“In the Beginning ” Genesis 1:1
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
Long before the universe was created God Himself already existed. Being eternal in nature He has no beginning or end but has always existed and will always exist. The Hebrew word used for God is the word “Elohim” which reveals the Triune nature of God as the word itself contains plurality, i.e., to say within His oneness there dwells a Trinity of three persons, not three gods but three persons within the one God. From the very first words of the Bible here in Genesis we are told that the Trinity was involved in creation. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit were all present at the creation and actively involved in it. The “heavens” themselves included the whole universe with its vast array of planets, stars and solar systems. At His command the heavens came into their existence. The Lord Jesus Christ in His pre-existence with the Father and with the Holy Spirit was present at creation and actively involved in it.
The Lord Jessus was present at creation
The Lord Jesus was there at creation “face to face with God.” As John tells us in the New Testament that “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (literally, the Word Himself was face to face with God). He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made” (1 John 1:1-3) This was before the Word Himself became flesh. The “Word” Himself is the Lord Jesus Christ who is called, “The Word of God.” (Revelation 19:13) and, “whose origins are from times of eternity.” (Micah 5:2) We are also told in God’s Word that it was through the Lord Jesus that the whole universe itself was created. (Hebrews 1:2) There is no doubt that the Lord Jesus pre-existed before the creation of the heavens and the earth. We are also told in the Word of God, “For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. “(Colossians 1:15b-17) God’s creative act included the physical worlds but also the spiritual realms of existence. Even Satan himself (originally called Lucifer before he fell into rebellion) was a created being and existing in the Eden of God or the garden of God before the creation of man. (Ezekiel 28:13)
Creation did not just happen!
God Himself took the initiative in creation. Creation did not just happen as many so called intellectuals would like us to believe. When you think about the “Big Bang Theory” it is absurd to say the least. The fact that God Himself is the creator means that He is the original designer and architect of everything that exists. When you see the beauty and symmetry in creation it clearly tells you that someone had to have designed and created all things. Those who follow the “Non-creationist path,” such as evolution, think they are clever and sophisticated and even boast that there is no creator or architect behind the universe but that things just happened. God Himself calls these people “fools.” As it is written, “The fool has said in his heart there is no God.” (Psalm 14:1) It is also written, “The way of a fool seems right to him” (Proverbs Indeed it is also written, “Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world.” (1 Corinthians 1:20).
Accountability to God
For men to acknowledge a creator is to acknowledge their accountability to Him who has created them in His image and likeness. Evolution gives men the excuse they are looking for not to believe in a creator even though evolution is a theory and one which Darwin himself regretted at the end of his life. Whether it is the act of creation or the “New Creation in Christ,” God Himself is the originator, the initiator and the sustainer of everything He creates. Behind every design there is a designer. When an artist plans to create a picture or a sculpture he already has a design or image in his mind of the thing he wants to create. When you look at the beautifully integrated colours in nature, the intricacies of the insect world or the wonderful construction of the complexities of the human body they clearly reveal that there has to be a designer and creator. It is illogical and foolish to think in any other way.
The Architect at God’s side
In the Bible itself we are told that God’s Wisdom was present when He began His creative acts and that the wisdom present at creation was in fact a person who Himself was also actively involved in creation. In the light of the New Testament we are told that the Lord Jesus Himself is the wisdom of God and that He already existed when creation took place. In fact He was the Architect at God’s side and actively involved in the design and in the acts of creation. As it is written, “But God made the earth by His power; He founded the world by His wisdom.” (Jeremiah 10:12) In the New Testament it says, “Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:24) and again it is written, “Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 2:3) There is no doubt that the Word of God Himself the Lord Jesus in His pre-existence was present at creation. “The Lord possessed me at the beginning of His work before His deeds of old; I was appointed from eternity from the beginning, before the world began….Then I was the craftsman at His side. I was filled with delight day after day, rejoicing always in His presence, rejoicing in His whole world and delighting in mankind.” (Proverbs 8:22-23,30-31)
The Bible does not seek to prove the existence of God
The Bible itself assumes the existence of God rather than seeking to prove it. There at the beginning of creation we see the Lord Jesus filled with delight day after day, rejoicing always in the Father’s presence, rejoicing in His whole world and delighting in the creation of man himself. What fun the Trinity must have had in designing and implementing creation! But more wonderful is the fact that they created man and woman in their own image and likeness to enjoy a relationship with them. A great philosopher once said, “You have made us for yourself O Lord and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.”
The whole Bible is all about the Lord Jesus Christ
The Bible itself shows us that the Lord Jesus Christ, now exulted to the Fathers right hand, is once again at the center of the universe. In fact there is a resurrected man upholding all things by the word of His power and the one around which everything revolves. In fact the whole Bible itself is all about Him from Genesis to Revelation. Indeed it is written of Him, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:15-17) It is also written of Him, “But in thee last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being sustaining (upholding) all things by His powerful word (by the word of His power).” (Hebrews 1:2-3a)
“By every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God”
If we would be sustained and upheld in this life then we need to be living by the Word of God. As it is written, “Man shall not live on bread alone but on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4) When we feed our minds and hearts with the Word of God we are feeding on Christ Himself, the Living and abiding Word of God. The Lord Jesus Himself said, “I am the bread of life…I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If a man eats of this bread, he will live forever…So the one who feeds on Me will live forever because of Me. This is the bread that came down from heaven.” (John 6:48, 51, 57b)
The only sure foundation
The Word of God is the only sure foundation upon which to build the whole of our lives. It was the same living Word that God spoke in the beginning and by which he brought creation into being when nothing at all existed. If we are building our lives on the solid foundation of the rock of God’s word we will be able to stand when the storms of life assail us. The life that has been built on the solid rock of God’s Word will stand but the life built on any other foundation will not stand when the storms of life come, and they will come. (Matthew 7:24-27) Indeed it is also written, “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Christ Jesus.” (1 Corinthians 3:11) We must actively live by the Word of God as it is also written, “Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22) By regularly feeding on God’s Word and doing what it says we will not only have a solid foundation upon which to build the whole of our lives but also through the same living Word be kept from all spiritual deception.
Acting on the Word of God
When we believe and act upon His Word it will increase our capacity to believe that all things are possible with God for it is written that, “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.” (Romans 10:17) If we would increase our faith then God’s Word must become a personal revelation to us. It is one thing to have an intellectual knowledge of the Bible and quite another thing to have a revelation of its truth personally revealed to our spirit. Once we have revelation knowledge then we also have the responsibility and God given capacity to do what it says.
The miracle of the New Creation
So then in the beginning the Triune God created the heavens and the earth. However, the greatest act of God’s Word is the New Creation in Christ. As it is written, “Having been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring Word of God.” (1 Peter 1:23) and again it says, “He chose to give us birth through the Word of Truth.” (James 1:18) When we see the wonder, the majesty and the splendor of creation we see in this the wonderful miracle of the New Creation in Christ.
Do you know your creator?
Do you personally know your creator? Are you at peace with? Have you been made a new creation in Christ? Have you become a partaker of the Holy Spirit possessing the very nature and character of God Himself? As it is written, “Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through these you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world caused by evil desires.” (2 Peter 1:4) God is your creator and can make you brand new deep down on the inside right now. If you know you have missed God’s best and if you are conscious of the power of sin and death over your life and in your heart you want to start all over again then the Holy Spirit is hovering over your human spirit ready to go to work to bring about in you that divine work that you cannot produce yourself because of the spiritual corruption of your sinful nature.
“Formless” and “Empty”
When the Holy Spirit went to work on a world that was “formless” and “empty” by the Word of God He brought forth a beautiful new creation! If God knows how to create something out of nothing then He most certainly knows how to bring about in you that new birth without which you will never see the kingdom of God. The Lord Jesus Himself said, “I tell you the truth, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God…unless a man is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at My saying, ‘You must be born again.’ ” (John 3:3, 5-6) It is only the new birth given by the Lord Jesus through His Holy Spirit that you can become a partaker of eternal life. As it is written, “Now this is eternal life that that may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” (John 17:3) Again it says, “But these (the scriptures) are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20 31)
