In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)
The first sentence of the Bible may be the single most controversial and important sentence ever written. It at least sits near the top of the list.
It’s controversial because there are people who don’t believe it. “It isn’t science,” they say. “The universe was created by some kind of ‘big bang,’” they say.
I don’t have a problem with the “big bang.” I’m not against science. I love science. But mankind is so arrogant that whenever our latest and greatest knowledge doesn’t line up with the Bible, we generally choose our knowledge over God’s. The problem is that at times the Bible stands in opposition to how we think things work, and what we think is never worthy to be compared to what God knows.
So maybe there was a big bang. I always ask, “So what blew up?” What material was there that exploded? Who made that? And what caused it to explode in such a way that everything in the universe moves at a constant, precise, measurable rate?
All the evidence points to the existence of a Creator, an Intelligent Being who created all that exists. It takes much more faith to believe that all of this is an accident than to believe there is a Creator.
Look around you. Everything you see did not exist before God created it. God created the entire universe out of nothing. The theological term is ex nihilo, which is Latin for “out of nothing.” God started with nothing; there were no pre-existing materials that he used to fashion the universe. Everything in existence that is not God was created by God. And everything created by God exists to do the will of God. Everything belongs to God.
The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein. (Psalm 24:1)
Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine. (Exodus 19:5)
Because all of creation belongs to God, it exists to serve God’s purpose. God rules all of his creation; he is always in complete control. All of the natural events in creation, good or bad, are under God’s control. The beautiful sunset you saw last night and the earthquake that rocked Haiti recently were both under God’s sovereign control, and they both served his purpose. That isn’t an easy truth for us to grasp, but mankind can no better understand God’s purpose in every event than we can comprehend his ability to create it all.
So why did God create all of this?
First and foremost, God created to reveal his glory, his wonder. Years ago, someone challenged me to read Genesis 1 and circle the word “God” every time I saw it. I challenge you, take your Bible, turn to Genesis 1, and circle every “God” you see. The story of creation isn’t really about creation at all. It’s about God! We are meant to look around and marvel at the One who made it all.
The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. (Psalm 19:1)
For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. (Romans 1:20)
God created the universe to bring glory to himself, glory that he alone deserves. We must respect and appreciate and take care of creation, because it was made by God for his glory.
But we aren’t to get so caught up in marveling at God’s creation that we take our focus off the Creator. Sometimes we forget that only the Creator is to be worshiped, never the creation.
There’s another reason God created. He wanted to create a great place to live for the real reason for any of this. More next time…