WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.520 Please have your Bibles open to Genesis chapter 1. 00:00:10.519 --> 00:00:14.620 ! Genesis chapter 1, and let me read again God's Word. 00:00:14.620 --> 00:00:21.199 ! In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 00:00:21.199 --> 00:00:29.039 ! In 1968, as Apollo 8 audited the moon, 00:00:29.039 --> 00:00:31.759 a year before man landed on the moon, 00:00:32.259 --> 00:00:35.259 the voice of Bill Anders, one of the astronauts, 00:00:35.600 --> 00:00:37.619 sounded back to earth. 00:00:38.759 --> 00:00:44.240 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 00:00:44.519 --> 00:00:49.399 As this astronaut looked out from outer space back to earth, 00:00:49.820 --> 00:00:52.039 he was led in worship. 00:00:52.039 --> 00:00:59.679 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 00:00:59.820 --> 00:01:06.700 It was a statement of fact, but it was also a statement of foundation. 00:01:07.760 --> 00:01:13.719 It was factual, yes, but it was also foundational for four reasons. 00:01:15.099 --> 00:01:18.659 I want to look at four reasons why Genesis 1.1 is foundational. 00:01:18.659 --> 00:01:22.879 First verse in the Bible, but foundational for lots of reasons. 00:01:23.060 --> 00:01:25.659 Number one, it is liturgical. 00:01:26.780 --> 00:01:27.640 It's liturgical. 00:01:28.000 --> 00:01:32.039 This is the first call to worship in the Bible. 00:01:32.879 --> 00:01:35.199 God calls us to worship through His Word, 00:01:35.539 --> 00:01:38.379 and these are the first words of Scripture, 00:01:38.840 --> 00:01:44.379 calling us to worship God for who He is and what He has done in creation. 00:01:44.379 --> 00:01:47.399 We don't begin worship with a prayer. 00:01:47.920 --> 00:01:52.079 Maybe if you've just been coming to IPC, you may have noticed this. 00:01:52.899 --> 00:01:55.459 We don't begin worship service with prayer. 00:01:56.000 --> 00:01:58.579 We begin the worship service with Scripture. 00:01:59.239 --> 00:01:59.500 Why? 00:02:00.000 --> 00:02:02.459 Because we don't initiate worship. 00:02:03.039 --> 00:02:04.239 God initiates worship. 00:02:05.019 --> 00:02:07.879 God speaks to us, and then we speak back to Him. 00:02:08.039 --> 00:02:09.479 We speak in song. 00:02:09.680 --> 00:02:10.800 We speak in prayer. 00:02:10.800 --> 00:02:14.360 But we've got nothing to sing, nothing to say in prayer, 00:02:14.680 --> 00:02:16.760 until He has first spoken to us. 00:02:18.200 --> 00:02:22.540 And Genesis 1.1 is, in that regard, the first call to worship. 00:02:22.980 --> 00:02:26.840 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 00:02:27.260 --> 00:02:28.260 It's liturgical. 00:02:29.380 --> 00:02:32.540 Second, it's theological. 00:02:32.900 --> 00:02:35.060 It's liturgical because it's theological. 00:02:35.240 --> 00:02:36.220 What do I mean by that? 00:02:36.280 --> 00:02:36.939 It's a big word. 00:02:37.320 --> 00:02:39.280 I just mean it's about God. 00:02:39.280 --> 00:02:43.759 God, the opening verse of the Bible is about God. 00:02:43.900 --> 00:02:44.879 Somebody has put it well. 00:02:44.960 --> 00:02:51.000 The first subject of the Bible is God, and He remains so throughout the whole Bible. 00:02:51.000 --> 00:03:00.060 And I think this verse gives us 12 things that we can deduce about God. 00:03:00.139 --> 00:03:02.319 That's right, I did just say 12, not 2. 00:03:03.560 --> 00:03:03.860 All right? 00:03:04.120 --> 00:03:05.900 So, boys and girls, you know your maths. 00:03:06.099 --> 00:03:07.560 Four points plus 12. 00:03:08.180 --> 00:03:10.680 Four plus 12 is 16. 00:03:11.080 --> 00:03:15.639 This, don't tell your mums and dads, this is a 16-point sermon. 00:03:15.639 --> 00:03:16.039 Okay? 00:03:17.039 --> 00:03:18.079 But don't tell them that. 00:03:18.519 --> 00:03:19.039 Okay, here we go. 00:03:19.139 --> 00:03:19.639 Twelve things. 00:03:19.699 --> 00:03:23.879 You may be thinking of that little ditty, wonderful things in the Bible I see. 00:03:24.379 --> 00:03:25.379 Some put there by me. 00:03:25.819 --> 00:03:26.739 Some put there by God. 00:03:26.819 --> 00:03:27.819 Some put there by me. 00:03:28.719 --> 00:03:31.539 But hopefully you'll see that they're all put there by God. 00:03:32.379 --> 00:03:33.379 Okay, number one. 00:03:33.379 --> 00:03:36.340 God is one. 00:03:37.060 --> 00:03:39.019 In the beginning, God. 00:03:39.960 --> 00:03:43.500 In the beginning, there was God and only God. 00:03:44.079 --> 00:03:46.019 This is one of the Bible's great claims. 00:03:46.159 --> 00:03:50.780 There is one God, and besides Him, there is no other. 00:03:51.659 --> 00:03:55.859 Genesis 1-1 begins with the exclusivity of God. 00:03:56.639 --> 00:04:03.000 In the beginning, God, one God, made the heavens and the earth. 00:04:03.379 --> 00:04:05.579 But not just His exclusivity. 00:04:05.719 --> 00:04:11.400 When we speak about God's oneness, it can also refer to His simplicity. 00:04:12.280 --> 00:04:16.779 Not that God is simplistic, but that He is a simple being. 00:04:16.980 --> 00:04:17.980 What do I mean by that? 00:04:18.399 --> 00:04:19.839 He is not composite. 00:04:20.360 --> 00:04:22.420 God is not made up of parts. 00:04:22.899 --> 00:04:24.659 You and I are made up of parts. 00:04:24.759 --> 00:04:26.459 You're made of a body and a soul. 00:04:26.899 --> 00:04:27.980 That's why you're created. 00:04:28.139 --> 00:04:31.680 The chair you're sitting on is made up of parts, wood and screws. 00:04:31.680 --> 00:04:33.420 It was created. 00:04:34.100 --> 00:04:39.560 If something is simple, it has no parts, it cannot be created. 00:04:40.540 --> 00:04:43.740 God is the only simple being in the world. 00:04:43.819 --> 00:04:45.280 He is not made up of parts. 00:04:45.699 --> 00:04:47.160 Therefore, He was not created. 00:04:47.160 --> 00:04:53.520 God is one exclusively, and He is one simply. 00:04:55.920 --> 00:04:57.060 Deuteronomy 6-4, 00:04:57.180 --> 00:05:01.000 Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 00:05:02.220 --> 00:05:05.340 Exclusively one and simply one. 00:05:05.900 --> 00:05:09.400 That's the first thing we can deduce about God from this verse. 00:05:09.660 --> 00:05:12.260 Second, God is spirit. 00:05:13.200 --> 00:05:14.180 God is spirit. 00:05:14.180 --> 00:05:18.199 Before the creation of the heavens and the earth, there was nothing but God. 00:05:20.160 --> 00:05:25.439 Space, time, matter, energy were all created by God. 00:05:26.079 --> 00:05:34.019 But if they were created by God, that means God does not exist in space, time, matter, or energy. 00:05:34.639 --> 00:05:36.860 God is outside of those things. 00:05:36.860 --> 00:05:43.000 And the way the Bible explains that is God is spirit. 00:05:43.520 --> 00:05:44.660 He's not made of matter. 00:05:45.139 --> 00:05:47.180 He's not bound by time or space. 00:05:47.280 --> 00:05:48.680 He is not energy. 00:05:49.780 --> 00:05:51.580 God is outside of those things. 00:05:51.860 --> 00:05:53.300 God is spirit. 00:05:53.500 --> 00:05:55.699 It's what Jesus said in John 4-24. 00:05:56.400 --> 00:05:58.340 God is spirit. 00:05:59.040 --> 00:06:01.780 Boys and girls, you might know your shorter catechism. 00:06:01.920 --> 00:06:02.699 What is God? 00:06:02.699 --> 00:06:08.259 God is a spirit and does not have a body like us. 00:06:10.039 --> 00:06:12.699 Number three, God is eternal. 00:06:12.879 --> 00:06:15.120 God is one spirit, eternal. 00:06:16.019 --> 00:06:18.439 For God to be present in the beginning. 00:06:18.800 --> 00:06:20.740 In the beginning, God. 00:06:21.039 --> 00:06:25.199 In other words, God existed before there was a beginning. 00:06:25.980 --> 00:06:27.300 In the beginning, God. 00:06:27.300 --> 00:06:32.520 And because he existed before there was a beginning, he existed before time. 00:06:33.020 --> 00:06:35.439 Which means he will exist after time. 00:06:35.780 --> 00:06:38.780 Which means God is eternal. 00:06:40.420 --> 00:06:42.120 Psalm 90 verse 2. 00:06:42.220 --> 00:06:50.879 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world from everlasting to everlasting. 00:06:51.900 --> 00:06:53.040 You are God. 00:06:53.040 --> 00:06:57.140 God is one spirit, eternal. 00:06:57.300 --> 00:06:59.120 Number four, infinite. 00:07:00.379 --> 00:07:03.200 In the beginning, God made the heavens and the earth. 00:07:03.540 --> 00:07:07.580 The heavens in Genesis 1-1 are not the sky heavens. 00:07:07.740 --> 00:07:11.460 You go out of the building tonight, you look up, you see the blue sky or the cloudy sky. 00:07:12.480 --> 00:07:14.560 That's not the heavens of Genesis 1-1. 00:07:14.560 --> 00:07:18.379 The heavens of Genesis 1-1 are the invisible heavens. 00:07:19.100 --> 00:07:20.480 Where the angels dwell. 00:07:21.120 --> 00:07:26.660 Where God himself condescended to dwell after he created them. 00:07:27.280 --> 00:07:29.019 The heavens are the invisible heavens. 00:07:29.160 --> 00:07:30.540 The earth is the visible earth. 00:07:31.000 --> 00:07:35.819 But those invisible heavens, they may be invisible, but they are not infinite. 00:07:37.240 --> 00:07:38.220 They were created. 00:07:38.379 --> 00:07:40.819 In the beginning, God created the heavens. 00:07:40.939 --> 00:07:42.100 The invisible heavens. 00:07:42.100 --> 00:07:44.980 God created them, which means they are finite. 00:07:45.439 --> 00:07:46.300 They are limited. 00:07:47.040 --> 00:07:50.100 And God created the earth, which we know is also limited. 00:07:50.640 --> 00:07:59.320 Now for God to create limited space, finite space, he himself cannot be finite. 00:08:00.280 --> 00:08:06.780 He must be infinite, infinite, limitless, boundless. 00:08:07.840 --> 00:08:10.280 You cannot put God in a bucket. 00:08:10.279 --> 00:08:14.159 You cannot, let me say this, even put him in the heavens. 00:08:15.659 --> 00:08:17.459 Remember what Solomon said in the temple? 00:08:18.119 --> 00:08:22.159 The heaven of heavens cannot continue. 00:08:23.539 --> 00:08:25.119 God is infinite. 00:08:27.439 --> 00:08:31.619 Number five, God is unchangeable. 00:08:32.620 --> 00:08:33.620 God is unchangeable. 00:08:33.740 --> 00:08:35.980 He is one spirit, eternal, infinite. 00:08:36.319 --> 00:08:37.399 He is unchangeable. 00:08:37.399 --> 00:08:43.000 Before God created everything, what was there? 00:08:44.379 --> 00:08:45.279 Only God. 00:08:46.480 --> 00:08:50.519 Therefore, was there anything that could change God before the beginning? 00:08:51.459 --> 00:08:51.819 No. 00:08:52.639 --> 00:08:54.459 Because there was nothing but God. 00:08:54.959 --> 00:09:00.600 So before the beginning, before the heavens and the earth, God was unchangeable. 00:09:00.600 --> 00:09:03.700 There was nothing outside him that existed. 00:09:04.180 --> 00:09:06.680 Therefore, there was nothing that could potentially change him. 00:09:07.200 --> 00:09:13.200 And when he did create the heavens and the earth, because he's the creator and the heavens of the earth are creation, 00:09:14.320 --> 00:09:16.000 it cannot change God. 00:09:16.879 --> 00:09:19.259 God remains unchangeable. 00:09:19.820 --> 00:09:22.019 He was unchangeable before creation. 00:09:22.180 --> 00:09:24.019 He is unchangeable after creation. 00:09:24.019 --> 00:09:25.860 God is unchangeable. 00:09:26.919 --> 00:09:31.840 That's the fifth thing that we can deduce from Genesis 1.1. 00:09:32.840 --> 00:09:37.019 Number six, God is self-existent. 00:09:37.720 --> 00:09:38.799 Self-existent. 00:09:38.879 --> 00:09:41.980 He's one spirit, eternal, infinite, unchangeable. 00:09:42.079 --> 00:09:44.019 Number six, self-existent. 00:09:44.480 --> 00:09:45.399 Let's think about this. 00:09:45.399 --> 00:09:51.379 Before God created the heavens and the earth, was there anything that he was dependent upon? 00:09:52.519 --> 00:09:53.199 No. 00:09:53.779 --> 00:09:56.340 Because what existed before the heavens and the earth? 00:09:56.919 --> 00:09:58.360 Nothing but God. 00:09:59.419 --> 00:10:01.279 Therefore, what was God dependent upon? 00:10:02.179 --> 00:10:03.399 Only himself. 00:10:04.740 --> 00:10:06.840 God is self-existent. 00:10:07.240 --> 00:10:11.240 This is what theologians call the aseity of God. 00:10:11.620 --> 00:10:13.919 A-S-E-I-T-Y. 00:10:13.919 --> 00:10:16.000 The aseity of God. 00:10:16.079 --> 00:10:18.879 It comes from the Latin phrase, a-say. 00:10:19.079 --> 00:10:19.620 Two words. 00:10:20.019 --> 00:10:22.899 A-from-say-himself. 00:10:23.500 --> 00:10:25.659 God is from himself. 00:10:26.339 --> 00:10:29.279 Which really means God is self-existent. 00:10:30.019 --> 00:10:32.719 God is dependent on nobody except himself. 00:10:34.219 --> 00:10:35.620 It's actually in his name. 00:10:36.199 --> 00:10:41.559 Remember the name, boys and girls, that he gives himself at the burning bush with Moses? 00:10:41.919 --> 00:10:42.639 What's the name? 00:10:42.639 --> 00:10:46.019 I am who I am. 00:10:46.779 --> 00:10:49.659 It's a statement of self-existence. 00:10:50.220 --> 00:10:51.379 Of being. 00:10:51.580 --> 00:10:52.799 God's name is being. 00:10:52.939 --> 00:10:54.120 B-E-I-N-G. 00:10:54.939 --> 00:10:56.159 He is self-existent. 00:10:57.679 --> 00:11:00.580 Number seven, God is life. 00:11:01.519 --> 00:11:06.299 God is one eternal, infinite, unchangeable, self-existent spirit. 00:11:06.299 --> 00:11:09.899 God is a living spirit. 00:11:09.899 --> 00:11:19.519 For God to create life on the earth and in the invisible heavens with the angels, which are living creatures, 00:11:20.039 --> 00:11:24.719 for God to create life, he's got to get life from somewhere. 00:11:24.720 --> 00:11:27.080 Where does he get life? 00:11:28.279 --> 00:11:35.899 Well, if there was nothing that existed before the heavens and the earth except God, then life has to exist in himself. 00:11:35.899 --> 00:11:44.259 For him to impart life in the earth, for him to impart life in the angels in heaven. 00:11:44.639 --> 00:11:46.419 He had to have life. 00:11:46.419 --> 00:11:47.419 God is life. 00:11:47.419 --> 00:11:48.779 And he had to have it in himself. 00:11:49.879 --> 00:11:51.860 God is life. 00:11:52.179 --> 00:11:56.939 God doesn't go somewhere to get life to then impart it to his creation. 00:11:57.599 --> 00:11:58.939 God is life itself. 00:11:58.940 --> 00:11:58.940 00:12:01.560 --> 00:12:05.200 As I live forever, says the Lord. 00:12:05.760 --> 00:12:08.240 Deuteronomy 32, verse 40. 00:12:09.620 --> 00:12:11.780 Number eight, God is immortal. 00:12:12.980 --> 00:12:20.680 God is one, spirit, infinite, eternal, infinite, unchangeable, self-existent life. 00:12:21.360 --> 00:12:22.620 Number eight, immortal. 00:12:22.780 --> 00:12:23.940 Now, what does immortal mean? 00:12:23.980 --> 00:12:25.100 It does not mean eternal. 00:12:25.100 --> 00:12:30.279 Eternal means God has always existed and always will exist. 00:12:30.960 --> 00:12:33.040 He is everlasting to everlasting. 00:12:33.700 --> 00:12:36.139 Immortal means God cannot die. 00:12:37.120 --> 00:12:38.120 God cannot die. 00:12:38.200 --> 00:12:40.600 How do we deduce that from Genesis 1-1? 00:12:40.899 --> 00:12:45.300 Well, before God created the heavens and the earth, what was there? 00:12:45.960 --> 00:12:47.220 Nothing but God. 00:12:47.860 --> 00:12:53.660 Was there anything that could take God's life from him before the heavens and the earth? 00:12:53.940 --> 00:12:54.540 No. 00:12:55.100 --> 00:12:57.879 Because there was nothing but God, and God has life himself. 00:12:58.480 --> 00:13:00.080 So God cannot die. 00:13:01.060 --> 00:13:07.560 And then when God creates the heavens and the earth, because he is the creator and the heavens and the earth is his creation, 00:13:08.000 --> 00:13:10.820 it cannot take God's life from him. 00:13:12.379 --> 00:13:17.560 God has life in himself, and that life cannot be taken from him. 00:13:17.560 --> 00:13:19.160 He is immortal. 00:13:20.019 --> 00:13:21.120 He cannot die. 00:13:21.120 --> 00:13:23.500 That's what Paul says to Timothy. 00:13:24.019 --> 00:13:27.000 God alone has immortality. 00:13:27.679 --> 00:13:29.980 1 Timothy 6, 16. 00:13:31.080 --> 00:13:35.060 Number nine, God is creator. 00:13:36.060 --> 00:13:37.379 God is creator. 00:13:37.600 --> 00:13:43.980 God is one, spirit, eternal, infinite, unchangeable, self-existent, life in himself, immortal. 00:13:43.980 --> 00:13:46.120 Number nine, God is creator. 00:13:46.120 --> 00:13:47.240 It's an obvious point. 00:13:48.360 --> 00:13:54.100 But Genesis 1-1 is interesting because in the beginning God created. 00:13:54.779 --> 00:13:58.960 Now, boys and girls, this goes back to the Hebrew that you learned this evening. 00:13:59.100 --> 00:13:59.379 Remember? 00:13:59.379 --> 00:14:05.700 Barah, Barah, created Elohim, God. 00:14:05.840 --> 00:14:07.340 Barah, Elohim. 00:14:07.939 --> 00:14:15.519 That verb, Barah, it occurs 39 times in the Old Testament. 00:14:16.299 --> 00:14:17.379 39 times. 00:14:17.379 --> 00:14:19.519 And do you know what's interesting about that verb? 00:14:20.559 --> 00:14:24.980 God is only ever the subject of that verb in the Old Testament. 00:14:26.139 --> 00:14:27.439 Only God creates. 00:14:28.779 --> 00:14:30.059 Nobody else creates. 00:14:30.700 --> 00:14:32.659 Only God Barahs. 00:14:33.759 --> 00:14:35.419 Only God Barahs. 00:14:35.419 --> 00:14:42.419 And in the beginning God Barahed out of nothing. 00:14:43.539 --> 00:14:47.339 He created everything out of nothing. 00:14:48.120 --> 00:14:51.779 The heavens and the earth are what's called a merism. 00:14:51.919 --> 00:14:55.740 They're two polar opposites that encompass everything in between. 00:14:55.839 --> 00:14:57.839 The invisible heavens and the visible earth. 00:14:58.279 --> 00:14:59.219 North to south. 00:14:59.399 --> 00:15:00.240 East to west. 00:15:00.439 --> 00:15:01.259 Head to tail. 00:15:01.980 --> 00:15:02.799 Heavens and earth. 00:15:02.799 --> 00:15:04.799 It means everything. 00:15:04.799 --> 00:15:11.319 In the beginning God created everything out of nothing. 00:15:12.620 --> 00:15:14.839 God is the creator. 00:15:15.759 --> 00:15:17.099 Psalm 96 verse 5. 00:15:17.240 --> 00:15:24.120 All the gods and peoples are worthless idols, but the Lord made the heavens. 00:15:25.319 --> 00:15:26.199 He's the creator. 00:15:27.179 --> 00:15:27.759 Number 10. 00:15:28.439 --> 00:15:30.379 He's omnipotent. 00:15:31.219 --> 00:15:33.559 Omnipotent or all-powerful. 00:15:33.559 --> 00:15:35.279 He's one. 00:15:35.579 --> 00:15:36.019 Eternal. 00:15:36.319 --> 00:15:36.639 Spirit. 00:15:37.679 --> 00:15:38.000 Infinite. 00:15:38.619 --> 00:15:39.219 Unchangeable. 00:15:39.500 --> 00:15:40.399 Self-existent. 00:15:40.699 --> 00:15:41.459 Life himself. 00:15:41.599 --> 00:15:41.939 Immortal. 00:15:42.119 --> 00:15:42.479 Creator. 00:15:42.759 --> 00:15:43.379 Number 10. 00:15:44.500 --> 00:15:45.619 All-powerful. 00:15:45.899 --> 00:15:46.559 Omnipotent. 00:15:47.559 --> 00:15:53.519 If in the beginning God the creator made everything from nothing, then he must be all-powerful. 00:15:54.639 --> 00:15:55.579 Number 11. 00:15:56.079 --> 00:15:57.299 He is omniscient. 00:15:57.299 --> 00:15:59.559 He is all-knowing. 00:15:59.779 --> 00:16:00.559 All-wise. 00:16:00.679 --> 00:16:01.240 Omniscient. 00:16:01.719 --> 00:16:07.279 If in the beginning God the creator made everything from nothing, then he must know everything. 00:16:08.120 --> 00:16:11.539 And it's not that he knows everything because he studied everything. 00:16:12.620 --> 00:16:19.279 God didn't have a textbook which he looked up and read and thought, ah, that's how you make a universe. 00:16:19.279 --> 00:16:20.919 Let me start. 00:16:21.360 --> 00:16:22.100 Let there be light. 00:16:23.019 --> 00:16:23.279 No. 00:16:23.959 --> 00:16:26.799 God has never learned anything in his life. 00:16:28.079 --> 00:16:34.259 God has known everything instantly all at once. 00:16:34.259 --> 00:16:38.279 God has never grown in his knowledge. 00:16:38.980 --> 00:16:47.500 God has never, let me put it like this, God has never had a thought in his life because he knows everything instantly. 00:16:50.200 --> 00:16:53.860 From his wisdom he made the heavens and the earth. 00:16:54.840 --> 00:16:56.100 God is omniscient. 00:16:57.220 --> 00:17:00.799 And finally, number 12, God is sovereign. 00:17:01.580 --> 00:17:02.379 God is sovereign. 00:17:02.379 --> 00:17:12.579 God is one, eternal, spirit, infinite, eternal, unchangeable, self-existent, life, in himself, immortal, the creator, omnipotent, omniscient. 00:17:13.079 --> 00:17:15.259 Number 12, sovereign. 00:17:16.539 --> 00:17:26.059 If God is the all-powerful, all-wise creator who can make everything from nothing after he makes the heavens and the earth, do you think he's still in control of it? 00:17:26.059 --> 00:17:33.339 If he's all-powerful, all-wise, has life in himself, cannot die, is he still in control of it? 00:17:33.819 --> 00:17:34.220 Yes. 00:17:34.879 --> 00:17:36.639 He's in control of all of it. 00:17:37.980 --> 00:17:38.759 All of it. 00:17:38.759 --> 00:17:42.039 This is what we mean by God's sovereignty. 00:17:42.839 --> 00:17:48.599 God can do what he pleases, and he is in charge of everything that he's made. 00:17:48.599 --> 00:18:01.480 So those are the 12 things I think we can reasonably deduce from God, about God, from Genesis 1-1, by good and necessary consequence. 00:18:01.480 --> 00:18:04.039 Let me put all of that into a single sentence. 00:18:05.240 --> 00:18:13.740 God is one spirit, eternal, infinite, unchangeable, self-existent, living and immortal in his being, 00:18:14.240 --> 00:18:22.579 the omnipotent, omniscient, creator and sovereign of all things, in heaven and on earth, of all things visible and invisible. 00:18:22.579 --> 00:18:34.859 And that is why Genesis 1-1 is the first call to worship, because it gives us a big God to worship. 00:18:36.639 --> 00:18:41.079 Genesis 1-1 is liturgical because it is theological. 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:44.559 And isn't that what the angels are doing in heaven? 00:18:44.559 --> 00:18:46.000 Revelation 4-11, 00:18:46.000 --> 00:19:01.559 What are the angels doing in heaven right now? 00:19:03.339 --> 00:19:06.000 Worshiping God for who he is and what he made. 00:19:06.940 --> 00:19:12.259 And if that's what the angels are doing in heaven, then what ought we to do here on earth? 00:19:12.259 --> 00:19:18.240 Worship God for who he is and what he has made. 00:19:20.940 --> 00:19:23.500 So, Genesis 1-1 is liturgical. 00:19:24.279 --> 00:19:25.720 Second, it's theological. 00:19:26.359 --> 00:19:29.640 And third, it's Christological. 00:19:31.039 --> 00:19:31.640 Christological. 00:19:31.839 --> 00:19:33.599 In other words, it's about Christ. 00:19:34.720 --> 00:19:39.579 Now, where is Jesus in Genesis 1-1? 00:19:39.579 --> 00:19:43.220 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 00:19:43.779 --> 00:19:45.000 Is he there in verse 2? 00:19:45.119 --> 00:19:49.240 The earth was without form and void and darkness was over the face of the deep. 00:19:49.639 --> 00:19:52.639 And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 00:19:53.059 --> 00:19:54.519 Is he there in verse 3? 00:19:54.879 --> 00:19:58.319 And God said, let there be light and there was light. 00:19:58.839 --> 00:20:02.799 Where is Christ in Genesis 1-1-1-3? 00:20:03.799 --> 00:20:07.359 Well, John gives us the answer in John 1. 00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:10.419 Paul gives us the answer in Colossians 1. 00:20:10.500 --> 00:20:11.339 Where is Christ? 00:20:11.839 --> 00:20:14.779 He is the mediator of the creation. 00:20:16.679 --> 00:20:22.919 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 00:20:23.419 --> 00:20:26.659 All things were made through him. 00:20:26.660 --> 00:20:33.140 There was nothing that was made except by him, says John. 00:20:34.000 --> 00:20:35.620 How does that connect to Genesis? 00:20:36.420 --> 00:20:38.860 And God said. 00:20:40.279 --> 00:20:43.440 God's spoken word, let there be light. 00:20:43.580 --> 00:20:45.340 That is a reference to Christ. 00:20:45.620 --> 00:20:48.660 He is the mediator of creation. 00:20:48.660 --> 00:20:53.600 And he mediates creation alongside the Spirit. 00:20:54.660 --> 00:20:55.860 Genesis 1-2. 00:20:56.420 --> 00:21:01.220 And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 00:21:01.480 --> 00:21:02.880 So how did God create? 00:21:03.259 --> 00:21:05.460 God the Father is the origin of creation. 00:21:06.040 --> 00:21:08.200 God the Son is the mediator of creation. 00:21:08.440 --> 00:21:10.600 God the Spirit is the agent of creation. 00:21:10.860 --> 00:21:16.660 God the Father created everything from nothing through his Word and Spirit. 00:21:16.660 --> 00:21:16.800 God the Spirit. 00:21:18.600 --> 00:21:24.279 Christian worship is Trinitarian. 00:21:25.180 --> 00:21:29.160 And it's Trinitarian from the first three verses of the Bible. 00:21:30.240 --> 00:21:37.120 God the Father, through his Son, by his Spirit, makes everything out of nothing. 00:21:37.119 --> 00:21:46.459 And so we worship God, not just as a monad, as the creator of all things. 00:21:46.639 --> 00:21:47.719 The Muslims do that. 00:21:48.259 --> 00:21:49.359 The Jews do that. 00:21:50.379 --> 00:21:51.599 No, we're Christians. 00:21:52.639 --> 00:21:56.899 We worship God, one God, in three persons. 00:21:57.899 --> 00:22:01.059 And all three persons were involved in the creation. 00:22:01.059 --> 00:22:11.879 And so Genesis 1-3, read in light of John chapter 1 and Colossians 1, is a call to worship the triune God. 00:22:12.399 --> 00:22:16.099 Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 00:22:17.299 --> 00:22:21.679 So Genesis 1-3 is Christological. 00:22:22.299 --> 00:22:23.159 It's liturgical. 00:22:23.500 --> 00:22:24.659 It's a first call to worship. 00:22:24.660 --> 00:22:26.680 It's theological. 00:22:27.680 --> 00:22:28.960 It's about God. 00:22:29.600 --> 00:22:30.960 And it's Christological. 00:22:31.300 --> 00:22:32.120 It's about Jesus. 00:22:33.700 --> 00:22:38.140 And number four, Genesis 1-1, is practical. 00:22:39.320 --> 00:22:40.200 It's practical. 00:22:41.759 --> 00:22:47.440 Do you remember Paul's words to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3-16 and 17? 00:22:47.440 --> 00:22:58.519 All Scripture is God-breathed and is profitable for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness. 00:22:58.860 --> 00:23:02.559 All Scripture, including Genesis 1-1. 00:23:03.519 --> 00:23:06.460 So how is Genesis 1-1 teaching? 00:23:07.000 --> 00:23:07.980 How is it rebuking? 00:23:08.100 --> 00:23:08.840 How is it correcting? 00:23:09.000 --> 00:23:11.640 How is it training in righteousness? 00:23:11.640 --> 00:23:22.720 Well, it's interesting to see how Genesis 1-1 is picked up and used by later writers in the Bible, particularly in the Psalms. 00:23:23.360 --> 00:23:24.940 Let me read you two Psalms. 00:23:25.860 --> 00:23:27.220 Psalm 121. 00:23:28.220 --> 00:23:30.480 I lift up my eyes to the hills. 00:23:30.820 --> 00:23:32.460 From where does my help come? 00:23:32.960 --> 00:23:38.920 My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth. 00:23:38.920 --> 00:23:42.160 Do you see how the Psalmist is reading Genesis 1-1? 00:23:42.620 --> 00:23:47.700 My help comes from the Lord who made everything from nothing. 00:23:49.519 --> 00:23:51.200 Psalm 124 verse 8. 00:23:51.600 --> 00:23:56.539 Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. 00:23:57.440 --> 00:24:02.940 Psalm 124 verse 8 was John Calvin's call to worship in his Geneva liturgy. 00:24:03.480 --> 00:24:08.200 That is what Calvin's church service began with every Lord's Day. 00:24:08.200 --> 00:24:12.440 Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. 00:24:12.519 --> 00:24:14.220 Let's stand and sing the verse hymn. 00:24:15.600 --> 00:24:17.740 It's there in the Dutch tradition as well. 00:24:19.660 --> 00:24:21.819 Notice what the Psalmists are saying. 00:24:22.880 --> 00:24:28.740 God is your helper because he is first your creator. 00:24:30.080 --> 00:24:31.240 Let me put it like this. 00:24:31.559 --> 00:24:34.960 God can help you with anything because he made everything. 00:24:34.960 --> 00:24:41.140 He can help you with anything because he made everything. 00:24:44.740 --> 00:24:47.840 Some of you know, I mentioned it this morning just briefly, 00:24:48.039 --> 00:24:52.120 that eight years ago we had a tragedy in our family. 00:24:52.119 --> 00:24:57.639 Our daughter Layla we were expecting at nine months in her mother's womb. 00:24:58.359 --> 00:25:02.359 And one Sunday night, the 13th of March, 00:25:03.119 --> 00:25:07.459 we were expecting her on the 20th of March, 2016. 00:25:07.739 --> 00:25:11.659 And on the 13th of March, one week before her due date, 00:25:12.139 --> 00:25:14.839 while we slept, she departed this earth. 00:25:15.939 --> 00:25:17.079 It was a big shock to us. 00:25:17.079 --> 00:25:20.159 We had a little bit of a warning, something wasn't quite right. 00:25:20.960 --> 00:25:23.339 And then we were reassured by the doctors, everything, 00:25:23.599 --> 00:25:25.799 by the nurse on the phone, everything was fine. 00:25:26.159 --> 00:25:28.379 And we went to bed that night, woke up, 00:25:28.559 --> 00:25:30.539 and found in the morning that she died. 00:25:31.599 --> 00:25:34.419 And the bottom of our world gave way. 00:25:34.819 --> 00:25:36.119 We were in free fall. 00:25:36.119 --> 00:25:40.979 And over the days and the weeks leading up to her funeral, 00:25:42.079 --> 00:25:46.879 there was a passage of Scripture that became a deep comfort to me. 00:25:47.839 --> 00:25:51.699 And this might surprise you, but it was Genesis chapter 1. 00:25:53.419 --> 00:25:55.559 As I read that chapter, I thought, 00:25:56.239 --> 00:25:59.679 I live in a world where something horrible has just happened. 00:26:00.159 --> 00:26:02.419 Who is in charge of this world? 00:26:02.420 --> 00:26:06.660 I needed to know who's in charge. 00:26:07.940 --> 00:26:09.840 And as I read Genesis chapter 1, 00:26:09.900 --> 00:26:13.680 I realized there is one God who made everything, 00:26:14.060 --> 00:26:16.519 and He is still in charge of this world. 00:26:16.600 --> 00:26:18.460 And here's the way He made the world to work. 00:26:19.180 --> 00:26:21.200 He spoke light into darkness. 00:26:21.640 --> 00:26:24.120 He made the morning to follow the evening. 00:26:24.500 --> 00:26:28.019 And He made seeds to fall into the ground to die, 00:26:28.200 --> 00:26:31.340 and then come to life and produce new life. 00:26:31.339 --> 00:26:33.779 That's what I got from Genesis 1. 00:26:33.859 --> 00:26:35.079 God is the Creator. 00:26:35.220 --> 00:26:36.659 He's sovereign over all things. 00:26:37.139 --> 00:26:38.839 And after darkness, light. 00:26:39.220 --> 00:26:40.779 After evening, morning. 00:26:41.319 --> 00:26:43.659 After death, resurrection. 00:26:44.740 --> 00:26:47.779 And I thought, we're going to be okay. 00:26:48.779 --> 00:26:50.139 It's painful. 00:26:51.279 --> 00:26:53.899 It's traumatic what we're going through. 00:26:53.900 --> 00:26:55.800 But it's okay. 00:26:56.420 --> 00:26:58.220 Because God made everything. 00:26:58.900 --> 00:27:01.340 And so, He can help us with anything. 00:27:02.960 --> 00:27:05.040 And so, it's the same for you. 00:27:05.160 --> 00:27:06.800 Whatever happens in your life, 00:27:07.840 --> 00:27:12.720 may Genesis 1.1 be one of your great go-to verses. 00:27:12.720 --> 00:27:19.039 God can help you with anything because He made everything. 00:27:20.539 --> 00:27:25.039 This is what the opening verse of the Bible teaches us. 00:27:25.720 --> 00:27:27.559 It is liturgical. 00:27:27.920 --> 00:27:28.900 It's a call to worship. 00:27:29.500 --> 00:27:32.180 It is a call to worship because it's theological. 00:27:33.000 --> 00:27:35.360 We have seen 12 things about God. 00:27:35.359 --> 00:27:37.819 And it's Christological. 00:27:38.759 --> 00:27:41.759 The creation occurred through God's spoken word, 00:27:41.899 --> 00:27:42.719 which is His Son, 00:27:43.299 --> 00:27:45.819 by His Spirit hovering over the waters. 00:27:46.279 --> 00:27:48.159 And it is practical. 00:27:49.679 --> 00:27:51.059 God can help you with anything 00:27:51.059 --> 00:27:53.699 because He made everything. 00:27:55.259 --> 00:27:56.519 Well, let me pray for us. 00:27:57.139 --> 00:27:59.559 And then we'll respond by worshiping Him. 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.000 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:29.980 Thank you.