Genesis 1:1-2
The Founder
Gen 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Gen 1:2 And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
In the beginning God. First of all, God created the heavens and the earth from no preexisting material. He spoke all materials into being. His sole Presence at the beginning is necessary for production. If you take his Presence out of this passage then there is still nothing and I am not writing anything on my computer. Because nothing exists without Him. John B Phillips adequately remarks about the authenticity of God’s claim as Creator when he said, “If the Holy Spirit cannot be trusted when He tells of creation, how can He be trusted when He tells of salvation? If what He says about earth in Genesis 1 can be questioned, then what He says about heaven in Revelation 22 can be questioned. If the Holy Spirit cannot be trusted in Genesis 1, how can He be trusted in John 3:16?”
God created the heavens and the earth. Not overly descriptive but poignantly accurate. The atheist is infuriated by this text because it assertively announces God’s existence. The polytheist is left speechless with countless wasted deities as the Bible affirmatively reveals a Lone Deity as the reason for all existence. The One who had no beginning gave everything a beginning. His sole preeminence leaves all others beggars.
Notice plurality of heavens and the singularity of earth. Think about it. There are endless stars, galaxies, formations of suns and immeasurable numbers of planets spinning out there in space. And then there is earth. One place in such a vast expanse of materials and mysteries. What would be formed in the earth would be a spiritual reflective of what God would eventually desire to form in the church. The God who formed the earth as we know it out of darkness also forms the believer in that we are “called out of darkness into marvelous light.” (I Peter 2:9) A Universe born was called out of darkness and a church born was called out of darkness. There is no waste in the Word. No void in the blood of the Lamb. No desolation in Grace. A single purpose is seen from the beginning.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary keys in on the redemptive nature of Genesis 1, “The account reveals that God is a redeeming God. It records how He brought the cosmos out of chaos, turned darkness into light, made divisions between them, transformed cursing into blessing, and moved from what was evil and darkness to what was holy.”
And the Spirit of God moved. Yes, a shifting power is certain from the beginning. You see desolation is what you get when God punishes a place. Edom realized this confusion and emptiness when God’s vengeance was enacted on their land. “…and he shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness.” (Isaiah 34:11)
This same desolation is experienced when God parts from a place. Idolatrous Judah regretfully understood this timeless universal justice as they faced Babylonian Captivity. The weeping prophet, Jeremiah, pulled from history to condemn Judah, “I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.” (Jeremiah 4:23)
Sometimes the Spirit of God moves and it means something has to be eliminated. The clutter is removed so the promises and powers of God can be at work. The threshold of revival cannot be blocked with sin-blame and destructive iniquity (lawlessness). Something has developed that is not good.
Then at other times the Spirit of God moves and something has to be illuminated. Something is developing that is of God. It must come to light. It needs only revelation. Revelation is not creative; it merely unveils what’s already created.
“I had an enormous feeling that there had to be a power greater than any of us – that there was a God, that there was indeed a beginning.” Who made this statement? Frank Borman, a legendary NASA astronaut who was one of only 24 humans to ever circle the moon. Beyond all his mathematical equations, geometric calculations, pinpoint formulas for space travel, he returned to the simplicity of the Word of God to describe his otherworldly adventure.
A simple pattern reminds us who gave us the beginning. No matter what educational path you walk; no matter the physical circumstances that cripple you and create the doubting questions; no matter the pleasures of life experienced at the expense of faith; no matter the culture you are raised in or adapted to; the true conscience of Who is above all things preexists in the depths of our soul.
“As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.” (Psalms 42:1) Continue reading