God said... We say...

Genesis 1 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. ² The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. ³ Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. ⁴ God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. ⁵ God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.

⁶ Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” ⁷ God made the expanse, and separated the waters which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ⁸ God called the expanse heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.

⁹ Then God said, “Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ¹⁰ God called the dry land earth, and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that it was good. ¹¹ Then God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit after their kind with seed in them”; and it was so. ¹² The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, after their kind; and God saw that it was good. ¹³ There was evening and there was morning, a third day.

¹⁴ Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years; ¹⁵ and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ¹⁶ God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also. ¹⁷ God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, ¹⁸ and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good. ¹⁹ There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.

²⁰ Then God said, “Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.” ²¹ God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good. ²² God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” ²³ There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.

²⁴ Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ²⁵ God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good.

^{26   29} Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; ³⁰ and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so. ³¹ God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

As we begin this new year, it seemed appropriate to begin in the beginning. The first verse of Genesis says:   In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. It is logical to believe that if something exists, it was created. It is foundational to believe that it is God who created the heavens and the earth. Verses 2-3 says:    The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. ³ Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.      The words formless and void, could be translated without order, chaotic. Aside from the fact that God is indeed the creator, one of the most important things we can learn from the account of creation is God’s method.  Day one:  Then God said, “Let there be light”    Day two:    Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters…”     Day three:      Then God said, “Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear”     Day four:   Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night…”     Day five:   Then God said, “Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth…”     Day six:   Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind”       God’s method for creation was to speak. In response to God’s spoken words, the power of the Spirit of God created things. The power of the spoken word of God and the Spirit of God caused the chaos and disorder which was present to become ordered and good. God spoke and it was. The power of creation was released through the spoken word of God.

Let’s look then at what else God spoke.   Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”       God said that man should rule, should have dominion over the rest of creation and so it was, and so it is. We are to rule and have dominion over creation. God said we are created in His image and likeness. It follows then that our method for exercising dominion should be like His. When we see disorder and chaos in the world around us, we should, like God, speak. We should speak the words of God to the chaos of the world, that the Spirit of God would release the power to bring order and that what is not would become good. Proverbs 18:21 says:   The tongue has the power of life and death.     Because we are created in the image and likeness of God, there is power in what we say.

As we begin this year, may we be people, God’s people, created in His image and likeness. May we, like God, speak to the chaos and confusion, may we speak to what is void of life, may we speak God’s words, words of life, words of light, words which bring order, life, light and beauty to the chaos and darkness which surrounds us.  Verse 31 says:   God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.      May we too, like God, see the good. May we be faithful to take our place as rulers of God’s creation. We are created in the image and likeness of God and although we may have fallen, through Christ and the cross we have been redeemed and restored. On the cross, Jesus also spoke. He said:  "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."  (Luke 23:34)  And so we are.   He said:   “It is finished.” (John 19:30)   And so it is.

Today and throughout this year, through the power of the finished work of the cross, may we be God’s agents of rule, may we speak God’s word, bringing peace and order to the chaos of the world, through the power of His Spirit.