Notes for January 1, 2012

Reading the final chapters of the Bible, and then reading the opening chapters, sets before us the unity of God’s revelation for we see how in the beginning God created a beautiful place where He could walk with Man, and how in the end God creates a new, beautiful place where He can walk with Man. Milton called it Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained (http://www.sacred-texts.com/chr/milton/index.htm). The latter, eternal Paradise is far different from, and far superior to, the original.

Genesis 1
Without controversy, the Bible teaches that God ordered the creation of heaven and earth and life as we know it. While many argue about how or how long God accomplished this work, none can deny that the Bible teaches that God existed before earth and life on earth, and that He is responsible for Man’s existence.

Further the Bible teaches that this Creator God maintains control over His work and that nature is not an accident and Man is not left to conjure up his own path through life.

If we would understand the origin of the human species and why we are here, then let us begin our reading of Genesis.

1. Six days of creation, with Man being created on the sixth day. Much discussion has taken place about the length of these days. For sure, each of them had an evening and a morning.
2. Whatever else one may say of creation, God declared it to be good.
3. Something should be said about how the various plants and animals were designed to reproduce themselves without the aid of laboratories or human intervention and how life is carried forth in the seed.
4. God spoke that things should be, and it was so. Is that still the case?
5. Our concept of time is based on astronomical bodies and events, verse 14.
6. With plants created one day earlier than the sun, one might wonder how photosynthesis could take place if the creation days were actually thousands or millions of 24-hour days. But then, we know that plants can grow beneath artificial light. With light being created on the first day, it seems that our sun may also just be artificial light.
7. Nothing is stated here about the creation of the suns and moon of other planets; for that matter nothing is said here about God’s creative work relative to any place other than earth.
8. Man (verse 26) is given dominion over all other living creatures. Has God taken that dominion away from Man? (Modern theologians speak of a Cultural or Creation Mandate; and they suggest that Man is still obliged (and gifted) to subdue the earth, verse 28.)
9. Man was created in God’s image. What does this mean? Ephesians 4:24 and Colossians 3:10.
10. Originally Man and animal life was vegetarian (verse 29).
11. It was very good (verse 31). Of course it was. How could it be otherwise?