Each of the days is introduced with the words "And God said ...". The word of God is powerful and creative. There are a number of key points that can be learnt from these days:
- God was the source and initiator of creation.
- Everything that was created was good.
- There was a process to creation.
Every day also includes God calling things a name. A king naming something indicated the king had authority over the person named. So Genesis is declaring that God has authority over all creation, this was demonstrated most graphically through Jesus when He calmed the storm. We need to know that God has authority over the natural world.
All the descriptions are showing that once there was nothing, but God created the things that we see.
While some take each day to be a 24 hour day, others see each day as a period. Some seek to see the sequence of events as a description of the order in which things happened. Yet others see the days as events rather than a linear progression. In the West we think very much in terms of linear time, while Hebrew thought was often more focused on events. To understand the difference consider the difference between Match of the Day and Football Focus. Match of the Day shows highlights of a football match. While it does not show everything, the things it does show did occur in the order they are shown. Now Football Focus might have an item looking at a particular player, or a particular aspect of play. In this case there is no guarantee that the order in which things are shown signifies anything about the chronology. In some cases it might, in others it might not. It is possible that something of this applies to Genesis 1, though by no means certain.
Some thought (and some still think) that the stars and planets govern our lives. Genesis makes it clear that they do not. And all are under God's authority. Moreover, He is Lord of the day and of the night.
All the descriptions are showing that once there was nothing, but God created the things that we see.
While some take each day to be a 24 hour day, others see each day as a period. Some seek to see the sequence of events as a description of the order in which things happened. Yet others see the days as events rather than a linear progression. In the West we think very much in terms of linear time, while Hebrew thought was often more focused on events. To understand the difference consider the difference between Match of the Day and Football Focus. Match of the Day shows highlights of a football match. While it does not show everything, the things it does show did occur in the order they are shown. Now Football Focus might have an item looking at a particular player, or a particular aspect of play. In this case there is no guarantee that the order in which things are shown signifies anything about the chronology. In some cases it might, in others it might not. It is possible that something of this applies to Genesis 1, though by no means certain.
Some thought (and some still think) that the stars and planets govern our lives. Genesis makes it clear that they do not. And all are under God's authority. Moreover, He is Lord of the day and of the night.
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