In the Beginning

 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, “Let there be light, and there was light.” God saw the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. Genesis 1: 1 – 3

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning – the sixth day. Genesis 1: 31

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day He rested from all his work. Genesis 2: 1 – 2

Sometimes we just need to start at the beginning to fully understand a story, don’t we? How rarely we probably turn to Genesis 1 and read the complete story of creation! Yet, we all know what an amazing and beautiful story it is.

With what awe and wonder we think of God speaking the universe into existence. With what greatness and power He created this magnificent world of ours out of nothing. And even more incredible and ever so humbling, is the thought that He lovingly made each of us as His masterpiece of design, and we have been a part of His plan from the very beginning. How incomprehensible it is to consider that He cares enough about each one of us to know where we are in this vast universe and He blesses us with His presence and grace.

These simple words, “In the beginning, God. . .” lays the foundation for everything else to come. We see that God was before all things and the source of all things. He brought the world into being as a beautiful place for us. And furthermore, He made it abundantly clear that everything He has created has been good – including one of His greatest gifts to us, which is His story – this story – from beginning to end, as recorded in His Word, the Bible. We know from the pages of Scripture that our  triune God was overseeing creation – our God, the Father; the Holy Spirit who “was hovering over the waters” protecting all God had made; and His Son, who was present with His Father from the beginning. And we even see the foreshadowing or foretelling of the coming of His Son to earth, who would bring “light into the world” to dispel the darkness.

We know how the story unfolds and how God said in Genesis 1: 26, “Let us make man in our image and let him rule over the earth.” And how later, God created a companion for him. In Genesis 2 and 3, we see how sin entered the world through Adam and Eve and profoundly changed God’s creation.

But God was not finished, as the Old Testament reveals the need for His plan to redeem our sinful world by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, with His saving grace. And the New Testament tells how the world was changed by His life and death on the cross. With redemption will eventually come the ultimate climax of His story – a kingdom for all who believe in this Savior of the world.

It all began with God, and it will end with God. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. His plan will unfold, and hopefully, we will become a part of His never ending, final chapter for all eternity.

Prayer

Our Heavenly Father, thank you for the gifts of your creation. May we never fail to offer you praise for giving us life, the gift of your Son, and the promise of eternal life with you. Amen