His excellent greatness!
3 Praise Him with the sound of the [c]trumpet;
Praise Him with the lute and harp!
4 Praise Him with the timbrel and dance;
Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes!
5 Praise Him with loud cymbals;
Praise Him with clashing cymbals!
6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
[d]Praise the Lord!
Thank you, Creator God, for your good creation. Open our eyes to see the brilliance and beauty of everything you have made, and to rest securely in the knowledge of your sovereign care for the world you created. In your great name we pray. Amen.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 