With a casual clap, creation could’ve been complete. The heavens and the earth could’ve been finished with a single wink. So why, then, does God take a full week to create the universe? Why should He spread it out over seven days when He already sees the end from the beginning? This is a question worth pondering.
What we learn from ancient Jewish wisdom is that an individual human being is as rich as an entire world. One of the most famous passages from the Mishnah (Sanhedrin 4:5) says in essence, “He who saves one life saves an entire world.” This is, in fact, the inscription engraved on Schindler’s ring in the movie Schindler’s List. It means one life is equivalent to one world. The two carry the same weight; they share the same complexity. “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world but forfeit his soul?” Mathematically it profits him nothing! Because again, according to Jewish thought, a man’s soul is a whole world unto itself.
Now we know that all Scripture is God-breathed, and good for our instruction in righteousness. But how is Genesis 1 good for our instruction in righteousness? Well I think the principle described above provides the key.
Genesis 1 reveals the process through which God created the world. We ought to connect that process to ourselves, seeing that, just as the world came into maturity over the course of seven days, so too a person’s soul comes to know the Lord through a process of seven stages. It’s the process of becoming a new creation. Rising from a state of confusion and darkness, the soul eventually matures into a fully developed creation set at rest in the presence of God. This being the underlying message of Genesis 1, let’s follow it through and see how it works.
Genesis 1 reveals the process through which God created the world. We ought to connect that process to ourselves, seeing that, just as the world came into maturity over the course of seven days, so too a person’s soul comes to know the Lord through a process of seven stages. It’s the process of becoming a new creation. Rising from a state of confusion and darkness, the soul eventually matures into a fully developed creation set at rest in the presence of God. This being the underlying message of Genesis 1, let’s follow it through and see how it works.
In the beginning, a person’s soul finds itself in a state of disarray. A void is present; a sweeping darkness blinds the face of the deep. The soul is as restless as the primordial oceans of earth. But not far away, the Spirit of God hovers over the surface of the waters. The Hebrew word translated as “hover” appears only once elsewhere in the Torah... Deuteronomy 32:11: “Like an eagle that stirs up her nest, that hovers over her young, spreading abroad her wings, takes them and bears them on her wings.” The connection cannot be missed: the Spirit of God hovers over the world like a mother eagle broods over her young. God’s Spirit remains close by a person’s soul, hovering over it like a mother eagle caring for her young.
Suddenly God speaks into the void: “Let there be light!” And there was light! This moment describes that initial burst of revelation, that pivotal, cross-dimensional moment when a person opens up to his Savior––the true light which, coming into this world, gives light. And this light sparks within him a new discernment: his soul now distinguishes between light and darkness, right and wrong. He begins to articulate the difference, assigning a name to each domain. This is “light” and that is “darkness.” He is now aware of something outside himself. Suddenly there is objective truth in his life. Things aren’t so subjective anymore.
Day 2 arrives. Here God severs the waters below from the waters above. We can describe this stage in terms of yearning or longing. The person comes to experience a thirst for waters that are out of his reach. It’s a kind of thirst that the waters below cannot quench. What is available to him physically is not enough anymore. Day 2 is the only day in which God does not say, “It is good.” Why not? Well because it’s a Monday.
But really, why not? Here’s a theory: God does not call this separation good because, as much as God wants man to thirst for the waters above, ultimately God does not want man to thirst at all. He intends to satisfy all thirst. It’s interesting: in Revelation 21:1, we read “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.” It’s almost as if, at the end of the story, God calls the waters back to where they really belong, so there ceases to be a sea below. The divide––the separation, the gulf––that caused such yearning and longing is no longer a factor in the world to come.
But really, why not? Here’s a theory: God does not call this separation good because, as much as God wants man to thirst for the waters above, ultimately God does not want man to thirst at all. He intends to satisfy all thirst. It’s interesting: in Revelation 21:1, we read “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.” It’s almost as if, at the end of the story, God calls the waters back to where they really belong, so there ceases to be a sea below. The divide––the separation, the gulf––that caused such yearning and longing is no longer a factor in the world to come.
On Day 3, the waters are gathered together and the dry land emerges. In Hebrew, the gathered together water is called a mikvah (Genesis 1:10). What is a mikvah? It’s a baptismal tank! A person gets immersed into a mikvah. And in the act of baptism, it’s the coming out of the water that begins something new. So here on Day 3 we see the dry land emerging from the mikvah and the beginning of something new: life seeding life seeding even more life! Grass, herbs, and fruit trees begin sprouting up from the day land. Remember that this is telling the story of a new believer. By this point in the story, the person has encountered the light of Christ; he’s become aware of his true condition; he’s developed a thirst for what’s above. At stage 3, he is baptized, reborn, and set to bring forth new life.
Now here there is a fundamental shift in the Genesis 1 process. Until now, God has been dividing, dividing, dividing. He has separated light from darkness; He has separated waters below from waters above; He has separated the seas from dry land. These divisions have brought about order. Order is a prerequisite for what comes next. Going forward, God will fill.
On Day 4 He fills what He created on Day 1. He stuffs the heavens with stars; He creates the sun and the moon. He summons these bodies to govern the day and the night. Before this, there was no sun. There was light but no sun. How can this be? Well, prior to Day 4, the light was spiritual in nature––it came directly from God, for God is light. Then on Day 4, when the sun was created, a physical source of light was put in place. Think about this in the context of a new believer. The light of Messiah comes first spiritually, and then, as time goes on, God begins to provide physical vessels to look to for light: a minister, a teacher, a friend. God summons these bodies to supervise the light and the darkness in this person’s life. The new believer can look to them to orient himself, just as the earth looks to the sun, moon, and stars to understand its own position, to measure how time is passing. The new believer begins to realize his citizenship is in the heavens, and certainly he has an important role to play.
On Day 5 God fills what He created on Day 2. He fills the waters with abundant life, and He fills the expanse called sky with birds. God blesses them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply.” We parallel this to the individual believer. He is now surrounded by other Christians, and he is being blessed and filled with more life. Earlier we saw a surface life: grass and herbs and fruit trees. But here on Day 5 we see a tremendous expansion of life, life reaching into new dimensions--depth and height. Along with this comes the first mention of multiplying. There is newfound purpose. (Birds give the sky newfound purpose; sea creatures give the sea newfound purpose.) The world is experiencing fruitfulness, blessing, and purpose. So too is the soul at this stage.
On Day 6 God fills what He created on Day 3. He animates the dry land with animals who can digest the grass and herbs. We now find life thriving on three levels: water, land, and air. Similarly, on three levels (body, soul, and spirit) the mature believer thrives. Since beginning the process, so much has changed! The sun and the moon marvel at what has taken place before them: the creation of a man standing tall; he is purposed, capable, full of potential, a person bearing the image and likeness of God at last!
Day 7 dawns. Amazed, the believer looks around and admires all that has happened. He’s experienced the light of God’s Word. He’s learned boundaries. He’s found fulfillment. He distinguishes and articulates. He knows order. His soul is teeming with life. He’s surrounded by governing bodies. He has a ministry awaiting him. He looks forward to whatever adventure lies ahead. His soul is a world at rest with God.
Taking all of this into account, we make an incredible realization. We tend to think that Genesis is concerned only with the great heros of the faith: Joseph, or Jacob, Abraham, or Noah––but look! Genesis opens with you! Chapter 1 is your story. It is your testimony as a Christian. It is the process through which God spoke life into your soul and made you a new creation.
