Apr 10, 2016
Genesis 1:1-3
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Before we dive into our text and begin our new verse-by-verse study titled, “The Genesis of Grace” I think it would be helpful I first articulate a few guidelines I’m going to employ to help us get the most out of our travels through the book of Genesis.
First… I’m going to faithfully teach the text! I know that sounds simple enough, but trust me a study of Genesis can quickly roll off the rails and become unnecessarily elongated and cumbersome because the pastor fails to wed himself to this particular discipline.
It is my conviction that solid hermeneutics (which deals with how the Bible should be interpreted) and Biblical exposition should be a diving board, not a trampoline! Instead of diving into the meaning and implications of a particular passage (which includes examining a texts meaning in the original language as well as the context of the original audience), it’s so easy for pastors to use the text to spring into a concept the passage never intended to address. Keep the main thing the main thing!
For example… If you’re expecting an extended exposé into the particulars of the Young Earth verses Old Earth Debate you’re going to find yourself very disappointed.Now that’s not to say we’ll avoid scientific observations, but we’re only going to tackle these issues as the text demands and in light of what God is seeking to communicate.
Additionally, I need you to know my hermeneutical position and Bibliology also dictates I approach and teach a passage from it’s plain reading. Unless the passage itself says otherwise it’s critical to view Scripture from a literal perspective. It’s been said, “When the plain sense of the text makes the most sense anything else is nonsense.”
As far as extrapolating deeper meaning or allegorical significance from a passage or particular story, I find it best to allow the New Testament to define these moments. So often in an attempt to come across insightful pastors will read into the text things that aren’t there. Always remember the best commentary for the Old Testament is the New!
Finally, I also believe it’s wise to resist a common tendency to become overly dogmatic on a section of Scripture that doesn't actually present any direct dogma. Refusing to speculate on a topic God intentionally choose to remain silent or vague concerning isn’t dodging an issue of controversy rather it’s demonstrating wisdom! It’s a truth that “where God places a period man should not place a question mark.” Furthermore, though it requires a measure of humility, when faced with a complexity within a text I see no problem admitting, “I don’t know. The text doesn’t say.” Honestly, any pastor who has the answers to every question is prideful and self-deceived.
Secondly… I’m going to stay true to the context! For starters, Jewish scholars, early Church fathers, and more specifically Jesus all believed Moses authored the first five books of the Bible including the book of Genesis. Luke 24:27, “And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, Jesus expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.”
And yet, while Moses is attributed with authorship, you can’t overlook the fact this does present a glaring problem. Though Mo could write Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy from the first person perspective as a reliable eyewitness, the same can’t be said for the substance of Genesis. Not only was he born 2,500 years following the creation of Adam, but Moses was born approximately 500 years after the death of Abraham. It’s only logical that we ask if the historical account of Genesis can be trusted!
One of the great myths surrounding Moses’ authorship is that he received Genesis via oral tradition (which we know to be incredibly inaccurate as it gives room for embellishment over time). And yet, it’s important to point out Genesis was not passed on by oral traditions.
Instead the evidence from Genesis itself presents Moses as acting more as a complier or historian of the origins rather than being the actual author. Let me explain… There are 11 verses in Genesis that read, “These are the generations of…” (Genesis 2:4; 5:1; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10; 11:27; 25:12; 25:19; 36:1; 36:9; 37:2). Which is significant for the word “generations” in the Hebrew means “origins, history, even family history.” This phrase can actually be translated, “These are the record of the origins of…”
Many Bible scholars see these repeated statements as evidence that Moses actually took written documents from the actual eyewitness participants of the events themselves (records that had been passed down from generation to generation) and simply compiled them into one document - the book of Genesis. Note: The transference of these documents from the original authors to Moses would not have been all that incredible or even outlandish. According to the genealogical records contained in Genesis, Noah would have been alive at the same time as Seth (Adam’s son) and would have also lived long enough to theoretically meet Abraham.
Aside from this it should also be pointed out that Jesus trusted the historical reliability of a literal view of the Genesis record referring directly to details contained in each of the first seven chapters an astounding fifteen times!
Which brings us back to the context… Why did Moses compile these documents into Genesis and make it the first book of the Torah? While it’s true “Genesis” or literally “The Book of Beginnings” lives up to its title by explaining the origins of all things (this incredible list includes: universe, earth, life, man, women, marriage, children, evil, sin, judgment, redemption, language, order, government, clothing, continental drift, etc.)… And in so doing presents crucial answers to many of the existential questions concerning why we exist, why the world is so messed up, and what is the meaning of life… And yet, understand Moses’ fundamental purpose for Genesis was much deeper than all that.
In recounting four events where God injected Himself directly into human affairs (Creation, Fall, Flood, and the Tower of Babel) as well as recording four people God specifically interacted with (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph) Moses was illustrating to the Nation of Israel an important reality. They were God’s chosen people for only one reason… Grace!
If I were to ask, “What is the most grace-centered book of the Bible?” you could easily point to Paul’s letter to the Romans or the one he wrote to the churches in Galatia; and yet, what if I said the strongest argument could be made for the book of Genesis?
Consider that not only does Genesis recount God’s interactions with humanity prior to the Law which was given to Moses in Exodus 20, but every Scriptural argument made by the New Testament writers advocating God’s grace pulls directly from the pages of Genesis.
In a profound sense what Romans and Galatians soundly communicate doctrinally, it is Genesis that illustrates practically. It is by design that within every verse you will see “The Genesis of Grace!” Reminding God’s people of God’s grace is the context for Genesis.
The fact is that every single story in Genesis oozes the grace of God! Instead of law or some standard to measure worthiness, Genesis presents example after example of men and women who, through faith in His promises, come to experience the transforming power of God’s amazing grace… This is the main thing we’re going to keep as the main thing!
One more thought before we start… I want to put your mind at ease by letting you know I am fully aware there are 50 chapters in Genesis which break down to a total of 1533 verses. I’ve even done the math… There were 6 chapters in our previous series in Galatians totaling 149 verses (19 studies averaging around 7.8 verses a study) meaning at my normal pace this new series through Genesis might very well go 197 weeks or approximately 3.78 years! Rest assured I only plan to spend the next 3 years or so in Genesis. It’ll be ok.
Genesis 1:1a, “In the beginning God…”
As we’ve already noted Genesis is a book of origins with one glaring exception… God! The Bible simply opens with this statement “In the beginning God.” Honestly, these four words lend to vastly more questions than they do answers! And yet, this is all were given!
“In the beginning” there was God meaning before “the beginning God” already existed. Logically, it stands to reason if God existed before the beginning He had Himself no beginning. Though vague note these four words do communicate a lot about God.
Because only God existed before “the beginning” we can reason God is infinite and everything else is the universe, know or unknown, is finite. This means God alone is all-powerful, all-knowing, unchanging, and always-everywhere.
It also stands to reason that God is non-material making Him entirely separate from everything else in the material world. Therefore, God operates in an independent reality and is only knowable if He chooses to make Himself known (revelation verses discovery).
Beyond these things, this Hebrew word we have for “God” is “Elohim” which is interesting for while the singular word for “God” is “El” the addition of “im” makes it plural. The word could be translated as “gods”; and yet, this plural word is being used in a singular tense. We see this same interesting word emerge again in Deuteronomy 6:4 where we’re told, “The LORD (Jehovah) our God (Elohim) is one (`echad) LORD (Jehovah).”
Right from “the beginning” God reveals of Himself that He’s one, yet He’s more than one. This reality becomes even more pronounced when in Genesis 1:26, “God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.’” We’ll come to see this as being the triune nature of God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit).
Why is this important? Contrary to many misconceptions God did not create out of some need. It wasn’t as though God created man because He was lonely, bored, or so insecure He needed worship. In this triune nature existed perpetual community.
Consider what Jesus prayed in John 17 (v. 5), “And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.” Then in (v. 24) “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.” God was able to love and be loved independently of anyone or anything else!
Then why did God create man? The Psalmist ponders the same thing in Ps. 8:3-4, “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?”
Honestly, I have no idea why God would create mankind, which gets even more complicated when you consider what we do know was happening with God before “the beginning.”
In Ephesians 1:3-6 Paul said that before Genesis 1:1 God knew you, loved you, and even had a plan for your life! “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace…”
And if that weren’t crazy enough before Genesis 1:1 God also knew you’d rebel against His love and what would be required of Jesus for restoration to take place! In 1 Peter 1:18-21 we read, “You were not redeemed with corruptible things… but with the precious blood of Christ… foreordained before the foundation of the world… raised from the dead and given, so that your faith and hope are in God.”
In light of all of this the very reality there even was a “beginning” when God knew full well what was going to happen is nothing more than possibly the greatest demonstration (while completely unexplainable) of His love for you motivated by His grace towards you. “The beginning” only occurred because of God’s amazing grace! 2 Timothy 1:8-9, “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord… who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.”
Genesis 1:1b, “God created the heavens and the earth.”
In the Hebrew this word “created” or “bara” means “to create something out of nothing.” Note: The word is only used of God in the Bible. “God created” all things out of nothing. Understand… No one but God can create! At best all we can do is reorganize things that already exist. You can build a house, but you cannot create a house. You can compose a piece of music, but you don’t create sound. Even an epiphany we know to be the unrational connection of thoughts buried deep in the left hemisphere of your brain.
So… How did God create out of nothing? I have no idea, because God didn’t divulge that information. The text just says, “God created” with no explanation as to how! That said… Scientifically, the idea conveyed in verse 1 is rather brilliant because it presents a central component necessary for the governing law behind Cause and Effect… An Uncaused Cause that set everything else in the universe into motion.
Honestly, what is the alternative to Genesis 1:1? Either God was uncaused and intentionally set everything into motion or everything has existed forever and over billions and billions of years by chance and probability organized itself into everything we see.
The problem is that the assumed eternal nature of matter violates the Law of Infinite Regress as it would be impossible to pass though an infinite series of moments to reach today if matter has always existed. Additionally, and as a matter of pure practicality, name one thing that naturally moves from chaos to order without an intervention?
The decision everyone faces is rather simple… Either you and your world happened by chance and is therefore meaningless or you were intentionally created by a God that loves you and has a purpose for everything that occurs in your life!
Daniel Fusco observed about Genesis 1:1, “In just ten words the Bible becomes radically controversial!” Damian Kyle remarked that this one verse goes against every other world philosophy… “It refutes atheism because the universe was created by God. It refutes pantheism because God is transcendent from what He created. It refutes polytheism because one God created all things. It refutes materialism for all matter had a beginning. It refutes dualism for God was alone when He created. It refutes humanism because God not man is the ultimate reality. It refutes evolution because God created all things.” The truth of the matter is that if a person can believe “in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” they’ll have no problem accepting everything else that follows.
So what did God create? First, God by His very decision to create created a “beginning.” The moment God decided to initiate the creation process time began. Then we’re told He “created the heavens” or literally a “plurality of space” as well as “the earth” or matter. “In the beginning” or the moment time began God created both space and matter to fill that space.
What is interesting about Genesis 1:1 and the verses to follow is that God does not seek to argue His existence (He makes no attempt to answer the unanswerable), however, He does create and in doing so establishes His creation as the evidence of His existence.
Psalms 19:1-3, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard.”
Romans 1:20, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.”
Creation testifies that God exists! It’s the Argument of Design which not only states that design demands a designer, but postulates that the greater the design the greater the designer! God reveals Himself then He makes Himself known though His creation!
Genesis 1:2, “The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”
After creating time, space, and matter verse 2 now describes the state of “the earth” or literally the state of the material building blocks of the physical universe. This phrase “without form and void” describes “something formless, in a place of chaos, or unorganized.”
While in verse 1 God created the essentials elements for the universe, verse 2 simply describes the conditions right before God begins to organize matter into varying forms. It would also seem “the earth” was covered in “water” or “the deep” upon which there existed both “darkness” as well as “the Spirit of God” actively “hovering over the face of the waters.”
This word “hovering” can mean “to move, shake, or flutter” and since it’s an active verb it describes waves of energy. Some speculate it’s at this point “the Spirit of God” not only brings “the earth” into a circular form, but that the rotation of the earth is initiated.
Regardless, I’m struck by the notion that verse 2 presents the world covered in “darkness!” The poetic nature of the text presents the picture of lifelessness, chaos, disorder, and disorientation. According to the New Testament “darkness” is illustrative of a life in sin.
And yet, what I find significant is that even in the midst of such “darkness” Genesis 1:2 tells us “the Spirit of God” is still actively stirring, moving, and preparing the way. For what…
Genesis 1:3, “Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light!”
In our world darkened by sin it is “the Spirit of God” working through the Word of God that brings forth in our lives “The Light of the World!” 2 Corinthians 4:6 Paul observed, “For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
Within the very creation account we have a picture of the Gospel… The way in which God forms us into a New Creation! By His grace God has sent His Spirit to prepare our hearts so that while in the darkness we might received His Word which says, “Let there be Light!”
Then with Jesus (“The Light of the World!”) shinning forth in our lives the conditions now exist whereby His Word can continue the work of New Creation. The Spirit moves, the Light shines, and it’s God’s Word that continues to speak into our hearts all things out of nothing!
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