In Genesis 1, the account of the creation of the universe is recounted. A superficial reading of the account can lead to seemingly insurmountable difficulties. Also, if we compare modern ideas of the makeup of the universe with the Genesis creation story, we find deep inconsistencies between what modern science tells us and what the Bible declares. Modern astronomy teaches us, rightly, how the earth orbits around the sun. By contrast, the Bible tells us the earth was created before the sun or the moon. Seemingly, Scripture teaches a literal six-day creative period and an earth age of no more than 4-6 thousand years. Modern geologists tell us the earth and universe are billions of years old. The Bible gives us a starting point, a point of origin, or, if you will, a genesis for all things in existence. Modern science, at best, gives us a big-bang as the starting point, but cannot offer a theory of beginning.
So, what are we to do, what are we to believe? How did things begin? How old is the earth? What about dinosaurs? When did human-kind arrive? Did we evolve? Were we created? Does Genesis 1 give us one account of creation and Genesis 2 give us another? Can we believe in theistic evolution, or does Scripture require us to accept the concept of biblical creation? Do we have proof for creation? Can proof for evolution be demonstrated? The list of questions can go on and on.
We cannot answer all of the questions concerning the origins of the universe, or the dilemmas associated with the beginnings of life, especially human life. Yet, many answers do exist. In order to find them, we must read Scripture thoughtfully and intently. In biblical studies, scholars often speak of doing a close reading of the text. Others talk of “unpacking” the text in order to discover all of the layers of truth and meaning. Answering questions about creation requires us to do both a close reading of the text and to unpack the creation narrative of Genesis 1.
Let’s start with a close reading of the first few verses of Genesis 1. The beginning phrase of Genesis 1, is, “in the beginning.” Most often, we understand that phrase to mean “when things got started.” Another option exists. If you remember your “Mother Goose” stories, you will recall most of them began with the statement, “once upon a time.” Well, we probably should read Genesis 1.1 in that manner. The writer, though, was not saying simply “once upon a time,” he was saying “to begin,” as in “to begin this account.”
What is the first declaration of Genesis? “To begin, God created the heavens and the earth.” God is the operative term. All the words of Scripture follow this initial affirmation; all of the Bible is to be understood on that basis. God started everything; God superintends everything; God controls everything; God defines everything. Every story and account in the Bible, every psalm, song, poem and proverb is a God-oriented thing. The biblical declaration of God’s existence is the center-piece of Scripture. Without the Lord, Yahweh, Elohim, El-Shaddai, etc., none of what is said in the Bible makes any sense at all. Indeed, without God, the Bible is just another book of human philosophical musings.
Further, the declaration “God created the heavens and the earth” is central to all statements of truth in the Bible. Because God created all things, he owns all things, you and me included. Thus, the Ten Commandments are valid because the One in charge has the right to demand of all humans the highest ethical behavior. Nor can the Cross be disregarded because the God who created in concert as God the Father (Gen. 1.1), God the Son (John 1.1-3) and God the Spirit (Gen. 1.2) is the same God who sent his Son into the world to die for lost humanity.
God cannot be sidelined in our discussions of origins, as modern science would have us do. We must have a concept of beginning; we must be able to look to some thing or to someone as the responsible party for our existence. If we evolved, then we are answerable to an impersonal, time-chance process as the authority for our being. We would be required to find in nature some justification for our existence and our behavior. Unfortunately, the natural world is a place where the strong visit violence upon the weak. We call this process the food-chain: some eat, some are eaten. The strong live, the weak die. Nature is very selfish, impersonal and harsh.
We do have another alternative. If God created, then we are obligated to consider him in all our decisions. We must understand we are all accountable to God for our behavior, if he in fact did create. His commands and instructions are binding upon us all. Yet, we have no cause for fear, because God is a God of love, mercy and grace. Nature knows only brute force; no justice exists in the natural world. If God started time and the universe, he will guide all things to his intended end. No hope for a final resolution of evil and injustice can be found in nature, only a continuing process filled with danger, threat and a hopeless and pointless existence. In God, though, we find hope and purpose. We can find such because he is the God of hope and he does have a purpose.
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