A Coherent Whole - Day 1
"O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever. O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for his mercy endureth for ever." Psalm 136:1-3
Now we begin with the first act of God creating on Day 1 of all creation. “In the beginning, God created the heaven and earth.” Genesis 1:1 As we learned previously, this is time, space and matter - and matter includes energy. These constitute all the elements needed to create our physical universe.
In the beginning - time
He created the heaven - space
and the earth - matter/energy
This time-space-matter is also described as a continuum. Webster’s defines a continuum as “a coherent whole characterized as a collection.” This means that all three work together in union to have meaning. If we remove even one of these three, then this creation would not be possible. This tells us quite alot about God who created all things. The incredible infinite wisdom and knowledge of God to think through all the vast intricacies of His creation!
"By the word of the Lord were the heavens made... For he spake, and it was done;" Psalm 33:6,9
This is the first stage of day one, when God spoke all the elements into existence, but they weren’t organized as of yet. Then in Genesis 1:2 it says, "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." These first two verses of Genesis Chapter 1, verses 1 and 2, are not disconnected in any way. Nor do they describe chaos and ruin. They flow together describing for us how God, at this point, is actively brining form to His creation. “Without form” and “void” simply means shapeless, formless, empty and uninhabited. Think about it; before the light of Christ broke through the darkness of sin in our lives, we were only empty and uninhabited. It is God’s Word shining in the darkness of our souls that illuminates and brings purpose in life. So here, God’s Word is actively working in His creation to bring about a habitable place for us.
In Genesis 1:2 it says, “And the Spirit of God moved upon the space of the waters.” God, the Spirit, is active in creating everything. The Hebrew word for “moved” in verse 2 means to hover, to tremble, like a hen hovering over her young. The picture is God the Spirit giving life and motion to His creation. The process in Genesis 1:2 progresses from void/empty to “the face of the waters.” It is the activity of the Spirit of God doing what he alone can do…create life. Darkness is mentioned also in verse 2, so darkness is also a creation of God.
Now we have progress in God’s creation. First, God spoke into existence time-space-matter, then He put it into motion with a focus on one watery sphere. God’s Spirit is actively participating, bringing form to the previously unformed. Only God!
“Thank you, Father, for revealing your infinite wisdom and knowledge in this your first stage of day one of all creation. Amen.”
