We have seen God do so much already in His work of creation. What a marvelous world is out there in only four days. Today we will move forward and see the finishing works in the final three days. Let’s pull out those journals we have been working on and get back to Genesis chapter 1.
Verses 20-23 give us day five of creation. What did God create on that day? Yes, God created the water creatures and the birds. If you have ever been to an aquarium or an aviary you will know that this is a lot of species. Probably way more than we have seen in our entire lives (Psalm 104:25-26). Scientists tell us that they are discovering many more species now that they are able to explore even deeper depths of the ocean. Think about the species you have seen. Can we agree that God has an amazing imagination? How many types of birds or water life would we have come up with if we were creating them? But the truth is, God has no boundaries. He cannot be measured… nor can His imagination. Write this trait of God in your journal… God is limitless. Record day five’s creation in your journal.
In verse 22 we learn that, after His usual evaluation of His work, God blesses all these creatures and then sends them off to reproduce and fill the oceans and the sky. These are the first of creation to have been blessed by God. Think about why this might be. Could it be that they are the first creation that has not been inanimate? I know many people pray over objects, asking God to bless them, or because they believe them to be possessed, but in the Bible, we see only examples of animals and people being possessed by demons. We see only examples of animals and people being blessed by God. Only animals and people have sentient lives which begin and end. Because God loves us, He wants us to love Him back and live blessed lives. Ask God now for His blessing on your life.
Verses 24-26 tell us of day six. What did God create on day 6? Record this creation in your journal. With day six we now have animals and people. And again, think about just how many types of land creatures we have… mammals, reptiles, etc. And yes, at one time even dinosaurs. For each animal you can name, there are multiple variations. How many types of bears are there? Dogs? Frogs? Turtles and snakes? Notice in verse 24 that God specifically calls out livestock. God knows that mankind will need farm animals and is already planning ahead for it.
Now we know that the animals all live in different habitats and in different parts of the world, so God was creating them and placing them everywhere as He was doing it. The same happened with the creation of plants and dirt and oceans which are also all over the world. Think about this for a moment. God was accomplishing creation all over the earth each day just as the spirit of God watched over all the newly created waters of the earth that first day. Record this trait of God in your journal… God is everywhere (omnipresent).
We see next that God does His evaluation of the animals before moving on to creating people. Verse 26 then addresses the creation of mankind. Notice at the beginning of this verse how God uses the words ‘us’ and ‘our’. Who is He talking to? Remember from our study two lessons back that the entire Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) all participated in the creation.
Verses 26-27 tell us that God created us in their own image. This makes the creation of mankind not only unique from the rest of creation, but also special. In fact, this is so special that it should demand consideration in the way we treat each other. Paul, in his epistle to James, speaks of this (James 3:7-9).
So, what does this mean ‘to be made in God’s image’? Bible scholars debate this issue, but I think we can agree that it must be characteristics beyond what the animals possess. And, since God is a purely spiritual being, it is certainly not referring to bodily shape or appearance. The most common thinking includes the following possible explanations: to have a soul, to be able to think and reason, to have free will. The Bible never defines it so I will not try to either. Nevertheless, I like to think it includes all three of these possibilities.
Verse 26 also tells us that God gave mankind the responsibility (or privilege) to rule over all the other creatures. In fact, we will see later in chapter 2 that the first man even named all the animals. This was probably a privilege extended because of his being made in the image of God. Verse 27 goes further to tell us that God created both male and female people. He does not go into this in much detail with any of the other creatures He has created. I believe this is because, on day six, God also created marriage as we will learn about later in chapter 2.
In verse 28 we see God’s blessing on mankind before He sends them off into the world. What are His instructions to the new people?
- Reproduce and fill the earth
- Subdue the earth
- Rule over the other creatures
The first instruction from God is the same as it was to the fish and birds. Let’s look at the second instruction. What does it mean to subdue the earth? God intended for us to learn about the world around us and to understand the science He has created and to put that knowledge to practical application. I believe it is God’s desire that we build bridges and dams and make this world a comfortable home. However, I don’t believe God is giving us permission here to be irresponsible. Ecology is important. As we learned in our first day studying Genesis, creation is God’s witness of Himself and we should not destroy it.
The third instruction was to rule over the other creatures. This could mean so many things. We have livestock, or farm animals, which we use for practical purposes. We have pets. There are working animals and service animals. But here again, ruling over them comes with responsibility. To understand how God would have us to rule over them, let’s take a look at how God rules over them. Read Psalm 36:5-6, Isaiah 43:20, and Luke 12:24. God shows them love and meets their physical needs. When we have animals in our possession, we should never mistreat them or neglect their physical needs.
God goes on further in verses 29-30, on this 6th day of creation to give all the plants He has created to mankind and to the fish, birds and animals for food (Psalm 104:14). Remember God’s assessment of the plants He created? They were all good. There was nothing evil or bad about them. There were no weeds or thorn bushes among them nor were there poison berries (we will see this more when we study chapter 3). Every plant created was good and was given to the living creatures and mankind for food. As we see in these verses, if it had a seed, it could be eaten.
Verse 31 follows with the usual assessment by God… this time of mankind. Notice that this time His assessment is not ‘good’ but ‘very good’. God is emphasizing, for the official record, that His original creation of man was totally without blemish, or evil. God has created mankind without sin. In fact, God is actually assessing here His entire creation of all six days and emphasizing that it is ‘very good’. There is, at this point, nothing sinful or evil or bad in the entire world. This is an important fact to God. This is because God is so pure and perfect that we cannot even imagine it. He has no sin or evil within Him whatsoever. Record this trait of God in your journal… God is Holy.
Now, as we look at chapter 2, verse 1, we are told that creation is finished. What does verse 2 tell us happened on the seventh day? Record this in your journal. Verse 3 tells us that God commemorated the seventh day by making it holy… it was a day not only to rest but also dedicated to Him. Do you think God needed a day to rest? I tend to wonder whether He was just setting a precedent for us, knowing that we would need a day each week to rest and to have time to focus on Him.
The Jewish people have always celebrated this seventh day of the week as a day of rest and worship. It is called the Sabbath day. Remember, the calendar day for the Jews runs evening and then day so the Sabbath begins Friday at sundown and runs until Saturday at sundown. With the advent of Christianity, the day of rest for the Christian peoples was changed to Sunday and renamed ‘The Lord’s Day’ in memory of Christ raising from the dead on Sunday morning. Also, in Christian cultures, the calendar day changed to start with morning so that day is followed by night. Thus, the days and weeks in our culture’s calendar are now structured around the time of Christ’s resurrection while the Jewish calendar remains structured around God’s creation.
Responding to God: Make a point today to tell someone of God’s wonderful traits. Give praise to God and thank Him that He has created the fish, birds, and animals and for making us in His image. Praise Him that He is limitless, omnipresent, and holy. Take a moment in prayer to talk to God about the way you treat the environment, the animals, and others who are created in His Image. Commit to observing a seventh day of rest each week where you can focus on God and worship.
Further Research: If you would like to learn more about the Sabbath, read Exodus 20:11, 31:12-17, and Leviticus 23:1-3.
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