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Just a couple more interesting things to point out before we move along…

In the last letter, you should have gotten the idea that God was pretty pleased
with the work he did in the six days recorded in Genesis. But did you notice
there was one exception?

God saw the light was good.

When the water receded and dry ground appeared, God saw that it was good.
The land producing vegetation, and the heavens being restored to order…God
saw that it was good.

The water creatures and birds…God saw that it was good. The livestock and
creatures that move along the ground…God saw that it was good. Adam. Even
though God knew he would fall…Adam…God saw that it was VERY good.

But did you notice this:

“And God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water
from water.” So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse
from the water above it. And it was so. God called the expanse “sky.” And there
was evening, and there was morning—the second day.” (Gen. 1:6-8)

Wow. God didn’t say a single word about that being a good thing, did he? Could
be maybe, that he forgot…or that he just didn’t think it was that big a deal. Really,
all he did was separate the water under the expanse from the water above it. And,
he called the expanse….”sky”.

His creation wouldn’t live in the sky, but on earth. So the earth was a good thing.
All the things on earth were good things…and all the things above earth were good
things. But there was something about the sky that God didn’t much care for…

“The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or
Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his
angels with him.” (Rev. 12:9)

“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to
live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of
the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.” (Eph. 2:12)

Wow. “The ruler of the kingdom of the air”…Maybe that’s why God didn’t call
the sky good? Because it’s being ruled by the fallen Lucifer? The ruler of the
kingdom of the air…the prince of this world (John 16:11). God knew what
Adam was going to have to contend with.

Lucifer didn’t fall after the creation of Adam. He was already there…in the
garden…in the air around Eden…waiting. Waiting for Adam to come along and
be tempted. Lucifer was already fallen even as the earth was being restored by
God. He was already the ruler of the kingdom of the air…the prince of this world.
Waiting to ambush an unsuspecting Adam.

The sky, or the air is Satan’s habitat for the moment. Maybe that’s why God
couldn’t call it good….

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I’d like to pause here for a moment to point out that in the scheme of things, it
really doesn’t matter a lot whether you believe God created the heavens and
earth in six days, or whether he did it “in the beginning”…or whether or not you
find this particular study interesting…whether or not, it’s shedding some light on
how things might have been, or what your thoughts are on dinosaurs, cavemen
and all that.

What’s important is this: IN THE BEGINNING, God created the heavens and
earth. Ultimately, he created everything ON earth, IN earth or AROUND earth,
including Adam. As we shall see, Adam was disobedient, fell from grace and
needed redemption. God provided that redemption through Jesus. THAT is what’s
important! 

With that said, let’s go back a few verses and look at something that’s very,
very interesting!

“And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light
was good…” (Gen. 1:3,4)

“And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry
ground appear.” And it was so. God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered
waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.” (Vs. 9,10)

“The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees
bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.”
(Vs. 12)

Concerning the lights in the expanse of the sky…

“God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day
and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.”
(Vs. 17)

“So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with
which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to
its kind. And God saw that it was good.” (Vs. 21)

“God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their
kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And
God saw that it was good.” (Vs. 25)

“And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.” (Vs. 31)

One interesting thing is this: Of all the work God performed in those six days, he
saw that it was all good. After the creation of Adam, even though God knew his
creation would fall, he called his work, not “good”, but “very good”. Adam, even
in his soon-to-be-fallen state, caused God to upgrade his own opinion of his own
work from “good” to “very good”. Wow, how God must have loved his Adam!
Wow, how he still does…you Adam, you!

There are a couple of other interesting things to point out in these verses…but we’ll
do that next time. For now, just sit back…relax and enjoy being God’s Adam.
The creation that catapulted God’s work from being “good” to “very good”. You are
why he created anything at all…you are the culmination of his work. You, Adam….
you….

Who’d have ever thunk it?

Many blessings!

Andy
imonlywood.com

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To pick up where we left off…

“And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day
from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years,
and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.”
And it was so.” (Gen. 1:14)

Again, no creating…God was simply restoring the topsy-turvy heavens to where
they were supposed to be.

“God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light
to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the expanse of the sky
to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from
darkness.” (Gen. 1:16-18)

God didn’t “create” two great lights on this day. He made two great lights (that were
already in existance from “the beginning”) governers of the expanse of the sky. He
made, or caused, the greater light to govern the day and the lesser to govern the
night. He didn’t create the stars…they were already here…from “the beginning”.
He simply returned them to where they were supposed to be before the heavens
were so shaken. In other words, he restored the heavens…

“And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the
earth across the expanse of the sky.” So God created the great creatures of the sea
and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds,
and every winged bird according to its kind.” (Gen. 1:20,21)

This is the first act of creation mentioned in the Bible since “the beginning”. God created
(new) the creatures of the water and the birds of the air. Why? Because these were
not going to be the same creatures that lived in the pre-historic world. These were to
be different. No sea serpents or pterosaurs…this time, he wanted to populate his waters
with fish, minnows, whales, and countless other critters. Instead of winged dinosaurs, he
chose to have feathery birds with musical voices…so he created them from scratch!

“And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock,
creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind.” And
it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to
their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds.”
(Gen. 1:24,25)

Did God “create” animals here? Or did he “let the land produce living creatures” that may
have existed before…in the pre-historic world? There’s no way to really know for sure,
and in reality, it doesn’t matter…because either way, God caused them to exist. It can
be said, though, that in every other instance that God “created”, the word “created” was
used. In any case, God “made” or caused them to be…whether new creations or
reproductions.

“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over
the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over
all the creatures that move along the ground. So God created man in his own image, in
the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. ” (Gen. 1:26, 27)

Here, God created Adam. Not the Neanderthal of old…but Adam. It’s here that God
first gives Adam dominion over the earth…and it’s here that the first prophecy of the
Bible is written. “Let THEM rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air…”

God is clearly saying that Adam is only the beginning. He’s letting everyone know that
man will, not just survive, but thrive on this newly restored earth. THEY will rule over
the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and over all the earth…

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