Page 1 of 8 SLIDE 1 God All By Himself Genesis 1 Genesis Series at Lazy Mountain Bible Church Sunday, May 1, 2011 Introduction Genesis 1:1–31 (ESV) Introduction The creation account before us today is unique in history. Did you know that no other culture has a creation account in which everything is brought into existence through One God, who speaks it into existence through the power of his Word. Today we will see the great sense of relief this truth brings us. Because it teaches us that we no longer need fear anything of earth—God is in complete control. He brings order from chaos. Second, we no longer need to be the least bit superstitious—we can throw away our “false” God’s like good luck charms, or putting our socks on just such and such a way because the last time we did that we won—the whole rest of the world is caught up in these types of superstitions—but not the believer in the God of Genesis 1. You see the nations who were neighbors of Israel, believedin such things, they believed that God only acted if they did something, and did it just so. They believed that they had to do something in just such a way in order to manipulate their God and get their God to do something favorable for them. The God Bale of the Philistines was one such God. The neighboring nation of the Philistines believed that their God Bale must be annually coaxed to bring the growth of plants each year through elaborate superstitious worship. So what does this mean for us? As we will see, in very funny sense, you can Halibut fish with bananas in the boat.The creation account reminds us that Bananas are created things by the God of the Bible and as such have no manipulative role in fish, or fishing, or creation. The creation account in Genesis frees us from those type of superstitions. It reminds us that superstitions have no power over the Christians, that all things like “bananas” are but a created things—not even having “life” in the sense that living things have life in the Bible. The believer in the God of Creation in Genesis knows that God has established the seasons and the cycles—and he does it just with the power of his Word Page 2 of 8 And he does this creation from chaos. As we will see, chaos cannot resist the power of God’s Word—it must submit. How many times have you heard the term, “My life is Chaotic?” Well if it is, then the God of the Bible is for you. If that is your diagnosis of your condition, then this chapter offers renewal of your faith in this truth, that with faith in the God of Genesis it is true‐‐nothing is impossible with God and that no Chaos can resist his order by order of His Word. Because what is the first Chapter of the Bible about? It is about God. The subject is not creation. The subject is God. Let me explain. The reason God gives us this account is to show us something about Him—not as a precise recipe of how a particular rock or animal or planet came into being. They all came into being by the power of his Word. This chapter is not given us to explain the mysteries of the heavens, or the earth. It is not given to explain the laws of the universe. It is not given us to explain biology, astrology, geology, or archeology. Those are sciences dedicated to discovering the intricacies of created things, and the laws that God built into govern created things. But that is not the subject of the Genesis 1. Genesis 1 is given to us to raise faith in our God‐‐to gather under the safety of his wings. To free us from our fears and superstitions and to differentiate us from those whose lives are driven by fear and superstition and mythology and astrology? It is given to remind us that our God is preeminent. He alone is worthy of our worship. That God created all things. Everything is under his dominion. Jesus said as much to us in the Sermon on the Mount—reminding us that God takes care of the tiniest birds and clothes every flower so we have nothing to worry about. SLIDE 2 Luke 12:24 (ESV) 24
Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! Thus we would never worship any created thing, we would never try and use created things to manipulate God, we would never do things in a certain order in the belief that this would manipulate God into doing something favorable for us. God has told us this account of how he brought order from complete chaos so that you would rely on one and only one thing all the days of your life: God, the maker of heaven and earth. Let us take a look at the text in more detail. Page 3 of 8 SLIDE 3 The first phrase speaks volumes: Genesis 1:1–2 (ESV) 1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 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. As we see again, God is the subject of the chapter. God created. Did you know that the Hebrew word created, bara, is used only of God. Whenever this verb is found, God is always the subject, and the result is always something perfect, new, fresh or whole. It describes the work of shaping, reshaping or bringing to perfection, indeed creation out of nothing. So verse 1 describes the creation and the heavens in the early part of day one, we know this because the Hebrew phrase beresit, “Beginning” refers to the first phase of a step. The point is this, and this is the reason God gives us insight into what he did, these words are directly from the Holy Spirit because no one was present to write them down, except God. So here is the point of the first verse: SLIDE 4 God is absolutely sovereign over all matter. And if our God is sovereign over all matter, then such sovereignty demands allegiance on our part, to acknowledge the Creator naturally leads to submission to him. At that moment we have this situation: Did you notice? SLIDE 5 Genesis 1:2 (ESV) 2
The earth was without form and void Page 4 of 8 The earth had no form, but more importantly was void. Now we will see how God brought this world from its primitive condition of desolation and waste to it fullness and order. But there is a second issue God must rectify: darkness was over the deep. SLIDE 6 Genesis 1:2 (ESV) and darkness was over the face of the deep. Darkness throughout the Bible represents evil and death. And what did this darkness cover? The deep is the Hebrew word“tehom”, which means the deep ocean, or the abyss. How did this state occur? The most obvious answer is the fall of Satan occurred in this early part of the first day, leaving creation in chaos, and left an eminent need to be made “good,” to be redeemed. And God did this redeeming by bringing the opposite of darkness, he did it by overcoming darkness by bringing light.This is to focus on God’s ability to bring perfection out of chaos, for nothing is impossible for God. And it happens immediately when the Spirit of God takes charge. The spirit of God transforms the tohem, the abyss, the salty deep, into “waters, mayim, life giving waters. SLIDE 7 Genesis 1:2 (ESV) 2
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. Did you notice the transition in the text? (USE THE POINTER)From “tehom” dark abyss, to “mayim” life giving waters. And what did it? Simply the presence of God. This should give us some hint. If there is chaos in our situation, then you, who believe in God, need to invite God right into that situation. We have requests for benevolence help all the time at church. We try to lead them to God. But what they think is going to “fix” the situation is money. Jesus commands us to help the poor and we do. But it is so sad to give a person a check sometimes and know that they are choosing not to seek to bring the one person in all creation who can bring order from chaos, life giving water, from the abyss. It is God. Page 5 of 8 Notice how quickly, how immediately the presence of God transforms the chaos. This is good news for us—around us in the world, is a chaos, a mixture of the work of evil, and the work of our sin, combined together making—holocausts, wars, injustice and inequality—to name but a few. So this chapter teaches us our God is the one, the One who is not only able, but willing, and active—
making all things new‐‐bringing order out of chaos and light into darkness. So we have two significant applications so far. If God is sovereign over all creation—then our response is absolute fidelity to the one God who is sovereign over all creation. Second, God brings order out of Chaos simply by the power of his Word. So we see God is sovereign over creation and Chaos. He is sovereign over earth and evil. Let’s see how God concludes the first day. SLIDE 8 Genesis 1:3–5 (ESV) 3
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. Now we move further into the work of the first day and the next five days. The first three days of creation remedy the formlessness. And how did he do this? The means of creation is the Word of God. The first verb is “and he said” “and God said”. And the Power of His Word instantly transforms the darkness. We all know what a candle does in a darkened room. The darkness cannot extinguish it. It’s light becomes the central focus. It dominates. Throughout scripture, Light is the domain of God, while darkness is the domain of evil. And now, finally the first day ends with the declaration: it is good. It is light that is good, not the darkness, so God divides the light from the darkness. It is interesting how man in conjunction with evil has tried to elevate darkness—to somehow make that which is profane—equal to that which is holy. Page 6 of 8 We see this in the “everyone is saved” theory “as long as they are sincere” that envelopes America. Even though right here in the United States, there is darkness, evil, injustice, anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from our lips. And yet, do you notice, when it comes to someone’s funeral, who in life we know has not lived for the God who created light, suddenly, on the day of their death, we want to claim that they did. And so poems appear in print indicating that their dark nature does not diminish their admission into the presence of the God of light. Instead of admitting what is true. Instead of acknowledging what the Bible says really happens to people who do not surrender to the Light, who do not surrender their life by worshipping God, the maker of heaven and earth. They remain in the darkness, the world they embraced while here on earth. Right from the third verse of Genesis God differentiatesseparates the light from the darkness. Jesus would even say, SLIDE 9 Luke 11:35 (ESV) 35
Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness. So from the beginning we would learn that God makes divisions (badal) divisions between that which is good and that which is evil. In the law, God would make divisions between what was holy and what was profane, between the holy place and the most holy place, and between Israel and other nations. The question for us is where do you fall? On which side of the divide? When God again separates the light from the darkness, the sheep from the goats, where will you be? Trying to trick those whom you leave behind by quoting some poem in your obituary indicating that you who lived in darkness have someone by your own power become light? All who knew you know how you lived, and what you lived for. It may give them brief comfort for a day, a week, but what you lived for does not lie. And if it was for darkness, divided from the light you will remain. But if you surrender to the Light, Jesus said, SLIDE 10 John 8:12 (ESV) I Am the Light of the World 12
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Page 7 of 8 So the question is before you and me? Are a follower of the Light who is Jesus? Are you living in the light? Or is everyone not saying what they know is true, your only God is yourself, and your only light is darkness. God has separated the light from the darkness, and he invites you into the light, but there is a cost—
your very self. You must follow Jesus. He is the way the truth and the life. There is no other way. Next week, on mother’s day, we will discuss the rest of creation and the creation of man and woman. SLIDE 11 Show title Slide Implications The purpose of giving us this text is so that we would have confidence that God is in control of everything—that he can bring forth “good” out of chaos. We would never want this sacred text taught in public schools by someone who does not believe it is absolutely true and reliable. Can you imagine the damage if you had this taught by a sarcastic teacher who was forced to teach creation, someone who did not believe? SLIDE 12 The subject of the creation account is God. God, the creator, is worthy of all our worship. Application SLIDE 13 Get rid of any superstition that relies on or worships anything but the creator Embrace the security that comes from acknowledging the truth‐‐God is the creator. He brings order from chaos and overcomes darkness with light. Get rid of any superstition that relies on or worships anything but the creator Embrace the security that comes from acknowledging the truth, God is the subject. He is the creator. And he is worthy of all our praise. Page 8 of 8 And last and more important, embrace Jesus, he is the way the truth and the life, and not one comes to the Father but through him.