WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.299 We left verse 2 last week in a state of eager anticipation. 00:00:06.299 --> 00:00:19.699 ! Our world was described as dark, a formless void, uninhabitable, undesirable in every way. 00:00:19.699 --> 00:00:29.980 ! And it's against this backdrop of a shapeless and empty wilderness that Moses 00:00:29.980 --> 00:00:34.920 puts God's creative brilliance on display in the rest of the chapter. 00:00:36.100 --> 00:00:42.399 It was over that dark and formless void that was hovering the only living and animate being 00:00:42.399 --> 00:00:50.260 in the entire universe, the Spirit of God hovering in preparation to do something significant 00:00:50.260 --> 00:00:55.060 and we're left at the end of verse 2 wondering what will he do? 00:00:56.000 --> 00:00:59.519 What will it be like? How will he do it? 00:00:59.979 --> 00:01:01.459 Will it be good? 00:01:02.799 --> 00:01:08.060 And the answers to those questions come to us here in 3 to 31. 00:01:08.579 --> 00:01:14.019 There's a real beauty to the way that Moses wrote this chapter. 00:01:14.840 --> 00:01:19.719 It's a beauty that isn't always immediately evident in English. 00:01:19.719 --> 00:01:29.539 The text has a remarkable symmetry and in this case actually brings a depth of meaning that 00:01:29.539 --> 00:01:33.980 is helpful to our understanding of what's actually happening here, what we're meant to take away 00:01:33.980 --> 00:01:34.420 from it. 00:01:34.420 --> 00:01:42.040 Many scholars have noted that in the Hebrew text, it's uniquely arranged in multiples of seven. 00:01:43.640 --> 00:01:49.700 Seven often being used in the scriptures to communicate perfection and completion. 00:01:49.700 --> 00:01:54.480 And it seems to do that here in Genesis chapter 1 in a number of ways. 00:01:55.400 --> 00:02:01.920 Most obviously, of course, is that God's work is completed in seven creation days. 00:02:02.579 --> 00:02:11.759 Six days of creative action followed by a single day of rest that completes it and a day of enjoyment 00:02:11.759 --> 00:02:13.079 of the created world. 00:02:14.359 --> 00:02:17.120 But it's not just that there are seven days. 00:02:17.120 --> 00:02:22.719 That would be significant in and of itself perhaps, but it's more than that here in this text. 00:02:23.419 --> 00:02:26.780 We can look at the opening and closing of the section. 00:02:26.979 --> 00:02:27.939 There's brackets here. 00:02:27.939 --> 00:02:30.599 The opening being chapter 1 verses 1 and 2. 00:02:30.680 --> 00:02:31.900 We studied that last week. 00:02:32.099 --> 00:02:37.879 The closing section or portion of the section being chapter 2 verses 1 through 3. 00:02:37.960 --> 00:02:42.379 And what we find in the Hebrew text is that it's given to us in multiples of seven. 00:02:43.479 --> 00:02:46.919 Chapter 1 and verse 1, seven Hebrew words. 00:02:47.639 --> 00:02:51.520 Chapter 1 and verse 2, 14 Hebrew words. 00:02:51.759 --> 00:02:53.500 We get to the concluding section. 00:02:53.500 --> 00:02:57.740 Chapter 2 verses 1 through 3, we find three different statements. 00:02:57.939 --> 00:03:02.139 All equalling up to 21 Hebrew words. 00:03:02.300 --> 00:03:03.599 There's symmetry here. 00:03:03.719 --> 00:03:09.500 There's bracketing what is taking place here in Genesis chapter 1, intending to communicate 00:03:09.500 --> 00:03:12.199 perfection, completion. 00:03:14.780 --> 00:03:19.620 The nouns of verse 1, to take it even further, and we could go even further than this. 00:03:19.620 --> 00:03:27.620 God, heavens, earth, all repeated in multiples of seven throughout Genesis chapter 1. 00:03:27.939 --> 00:03:29.819 Why does that even matter? 00:03:29.939 --> 00:03:31.199 Why would we even bring that up? 00:03:31.240 --> 00:03:33.879 Because it's not a coincidence. 00:03:34.259 --> 00:03:35.560 It's too significant. 00:03:35.719 --> 00:03:38.060 It's too detailed to be a coincidence in this case. 00:03:39.659 --> 00:03:49.579 I say all of that to say that what we have here in Genesis chapter 1 is remarkable, amazing literature 00:03:49.580 --> 00:03:53.120 more than anything else, or as much as anything else. 00:03:55.360 --> 00:04:04.740 Moses made great effort to communicate a particular message to us, not only in the words themselves, 00:04:04.740 --> 00:04:08.480 but in the way that he arranged them in the text. 00:04:08.479 --> 00:04:12.759 It's too magnificent to be a coincidence. 00:04:12.759 --> 00:04:22.300 In beautiful fashion, God used Moses to communicate the story of creation in a way that brings a depth of meaning 00:04:22.300 --> 00:04:30.699 to God's creative power and order and brilliance, perfection. 00:04:30.699 --> 00:04:42.039 Moses is doing something not necessarily historical, strictly speaking, not necessarily scientific, strictly speaking. 00:04:42.039 --> 00:04:45.680 He's doing something theological in Genesis chapter 1. 00:04:46.980 --> 00:04:54.019 He's telling us something about God by conveying brilliantly the real history of creation. 00:04:54.019 --> 00:05:00.519 But the beauty of the text doesn't necessarily mean that it's myth or legend. 00:05:01.519 --> 00:05:09.959 In fact, it's distinct from the ancient mythologies and legends of other similar literature from this day and time. 00:05:10.199 --> 00:05:15.120 It's distinct in that while it's beautiful, while it has an amazing symmetry to it, 00:05:15.639 --> 00:05:19.579 Moses still gives it to us in the ordinary narrative prose. 00:05:20.240 --> 00:05:22.759 He's just telling us what happened. 00:05:24.019 --> 00:05:25.579 It's the history of the universe. 00:05:26.539 --> 00:05:27.919 Why is he doing it? 00:05:29.620 --> 00:05:34.659 He's doing it in a way that will hopefully increase our faith, 00:05:35.000 --> 00:05:38.939 but primarily that it will provoke our worship. 00:05:40.219 --> 00:05:42.060 That's the intent of the text. 00:05:43.359 --> 00:05:50.039 Now, the structure of the creation account, of course, it tracks along six creation days. 00:05:50.040 --> 00:05:55.640 Of course, there's all kinds of debate about the nature of these days, 00:05:55.740 --> 00:06:03.820 whether we should consider them as six or seven literal 24-hour solar days or as something else. 00:06:05.160 --> 00:06:08.600 I just want to say I'm not intending to get into the debate this morning, 00:06:08.600 --> 00:06:14.980 but just to say over the centuries, two millennia, 00:06:16.939 --> 00:06:21.660 at least six different dominant views have persisted among Christians, 00:06:22.160 --> 00:06:30.240 all from Christians that are seriously theologically minded, 00:06:30.240 --> 00:06:34.060 seriously gospel-focused, 00:06:35.500 --> 00:06:41.560 wholly committed to the authority and inerrancy of the Bible. 00:06:42.240 --> 00:06:43.300 All of them. 00:06:43.300 --> 00:06:54.340 It's possible that these are 24-hour solar days, 00:06:54.439 --> 00:06:58.520 that that's what we're meant to accept here in the text, 00:06:58.520 --> 00:07:05.040 though that is not the measure of orthodoxy that some Christians seem to make. 00:07:05.280 --> 00:07:06.519 It just isn't. 00:07:06.519 --> 00:07:12.560 It actually seems to me that Moses was using language here 00:07:12.560 --> 00:07:20.019 to appropriate God's creative work in a way that is analogical to our solar days, 00:07:20.079 --> 00:07:23.039 though not necessarily identical to them. 00:07:24.199 --> 00:07:29.359 But in either case, there are things about Genesis 1 that Christians must believe. 00:07:29.859 --> 00:07:35.240 The nature of what these days are in their length is not one of those things. 00:07:36.519 --> 00:07:39.719 We might liken it to the many discussions that we might would have 00:07:39.719 --> 00:07:44.719 over perhaps the millennial age of Revelation, the end of Revelation. 00:07:45.859 --> 00:07:49.479 There are things about the end times that we must believe. 00:07:49.479 --> 00:07:52.439 We must believe that Jesus is coming back. 00:07:52.539 --> 00:07:57.659 We must believe that there will be an eternal separation of the righteous and the wicked. 00:07:57.779 --> 00:08:01.060 We must believe that he will bring a new heavens and a new earth. 00:08:02.180 --> 00:08:05.579 What you believe about the nature of that millennium 00:08:05.579 --> 00:08:11.139 is not unimportant, but it's not the most important thing. 00:08:12.180 --> 00:08:15.439 I think we can look at the nature of these days the same way. 00:08:15.699 --> 00:08:18.519 There are things about creation every Christian must believe. 00:08:19.899 --> 00:08:24.039 We must believe that what is came from God, 00:08:24.779 --> 00:08:27.240 that he spoke what is out of nothing, 00:08:27.360 --> 00:08:30.019 that it all comes from his creative power, 00:08:30.019 --> 00:08:31.859 that he holds it all together, 00:08:31.859 --> 00:08:37.220 that he does not simply create and then step away and let natural processes take over. 00:08:37.279 --> 00:08:41.159 No, he is intimately involved in every part of creation. 00:08:41.439 --> 00:08:44.419 He is to be worshipped as the creator God. 00:08:45.360 --> 00:08:47.699 The question of the days is not unimportant. 00:08:48.699 --> 00:08:50.919 It's just not the most important. 00:08:50.919 --> 00:08:58.500 Now, important to the structure of these days is how they're actually arranged. 00:08:59.919 --> 00:09:04.059 Six days are grouped into two corresponding categories. 00:09:05.059 --> 00:09:07.759 Now, think back to verse 2 that we studied last week. 00:09:07.899 --> 00:09:14.659 We're told that the Spirit of God was hovering over the formless void, 00:09:14.659 --> 00:09:19.740 emptiness on one hand, shapelessness on the other. 00:09:19.799 --> 00:09:25.939 And what we find God doing in the rest of the chapter is corresponding to that condition. 00:09:26.199 --> 00:09:29.259 In the first three days, he's forming. 00:09:29.779 --> 00:09:30.819 He's forming the earth. 00:09:31.059 --> 00:09:34.100 In the second three days, days four to six, 00:09:34.259 --> 00:09:37.740 he is filling the earth that he has now formed. 00:09:37.740 --> 00:09:41.620 And there is a unique correspondence between the two groups. 00:09:42.319 --> 00:09:44.279 Let me just highlight them for you before we get in. 00:09:44.659 --> 00:09:52.539 On day one, we find God forming light, separating the light from the darkness. 00:09:53.719 --> 00:09:55.559 Corresponding with that is day four. 00:09:56.199 --> 00:09:57.459 What do we see God doing? 00:09:58.159 --> 00:09:58.559 Filling. 00:09:59.759 --> 00:10:05.039 He fills the heavens with the great lights, the sun and the moon and the stars. 00:10:05.039 --> 00:10:08.779 What are those things that he's filled the heavens with functioning as? 00:10:09.120 --> 00:10:13.819 They are governing the light and the darkness that he has shaped and that he has formed in day one. 00:10:14.659 --> 00:10:20.139 Day two, God is forming the atmosphere. 00:10:20.399 --> 00:10:21.860 He's separating the waters. 00:10:22.379 --> 00:10:24.779 On day five, what do we find him doing? 00:10:25.100 --> 00:10:28.879 As if it's mapping right over top of those first three days. 00:10:29.000 --> 00:10:33.899 We find on day five, he's now filling the sky with winged creatures, 00:10:34.039 --> 00:10:36.159 this atmosphere that he has shaped and formed. 00:10:36.159 --> 00:10:41.719 And he's filling the seas with marine life that he has shaped and formed on day two. 00:10:42.519 --> 00:10:43.779 Then we get to day three. 00:10:45.019 --> 00:10:46.639 God forms dry land. 00:10:47.500 --> 00:10:54.319 And in a second creative word, God brings forth vegetation from that land that he has now formed. 00:10:54.399 --> 00:10:56.360 And then what do we find him doing on day six? 00:10:56.480 --> 00:10:58.279 Mapping right over top of that. 00:10:58.279 --> 00:11:04.659 We find him filling the land that he has formed, first in a creative word with land animals. 00:11:05.879 --> 00:11:11.360 And then in the apex of the creation narrative, we find a second creative word. 00:11:11.480 --> 00:11:13.179 This time, it's humanity. 00:11:13.480 --> 00:11:13.939 It's mankind. 00:11:14.319 --> 00:11:15.179 It's human life. 00:11:16.319 --> 00:11:17.860 So in the first three, he's forming. 00:11:18.019 --> 00:11:20.339 He's shaping the formless void. 00:11:20.340 --> 00:11:26.379 In the second set of days, he is filling what he's now shaped. 00:11:26.480 --> 00:11:33.460 And all of this is to show that Yahweh is a God of power and order. 00:11:35.460 --> 00:11:44.220 He not only creates all things, but he orders and structures life for optimal flourishing and enjoyment, 00:11:44.639 --> 00:11:45.900 all for his glory. 00:11:45.899 --> 00:11:57.120 He sets boundaries around each facet of the created world so that it functions in exactly the way that it must function. 00:11:57.639 --> 00:11:59.319 And it does not rebel. 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:03.919 And he does it all through the power of his word. 00:12:04.379 --> 00:12:08.059 Truly, we come to Genesis 1 and moving forward in our scriptures. 00:12:08.360 --> 00:12:12.259 And the only conclusion is there is no God like this God. 00:12:12.259 --> 00:12:24.539 The purpose of Genesis 1, then, is to exalt the one true creator God to provoke our unending worship. 00:12:24.539 --> 00:12:34.799 It's a shame, then, that we can so often spend our time arguing over matters that are peripheral to the text 00:12:34.799 --> 00:12:43.279 when its intent is to draw us into wonder and amazement at the God who created all that is. 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:57.620 Moses is informing our minds so that he might then, by the Spirit of God, stir our affections toward this God. 00:12:59.019 --> 00:13:08.159 So that our study of Genesis 1 should always conclude with the exclamation of, 00:13:08.159 --> 00:13:09.860 How great thou art. 00:13:12.480 --> 00:13:16.719 Let's look first at forming the earth, days 1 to 3. 00:13:16.879 --> 00:13:19.019 We come to day 1 in verse 3. 00:13:19.139 --> 00:13:19.860 And God said, 00:13:20.319 --> 00:13:21.319 Let there be light. 00:13:22.019 --> 00:13:23.339 And there was light. 00:13:24.459 --> 00:13:26.980 And God saw the light that it was good. 00:13:27.939 --> 00:13:30.500 And God separated the light from the darkness. 00:13:31.579 --> 00:13:33.679 God called the light day, 00:13:34.220 --> 00:13:36.579 and the darkness he called night. 00:13:36.580 --> 00:13:41.460 There was evening, and there was morning, the first day. 00:13:42.879 --> 00:13:47.520 The anticipation of the spirits hovering over the formless void, 00:13:47.580 --> 00:13:50.500 it now breaks suddenly into creative action. 00:13:50.860 --> 00:13:53.540 And surprisingly to us, unless you've already read it before, 00:13:53.600 --> 00:13:54.940 which I assume most of you have, 00:13:55.200 --> 00:13:57.280 if you haven't read it, it's almost a surprise to us. 00:13:57.500 --> 00:14:01.080 The only instrument of creation, the sole instrument, 00:14:01.520 --> 00:14:04.020 is God's word. 00:14:04.020 --> 00:14:05.480 It's the power of his word. 00:14:06.580 --> 00:14:08.520 He speaks into the darkness. 00:14:08.680 --> 00:14:11.040 He speaks into the void. 00:14:12.660 --> 00:14:15.540 And into it comes forth light. 00:14:15.900 --> 00:14:17.180 Let there be light. 00:14:18.460 --> 00:14:19.879 And there was light. 00:14:22.379 --> 00:14:26.280 Until day 4, though, there's no created source for the light. 00:14:26.279 --> 00:14:29.299 What's actually giving the light? 00:14:29.459 --> 00:14:31.740 What's actually separating the light from the darkness? 00:14:31.860 --> 00:14:34.980 How could there possibly be an evening and a morning? 00:14:35.259 --> 00:14:37.019 Those things don't come until day 4. 00:14:38.659 --> 00:14:45.819 The implication being that God himself is the light shining into the darkness. 00:14:45.820 --> 00:14:49.740 Interestingly, if you know your Bible well, 00:14:49.860 --> 00:14:56.379 you will begin to pick up on the fact that the Bible both begins and ends in the same condition. 00:14:56.379 --> 00:15:02.840 An eternal source of light emanating from the Lord God himself. 00:15:04.840 --> 00:15:06.899 We read in Revelation 22, 00:15:06.899 --> 00:15:36.879 We read in Revelation 22, 00:15:36.899 --> 00:15:42.079 than just the bulb that emanates energy so that we might be able to see something in this room. 00:15:43.079 --> 00:15:44.459 It's more than that. 00:15:45.459 --> 00:15:49.699 The light will be represented as an image of knowledge in some cases, 00:15:49.840 --> 00:15:52.840 as righteousness in other cases, 00:15:52.840 --> 00:15:55.459 as life and resurrection. 00:15:55.460 --> 00:16:00.980 All of these things being summed up in the person and the work of Jesus Christ. 00:16:02.139 --> 00:16:04.700 It says John in John chapter 1, 00:16:05.980 --> 00:16:07.280 In him was life, 00:16:08.040 --> 00:16:11.860 and the life was the light of men. 00:16:13.300 --> 00:16:17.000 And the light shines in the darkness, 00:16:17.139 --> 00:16:20.680 and the darkness has not overcome it. 00:16:20.679 --> 00:16:26.039 A motif that should not be lost on us right here, 00:16:26.359 --> 00:16:27.759 at the very beginning, 00:16:28.419 --> 00:16:29.199 in verse 3. 00:16:30.359 --> 00:16:32.019 And then what does God do with it? 00:16:32.599 --> 00:16:34.879 He speaks the light into existence, 00:16:35.019 --> 00:16:37.679 and then he separates the light from the darkness. 00:16:39.099 --> 00:16:40.239 He calls the light, 00:16:40.899 --> 00:16:41.239 day. 00:16:41.779 --> 00:16:42.759 Day in this case, 00:16:42.859 --> 00:16:44.319 not being a full day, 00:16:44.419 --> 00:16:45.019 but daytime. 00:16:45.019 --> 00:16:47.259 He separates light, 00:16:47.500 --> 00:16:47.840 daytime, 00:16:48.220 --> 00:16:49.600 from nighttime. 00:16:51.159 --> 00:16:56.439 It's the first of several separations that take shape in the chapter. 00:16:57.379 --> 00:17:00.819 This particular separation of light and dark, 00:17:01.360 --> 00:17:02.340 night and day, 00:17:02.720 --> 00:17:06.019 is essential for forming an inhabitable earth. 00:17:07.400 --> 00:17:08.240 He's forming. 00:17:08.240 --> 00:17:19.059 And Kenneth Matthew suggests that there is more for us to see here than just night and day. 00:17:20.660 --> 00:17:32.460 Matthew says God leaves a remnant of the darkness each day as both a reminder of what existence would be like apart from God's creative act, 00:17:33.660 --> 00:17:34.620 a dark void. 00:17:34.619 --> 00:17:38.659 It cannot give life to itself. 00:17:40.759 --> 00:17:43.799 But also a continual reminder 00:17:43.799 --> 00:17:47.879 of His mercies 00:17:47.879 --> 00:17:49.859 and how they are new 00:17:49.859 --> 00:17:51.359 every morning. 00:17:53.959 --> 00:17:59.679 Notice that the ordering of the day doesn't begin with morning as we typically think of. 00:17:59.719 --> 00:18:01.559 It begins with evening. 00:18:02.479 --> 00:18:02.839 Why? 00:18:02.839 --> 00:18:06.799 Well, perhaps it's meant to be a signal to us 00:18:06.799 --> 00:18:10.559 that just as God spoke light into the darkness, 00:18:11.179 --> 00:18:12.519 each day, 00:18:13.179 --> 00:18:14.119 evening and morning, 00:18:14.279 --> 00:18:15.819 representing His faithfulness, 00:18:16.419 --> 00:18:17.619 His loving kindness, 00:18:18.579 --> 00:18:20.919 a sign of His life-giving faithfulness, 00:18:21.079 --> 00:18:22.139 bringing us through 00:18:22.139 --> 00:18:23.899 our anxious nights. 00:18:23.900 --> 00:18:28.060 Is this not what the psalmist picks up on? 00:18:28.060 --> 00:18:30.920 We studied it just a few weeks ago in Psalm 30. 00:18:31.120 --> 00:18:32.540 Weeping may tarry for the night. 00:18:33.040 --> 00:18:35.560 Joy comes with the morning. 00:18:37.300 --> 00:18:38.480 Let there be light. 00:18:38.560 --> 00:18:39.060 God's forming. 00:18:39.880 --> 00:18:41.400 He's forming in significant ways. 00:18:42.140 --> 00:18:43.060 We go to day two. 00:18:44.019 --> 00:18:45.080 God continues to form. 00:18:45.240 --> 00:18:45.700 Verse six. 00:18:45.700 --> 00:18:47.039 And God said, 00:18:47.960 --> 00:18:50.140 let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters. 00:18:51.140 --> 00:18:53.720 Let it separate the waters from the waters. 00:18:53.720 --> 00:18:55.839 And God made the expanse 00:18:55.839 --> 00:18:59.299 and separated the waters that were under the expanse 00:18:59.299 --> 00:19:02.319 from the waters that were above the expanse. 00:19:02.819 --> 00:19:03.880 And it was so. 00:19:04.839 --> 00:19:07.600 And God called the expanse heaven, 00:19:07.779 --> 00:19:10.339 or you'll see in a footnote probably in your Bible, 00:19:10.460 --> 00:19:12.400 or sky is the idea here. 00:19:12.480 --> 00:19:14.680 Not the place where God dwells 00:19:14.680 --> 00:19:15.680 and sits on His throne, 00:19:15.779 --> 00:19:16.839 His heavenly court, 00:19:16.839 --> 00:19:19.220 but literally the sky that we see above us. 00:19:20.299 --> 00:19:22.079 And there was evening and there was morning, 00:19:22.699 --> 00:19:23.419 a second day. 00:19:24.659 --> 00:19:25.379 So on day two, 00:19:25.480 --> 00:19:28.599 God creates the atmosphere that surrounds the earth. 00:19:28.720 --> 00:19:31.179 He calls it sky, heaven. 00:19:32.240 --> 00:19:34.039 And another separation takes place. 00:19:34.099 --> 00:19:34.759 Did you see it? 00:19:34.959 --> 00:19:36.980 It's a separation this time of the waters. 00:19:37.759 --> 00:19:40.500 There are waters that are below the expanse. 00:19:40.619 --> 00:19:42.599 That would be the waters that are on the earth. 00:19:42.599 --> 00:19:47.759 And then there is waters that are in or above the expanse. 00:19:48.179 --> 00:19:48.899 What is that? 00:19:50.579 --> 00:19:53.139 Different suggestions have certainly been made. 00:19:53.439 --> 00:19:56.079 How would the wandering Israelites 00:19:56.079 --> 00:19:59.599 in the midst of the wilderness at Sinai 00:19:59.599 --> 00:20:04.519 understood Moses writing the separation of these waters? 00:20:07.079 --> 00:20:10.179 Clouds that contain water, 00:20:10.180 --> 00:20:14.380 that eventually drop water in the form of dew and rain. 00:20:14.500 --> 00:20:15.519 That's what God is doing. 00:20:15.640 --> 00:20:16.680 This is important for us. 00:20:16.980 --> 00:20:19.680 God is not only forming matter itself. 00:20:19.900 --> 00:20:21.980 He's forming the laws of nature 00:20:21.980 --> 00:20:24.460 that will govern the world that He created. 00:20:25.259 --> 00:20:26.920 We have here on day two, 00:20:27.080 --> 00:20:31.539 water cycles that through scientific investigation now, 00:20:31.640 --> 00:20:34.640 we fully understand the evaporation of the waters 00:20:34.640 --> 00:20:36.880 that are on the earth to contain the clouds 00:20:36.880 --> 00:20:39.660 that are eventually poured out on the earth once again, 00:20:39.660 --> 00:20:41.440 so that it can sustain itself. 00:20:41.440 --> 00:20:44.940 All the work of the creator God, 00:20:46.019 --> 00:20:49.240 forming, fashioning a world 00:20:49.240 --> 00:20:51.820 that is no longer shapeless and void, 00:20:52.400 --> 00:20:53.920 but is glorious. 00:20:54.700 --> 00:20:57.420 This is the wonderful care of God 00:20:57.420 --> 00:20:59.779 who perfectly designed a world 00:20:59.779 --> 00:21:03.240 that functions in itself to sustain life. 00:21:04.060 --> 00:21:07.200 Says the psalmist again in Psalm 147, 00:21:07.200 --> 00:21:09.259 He covers the heavens with clouds. 00:21:09.259 --> 00:21:12.299 He prepares rain for the earth. 00:21:13.559 --> 00:21:15.900 Day three, verse nine. 00:21:17.759 --> 00:21:18.660 And God said, 00:21:20.140 --> 00:21:21.600 let the waters under the heavens 00:21:21.600 --> 00:21:24.380 be gathered together into one place 00:21:24.380 --> 00:21:26.640 and let the dry land appear. 00:21:27.460 --> 00:21:28.279 And it was so. 00:21:29.480 --> 00:21:34.100 God called the dry land earth or land or dirt. 00:21:34.099 --> 00:21:37.079 And the waters that were gathered together, 00:21:37.199 --> 00:21:38.419 He called seas. 00:21:39.759 --> 00:21:41.379 And God saw that it was good. 00:21:42.819 --> 00:21:43.619 And God said, 00:21:44.759 --> 00:21:46.799 let the earth sprout vegetation, 00:21:47.599 --> 00:21:48.240 two kinds, 00:21:48.639 --> 00:21:50.059 plants yielding seed, 00:21:50.379 --> 00:21:52.519 and then fruit trees bearing fruit 00:21:52.519 --> 00:21:54.159 that has their seed, 00:21:54.240 --> 00:21:55.480 each according to its kind. 00:21:56.139 --> 00:21:57.159 And it was so. 00:21:57.160 --> 00:22:01.320 The earth brought forth vegetation, 00:22:02.100 --> 00:22:05.040 plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, 00:22:05.180 --> 00:22:07.380 trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, 00:22:07.460 --> 00:22:08.500 each according to its kind. 00:22:08.720 --> 00:22:10.259 And God saw that it was good. 00:22:11.160 --> 00:22:11.980 And there was evening, 00:22:12.440 --> 00:22:13.500 and there was morning, 00:22:14.560 --> 00:22:15.240 the third day. 00:22:16.519 --> 00:22:19.320 The third day of God forming the earth 00:22:19.320 --> 00:22:21.340 is unique, at least in this sense. 00:22:21.720 --> 00:22:23.600 There's two creative acts here, 00:22:24.279 --> 00:22:26.100 two creation words here. 00:22:26.099 --> 00:22:28.719 The first word, 00:22:28.839 --> 00:22:29.779 verses nine and 10, 00:22:29.919 --> 00:22:33.059 commands a separation between the waters 00:22:33.059 --> 00:22:34.019 that are under the earth. 00:22:34.119 --> 00:22:34.539 So remember, 00:22:34.679 --> 00:22:34.980 day two, 00:22:35.139 --> 00:22:37.399 He separates the waters that are below the expanse 00:22:37.399 --> 00:22:39.619 from the waters that are in or above the expanse. 00:22:39.839 --> 00:22:42.799 Now He focuses His attention on the waters that are below. 00:22:43.019 --> 00:22:44.439 And He separates them, 00:22:44.679 --> 00:22:48.319 He gathers them into seas and lakes and rivers 00:22:48.319 --> 00:22:49.179 and what have you, 00:22:49.339 --> 00:22:52.699 and He separates from those waters the dry land. 00:22:52.759 --> 00:22:53.779 And He names it. 00:22:53.779 --> 00:22:55.680 He names one the earth, 00:22:55.759 --> 00:22:57.339 He names the other the seas. 00:22:57.899 --> 00:23:00.099 And then comes a second creative word. 00:23:00.200 --> 00:23:01.079 It's on the same day. 00:23:02.200 --> 00:23:04.039 This one's in 11 to 13. 00:23:04.220 --> 00:23:07.680 He calls us the land then to bring forth vegetation 00:23:07.680 --> 00:23:12.339 that He then separates again into kinds. 00:23:12.339 --> 00:23:17.199 Again, God is forming not only matter, 00:23:17.619 --> 00:23:20.799 but the systems that govern life in His world. 00:23:21.259 --> 00:23:23.619 He's fashioning, He's shaping, 00:23:23.959 --> 00:23:27.799 He's forming an inhabitable and desirable world. 00:23:29.079 --> 00:23:29.839 Amazingly, 00:23:30.359 --> 00:23:35.579 this vegetation is designed by God to replenish itself. 00:23:35.579 --> 00:23:41.139 No doubt as a result of the light from day one 00:23:41.139 --> 00:23:43.559 and the waters from day two. 00:23:44.559 --> 00:23:45.500 He's forming, 00:23:46.339 --> 00:23:47.279 He's fashioning. 00:23:49.339 --> 00:23:50.339 Notice, however, 00:23:51.000 --> 00:23:52.480 there is no mention here 00:23:52.480 --> 00:23:54.539 of a mother earth. 00:23:57.319 --> 00:23:59.480 The earth itself is not divine. 00:23:59.480 --> 00:24:04.400 It does not contain the soul of God. 00:24:05.680 --> 00:24:07.720 Its fruitfulness does not come 00:24:07.720 --> 00:24:10.480 as a result of mankind praying toward it, 00:24:10.519 --> 00:24:12.680 nor does its barrenness come 00:24:12.680 --> 00:24:15.319 as its displeasure with humanity 00:24:15.319 --> 00:24:18.400 in the way that humans are then treating it. 00:24:18.480 --> 00:24:20.259 This is a polemic for Israel 00:24:20.259 --> 00:24:21.480 against the pagan deities. 00:24:22.440 --> 00:24:23.420 Each day, 00:24:23.920 --> 00:24:25.339 representing a different deity 00:24:25.339 --> 00:24:26.360 that they would have known, 00:24:26.900 --> 00:24:29.299 particularly in their time in Egypt. 00:24:30.119 --> 00:24:31.480 It's a polemic against them. 00:24:32.899 --> 00:24:34.680 When they get into Canaan land, 00:24:34.740 --> 00:24:37.799 they will face this particular dilemma again 00:24:37.799 --> 00:24:40.720 with the gods that reign in Canaan culture 00:24:40.720 --> 00:24:44.319 and in Canaan civilization. 00:24:46.220 --> 00:24:49.440 Lewd and crude and ridiculous acts of worship 00:24:49.440 --> 00:24:52.139 that might stimulate Baal and Ashtoreth 00:24:52.139 --> 00:24:55.359 to somehow bring some kind of fruitfulness 00:24:55.359 --> 00:24:57.440 to the land of Canaan. 00:24:57.440 --> 00:24:59.299 And Moses says right from the beginning, 00:24:59.400 --> 00:25:00.160 before you get there, 00:25:00.220 --> 00:25:02.220 you need to know the fertility of the land. 00:25:02.279 --> 00:25:03.940 It doesn't come from Baal. 00:25:04.039 --> 00:25:05.500 It doesn't come from Ashtoreth. 00:25:05.559 --> 00:25:07.019 It doesn't come from Mother Earth. 00:25:07.160 --> 00:25:09.180 It comes from the creator God. 00:25:09.259 --> 00:25:10.740 It comes from Yahweh. 00:25:11.200 --> 00:25:12.299 Yahweh alone. 00:25:13.180 --> 00:25:15.039 It is God alone who creates 00:25:15.039 --> 00:25:17.640 and sustains the world in which we live. 00:25:17.820 --> 00:25:19.500 And the fruitfulness of the earth 00:25:19.500 --> 00:25:22.440 is under his sovereign control. 00:25:22.440 --> 00:25:24.720 God is forming. 00:25:25.539 --> 00:25:26.539 He's fashioning. 00:25:26.980 --> 00:25:30.840 And he's reigning over what he forms and fashions. 00:25:31.860 --> 00:25:33.160 And then we get to the second half. 00:25:33.920 --> 00:25:35.759 Three more days are listed here for us. 00:25:35.820 --> 00:25:39.320 This time God moves from forming to filling. 00:25:40.460 --> 00:25:42.120 Now there's a distinction between the two. 00:25:42.259 --> 00:25:44.620 There's different things in some cases 00:25:44.620 --> 00:25:46.799 that are happening in the filling of the earth. 00:25:46.799 --> 00:25:48.299 Let me just highlight them for you 00:25:48.299 --> 00:25:49.519 before we walk through the days. 00:25:50.519 --> 00:25:53.899 The first difference is that the creations 00:25:53.899 --> 00:25:57.639 on days four to six are animate. 00:25:59.000 --> 00:26:01.559 They are demonstrating life 00:26:01.559 --> 00:26:03.680 in a way that is distinct 00:26:03.680 --> 00:26:06.919 from the vegetation even of day three. 00:26:07.700 --> 00:26:09.819 There's motion here. 00:26:09.819 --> 00:26:14.399 We see the repetition of living beings 00:26:14.399 --> 00:26:16.159 on days five and six 00:26:16.159 --> 00:26:19.319 in which is the, quote, breath of life. 00:26:20.179 --> 00:26:21.579 They are living creatures 00:26:21.579 --> 00:26:22.859 in a way that's distinct 00:26:22.859 --> 00:26:24.079 from the rest of creation. 00:26:24.599 --> 00:26:27.279 But even the celestial bodies of day four, 00:26:27.919 --> 00:26:30.099 though not living beings in the same sense, 00:26:30.559 --> 00:26:32.419 give the appearance of animation 00:26:32.419 --> 00:26:33.480 from the earth, don't they? 00:26:34.299 --> 00:26:37.599 The perspective of Genesis chapter one 00:26:37.599 --> 00:26:39.799 is of us standing on the earth 00:26:39.799 --> 00:26:42.480 and watching all of this happen around us. 00:26:42.500 --> 00:26:43.879 As we look up to the sun 00:26:43.879 --> 00:26:45.539 and to the moon and to the stars, 00:26:45.659 --> 00:26:46.919 we see motion, right? 00:26:46.980 --> 00:26:48.539 It's not that they're living beings 00:26:48.539 --> 00:26:49.379 in the same way. 00:26:49.659 --> 00:26:51.119 Genesis one doesn't say that they are. 00:26:51.299 --> 00:26:52.619 But it tracks here, doesn't it? 00:26:52.859 --> 00:26:54.039 If they're in motion, 00:26:54.179 --> 00:26:55.679 they're animated in some sense, 00:26:55.719 --> 00:26:56.819 at least from our perspective. 00:26:57.459 --> 00:26:58.619 The second difference 00:26:58.619 --> 00:27:01.599 is that God does not name the things 00:27:01.599 --> 00:27:02.879 in days four to six 00:27:02.879 --> 00:27:05.019 with one exception. 00:27:05.019 --> 00:27:05.420 Men. 00:27:07.740 --> 00:27:09.019 Now, why is that important? 00:27:10.359 --> 00:27:11.579 In the ancient world, 00:27:11.740 --> 00:27:14.279 naming something communicated authority 00:27:14.279 --> 00:27:16.639 over the thing named. 00:27:17.980 --> 00:27:19.079 You know, it's not that God 00:27:19.079 --> 00:27:20.859 does not exercise authority 00:27:20.859 --> 00:27:22.619 over the whole of creation, 00:27:22.619 --> 00:27:23.879 but what we're gonna see happen 00:27:23.879 --> 00:27:24.799 in chapter two 00:27:24.799 --> 00:27:27.339 is God delegating the authority 00:27:27.339 --> 00:27:29.319 of naming to Adam, 00:27:30.139 --> 00:27:31.139 his image bearer. 00:27:31.140 --> 00:27:34.100 However, 00:27:34.680 --> 00:27:37.600 the image bearer himself 00:27:37.600 --> 00:27:39.620 remains under the direct 00:27:39.620 --> 00:27:41.540 sovereign authority 00:27:41.540 --> 00:27:42.420 of the creator. 00:27:43.160 --> 00:27:45.500 He is not a God unto himself. 00:27:47.580 --> 00:27:48.560 A vice regent, 00:27:48.720 --> 00:27:49.540 we might call him. 00:27:51.000 --> 00:27:51.940 Imaging God 00:27:51.940 --> 00:27:54.020 with a delegated authority 00:27:54.020 --> 00:27:56.259 that he might have dominion 00:27:56.259 --> 00:27:57.860 over the created world. 00:27:57.859 --> 00:28:00.579 There's a third difference though. 00:28:01.919 --> 00:28:03.679 A final significant change 00:28:03.679 --> 00:28:04.559 is in the addition 00:28:04.559 --> 00:28:06.039 of divine blessing, 00:28:06.159 --> 00:28:07.879 a stated blessing 00:28:07.879 --> 00:28:09.979 on days five and day six. 00:28:11.059 --> 00:28:11.979 A blessing 00:28:11.979 --> 00:28:14.679 that specifically relates 00:28:14.679 --> 00:28:16.199 to procreation. 00:28:17.779 --> 00:28:20.000 God blesses the living creatures 00:28:20.000 --> 00:28:21.659 with not only the ability, 00:28:22.139 --> 00:28:23.319 but the responsibility 00:28:23.319 --> 00:28:25.240 to multiply 00:28:25.240 --> 00:28:27.299 and to continue 00:28:27.299 --> 00:28:28.899 to fill the earth 00:28:28.899 --> 00:28:31.779 that he has now formed. 00:28:32.439 --> 00:28:33.639 Let's look at day four, 00:28:34.000 --> 00:28:34.700 verse 14. 00:28:35.779 --> 00:28:36.339 And God said, 00:28:36.519 --> 00:28:37.220 let there be lights 00:28:37.220 --> 00:28:38.539 in the expanse of the heavens 00:28:38.539 --> 00:28:39.639 to separate the day 00:28:39.639 --> 00:28:40.259 from the night. 00:28:41.259 --> 00:28:42.619 Let them be for signs 00:28:42.619 --> 00:28:43.419 and for seasons, 00:28:43.919 --> 00:28:45.240 for days and years. 00:28:45.379 --> 00:28:46.159 Let them be lights 00:28:46.159 --> 00:28:47.379 in the expanse of the heavens 00:28:47.379 --> 00:28:49.119 to give light upon the earth. 00:28:49.980 --> 00:28:50.980 And it was so. 00:28:50.980 --> 00:28:53.200 And God made 00:28:53.200 --> 00:28:54.579 the two great lights. 00:28:54.839 --> 00:28:56.400 Notice he doesn't name them here. 00:28:57.539 --> 00:28:58.680 Sun and moon, of course. 00:28:58.880 --> 00:29:00.099 The greater light 00:29:00.099 --> 00:29:00.860 to rule the day, 00:29:00.960 --> 00:29:01.640 the lesser light 00:29:01.640 --> 00:29:02.460 to rule the night. 00:29:02.759 --> 00:29:03.400 And then almost 00:29:03.400 --> 00:29:04.519 as a throwaway statement, 00:29:04.700 --> 00:29:05.299 and the stars. 00:29:05.440 --> 00:29:06.259 We'll get to that in a second. 00:29:08.200 --> 00:29:08.880 God set them 00:29:08.880 --> 00:29:09.620 in the expanse 00:29:09.620 --> 00:29:10.140 of the heavens 00:29:10.140 --> 00:29:11.960 to give light on the earth, 00:29:12.400 --> 00:29:14.000 to rule over the day 00:29:14.000 --> 00:29:14.819 and over the night, 00:29:14.920 --> 00:29:15.980 to separate the light 00:29:15.980 --> 00:29:16.660 from the darkness. 00:29:16.920 --> 00:29:17.819 And God saw 00:29:17.819 --> 00:29:18.620 that it was good. 00:29:19.460 --> 00:29:20.500 And there was evening 00:29:20.500 --> 00:29:21.359 and there was morning 00:29:21.359 --> 00:29:23.400 a fourth day. 00:29:24.619 --> 00:29:25.599 So corresponding 00:29:25.599 --> 00:29:26.640 with the forming 00:29:26.640 --> 00:29:27.259 of light 00:29:27.259 --> 00:29:28.140 and darkness 00:29:28.140 --> 00:29:29.000 on day one 00:29:29.000 --> 00:29:29.839 is the creation 00:29:29.839 --> 00:29:31.099 of the heavenly bodies 00:29:31.099 --> 00:29:32.279 that we understand 00:29:32.279 --> 00:29:33.319 to govern them. 00:29:35.359 --> 00:29:36.880 There were two great lights, 00:29:36.980 --> 00:29:37.420 the sun, 00:29:37.539 --> 00:29:38.000 the moon, 00:29:38.759 --> 00:29:39.420 as well as 00:29:39.420 --> 00:29:40.599 a multitude of stars. 00:29:41.599 --> 00:29:43.000 Their primary function 00:29:43.000 --> 00:29:44.700 is to give light, 00:29:44.700 --> 00:29:46.400 or at least 00:29:46.400 --> 00:29:48.180 to reflect light. 00:29:48.180 --> 00:29:51.220 But they're also there 00:29:51.220 --> 00:29:53.100 to aid in navigation, 00:29:53.320 --> 00:29:53.740 we see. 00:29:54.700 --> 00:29:56.820 To cause seasonal changes 00:29:56.820 --> 00:29:57.580 that are necessary 00:29:57.580 --> 00:29:58.620 for sustained life. 00:29:58.720 --> 00:29:59.700 We might pray 00:29:59.700 --> 00:30:00.299 to the God 00:30:00.299 --> 00:30:01.060 who created them 00:30:01.060 --> 00:30:02.160 that this next season 00:30:02.160 --> 00:30:02.960 would hurry up 00:30:02.960 --> 00:30:04.140 so we can stop 00:30:04.140 --> 00:30:05.580 with these 100 degree days 00:30:05.580 --> 00:30:06.160 in September. 00:30:09.039 --> 00:30:10.400 They provide a means 00:30:10.400 --> 00:30:11.759 of charting days 00:30:11.759 --> 00:30:12.539 and years. 00:30:12.539 --> 00:30:16.180 Ian Duggett says 00:30:16.180 --> 00:30:16.779 the function 00:30:16.779 --> 00:30:17.980 of these heavenly bodies 00:30:17.980 --> 00:30:20.539 is carefully limited 00:30:20.539 --> 00:30:23.259 to providing services 00:30:23.259 --> 00:30:25.039 to those on earth. 00:30:25.119 --> 00:30:25.619 In other words, 00:30:25.859 --> 00:30:26.639 they are not 00:30:26.639 --> 00:30:27.879 to be served, 00:30:28.000 --> 00:30:28.519 they are here 00:30:28.519 --> 00:30:29.680 to serve us. 00:30:31.680 --> 00:30:33.279 They have no independent 00:30:33.279 --> 00:30:34.399 status as deities. 00:30:34.559 --> 00:30:35.139 The stars 00:30:35.139 --> 00:30:36.579 which were conceived 00:30:36.579 --> 00:30:37.940 by many in antiquity 00:30:37.940 --> 00:30:39.000 to control 00:30:39.000 --> 00:30:40.019 human destinies 00:30:40.019 --> 00:30:40.879 are almost 00:30:40.879 --> 00:30:42.019 an afterthought here. 00:30:43.259 --> 00:30:44.440 Although the heavenly lights 00:30:44.440 --> 00:30:44.839 are good 00:30:44.839 --> 00:30:45.279 and useful 00:30:45.279 --> 00:30:46.000 to humanity, 00:30:46.180 --> 00:30:46.879 there is nothing 00:30:46.879 --> 00:30:47.759 in their nature 00:30:47.759 --> 00:30:48.920 that deserves 00:30:48.920 --> 00:30:50.259 worship and praise, 00:30:50.319 --> 00:30:50.839 he says. 00:30:52.420 --> 00:30:54.259 A significant statement 00:30:54.259 --> 00:30:55.559 to the wandering Israelites 00:30:55.559 --> 00:30:56.940 in the wilderness 00:30:56.940 --> 00:30:58.180 having just come 00:30:58.180 --> 00:30:59.440 from 400 years 00:30:59.440 --> 00:31:00.119 of captivity 00:31:00.119 --> 00:31:02.500 in pagan Egypt. 00:31:03.559 --> 00:31:04.519 Loved ones, 00:31:04.639 --> 00:31:05.200 your life 00:31:05.200 --> 00:31:06.059 is not governed 00:31:06.059 --> 00:31:07.240 by the alignment 00:31:07.240 --> 00:31:08.200 of the planets 00:31:08.200 --> 00:31:09.420 or the position 00:31:09.420 --> 00:31:10.799 of the stars. 00:31:11.580 --> 00:31:12.160 Throw away 00:31:12.160 --> 00:31:13.200 your horoscopes. 00:31:14.600 --> 00:31:15.319 It's pagan. 00:31:18.660 --> 00:31:19.539 They're all 00:31:19.539 --> 00:31:20.519 but creations 00:31:20.519 --> 00:31:21.640 ruled by the God 00:31:21.640 --> 00:31:22.259 of the Bible 00:31:22.259 --> 00:31:23.019 who alone 00:31:23.019 --> 00:31:24.080 is worthy 00:31:24.080 --> 00:31:24.819 of worship, 00:31:25.160 --> 00:31:25.880 who alone 00:31:25.880 --> 00:31:27.640 rules your days. 00:31:28.279 --> 00:31:29.600 Go to him. 00:31:31.120 --> 00:31:32.299 Pray to him. 00:31:32.980 --> 00:31:34.140 Cling to him. 00:31:34.680 --> 00:31:36.220 Worship him 00:31:36.220 --> 00:31:36.840 alone. 00:31:38.200 --> 00:31:39.400 Day 5, 00:31:39.960 --> 00:31:40.559 verse 20. 00:31:42.640 --> 00:31:43.539 And God said, 00:31:44.559 --> 00:31:45.700 let the water swarm 00:31:45.700 --> 00:31:46.319 with swarms 00:31:46.319 --> 00:31:47.259 of living creatures. 00:31:47.500 --> 00:31:48.519 Let the birds 00:31:48.519 --> 00:31:49.779 fly above the earth 00:31:49.779 --> 00:31:51.019 across the expanse 00:31:51.019 --> 00:31:51.500 of the heavens. 00:31:52.980 --> 00:31:53.940 So God created 00:31:53.940 --> 00:31:55.680 the great sea creatures, 00:31:55.799 --> 00:31:56.640 every living creature 00:31:56.640 --> 00:31:57.240 that moves 00:31:57.240 --> 00:31:58.440 with which the waters 00:31:58.440 --> 00:31:59.400 swarm according 00:31:59.400 --> 00:32:00.180 to their kinds 00:32:00.180 --> 00:32:01.640 and every winged bird 00:32:01.640 --> 00:32:03.340 according to its kind 00:32:03.340 --> 00:32:04.000 and God saw 00:32:04.000 --> 00:32:04.759 that it was good 00:32:04.759 --> 00:32:07.840 and God blessed them. 00:32:08.200 --> 00:32:09.600 saying, 00:32:09.740 --> 00:32:10.400 be fruitful 00:32:10.400 --> 00:32:11.360 and multiply 00:32:11.360 --> 00:32:12.759 and fill the waters 00:32:12.759 --> 00:32:13.380 and the seas 00:32:13.380 --> 00:32:14.259 and let birds 00:32:14.259 --> 00:32:15.440 multiply on the earth. 00:32:16.440 --> 00:32:17.500 And there was evening 00:32:17.500 --> 00:32:18.319 and there was morning 00:32:18.319 --> 00:32:19.660 the fifth day. 00:32:21.420 --> 00:32:22.019 Corresponding 00:32:22.019 --> 00:32:22.680 to day 2 00:32:22.680 --> 00:32:23.440 and the creation 00:32:23.440 --> 00:32:24.539 of the sky 00:32:24.539 --> 00:32:25.340 and the separation 00:32:25.340 --> 00:32:26.140 of the waters 00:32:26.140 --> 00:32:27.519 are the creatures 00:32:27.519 --> 00:32:28.480 that are now brought 00:32:28.480 --> 00:32:29.100 to life 00:32:29.100 --> 00:32:30.080 on day 5. 00:32:30.079 --> 00:32:33.799 skulls of fish 00:32:33.799 --> 00:32:35.279 swarming 00:32:35.279 --> 00:32:36.059 in the seas 00:32:36.059 --> 00:32:37.000 and in the waters. 00:32:38.159 --> 00:32:40.019 The great sea creatures 00:32:40.019 --> 00:32:40.799 perhaps even 00:32:40.799 --> 00:32:42.039 the Leviathan 00:32:42.039 --> 00:32:42.939 that we read of 00:32:42.939 --> 00:32:43.359 in other 00:32:43.359 --> 00:32:44.939 Old Testament texts. 00:32:45.779 --> 00:32:47.139 The ones that keep me 00:32:47.139 --> 00:32:47.899 from actually getting 00:32:47.899 --> 00:32:48.539 in the water 00:32:48.539 --> 00:32:49.519 when I go to the beach 00:32:49.519 --> 00:32:51.339 all created here 00:32:51.339 --> 00:32:53.000 on day 5. 00:32:54.039 --> 00:32:54.779 And then he fills 00:32:54.779 --> 00:32:55.279 the sky, 00:32:55.379 --> 00:32:55.799 doesn't he? 00:32:56.480 --> 00:32:58.099 All kinds of bird life, 00:32:58.679 --> 00:32:59.500 winged creatures, 00:32:59.500 --> 00:32:59.680 creatures. 00:33:01.019 --> 00:33:01.400 And again, 00:33:01.460 --> 00:33:02.700 they're all but creatures 00:33:02.700 --> 00:33:03.779 who serve the purpose 00:33:03.779 --> 00:33:04.500 of the creator. 00:33:04.839 --> 00:33:06.299 They are not gods themselves. 00:33:06.460 --> 00:33:07.319 They do not represent 00:33:07.319 --> 00:33:09.160 gods themselves. 00:33:11.259 --> 00:33:12.319 And then here is 00:33:12.319 --> 00:33:13.160 the first statement 00:33:13.160 --> 00:33:13.900 of blessing, 00:33:14.000 --> 00:33:14.920 a divine blessing. 00:33:15.119 --> 00:33:15.839 God instructs 00:33:15.839 --> 00:33:16.319 the creatures 00:33:16.319 --> 00:33:17.319 of the air 00:33:17.319 --> 00:33:17.839 and the sea 00:33:17.839 --> 00:33:18.579 to multiply 00:33:18.579 --> 00:33:19.859 and to fill 00:33:19.859 --> 00:33:21.279 the respective environments 00:33:21.279 --> 00:33:25.200 so that the ability 00:33:25.200 --> 00:33:27.660 to perpetuate life 00:33:27.660 --> 00:33:28.359 is presented 00:33:28.359 --> 00:33:29.559 from the very beginning 00:33:29.559 --> 00:33:31.979 as God's glorious favor, 00:33:32.139 --> 00:33:33.859 something to be honored, 00:33:34.399 --> 00:33:35.199 something to be 00:33:35.199 --> 00:33:36.679 perhaps even pursued, 00:33:38.019 --> 00:33:40.099 something to be held 00:33:40.099 --> 00:33:41.059 in high esteem 00:33:41.059 --> 00:33:41.679 and guarded 00:33:41.679 --> 00:33:42.839 and protected, 00:33:42.979 --> 00:33:43.439 a theme 00:33:43.439 --> 00:33:44.519 that is going to continue 00:33:44.519 --> 00:33:45.959 all throughout Genesis 00:33:45.959 --> 00:33:47.179 and the rest of the Bible. 00:33:47.179 --> 00:33:48.059 We're going to see this 00:33:48.059 --> 00:33:49.299 again and again 00:33:49.299 --> 00:33:49.740 and again. 00:33:49.879 --> 00:33:51.039 The blessing of God 00:33:51.039 --> 00:33:51.599 linked 00:33:51.599 --> 00:33:53.539 to childbearing. 00:33:56.980 --> 00:33:58.379 There's a reason 00:33:58.379 --> 00:33:59.519 we find later 00:33:59.519 --> 00:34:00.480 in the book of Genesis 00:34:00.480 --> 00:34:02.379 over and over 00:34:02.379 --> 00:34:05.399 women in the stories 00:34:05.399 --> 00:34:06.119 who are barren 00:34:06.119 --> 00:34:06.939 and they grieve 00:34:06.939 --> 00:34:07.579 as a result. 00:34:10.019 --> 00:34:11.420 This is a blessing 00:34:11.420 --> 00:34:12.199 from God. 00:34:13.860 --> 00:34:15.139 The blessing 00:34:15.139 --> 00:34:16.619 of Isaac, 00:34:16.619 --> 00:34:18.719 the blessing 00:34:18.719 --> 00:34:20.699 of Jacob, 00:34:21.019 --> 00:34:21.619 the blessing 00:34:21.619 --> 00:34:23.559 of their children 00:34:23.559 --> 00:34:25.480 is the blessing 00:34:25.480 --> 00:34:26.179 of God. 00:34:26.940 --> 00:34:27.739 It's the favor 00:34:27.739 --> 00:34:28.199 of God. 00:34:28.319 --> 00:34:29.119 It's the goodness 00:34:29.119 --> 00:34:30.380 of God. 00:34:31.639 --> 00:34:32.599 Day six. 00:34:35.400 --> 00:34:36.519 And God said, 00:34:36.699 --> 00:34:37.059 let the earth 00:34:37.059 --> 00:34:37.579 bring forth 00:34:37.579 --> 00:34:38.380 living creatures 00:34:38.380 --> 00:34:39.519 according to their kinds, 00:34:40.059 --> 00:34:40.500 livestock 00:34:40.500 --> 00:34:41.819 and creeping things 00:34:41.819 --> 00:34:42.420 and beasts 00:34:42.420 --> 00:34:43.420 of the earth 00:34:43.420 --> 00:34:44.659 according to their kinds. 00:34:44.659 --> 00:34:46.500 and it was so. 00:34:48.279 --> 00:34:48.879 And God made 00:34:48.879 --> 00:34:49.279 the beast 00:34:49.279 --> 00:34:49.759 of the earth 00:34:49.759 --> 00:34:50.759 according to their kinds, 00:34:50.859 --> 00:34:51.359 the livestock 00:34:51.359 --> 00:34:52.480 according to their kinds 00:34:52.480 --> 00:34:53.279 and everything 00:34:53.279 --> 00:34:53.899 that creeps 00:34:53.899 --> 00:34:54.379 on the ground 00:34:54.379 --> 00:34:55.480 according to its kind 00:34:55.480 --> 00:34:56.299 and God saw 00:34:56.299 --> 00:34:57.879 that it was good. 00:34:59.960 --> 00:35:01.379 But then he continues 00:35:01.379 --> 00:35:03.839 another creative word 00:35:03.839 --> 00:35:06.299 and God said, 00:35:07.319 --> 00:35:09.059 let us make man 00:35:09.059 --> 00:35:09.839 in our image 00:35:09.839 --> 00:35:12.239 after our likeness 00:35:12.239 --> 00:35:13.859 and let them 00:35:13.860 --> 00:35:14.599 have dominion 00:35:14.599 --> 00:35:15.240 over the fish 00:35:15.240 --> 00:35:15.780 of the sea 00:35:15.780 --> 00:35:16.579 and over the birds 00:35:16.579 --> 00:35:17.039 of the heavens 00:35:17.039 --> 00:35:18.280 and over the livestock 00:35:18.280 --> 00:35:19.440 and over all the earth 00:35:19.440 --> 00:35:20.980 and every creeping thing 00:35:20.980 --> 00:35:21.519 that creeps 00:35:21.519 --> 00:35:22.019 on the earth. 00:35:22.120 --> 00:35:23.160 And here we have 00:35:23.160 --> 00:35:24.120 a break 00:35:24.120 --> 00:35:25.579 from narrative prose 00:35:25.579 --> 00:35:27.099 and we have poetry. 00:35:28.860 --> 00:35:30.640 So God created man 00:35:30.640 --> 00:35:32.480 in his own image. 00:35:33.539 --> 00:35:35.019 In the image of God, 00:35:35.900 --> 00:35:37.039 he created him. 00:35:37.780 --> 00:35:39.120 Male and female, 00:35:39.800 --> 00:35:41.340 he created them. 00:35:41.340 --> 00:35:43.920 And another word 00:35:43.920 --> 00:35:44.460 of blessing. 00:35:45.860 --> 00:35:46.980 And God blessed them. 00:35:48.079 --> 00:35:49.039 And God said to them, 00:35:49.180 --> 00:35:49.740 be fruitful 00:35:49.740 --> 00:35:50.559 and multiply, 00:35:50.980 --> 00:35:51.860 fill the earth 00:35:51.860 --> 00:35:52.579 and subdue it. 00:35:52.820 --> 00:35:53.660 Have dominion 00:35:53.660 --> 00:35:54.340 over the fish 00:35:54.340 --> 00:35:54.820 of the sea. 00:35:54.940 --> 00:35:55.579 Have dominion 00:35:55.579 --> 00:35:56.240 over the birds 00:35:56.240 --> 00:35:57.160 of the heavens. 00:35:57.440 --> 00:35:58.140 Have dominion 00:35:58.140 --> 00:35:59.420 over every living thing 00:35:59.420 --> 00:36:00.500 that moves on the earth. 00:36:00.800 --> 00:36:01.559 And God said, 00:36:01.660 --> 00:36:01.960 behold, 00:36:02.079 --> 00:36:03.600 I have also given you 00:36:03.600 --> 00:36:04.760 every green plant 00:36:04.760 --> 00:36:06.059 yielding seed 00:36:06.059 --> 00:36:06.960 that is on the face 00:36:06.960 --> 00:36:07.980 of all the earth. 00:36:08.059 --> 00:36:08.700 Every tree 00:36:08.700 --> 00:36:09.820 with seed in its fruit. 00:36:09.820 --> 00:36:11.820 You shall have them 00:36:11.820 --> 00:36:12.360 for food. 00:36:13.240 --> 00:36:14.360 And to every beast 00:36:14.360 --> 00:36:14.820 of the earth 00:36:14.820 --> 00:36:15.720 and to every bird 00:36:15.720 --> 00:36:16.240 of the heavens 00:36:16.240 --> 00:36:17.059 and to everything 00:36:17.059 --> 00:36:18.160 that creeps on the earth, 00:36:18.300 --> 00:36:19.559 everything that has 00:36:19.559 --> 00:36:20.440 the breath of life, 00:36:20.559 --> 00:36:21.300 I have given 00:36:21.300 --> 00:36:22.600 every green plant 00:36:22.600 --> 00:36:23.240 for food. 00:36:24.660 --> 00:36:25.760 And it was so. 00:36:26.920 --> 00:36:27.940 And God saw everything 00:36:27.940 --> 00:36:28.840 that he had made. 00:36:29.860 --> 00:36:30.380 And behold, 00:36:30.440 --> 00:36:31.360 it was very good. 00:36:32.220 --> 00:36:33.240 And there was evening 00:36:33.240 --> 00:36:34.039 and there was morning, 00:36:34.620 --> 00:36:35.340 the sixth day. 00:36:36.260 --> 00:36:37.280 Like day three, 00:36:37.400 --> 00:36:38.000 day six 00:36:38.000 --> 00:36:39.739 has two creative words. 00:36:39.860 --> 00:36:40.119 Of course, 00:36:40.199 --> 00:36:40.739 the first one 00:36:40.739 --> 00:36:41.719 is the creation 00:36:41.719 --> 00:36:42.619 of animal life, 00:36:42.699 --> 00:36:43.420 the separation 00:36:43.420 --> 00:36:44.619 of kinds. 00:36:44.780 --> 00:36:45.880 There's livestock, 00:36:46.199 --> 00:36:47.480 the domesticated animals 00:36:47.480 --> 00:36:48.800 that will be useful 00:36:48.800 --> 00:36:49.400 to man. 00:36:49.539 --> 00:36:51.340 There's the creepy crawlers 00:36:51.340 --> 00:36:53.539 that I don't know 00:36:53.539 --> 00:36:54.119 why they're useful 00:36:54.119 --> 00:36:54.519 to man. 00:36:54.579 --> 00:36:55.460 They glorify God. 00:36:56.219 --> 00:36:57.579 There's the wild beast 00:36:57.579 --> 00:36:58.260 of the earth, 00:36:58.760 --> 00:36:59.420 all created 00:36:59.420 --> 00:37:00.360 in the first word, 00:37:00.940 --> 00:37:01.460 separated. 00:37:02.920 --> 00:37:03.840 And then comes 00:37:03.840 --> 00:37:05.400 the second creative word. 00:37:05.739 --> 00:37:06.380 More space 00:37:06.380 --> 00:37:06.760 is given 00:37:06.760 --> 00:37:07.400 to this part 00:37:07.400 --> 00:37:07.940 of creation 00:37:07.940 --> 00:37:09.099 than any other part 00:37:09.099 --> 00:37:10.099 of the entire chapter, 00:37:10.200 --> 00:37:11.119 the entire account. 00:37:12.480 --> 00:37:14.180 Everything in Genesis 1 00:37:14.180 --> 00:37:15.720 is pressing forward 00:37:15.720 --> 00:37:17.160 to this climax 00:37:17.160 --> 00:37:18.119 of the whole account. 00:37:18.220 --> 00:37:18.960 This is the apex 00:37:18.960 --> 00:37:20.539 of the whole thing. 00:37:20.880 --> 00:37:21.880 On day six, 00:37:22.059 --> 00:37:23.760 God crowns his creation 00:37:23.760 --> 00:37:25.940 with human life, 00:37:26.680 --> 00:37:27.519 with humanity. 00:37:29.140 --> 00:37:30.019 We're going to come back 00:37:30.019 --> 00:37:30.780 to this next week 00:37:30.780 --> 00:37:31.300 and we're going to look 00:37:31.300 --> 00:37:32.780 at 26 to 31 00:37:32.780 --> 00:37:33.960 on its own. 00:37:33.960 --> 00:37:35.300 But for our study 00:37:35.300 --> 00:37:35.820 this morning, 00:37:35.900 --> 00:37:36.639 for its own sake, 00:37:36.699 --> 00:37:37.619 there's just a couple 00:37:37.619 --> 00:37:38.699 of things that we should note. 00:37:40.199 --> 00:37:42.639 That God creates humanity 00:37:42.639 --> 00:37:44.780 as his own image bearers 00:37:44.780 --> 00:37:46.740 is of utmost importance 00:37:46.740 --> 00:37:48.360 in the biblical text, 00:37:48.420 --> 00:37:49.000 not only here, 00:37:49.079 --> 00:37:50.260 but moving forward from here. 00:37:52.179 --> 00:37:53.820 The inerrant dignity 00:37:53.820 --> 00:37:55.420 of human life 00:37:55.420 --> 00:37:56.220 from the womb 00:37:56.220 --> 00:37:57.539 to the tomb 00:37:57.539 --> 00:37:59.400 is predicated 00:37:59.400 --> 00:38:00.579 throughout the scriptures 00:38:00.579 --> 00:38:01.819 on the fact 00:38:01.819 --> 00:38:02.880 that human beings 00:38:02.880 --> 00:38:03.819 are distinct 00:38:03.819 --> 00:38:05.340 from everything else 00:38:05.340 --> 00:38:06.599 in God's created world. 00:38:07.699 --> 00:38:09.920 We are not a higher form 00:38:09.920 --> 00:38:11.360 of animal life. 00:38:11.699 --> 00:38:13.739 We bear the very image 00:38:13.739 --> 00:38:15.000 of the creator 00:38:15.000 --> 00:38:15.920 that is to be 00:38:15.920 --> 00:38:17.599 perpetually communicated 00:38:17.599 --> 00:38:19.539 to the rest of the universe 00:38:19.539 --> 00:38:20.980 in the way that we live 00:38:20.980 --> 00:38:21.980 and in the way 00:38:21.980 --> 00:38:23.059 that we worship. 00:38:23.360 --> 00:38:25.079 We represent him. 00:38:25.239 --> 00:38:26.400 We image him. 00:38:26.519 --> 00:38:27.880 We mirror him. 00:38:27.880 --> 00:38:31.119 And with this image 00:38:31.119 --> 00:38:32.220 bearing distinction 00:38:32.220 --> 00:38:34.200 comes the unique privilege 00:38:34.200 --> 00:38:35.260 in the text 00:38:35.260 --> 00:38:36.880 of exercising dominion 00:38:37.780 --> 00:38:39.920 over the created world 00:38:39.920 --> 00:38:41.519 on God's behalf. 00:38:44.519 --> 00:38:45.940 This distinction 00:38:45.940 --> 00:38:47.019 in human life 00:38:47.019 --> 00:38:49.079 begins to lay a foundation 00:38:49.079 --> 00:38:50.099 that is necessary 00:38:50.099 --> 00:38:51.340 for us to understand 00:38:51.340 --> 00:38:52.420 the whole point 00:38:52.420 --> 00:38:53.019 of the Bible, 00:38:53.180 --> 00:38:55.400 which takes us 00:38:55.400 --> 00:38:56.780 to one image bearer. 00:38:56.780 --> 00:38:58.940 the person 00:38:58.940 --> 00:38:59.960 of Jesus Christ, 00:39:00.100 --> 00:39:02.500 the truest image bearer 00:39:02.500 --> 00:39:04.080 who will come 00:39:04.080 --> 00:39:04.780 and redeem 00:39:04.780 --> 00:39:06.160 fallen humanity 00:39:06.160 --> 00:39:07.320 from sin 00:39:07.320 --> 00:39:08.900 and death. 00:39:09.019 --> 00:39:09.820 The foundation 00:39:09.820 --> 00:39:10.900 for the person 00:39:10.900 --> 00:39:11.440 of Christ 00:39:11.440 --> 00:39:12.780 is being laid here 00:39:12.780 --> 00:39:14.700 for us to understand. 00:39:16.180 --> 00:39:17.240 It's revealed 00:39:17.240 --> 00:39:18.019 in the Gospels. 00:39:18.140 --> 00:39:18.880 It's explained 00:39:18.880 --> 00:39:19.880 in the epistles, 00:39:20.040 --> 00:39:20.940 Hebrews chapter 1. 00:39:21.240 --> 00:39:21.920 He, Jesus, 00:39:22.080 --> 00:39:22.980 is the radiance 00:39:22.980 --> 00:39:23.980 of the glory of God, 00:39:24.300 --> 00:39:25.640 the exact imprint 00:39:25.639 --> 00:39:27.440 of his nature. 00:39:27.799 --> 00:39:28.779 And he upholds 00:39:28.779 --> 00:39:29.299 the universe 00:39:29.299 --> 00:39:30.019 by the word 00:39:30.019 --> 00:39:30.699 of his power. 00:39:31.319 --> 00:39:32.599 And after making 00:39:32.599 --> 00:39:34.679 purifications for sin, 00:39:34.960 --> 00:39:35.900 he sits down 00:39:35.900 --> 00:39:36.659 at the right hand 00:39:36.659 --> 00:39:37.839 of the majesty on high. 00:39:37.839 --> 00:39:38.480 This is laying 00:39:38.480 --> 00:39:39.159 the foundation 00:39:39.159 --> 00:39:40.639 for us to understand 00:39:40.639 --> 00:39:42.119 the person of Christ 00:39:42.119 --> 00:39:43.400 and who he truly is 00:39:43.400 --> 00:39:44.400 so that we might 00:39:44.400 --> 00:39:45.139 understand 00:39:45.139 --> 00:39:46.739 our own salvation 00:39:46.739 --> 00:39:47.859 from the fallenness 00:39:47.859 --> 00:39:48.619 that we will find 00:39:48.619 --> 00:39:49.420 in chapter 3. 00:39:49.420 --> 00:39:53.079 We find humanity 00:39:53.079 --> 00:39:54.900 here is also blessed 00:39:54.900 --> 00:39:56.539 to enjoy the benefits 00:39:56.539 --> 00:39:58.280 of what God created 00:39:58.280 --> 00:39:58.720 the earth 00:39:58.720 --> 00:40:00.019 to produce for them. 00:40:01.380 --> 00:40:02.700 God sustains them 00:40:02.700 --> 00:40:03.840 along with land creatures 00:40:03.840 --> 00:40:04.880 with the vegetation 00:40:04.880 --> 00:40:06.200 from day 3. 00:40:07.099 --> 00:40:08.200 This doesn't necessarily 00:40:08.200 --> 00:40:09.059 demand that 00:40:09.059 --> 00:40:09.980 all creatures 00:40:09.980 --> 00:40:10.700 were essentially 00:40:10.700 --> 00:40:11.500 vegetarians 00:40:11.500 --> 00:40:12.300 until the fall. 00:40:12.400 --> 00:40:13.980 That's not the takeaway here. 00:40:14.059 --> 00:40:15.200 The takeaway is that 00:40:15.200 --> 00:40:17.220 God has made the earth 00:40:17.219 --> 00:40:18.539 and its resources 00:40:18.539 --> 00:40:19.359 for the good 00:40:19.359 --> 00:40:20.000 and pleasure 00:40:20.000 --> 00:40:20.819 of mankind. 00:40:23.459 --> 00:40:24.679 He has created 00:40:24.679 --> 00:40:25.239 a world 00:40:25.239 --> 00:40:26.219 that is pregnant 00:40:26.219 --> 00:40:27.219 with resources 00:40:27.219 --> 00:40:28.980 for us 00:40:28.980 --> 00:40:31.819 to sustain life 00:40:31.819 --> 00:40:34.519 and to enjoy life. 00:40:35.899 --> 00:40:37.139 And he alone does it 00:40:37.139 --> 00:40:38.859 as the creator 00:40:38.859 --> 00:40:39.879 of all that exists. 00:40:43.159 --> 00:40:43.879 David Helm 00:40:43.879 --> 00:40:44.399 in a sermon 00:40:44.399 --> 00:40:46.839 on Genesis 1 00:40:46.840 --> 00:40:47.539 said this. 00:40:50.120 --> 00:40:51.059 The chapter 00:40:51.059 --> 00:40:52.000 is to make us 00:40:52.000 --> 00:40:52.539 bow 00:40:52.539 --> 00:40:53.920 in humble adoration. 00:40:56.440 --> 00:40:57.360 How it is 00:40:57.360 --> 00:40:57.820 that we have 00:40:57.820 --> 00:40:58.380 turned it 00:40:58.380 --> 00:40:59.240 into a chapter 00:40:59.240 --> 00:41:00.340 of argumentative 00:41:00.340 --> 00:41:00.900 wrangling 00:41:00.900 --> 00:41:02.579 is only an indication 00:41:02.579 --> 00:41:03.920 of how little 00:41:03.920 --> 00:41:04.820 we understand 00:41:04.820 --> 00:41:05.900 the author's intent 00:41:05.900 --> 00:41:07.100 in writing. 00:41:09.800 --> 00:41:10.600 I heard him 00:41:10.600 --> 00:41:11.300 say that in a sermon 00:41:11.300 --> 00:41:11.780 and I took out 00:41:11.780 --> 00:41:12.780 about a thousand words 00:41:12.780 --> 00:41:13.600 I put in here. 00:41:14.960 --> 00:41:16.140 It's so true 00:41:16.140 --> 00:41:16.559 isn't it? 00:41:16.840 --> 00:41:19.640 Would you just 00:41:19.640 --> 00:41:20.660 consider for a moment 00:41:20.660 --> 00:41:21.600 how is it 00:41:21.600 --> 00:41:22.680 that we're to reflect 00:41:22.680 --> 00:41:23.420 on Genesis 1? 00:41:23.519 --> 00:41:25.519 What is the real intent 00:41:25.519 --> 00:41:26.559 of the text here? 00:41:27.440 --> 00:41:28.519 Would you just consider 00:41:28.519 --> 00:41:29.100 for a moment 00:41:29.100 --> 00:41:30.579 how every other 00:41:30.579 --> 00:41:31.559 biblical author 00:41:31.559 --> 00:41:32.740 references 00:41:32.740 --> 00:41:33.860 Genesis 1 00:41:33.860 --> 00:41:35.680 and what they're doing? 00:41:37.300 --> 00:41:37.900 Interestingly 00:41:37.900 --> 00:41:39.460 they never engage 00:41:39.460 --> 00:41:40.079 in disputes 00:41:40.079 --> 00:41:40.820 over the nature 00:41:40.820 --> 00:41:41.380 of the days. 00:41:41.480 --> 00:41:42.680 They never engage 00:41:42.680 --> 00:41:43.300 in disputes 00:41:43.300 --> 00:41:44.240 over the sequence 00:41:44.239 --> 00:41:44.739 of events. 00:41:44.839 --> 00:41:45.719 They never engage 00:41:45.719 --> 00:41:46.759 in the compatibility 00:41:46.759 --> 00:41:47.539 of the text 00:41:47.539 --> 00:41:48.459 with the finer points 00:41:48.459 --> 00:41:50.079 of scientific investigation. 00:41:50.079 --> 00:41:50.919 That's not what 00:41:50.919 --> 00:41:52.000 the biblical authors do 00:41:52.000 --> 00:41:52.939 because they knew 00:41:52.939 --> 00:41:53.679 that's not what 00:41:53.679 --> 00:41:54.459 Moses meant 00:41:54.459 --> 00:41:55.179 for them to do. 00:41:56.919 --> 00:41:58.299 The point of the text 00:41:58.299 --> 00:41:59.519 was never to produce 00:41:59.519 --> 00:42:00.699 that kind of exchange. 00:42:01.099 --> 00:42:02.379 Each time creation 00:42:02.379 --> 00:42:03.039 is referenced 00:42:03.039 --> 00:42:04.239 in the biblical authors 00:42:04.239 --> 00:42:05.659 it is to display 00:42:05.659 --> 00:42:07.500 the glory of God. 00:42:07.619 --> 00:42:08.659 It is to provoke 00:42:08.659 --> 00:42:09.279 the reader. 00:42:09.280 --> 00:42:10.420 It is to provoke 00:42:10.420 --> 00:42:11.200 the hearer 00:42:11.200 --> 00:42:13.800 to genuine worship. 00:42:15.740 --> 00:42:17.260 You should always 00:42:17.260 --> 00:42:18.100 walk away 00:42:18.100 --> 00:42:19.340 from Genesis 1 00:42:19.340 --> 00:42:20.440 saying 00:42:20.440 --> 00:42:22.120 what a God 00:42:22.120 --> 00:42:24.300 how great 00:42:24.300 --> 00:42:25.280 thou art. 00:42:26.980 --> 00:42:28.500 Has it driven you 00:42:28.500 --> 00:42:29.240 to this kind 00:42:29.240 --> 00:42:29.800 of worship? 00:42:31.660 --> 00:42:32.780 It's one thing 00:42:32.780 --> 00:42:33.680 to understand 00:42:33.680 --> 00:42:34.180 the God 00:42:34.180 --> 00:42:34.940 of Genesis 1. 00:42:35.019 --> 00:42:35.480 It's one thing 00:42:35.480 --> 00:42:35.960 to understand 00:42:35.960 --> 00:42:36.900 the created world 00:42:36.900 --> 00:42:37.560 of Genesis 1. 00:42:37.559 --> 00:42:38.279 It's another thing 00:42:38.279 --> 00:42:39.460 to actually worship 00:42:39.460 --> 00:42:40.320 Him. 00:42:40.480 --> 00:42:40.980 That's what 00:42:40.980 --> 00:42:42.059 we're meant to do. 00:42:44.699 --> 00:42:46.000 Says Psalm 33 00:42:46.000 --> 00:42:47.219 By the word 00:42:47.219 --> 00:42:48.000 of the Lord 00:42:48.000 --> 00:42:49.079 the heavens were made. 00:42:49.440 --> 00:42:50.119 By the breath 00:42:50.119 --> 00:42:50.739 of His mouth 00:42:50.739 --> 00:42:51.779 all their hosts 00:42:51.779 --> 00:42:54.440 He gathers 00:42:54.440 --> 00:42:55.099 the waters 00:42:55.099 --> 00:42:55.880 of the seas 00:42:55.880 --> 00:42:56.440 as a heap. 00:42:56.719 --> 00:42:57.739 He puts the deeps 00:42:57.739 --> 00:42:58.460 in storehouses. 00:42:58.840 --> 00:42:59.860 And here's what He says 00:42:59.860 --> 00:43:00.380 Therefore 00:43:00.380 --> 00:43:02.659 let all the earth 00:43:02.659 --> 00:43:04.500 fear the Lord. 00:43:05.259 --> 00:43:06.799 Let all the inhabitants 00:43:06.800 --> 00:43:07.600 of the world 00:43:07.600 --> 00:43:08.700 stand in awe 00:43:08.700 --> 00:43:09.340 of Him 00:43:09.340 --> 00:43:10.800 for He spoke 00:43:10.800 --> 00:43:12.019 and it came 00:43:12.019 --> 00:43:12.580 to be 00:43:12.580 --> 00:43:13.840 He commanded 00:43:13.840 --> 00:43:16.320 and it stood firm. 00:43:17.060 --> 00:43:18.200 That's the intent 00:43:18.200 --> 00:43:19.220 of Genesis 1. 00:43:19.960 --> 00:43:20.519 Worship. 00:43:24.240 --> 00:43:25.340 Hang with me. 00:43:26.560 --> 00:43:27.680 He controls 00:43:27.680 --> 00:43:28.140 the rain 00:43:28.140 --> 00:43:29.140 doesn't He? 00:43:30.260 --> 00:43:31.420 We're almost there. 00:43:31.420 --> 00:43:36.260 the point of the text 00:43:36.260 --> 00:43:36.960 is to show 00:43:36.960 --> 00:43:38.880 that the self-existent 00:43:38.880 --> 00:43:41.000 transcendent creator 00:43:41.000 --> 00:43:41.380 God 00:43:41.380 --> 00:43:42.159 needs nothing 00:43:42.159 --> 00:43:42.700 other than 00:43:42.700 --> 00:43:43.500 His own will 00:43:43.500 --> 00:43:44.539 voiced through 00:43:44.539 --> 00:43:45.059 the breath 00:43:45.059 --> 00:43:45.800 of His spirit 00:43:45.800 --> 00:43:47.360 to bring what is 00:43:47.360 --> 00:43:48.639 into existence. 00:43:50.220 --> 00:43:52.220 And when He speaks 00:43:52.220 --> 00:43:53.980 His will 00:43:53.980 --> 00:43:56.159 is perfectly accomplished 00:43:56.159 --> 00:43:57.639 whether in the creation 00:43:57.639 --> 00:43:58.280 of a universe 00:43:58.280 --> 00:44:00.300 or in the new creation 00:44:00.300 --> 00:44:01.200 of a lost soul 00:44:01.200 --> 00:44:01.780 that He calls 00:44:01.780 --> 00:44:02.440 to Himself 00:44:02.440 --> 00:44:04.860 that is the power 00:44:04.860 --> 00:44:05.880 of the Word of God. 00:44:07.660 --> 00:44:09.019 And it is to show 00:44:09.019 --> 00:44:10.400 that what God does 00:44:10.400 --> 00:44:12.460 is very good 00:44:12.460 --> 00:44:13.900 because He 00:44:13.900 --> 00:44:15.620 is good. 00:44:17.180 --> 00:44:18.820 So that when we consider 00:44:18.820 --> 00:44:20.480 God's very good creation 00:44:20.480 --> 00:44:22.000 the only right response 00:44:22.000 --> 00:44:23.480 is wonder 00:44:23.480 --> 00:44:25.099 and worship 00:44:25.099 --> 00:44:28.740 and how do we relate 00:44:28.740 --> 00:44:30.199 that to everyday life 00:44:30.199 --> 00:44:30.639 now? 00:44:31.559 --> 00:44:32.119 I'm going to give you 00:44:32.119 --> 00:44:33.019 four quick things 00:44:33.019 --> 00:44:33.659 before we pray. 00:44:35.079 --> 00:44:35.760 Number one 00:44:35.760 --> 00:44:37.519 rest 00:44:37.519 --> 00:44:39.659 in His sovereign power 00:44:39.659 --> 00:44:43.420 until Jesus returns 00:44:43.420 --> 00:44:44.099 this earth 00:44:44.099 --> 00:44:45.579 will keep on spinning. 00:44:47.360 --> 00:44:48.659 Its boundaries 00:44:48.659 --> 00:44:50.760 will be held together. 00:44:51.760 --> 00:44:52.460 Don't worry about 00:44:52.460 --> 00:44:53.260 the ice caps. 00:44:54.139 --> 00:44:54.940 God's in control 00:44:54.940 --> 00:44:55.400 of that. 00:45:01.019 --> 00:45:01.980 Rest in it. 00:45:03.219 --> 00:45:04.619 Rest in His sovereign power. 00:45:05.659 --> 00:45:06.179 Number two 00:45:06.179 --> 00:45:09.300 go in and enjoy 00:45:09.300 --> 00:45:11.139 what He has made. 00:45:12.679 --> 00:45:13.460 Enjoy it. 00:45:14.780 --> 00:45:15.719 Enjoy it 00:45:15.719 --> 00:45:16.699 with the goal 00:45:16.699 --> 00:45:18.460 of worshiping Him 00:45:18.460 --> 00:45:19.480 because of it. 00:45:19.719 --> 00:45:20.639 And I say that 00:45:20.639 --> 00:45:21.559 as an avid 00:45:21.559 --> 00:45:22.420 indoors man. 00:45:23.480 --> 00:45:27.179 let's go enjoy 00:45:27.179 --> 00:45:27.559 the world 00:45:27.559 --> 00:45:28.340 He has created 00:45:28.340 --> 00:45:29.099 for our benefit 00:45:29.099 --> 00:45:30.199 and for His glory. 00:45:31.019 --> 00:45:31.920 Number three 00:45:31.920 --> 00:45:34.840 trust that the one 00:45:34.840 --> 00:45:36.179 who made the world 00:45:36.179 --> 00:45:38.139 will through Christ 00:45:38.139 --> 00:45:39.860 remake it 00:45:39.860 --> 00:45:41.460 for His people. 00:45:42.460 --> 00:45:44.199 He will remake it. 00:45:44.599 --> 00:45:46.599 He still rules creation. 00:45:46.599 --> 00:45:49.000 He is the final judge. 00:45:49.000 --> 00:45:50.719 Every injustice 00:45:50.719 --> 00:45:51.960 you see now 00:45:51.960 --> 00:45:54.099 will be judged. 00:45:55.099 --> 00:45:56.619 He will do it. 00:45:58.279 --> 00:45:59.319 You only need 00:45:59.319 --> 00:45:59.880 trust Him. 00:46:01.639 --> 00:46:02.579 Number four 00:46:02.579 --> 00:46:06.420 rest. 00:46:07.980 --> 00:46:09.099 Rest. 00:46:09.099 --> 00:46:16.259 rest in Christ. 00:46:16.259 --> 00:46:19.500 The word of Genesis 1 00:46:19.500 --> 00:46:21.319 made flesh 00:46:21.319 --> 00:46:23.099 for you. 00:46:24.559 --> 00:46:25.779 Rest in Him. 00:46:27.400 --> 00:46:28.279 Trust Him. 00:46:29.719 --> 00:46:30.579 Believe Him. 00:46:32.559 --> 00:46:34.699 Worship Him. 00:46:34.699 --> 00:46:36.799 the God 00:46:36.799 --> 00:46:37.539 who made it all. 00:46:38.679 --> 00:46:39.419 Let's pray.