創世記1:1-5　Genesis 1:1-5,

This September, in our Children’s Sermon series I preach from the book of Genesis in the Old Testament. Today we read the very first account of the creation of heaven and earth.

How did the earth we live on and the universe come into being? Scientists have conducted various studies and think that the universe began in a state of extremely high temperature and extremely high density, which then expanded continuously. This is known as the Big Bang theory. Then, what does the Bible teach? The Bible teaches that God created the universe and the earth. The very first verse of today’s Scripture states: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” While this brief phrase allows for various interpretations, it essentially means that God created the heavens and the earth – that is, the universe and the earth – out of nothing. The universe and the earth did not simply come into being naturally. They were created from nothing by God’s will.

At the beginning, when created by God’s will, everything was still formless. Verse 2 states: “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.” God then gave form to each of these formless things, shaping and ordering them. What did God create first? Verse 3 states: “And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” By his word, God commanded, “Let there be….” and the first thing he created was light. Without light, the universe would have remained in darkness. Life would never have come into being on the earth. Therefore, it was truly wonderful that God created light first.

God then ordered the earth. “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters” (verse 6). He separated the waters above the expanse from the waters below it. The waters above the expanse are the clouds. The waters below the expanse are the seas. Then he said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear” (verse 9). So, the seas and the dry land were separated. Not only that, he commanded, “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” (verse 11). Thus, plants began to grow upon the earth.

God also 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” (verse 14-15). Thus, celestial bodies such as the sun, moon, and stars came into being. Those who have studied science might think, “Hang on, this sequence seems odd… Shouldn’t God have created the various celestial bodies either when he created light in the universe, or immediately afterwards?” The Bible deliberately records the creation of the celestial bodies later to prevent people believing that “the sun is the source of life and is like a god” or that “the moon and stars are like gods who control human destiny.” Such beliefs persist today as they did in the past. However, the sun, moon, stars, are not gods themselves; they are things created by God.

God then proceeded to create fish, birds, beasts, and humans. Genesis chapter 1 records how God’s work progressed over six days, though this likely does not refer to six literal days. The six days represent the stages in which God methodically and orderly established the universe and the earth. In reality, the universe, the earth, and all living creatures within them were created over an immense span of time, one by one. Thus, everything existing in this world comes into being by God’s will, expressed as “Let there be….” The universe, the earth, the myriad creatures upon it, and each and every one of us exists by God’s divine purpose. Therefore, we wish to cherish not only people, but also other living creatures and the earth itself.