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In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then 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. (Genesis 1:1-5)
A glorious Friday to you, dear Friend! I pray this find you and yours doing well. This Friday we begin with a new study: Bible Stories You Should Know, and we start on page one. I have to confess that I cannot hear the word beginning, without hearing the big inning. More so, and in honor of the MLB playoffs and my all time favorite team is in it, the Houston Astros, we will call this The Big Inning.
Everything out of nothing. The writer of this portion of Genesis begins with sharing that it was God who created everything, and He began with the heavens and the earth; meaning the sky and all that is under that sky. The writer does not mention universes, or galaxies at this point, his concern is for us to know the One behind creation; the Creator was God. God as Creator glorifies God as having all power to make everything out of nothing. Note the writer says "the art was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters." As the psalmist would later write in Psalm 24:1,2, the understanding in the ancient world was that God created an orderly world out of water and over the water. The third verse says, "Then God said, 'Let there be light'' and there was light." Creation was by the spoken word of God, such is the power of God. Later, Paul would write the words of 2 Corinthians 4:6: "For it is the God who said, ‘Let light 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." This passage in Genesis helped Paul understand that God is not only Creator, HE is Lord.
Once light is created, God declares this first creation, "Good." From what is left over from the darkness, God separates the two, making the light Day, and the darkness Night. "And there was evening and there was morning, the first day." BAM! It is childlike faith and wonder that allows us to say, "Awesome!" What an awesome God we have. HE made day and light for us to enjoy. Day is the opportunity to work and serve, Night is the realm to rest and recreate.
PRAYER; Heavenly Father, You are a mighty God and we stop to worship You! We give you thanks for this creation and for the story that we read today. May we enjoy both day and night as gifts from You. Help us to make the best of both for You honor and glory. Help us be the light of Jesus to shine on those who find more than their share of night. This we pray in His might name, Jesus our Lord and Savior, amen.
Have a great and blessed day (& night) in the Lord! Let your very being reflect the creative power of God for good in someone's life today!
Eradio Valverde
