Look around you, the beautiful flowers, the vegetation, and the animals in them, the seas and the animals in them, the sky, and the birds that fly in it. The mountains, the hills, and the valleys. And when you look upward in the air, you see the stars, the moon, and the sun and beyond the sky far from what your eyes can see lies billions of stars and planets organized into different galaxies all in an orderly motion. And looking inward, you see yourself wonderfully made with a complex structure made of cells, tissues, organs, and systems working in harmony and coordinated perfectly to bring about meaningful functionality. How do all these come about and who is behind their existence. Different human-made theories are explaining the origin of the world. Some belief in evolution, some in the Big Bang theory, and some in nothing. This study will show you from the Scriptures that there is a creator behind all that exists – the universe and everything in it.
Study Questions
1. What did the first verse of Genesis Chapter one reveal about creation?
2. What do the Scriptures say about the creation of the world?
3. Why did God create the earth?
4. What process did God put in place to populate the earth?
5. In whose image was man created?
6. Where did God put the first humans to live at the beginning?
7. What was man’s awesome purpose over the creation of God?
Questions and Comments
1. What did the first verse of Genesis Chapter one reveal about creation?
Read Genesis 1: 1, John 1: 1-3
Comment
Genesis means beginning, and what is revealed in the first chapter and verse of the book is the One behind the creation of the universe (heavens). The scripture states that God created the world. God was the master planner and creator of all things – seen and unseen. The Hebrew word translated God here is Elohim, which is a plural form of God, which means that more than one person executed the creation of the universe. This fact is evident in verse 26 of Genesis chapter 1, which states, “And God said, let us make man in our image…”. The word ‘us’ indicates more than one person. The Word us shows majesty or sovereignty. The book of John chapter one, verses one to three, revealed the personalities involved. It states, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him, nothing was made that was made.” The two personalities revealed here are God the Father and the Word (God the son). God, the Father through His Word, created all things. Verse 2 of Genesis chapter 1 mentioned the means by which Elohim made all things – the Spirit of God. The Spirit of God (the Holy Spirit) is the power by which God does and accomplishes things.
Scriptural references
Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him, nothing was made that was made.”
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.”
2. What do the Scriptures say about the creation of the world?
Comment
1. God created all things.
Scriptural references
Revelation 4:11, “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will, they exist and were created.”
Nehemiah 9:6, “You alone are the LORD; You have made heaven, The heaven of heavens, with all their host, The earth and everything on it, The seas and all that is in them, And You preserve them all. The host of heaven worships You.”
Psalms 115:15, “May you be blessed by the LORD, who made heaven and earth.”
Psalms 19:1, “The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork.”
Jeremiah 10:12, “He has made the earth by His power, He has established the world by His wisdom, and has stretched out the heavens at His discretion.”
Jeremiah 32:17, “‘Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, you have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You.”
Psalms 104:5, “You who laid the foundations of the earth, so that it should not be moved forever,”
Job 9:8, “He alone spreads out the heavens, And treads on the waves of the sea;”
Job 26:7, “He stretches out the north over empty space; He hangs the earth on nothing.”
Genesis 5:2, “He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created.”
Jeremiah 51:15, “He has made the earth by His power; He has established the world by His wisdom and stretched out the heaven by His understanding.”
2. He created all things by the Messiah, the wisdom of God
Scriptural references
John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him, nothing was made that was made.”
Psalms 33:6, 9, “By the Word of the LORD the heavens were made, And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.”
Colossians 1:15-16, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.”
Hebrews 1:1-2, “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;”
3. The power by which God creates and accomplish things is the Holy Spirit
Scriptural references
Psalms 104:30, “You send forth Your Spirit, they are created, And You renew the face of the earth.”
Job 33:4, “The Spirit of God has made me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”
3. Why did God create the earth?
Read Isaiah 45:18
Comment
God did not create the earth without a purpose. He created it to be inhabited by man. The earth is the home of humans, and God will see to the accomplishment His plan, Psalm 33:11, Isaiah 46:10. The earth will not be destroyed, but will be inhabited by the righteous, Proverbs 10:30, Proverbs 2:21-22, Psalm 37:11, Matthew 5:5, 2 Peter 3:13, Psalm 119:119.
Scriptural references
Isaiah 45:18, “For thus says the LORD, Who created the heavens, Who is God, Who formed the earth and made it, Who has established it, Who did not create it in vain, Who formed it to be inhabited: “I am the LORD, and there is no other.”
Psalms 33:11, “The counsel of the LORD stands forever, The plans of His heart to all generations.”
Isaiah 46:10-11, “Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,’ Calling a bird of prey from the east, The man who executes My counsel, from a far country. Indeed, I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it.”
Proverbs 10:30, “The righteous will never be removed, But the wicked will not inhabit the earth.”
Proverbs 2:21-22, “For the upright will dwell in the land, And the blameless will remain in it, But the wicked will be cut off from the earth, And the unfaithful will be uprooted from it.”
Psalms 37:11, “But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.”
Psalms 119:119, “You put away all the wicked of the earth like dross; Therefore, I love Your testimonies.”
Matthew 5:5, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”
4. What process did God put in place to populate the earth?
Read Genesis 2: 7, 21, 22
Comment
The process God put in place to populate the earth is marriage – a union between a man and a woman. The only association capable of bearing fruit (children) as God intended in verse 26 of Genesis chapter 1. Real marriage union as God designs it is never between a man and a man or a woman and a woman because they can never lead to the population of the earth. The main purpose of marriage is for companionship and to populate the earth.
Scriptural references
Genesis 2:7, 21-24, “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept, and He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman Because she was taken out of Man.” Therefore, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.”
Genesis 1:27-28, “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Genesis 5:2, “He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created.”
Mark 10:6, “But from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female.”
Matthew 19:4, “And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,”
5. In whose image was man created?
Read Genesis 1:26-27, Genesis 5:1
Comment
God created man in His image. The image referred to here is Holy and righteous nature. So, in the beginning, God created Adam with a Holy and upright character. A character that does what is always good and right. A nature that naturally obeys God. It is also the image with excellent power and authority. As God has incredible power, He also gave man dominion (authority) over His creation.
Scriptural references
Genesis 1:26-27, “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So, God created man in His own image; in the image of God, He created him; male and female He created them.”
Genesis 5:1, “This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God.”
6. Where did God put the first humans to live at the beginning?
Read Genesis 2:8, 15
Comment
God put the first humans in a garden, East of Eden. The garden in Eden represents the presence of God on earth. It is like a temple (God’s house, tabernacle, dwelling place) where He comes to meet with His people. Genesis 3:8.
Scriptural references
Genesis 2:8, 15, “The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed. Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.”
Genesis 3:8, “And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.”
7. What was man’s awesome purpose over the creation of God?
Read Genesis 1:26, Psalms 8:4-6
Comment
God created man to dominate and rule over His creation. The word dominion means to reign over or to take under control. Everything includes things in heaven, on earth, and in the sea. Man is also to rule over the angels. We will judge the angels, 1 Corinthians 6:3.
Scriptural references
Genesis 1:26, “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
Psalms 8:4-6, “What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, And You have crowned him with glory and honor. You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet,”
I Corinthians 6:3, “Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?”
Conclusions
God is the Creator of all that ever exists, and He created them for His pleasure. By the Word (Messiah), He created them all. The Holy Spirit is the means by which God does all things. God created the earth to be inhabited by human beings to rule over all His creation. Humans are made in the image of God with great power and authority. God put the first humans in a garden called Eden, which is a type of temple. Marriage is God’s institution for companionship and to populate the earth. The universe is not a product of accidental chaotic chemical collision. The Almighty Creator fashioned and organized it in an orderly manner for a meaningful purpose. God, as the Maker of all things, deserves all the worship, and our allegiance should be to Him alone.
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