Lesson 2

“For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens, who is God, who formed the

earth and made it, who has established it, who did not create it in vain, who formed

it to be inhabited: ‘I am the Lord, and there is no other’ ”

Isaiah 45:18

Key Text

2

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:1-2)

At one stage –“in the beginning”—God created the universe and our planet Earth.

At that moment, the elements in Earth were all mixed together without any order or life.

There was no light to light up the planet but the Spirit of God was there in the darkness.

“The work of God’s Spirit must have some connection with the activity that was presently to be initiated, an activity bringing order out of chaos. The Spirit of God was already present, ready to act as soon as the order should be given. The Holy Spirit has always been doing this very work. This divine Agent has ever been present to assist in the work of creation and redemption” (SDA Bible Commentary, on Genesis 1:2)

We don’t know how much time had passed from the

creation of the planet until the six days of Creation

before it being populated. It could have been something

immediate or muchtime might have

gone by.

God devoted the first three days to shape and prepare the planet. He devoted the other three days to fill it and to give meaning to the places he had already prepared.

DAYHE

CREATEDHE

NAMED ITDAY HE FILLED

1 Light Day, Night 4Sun, Moon and stars

2The

firmamentHeaven 5

Birds and sea creatures

3 Dry land Earth, Seas 6Terrestrial

animals

Once everything was ready, He created man and woman and placed them at the home He had created for them; our planet Earth.

“For thus says the Lord, Who created the heavens, Who is God, Who formed the earth and made it, Who has established it, Who did not create it in vain, Who

formed it to be inhabited: “I am the Lord, and there is no other”” (Isaiah 45:18)

Which power did God use for His creative work?

“by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water” (2 Peter 3:5)

“God said…”(Genesis 1:3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24)

The Bible tells us that God created from nothing, just by the power of His word without any resistance.

The divine word is powerful enough to create without an evolutionary process which would need death and survival of the most suitable in order to bring man to existence.

Death, suffering and other ills were not caused by God. They came to existence as a natural result of the rebellion against His guidance.

The power of His word.

“Akin to the theory concerning the evolution of the earth is that which attributes to an ascending line of germs, mollusks, and quadrupeds the evolution of man, the crowning glory of the creation.

When consideration is given to man’s opportunities for research; how brief his life; how limited his sphere of action; how restricted his vision; how frequent and how great the errors in his conclusions, especially as concerns the events thought to antedate Bible history; how often the supposed deductions of science are revised or cast aside; with what readiness the assumed period of the earth’s development is from time to time increased or diminished by millions of years; and how the theories advanced by different scientists conflict with one another,—considering all this, shall we, for the privilege of tracing our descent from germs and mollusks and apes, consent to cast away that statement of Holy Writ, so grand in its simplicity, “God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him”? Genesis 1:27. Shall we reject that genealogical record,—prouder than any treasured in the courts of kings,—“which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God”?

Rightly understood, both the revelations of science and the experiences of life are in harmony with the testimony of Scripture to the constant working of God in nature”

E.G.W. (Education, cp. 14 “Science and the Bible”, pg. 130)

“Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day” (Genesis 1:3-5)

Let’s emphasize that…

“Then God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day” (Genesis 1:6-8)

God divided the waters so part of them stood on earth (the seas) and the other part was placed over the firmament (the heaven) God created in that moment.

That “firmament” was meant for birds (Gn. 1:20) as we can see today. We now call that firmament atmosphere.

During the Flood, the waters over the atmosphere fell on earth, “all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened” (Genesis 7:11). Clouds replaced them and the rain cycle began.

“Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth”; and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. So the evening and the morning were the third day”

(Genesis 1:9-13)

To feed the beings He was going to create.

To renew the oxygen in atmosphere, so they could breathe.

To create an environment of great beaut so man could contemplate it and take care of it.

After the first part of Creation, God paused and contemplated it, “And God saw that it was good”

“The great Master Artist writes His name on all His created works, from the loftiest cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop upon the wall. They all declare His handiwork, from the lofty mountain and the grand ocean to the tiniest shell upon the seashore”

E.G.W. (The faith I live by, January 18)

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