Jun 18
3
Old Testament Reading: Genesis 1:1-2:3
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. And God said, ‘Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.’ And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day. And God said, ‘Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. And God said, ‘Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.’ And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the third day. And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.’ And it was so. And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day. And God said, ‘Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.’ So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.’ And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day. And God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.’ And it was so. And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. Then 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 birds of the heavens and over the livestock and 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. And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’ And God said, ‘Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.” (Genesis 1:1–2:3, ESV)
New Testament Reading: Romans 1:18–25
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.” (Romans 1:18–25, ESV)
Introduction
Have you ever asked yourself the question, why is the world as it is? I’m not here thinking of the state or condition of humanity, but have in mind the physical universe. Why is the world – that is, the physical universe – as it is? Why the sun, moon, and stars? Why this planet with this atmosphere, these lands and these oceans? Why the mountains, rivers and trees? Why this world filled with these creatures? Why is the world as it is?
The atheist will respond to this question by saying, the world is as it is by chance. This world, the atheist says, is the one that worked out – this world is the one that simply came to be.
I find this answer to be very unsatisfying intellectually and also spiritually. Intellectually, the idea that this world came into existence by chance, by some unguided process of evolution, doesn’t square well with the intricacy that we find in the natural world. This world is very complex. Everywhere we look we see evidence of design. Spiritually, this answer is unsatisfying because it strips life of all meaning. If indeed the world is at it is by chance, then there is no meaning at all to our existence. But this is the only answer that the atheist can give to the question, why is the world as it is? It is as it is by chance, the atheist must say.
But the Christian will respond to the question, why is the world as it is?, by saying, this is how God designed it and then made it to be.
This is true. But let us think a little more deeply about this.
For The Manifestation Of His Glory
Tell me Christian, did God have to create the heavens and the earth? Was he compelled or bound or obligated to bring this world into existence? The answer is that God did not have to create. Before the creation there was nothing external to God compelling him to create, nor was there anything lacking within him which moved him to create. God was not lonely, friends. He was not in need of companionship. There was nothing lacking within God that moved him to create. But rather the Triune God was complete and perfectly satisfied within himself when he determined to create as he did, being driven only by his good pleasure and the counsel of his will (see Ephesians 1:5, 9 and 11, for example).
And tell me, once God determined to create could he have made the world different from the one that he has made? Of course God could have a made the world different from the one in which we now live. God is most free. He is all powerful. He can do whatever he pleases. The only thing impossible for God is for him to act contrary to his nature. God is most holy – never can he do evil. God is true – never can he lie. God is faithful – never can he leave a promise unfulfilled. But certainly God was free and capable of making a world different from the one that he made.
Why then this world? All Christins will answer saying, the world is as it is because God designed it and made it this way. But why did he make it this way? The better and more developed answer to the question, why is the world as it is?, is that God made the world this way, one, simply because it pleased him to do so, and two, because this world effectively reveals something of the God who made it.
This is exactly the point that our Confession of Faith makes when it address the subject of creation. Listen to Chapter 4 of our Confession, Paragraph 1: “In the beginning it pleased God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, for the manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodness, to create or make the world, and all things therein, whether visible or invisible, in the space of six days, and all very good.”
First of all, notice that our Confession states that the Triune God created what he created because it “pleased” him to do so. Secondly, notice that he created “the world, and all things therein, whether visible or invisible” for the “manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodness.” God was please to create all things so that he might manifest his glory within his creation.
What is meant by the word “manifestation”? I use the word often, so I suppose it would be good to define it. The word “manifest” means to display or show forth something. It describes the process whereby something that is invisible is made visible and apparent. If I have an idea in my head you cannot see it, but if I write it down or draw it our build it, then that idea is made manifest. The writing or drawing or building is a visible manifestation of that which was once invisible.
Our Confession rightly asserts that the invisible heavenly realm (invisible to us, mind you, but not to the angels nor to the souls of the departed saints) and the visible earthly realm were created by God so that “the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodness” might be manifest there.
Tell me friends, when did God begin to be infinitely powerful, wise and good? Was it is at creation that God began to be these things? No, God’s “power, wisdom, and goodness” are “eternal”. So it is with all of God’s essential attributes. Just as God is eternal, without beginning or end, so too are all of his essential attributes. God simply is. He cannot be divided up into parts. He does not gain qualities or loose them with the passing of time, for he does not change, but is the same yesterday, today and forever.
What then happened at creation? Did the act of creation bring about a change in God? Certainly not! But rather it is in the creation that God’s eternal attributes are gloriously manifest! God is the same yesterday, today and forever. He is unchanging. But who saw God’s infinite “power, wisdom, and goodness” prior to the act of creation? Only the Triune God was aware the Triune God. But in the beginning God created the heavens and earth “for the manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodness”.
In the previous sermon I made the point that the way in which God created revealed truth concerning himself and his relationship to the world that he made. By considering the process whereby God brought the heavens and earth into existence we learn that there is a distinction between the Creator and his creation. There is God, and there is creation. We see that God is supreme and sovereign over all his creation. We understand him to be good. We learn that he is relational. Certainly God is to be served and worshipped by his creatures because he is their Maker. All of this can be gleaned from the way in which God created.
Here I am saying something different. I am saying that the creation itself reveals truth concerning the Creator. The world which God made reveals something of the glory of God.
The Heavenly Realm Is Where God’s Glory Is Manifest
When God called the heavenly realm into existence he did so to manifest his glory there before the angels. Do you remember how in the book of Revelation John the Apostle tells us of the visions that he saw of the heavenly realm? Consider, for example, Revelation 4:1-6:
“After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven!… At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads. From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of God, and before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal.” (Revelation 4:1–6, ESV)
Do you see that the heavenly realm was created for the “manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodness”? Heaven is a realm or dimension where God, who is “infinite in being and perfection… a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions… (2LBC, 2.1)” manifests, or makes visible and apparent, his glory to his creatures. John was shown this glory. Throughout the book of Revelation, he is found laboring to describe the glory of God that he saw in heaven.
By the way, where is this heavenly and spiritual realm? Is it a territory situated just beyond the edge of our ever expanding universe? Is it tucked behind a star somewhere, hidden from sight? Of course there is mystery here, but I think it is best to view heaven, not as a territory tucked away in some corner of the universe, but as another dimension that is ever about and before us, but is now hidden from our sight.
You would do well to remember the story of Elisha and his servant. In 2 Kings 6:15 we read,
“When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, ‘Alas, my master! What shall we do?’ [Elisha] said, ‘Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ Then Elisha prayed and said, ‘O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.’ So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” (2 Kings 6:15–17, ESV)
This story illustrates the point. The heavenly realm is not a territory set far off, but is all about us and is hidden from our sight. From to time to time this heavenly dimension is shown to men. Here in 2 Kings 6 Elisha and his servant saw it.
Do you remember what I said in our or study of the book of Revelation how in the end heaven and earth will become one. When Christ returns we know that he will establish the new heavens and new earth. When those in Christ die their souls go to heaven now. But at the end of time those in Christ will be brought body and soul into the new heavens and the new earth. The heavenly realm that is invisible to us now where the glory of God is manifest before his elect angels and the souls who have died in Christ, and the renewed earth, will become one. It is not that God will take a the heavenly realm from a far of place and bring it to the earthly realm to press the two together, but that heavenly, which is around and about us always, will be visible in the new heavens and earth. The glory of God which is manifest in heaven now, will fill the earth. All will be aglow with God’s glory. Indeed, “we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.” (2 Peter 3:13, ESV)
As we progress in our study of Genesis we will see that this was God’s design from the beginning – that the heavenly realm and earthly realm be one. God’s design from the beginning was that his glory which was manifest in the heavenly realm from the start would fill the earth too. The book of Revelation makes it clear that this was the end goal. Christ, the second Adam earned it. Which proves that this is what was offered to the first Adam through the covenant made with him and symbolized by the tree of life. Should Adam have passed the test by abstaining from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and eating from the tree of life, Adam would have been confirmed in glory. He would have passed from life to life, from paradise to glory. Adam fell “short of the glory of God…” (Romans 3:23, ESV), But Christ, after suffering as he did “[entered] into his glory?” (Luke 24:26, ESV).
The Earthly Realm Was Created For Glory
So not only did God create the heavenly realm to manifest his glory, but also the earthly realm. Heaven is a place created by God where his glory is now manifest so that his creatures may bask in his glory. There the angels in heaven give praise to God and enjoy him continuously. And earth is also a place created by God for that purpose. It too is capable of housing the glory of God. It was designed by God to be a place filled with his glory where his human creatures would give praise to him and enjoy him forever and ever.
But never has the earth been filled with the glory of God. It will be at the consummation! But never has it functioned in full according to God’s design. God’s glory has been shown forth upon the earth. The glory of God was shown on Mount Eden. The glory of God was shown on Mount Sinai. And the glory of God was shown on the Mount of Transfiguration. But these were but isolated foretastes of the glory that is to come. When all is made new, God’s glory of God will fill all. “Night will be no more. [Those who occupy the new heavens and earth] will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever” (Revelation 22:5, ESV). Brothers and sisters, please recognize that God created the world in the beginning so that his glory might be manifest in it just as it is manifest in the heavenly realm now.
The Earthly Realm Declares The Glory Of The Lord
We long for that day, do we not? We long for the day when heaven and earth will be filled with the glory of God. But for now we live in a world that is fallen. We live in a world which has come short of the glory of God.
But though it is true that world has not reached its telos, or the end for which it was created, this world does still reveal the glory of God. God made this world in such a way that it tells of his glory. The world, even in it fallen condition, declares the glory of the God who made it.
Psalm 19 says,
“The heavens [here it is the starry heavens that are in view] declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.” (Psalm 19:1–4, ESV)
What is the meaning of this? Psalm 19 teaches that God has designed the world to declare or to reveal his glory. Why is the the world as it is? It is as it is so that it might show forth the glory of God. The word, even now in fallen condition, manifests “the glory of [God’s] eternal power, wisdom, and goodness.”
Heaven And Earth: Distinct, Yet Corresponding
Let us make a few observations from the text of Genesis 1:1-2:3 to prove that this was God’s intention from the beginning, that the earth reveal and declare the glory of the God who made it.
Notice that in Genesis 1:1 a distinction is made between the heavenly realm and the earthly realm. Some have referred to this as the upper and lower registers (Kline). This distinction is maintained throughout Genesis 1:1-2:3 and, given the fall, the distinction between heaven and earth is maintained throughout the rest of scripture unit the two become one in Revelation 21.
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1, ESV).
In 1:2 All attention then goes to the earthly realm, or the lower register. “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep…” But we are told that “the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2, ESV). To which realm does the Spirit of God belong? The earthly and visible, or the heavenly and invisible? The Spirit belongs to the heavenly realm, but he seen here hovering like a bird over the earthly realm, ready to create.
And then a word is spoken? God says, “Let there be…” This he says again and again in the days of creation. And where is God when speaks? He is in the heavenly realm.
And to every “let there be…” there is a corresponding, “and it was so…” God’s word spoken from heaven has an effect on earth. The two realms, though distinct, correspond to one another and are interrelated.
All of this creative activity being accomplished by the Triune God, Father, Word and Spirit, culminates on the seventh day. “God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation” (Genesis 2:1–3, ESV). God rests, therefore, in the heavenly realm. He sat down, as it were, having accomplished his work of creation, as king would sit upon his throne after building palace for himself.
There is heaven and there is earth. The two are distinct, but they correspond. What God said in heaven was accomplished upon the earth. And if we look as bit closer we see that what was made upon the earth was made to reveal heavenly realities.
Man Made In The Image Of God
Nowhere is this more obvious than in the creation of man, who is said to be made in the image of God. There is God in the heavens, and there is man on earth, but man is made in the image of God. Man is like God in some respects. He was made to correspond to him. When we look at man, therefore, something may be known about God. This we will consider in much greater detail in the weeks to come, but for now simply see that it is so. God made man in such a way that something of God may be known by looking at man. Man was created in the image of God.
The Second And Third Heaven
Isn’t it also interesting that the word “heaven” is used to refer both to the spiritual and invisible heaven, and also the heavens that belong to the natural world. This is true in Hebrew, Greek and English. The word heaven can be used to refer to either the invisible or visible heavens. The same is true of the word “hosts”. The word “hosts” as it appears in Genesis 2:1 can be used to refer either to the armies of heaven – that is, the angels – or to the sun, moon and stars.
I do not think that this is coincidence. The heavens above and the sun, moon and stars that reside there are called “heaven” and “hosts” because they were created by God to image the invisible heavenly realm and hosts that worship and serve God day and night.
When you see the sun rise, and you feel it’s heat, and observe how it makes the plants grow, you are to to be reminded of God, who is himself the source of light. When you look up at the starry skies you are to be reminded of the heavenly hosts who worship and serve God perpetually.
The two seem most obvious to me: man made in the image of God, and the physical heavens and hosts being called by the same name as the spiritual heaven and hosts. But many, many other observations could be made concerning how the created world declares the glory of the Lord.
The creation of light reveals something of the God who created it, who is himself light. In him there is no darkness at all. The mountains lift our eyes to heaven. The trees function like a kingdom for the birds. They are place for them to rest, just as God is our resting place.
Friends, it is not that the universe came is at it is by chance and that God made analogies from the things that happened to be, but that God created the world to be analogous. The world was made by God to reveal God. The world was made in such way to show how things are in the heavens.
Adam’s Ability To Know God In And Through The World
Have you ever wondered what it would have been like for Adam and Eve to engage with the created world in their uprightness? The world that they the observed was the same world that we observe in terms of its features (sun, moon, stars, mountains, rivers, plants, tree, and animals). How did they perceive it?
Our Ability To Know God In And Through The World
In our sin we do not see the glory of God in the created world. It is not as if it is not there. But in our sin, we twist it all up.
“For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things… they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.” (Romans 1:21–25, ESV)
But in Christ our ability to see the creation aright has been restored. God, by his grace, has regenerated the Christian by his word and Spirit, and now the Christian is able to look upon creation and appreciate as God intended – as a world designed to declare the glory of the Lord who made it.
Application
