GOD THE CREATOR

1. The Creator God (Genesis 1:1-2; Psalm 96:5; Jeremiah 10:11-12) 

2. Created with Order and Design (Genesis 1:3-25) 

3. Created in God’s Image (Genesis 1:26-27; Psalm 139:13-18) 

Central Truth: God created an orderly world and made humans in His image. 

Focus: Affirm the eternal God as Creator of the universe and live as people created in His image. 

Evangelism Emphasis: Being created in God’s image should compel us to love and seek lost people in the way He does. 

Text: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). 

INTRODUCTION 

In Exploring Genesis, John Phillips wrote: “It is a book of facts, a book of firsts, a book of faith, a book of funerals. It has been called ‘the seedplot of the Bible’ because all the vast forests of Scripture start there as seedlings. It is the Book of Genesis.” 

 Genesis is a Greek word meaning “origin,” “source,” “generation,” or “beginning.” The original Hebrew title Bereshith means “In the Beginning” (The New Open Bible). 

The book opens with an account of the creation of the universe. Throughout its pages follows the history of the earliest stages in the life of the Hebrew people. It describes the devastating effect of sin when it came into the world, the chaos that befell the first family, the birth of various nations, and the discovery of different stages of grace and faith. 

 If it is fair to compare books of the Bible, surely Genesis would be one of the most distinguished. Consider the amount of the history of humanity covered in its pages. Add to that the subjects it explores and how many themes it introduces that are developed in other portions of the Bible, and you see its uniqueness. It begins with the creative narrative and moves swiftly to the heartbreaking fall of humankind. But then it gives us the first glimpse of the divine provision of redemption when the Savior will bruise the head of that old serpent, the devil. 

Genesis is a gift from God. In it, we will find promises we will treasure, and divine assurances we will claim for our own. 

1. THE CREATOR GOD 

A. The Beginning (Genesis 1:1-2) 

 1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. 

 The Bible opens with the simple statement that the world had a beginning. If our minds cannot fully grasp that truth, we accept it by faith. We are in agreement with the writer of Hebrews who wrote: “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible” (11:3 ESV). 

The Genesis account makes no attempt to prove the existence of God; it simply states it as a matter of fact. The existence of God came not by reasoning, but by revelation. In chapter 1 alone, the name of God appears thirty-two times and, if you add the personal pronouns, that number comes to forty-three. 

 This first chapter also identifies God as the Creator of the universe. This marvelous and magnificent universe, He made out of nothing. The omnipotent God gave existence to things which before had no existence. 

In verse 2, Moses pictured the earth as chaotic—having no order or beauty. There are differing opinions of what this verse is describing. Some view it as a primitive state of matter when it was first created. Others believe the verse describes a later catastrophe that overtook the original creation. They point out that the word was can be translated became—“the land had become waste and void.” They point to Isaiah 45:18 to support this view. “For this is what the Lord says, the one who created the sky—he is the true God, the one who formed the earth and made it; he established it, he did not create it without order, he formed it to be inhabited: ‘I am the Lord, I have no peer’” (Isa. 45:18 NET). Those who hold to this theory see a gap between verses 1 and 2 of Genesis. 

Over this chaotic state of earth and water covered by darkness, the Holy Spirit moved. The work of Creation is attributed to the third person of the Trinity. Job 26:13 reads, “By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens.” Creation is also ascribed to the second person, the Son. John wrote, “All things were made by him [Christ]; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). God the Father’s work in creation is noted throughout Scripture. 

The Infinite Creator 

 God’s infinite power is manifested in the works of creation, but isn’t exhausted by them. God could have created more than He has, if He so pleased. What God has done, therefore, is no measure of what He could have done or can do.—Sam Storms 

B. Unlike Other Gods (Psalm 96:5) 

 5 For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the Lord made the heavens. 

Two themes surface in this verse. First, idols are worthless. They are nothings; vain things. One commentator called them “dunghill deities of the heathens.” Though they stand in the place of the Almighty, they have nothing of His nature or power in them. They have no divinity in them. These reputed to be gods by non-Christians are not only not gods at all, they are empty nothings. That which is nothing can do nothing or make nothing. Matthew Henry observed, “Worship of forces and forms of nature, . . . of partial and degraded conceptions of the one living God—all these have their place in the history of [the nations].” 

The second theme addressed here is that God is the all-powerful and all-sufficient Creator of the universe. He deserves from us the worthiest worship and highest praise of which we are capable. In the Book of Revelation, the twenty-four elders are seen casting their crowns before God’s throne and saying, “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being” (4:11 NIV). 

• Why are people attracted to false gods?  

C. The Powerful Creator (Jeremiah 10:11-12) 

11 Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens. 12 He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched out the heavens by his discretion. 

The message the Lord is giving through Jeremiah is intended for all of Israel to show them the folly of following idols. Idol worship was pointless because the objects being worshiped were made by human hands. One person would cut down a tree, and another would shape the piece of wood into the desired symbol. Then this image would be overlaid with silver and gold and attached to a base so it would not fall. Then it was carried to the place assigned to it. It stood in total contrast to the living God. He was full of life; the idol had no life in it. He was everlasting; the idol was capable of disintegration. He is mighty; the idol is helpless before Him. 

Verse 11 is the only verse in the Book of Jeremiah originally written in Aramaic, which is the language the pagan idolaters would understand. His message to them was that their idols had nothing to do with the creation of the world, and that they would disappear from the earth and from under the heavens. 

Then Jeremiah addresses the true origin of things (v. 12). Almighty God made the earth. He alone is the powerful Creator, the prudent Preserver of all things in Heaven and in earth; therefore, He is the only true God. 

• How is the relationship of “the gods” with the heavens (v. 11) different from God’s relationship with the heavens (v. 12)?  

2.  CREATED WITH ORDER AND DESIGN 

A. Night and Day (Genesis 1:3-5, 14-19) 

 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. 

 14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: 15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. 16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. 17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, 18 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. 19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day. 

The divine drama begins. God speaks. This expression appears ten times in Genesis 1. The voice we hear is that of the Sovereign Lord of Creation. In contrast to the chaotic darkness, the Lord speaks light into existence. God said, “Light be,” and light was. He did not speak and afterward light appeared; the saying and the doing happened simultaneously. The Lord approved of the light, saying it was “good,” meaning it was exactly as He had designed it to be. He separated the light from the darkness and “called the light Day” and the darkness “Night” (v. 5). This is what they would always be called. The evening and the morning constituted one day. This same formula is followed throughout the Creation week, so there are six days in which the work of Creation is done, and a seventh day of rest. 

 On the fourth day of Creation, God placed the sun and the moon in the sky (vv. 17-19). They are referred to, respectively, as the “greater light” and the “lesser light,” the first to govern the day and the latter to govern the night (v. 16). These heavenly luminaries were designed to provide light for the earth. Not only did they divide night from day, they also controlled times and seasons and years (v. 14). In addition, they established conditions needed to sustain living creatures on the earth. 

God also made the stars. Scientists tell us there are more stars in space than there are grains of sand on all the seashores of all the world. They form another part of the handiwork of the Creator. 

• How does the sun benefit daily life on earth? 
• How is the moon significant to earthly life?  

B. Earth and Sky (Genesis 1:6-13) 

 6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day. 9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. 11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. 

In the thinking of many in the ancient Near East, the universe consisted of three layers of water: under the earth, on the earth; and above the earth. The sky, which God created on the second day, held the water above the earth. When rains came down, it was considered that the doors or windows in the sky opened. So Moses may be using figures of speech in his day to explain this wondrous act of Creation. Malachi used this figure of speech when he spoke of God’s blessing upon those who were faithful in tithing and giving. Based on their faithfulness, the Lord said: “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in!” (Mal. 3:10 NLT). 

 God called the firmament “Heaven” (Gen. 1:8), or “sky” (NIV), by which He seems to mean the entire universe beyond the earth. 

Two important things happened on the third day of Creation. The Lord called for the gathering of the waters into one place, and the gathered waters were called “Seas” (vv. 9-10). He set boundaries for the seas. The Lord told the ocean, “This far you may come, but no farther, and here your proud waves must stop!” (Job 38:11 NKJV). Twice a day since the third day of Creation, the ebb and flow of the tides of the sea have testified to the sovereignty of God. 

The second thing that happened on the third day was the appearance of dry ground, and God called it “Earth” (Gen. 1:10). Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation” (v. 11 NIV). The land yielded three classes of plant life: vegetation, seed-bearing herbs, and fruit-bearing trees. Each of them reproduced according to their kind. 

The Author 

The very word authority has within it the word author. An author is someone who creates and possesses a particular work. Insofar as God is the foundation of all authority, He exercises that foundation because He is the author and the owner of His creation. He is the foundation upon which all other authority stands or falls.—R. C. Sproul 

C. Living Creatures (Genesis 1:20-25) 

 20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. 21 And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. 23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day. 24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. 25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 

On the fifth day, God created the animals who populate the water and the air. We see the close relationship between aquatic animals and birds in that they were created on the same day. The Hebrew word bara, which is translated created, only appears three times in the Creation narrative. It is used in the original making of matter recorded in verse 1; it appears here with regard to the fish and birds and animals; it is also used in verse 27 in the story of the creation of man. The word carries the thought of “a direct exercise of divine creative power.” 

In verse 21, the term “great whales” could also be translated “great sea monsters” (Amp.) or “large sea-creatures” (CSB). This term (Hebrew tannin) “is elsewhere the regular word for ‘dragons,’ and probably refers to the great marine reptiles often called dinosaurs” (New Defender’s Study Bible). 

Fertility of life came with the blessing of the Lord as He gave this instruction, “Be fruitful, and multiply” (v. 22). In his commentary on Genesis, Manford George Gutzke wrote: “Every single plant, every animal, all marine life, and all bird life had this characteristic: each reproduced after ‘his kind.’ . . . It is well-known that there are different-sized horses, and different-sized dogs that can be trained and developed differently, but when all is said and done, a horse is a horse, a cow is a cow, and a dog is a dog. This constancy in kind rejects such a theory as evolution.” 

On the sixth day, two important things happened. The earth produced all sorts of animals and God created man in His image. As we look at all these acts of God, we should act on the words of Psalm 148:5: “Let every created thing give praise to the Lord, for he issued his command, and they came into being” (NLT). God spoke, and the original Creation occurred. 

• Why do you suppose God created everything over a period of six days? 

3. CREATED IN GOD’S IMAGE 

A. Man and Woman (Genesis 1:26-27) 

 26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 

On the sixth day, God created the animals and man. God created man in His own image and gave him the ability to hold sway over the earth. Man is in no way related to the beasts, but he is related to God. He is created in the image of God. 

It is our personality traits that reflect the image of God. We can think, recognize right from wrong, be creative, invent things, and improve things. Our likeness to God includes such traits as emotions, intellect, conscience, and will. In all these, we are far above the animals. So God created us in His own image, after His own likeness. As such, we have the capacity to partake of the divine nature and to enter into a spiritual relationship with God. 

Man’s dominion over all earthly things is limited by sin. But one day Christ will establish universal dominion over the earth. The writer of Hebrews said: 

For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak. But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him? Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands: Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour (2:5-9). 

Designed by God 

Christian doctrine tells a man that with all his intelligence he could not have made the earth on which he lives—not to speak of creating himself. That there is an almighty God who has made him, and his world is a truth that at once commends itself to the conscience of man. Psalm 100:3 reminds us, “It is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves.”—Macartney’s Illustrations 

B. Fearfully and Wonderfully Made (Psalm 139:13-16) 

 13 For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb. 14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. 15 My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. 16 Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them. 

The Hebrews believed the “reins” (v. 13)—meaning the soul, the seat of the emotions—is the first part of the human fetus to be formed. In other words, God lays the foundation of the human being. The psalmist also said the unborn child is wrapped and preserved and covered in the womb by the wonderful care of Divine Providence. While the baby is covered in the womb, he or she is not hidden from the all-seeing eyes of the Almighty. 

There is much in the world to cause us to marvel. Think of the great mountains, the giant waves of the sea, the cascading falls of rivers, the depths of the ocean, and the vastness of the stars, but what are they compared to the miracle of the creation of man? When the body is formed in the womb, every aspect of that development is observed by the eye of God; nothing is hidden from Him. 

The psalmist David suggests that when he was a mere embryo, the Lord observed the development of the various parts of his body. This is a startling statement. The psalmist says that even in his embryonic form before human eye could determine anything about what his future would be, God looked down through the corridor of time and saw what his future would be and wrote it down in His book. David is suggesting that God wrote down how long he should live, and what would be the events of his life. How thankful we should be for the sovereignty of God! 

• What did David know “full well” (v. 14 NIV), and why is this important?  

C. God’s Thoughts (Psalm 139:17-18) 

 17 How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them! 18 If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee. 

When the psalmist considered God’s thoughts of wisdom, power, and goodness, he realized they were more than he could count and greater than he could comprehend. Were he to attempt to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand on the seashore. He understood the Lord formed him in his mother’s womb, and after his birth God’s thoughts continued to be directed toward him—supplying the provisions he needed, protecting him, and blessing him. We can rest assured the thoughts of God are also directed toward us because He cares for us. 

David realized when he awoke, God had been with him all night and was still watching over him. What comfort and assurance this offers us! How many are the opportunities we have to meditate on God’s wisdom and lift up His name in praise and adoration. God is thinking of us; is He in our thoughts?

• Is God in your last thoughts before you fall asleep at night, and in your first thoughts when you awake in the morning?  

THE SOVEREIGN CREATOR 

In words that are easy to understand, the Bible says that God, by His Word, created the world and everything in it. An example is the creation of light. “God said, Let there be light: and there was light” (Gen. 1:3). No explanation is offered concerning the origin of light except that God called it forth. This pattern is followed throughout the Creation narrative. Each phase of creation is a function of the will of God. He spoke and it was so. 

 According to the clear message of the first chapter of Genesis, God created the world in six days. On the sixth day, He created man in His own image. Man was not created in the image of the animals who were created before him, but in the likeness of God. This was the beginning of man’s relationship with the sovereign God, a relationship that determines our eternal destiny. 

Daily Devotions 

M.  God Gave Order to Creation (Psalm 8:3-8) 

T.  God Spoke Creation Into Existence (Psalm 33:6-9) 

W.  God Alone Is Creator (Isaiah 45:5-8) 

T.  God Is Above All Creation (Acts 7:47-50) 

F.  God’s Image Renewed in Us (Colossians 3:9-13) 

S.  God Created All (Revelation 4:9-11) 

Adopted from the Evangelical Sunday School Lesson Commentary 2021-2022.

Photo by Jordan Wozniak on Unsplash.