In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit of God moved upon the waters.
This simple introduction by God through Moses gives us some deep truths in foreshadowing. This statement is simple in that allows us to see the introduction to the story between God and man. It is meant not to tell us how God came to exist or to explain to us the details of creation but to summarize that which would be filled in throughout chapter 1 and chapter 2 of Genesis.
In the beginning…
This is the start of all things. Prior to this introduction nothing of our material world existed. This is to include the vastness of space that houses our world. All things that we see have an originating point. This is the very reason for the scientist inability to calculate the age of space without using infinite math. They can only go so far back before they get the old "E" on the calculator. They admit that through the use of real math they reach a point of singularity when using the expansion rate of the universe that would determine the universe to be far younger (billions of years younger) than they claim. So as the universe has a point of singularity so does all life on this planet. A human comes from two cells, a plant from one seed, and so forth and so on; one can trace all life to a single moment.
Furthermore, this is the start of all we need to know to make it through our lives. In this one moment of time God set into motion all the laws of the universe that establishes order and reason to our lives. He established the laws of nuclear fusion to allow us to have heat and light. He established the law of gravity so that we might adhere to the planet that allows for life. He established through these the orbital paths of our galaxy, our planet, and our moon to allow life to exist on the celestial rock we call earth.
This begging covers a space of time, about seven days to be exact. It also states that this time period was in one instance as well. In the instant that God brought the material into existence the beginning was established. Then God took a few days and shaped that material into the things we see and take for granted one a regular basis.
In the beginning God….
God was before the beginning. In fact without God there would be no beginning. Therefore since God existed before the beginning and is the cause for the beginning then we must conclude that God exists outside the beginning and outside of time as we know time. This is the primary reason that God calls Himself as the "I AM". It speaks of His eternal state of being present at any moment in time. This is why the original language did not express the elementary statement of faith as "God was in the beginning." This would tie God to time and would compromise the fundamental truth of God's immutability (unchanging nature).
In the beginning God is also the primary statement of faith. The Bible authors never try to explain where God came from or how He came to be the creator of all that we know. They simply state that God is and leave you. It amazes me that we struggle over this concept since almost all stories have this aspect contained within their pages. There seems to always be a character that we have no background details to help us understand them. We are simply to accept that they are and move on to those details that will be revealed latter. Is it any wonder then that Paul, would write nearly 4,500 years latter that those who wish to please God must believe that He is.
….God….
So who is this God that we are to accept at face value? The original language first reveals God as the Elohym. It is a Hebrew word meaning a plural intensive body of rulers that are singular in nature and purpose. If the meaning had stopped at a plural body of rulers then a proper translation would have been gods rather than God. However, since the singular nature is also expressed to lends to us the understanding that these members of the "godhead" (as other writers would express this unique union in latter passages of scripture) are of one kind and cannot be distinguished apart. This is not to say that they do not have unique characteristics and roles but in the purest of essence they are one. The same is seen in all of nature (because that which is created reflects that which created it). There are many humans and each of unique, just like everyone else, but in the end we are human and can by and large receive body parts one from another. This is due to the fact we are of one kind, the human race. Therefore, to this extent the godhead is a separate from humans as humans are separate from dogs. However, there is more to this expression and that is the singular of purpose. Here is where humans fail to be one and this is why we say there is perfect harmony in the godhead.
The loss of understanding by early man after the flood of all the details contained within the wording of Elohym (remember this is a revelation from God to Moses) would account for the numerous gods of mythology. However, it was never meant to be twisted in such a manner but to instruct us toward a understanding of the trinity and thus the acceptance of Jesus of Nazareth as the Christ when the time was appointed for His first advent on earth. Furthermore, it makes us open to the work of the Spirit of God in our lives. Therefore, to the Christian the understanding of the godhead being the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit finds its seeds of understanding in Elohym.
Augustine once wrote:
It is not easy to find a name that will suitably express so great excellence, unless it is better to speak in this way: The Trinity, one God, of whom are all things, through whom are all things, in whom are all things.(1) Thus the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and each of these by Himself, is God, and at the same time they are all one God; and each of them by Himself is a complete substance, and yet they are all one substance. The Father is not the Son nor the Holy Spirit; the Son is not the Father nor the Holy Spirit; the Holy Spirit is not the Father nor the Son: but the Father is only Father, the Son is only Son, and the Holy Spirit is only Holy Spirit. To all three belong the same eternity, the same unchangeableness, the same majesty, the same power. In the Father is unity, in the Son equality, in the Holy Spirit the harmony of unity and equality; and these three attributes are all one because of the Father, all equal because of the Son, and all harmonious because of the Holy Spirit.
In the beginning God created…
So here comes the simple statement that the all-powerful (omnipotent), all-knowing (omniscience), ever-present (omnipresent) godhead created this world. For this reason when the scripture gives credit to the Father, the statement is true. When the scriptures give Jesus the credit for creation the scriptures are true, and equally true of the Holy Spirit. For all members of the godhead had their part in the act of calling into existence this masterpiece we call the universe.
In the beginning God created the heavens….
Heavens in a plural sense; did you catch that in the verse? I know we understand all that that implies since we have Paul's account of the man being caught up into the third heaven, the abode of God. Did Moses, understand this truth? He must have because the original word for heavens gives a three-level meaning. It speaks of the atmosphere, that beyond the atmosphere where stars exist (space), and the abode of God.
…and the earth.
Well there is not a lot to be said here. We know where we live. But as God tells of the original state of the earth I believe you will find a planet vastly different than the current world in which we live today. I am not speaking about the absence of technology and buildings but of the very atmosphere and overall landscape.
So all this came to me yesterday morning drinking coffee and eating breakfast. I began reading Genesis and I could not get past verse 1. I hope you will begin reading this book that sets the stage for the entire Bible. I also hope God allows you to move through it faster than I am being allowed to move. Now that I have blogged perhaps God will allow me to move to verse two. One parting question before I go? Do you think Moses was told creation or did he have a vision of creation? I would love to hear your responses.
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