The Book Of Genesis
Part 3
In our general analysis of the early part of this wonderful book, under the subheading, “A. Creation,” we discovered certain features of creation and certain facts about the God of creation. It is now time to examine more carefully the details under:
Reconstruction (1:2-25)
1. The ruin:
a. Creation (Gen. 1:1) : “Thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God Himself that formed the earth and made it; He established it, He created it not in vain, He formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else” (Isa. 45:18).
b. Chaos (Gen. 1:2): “The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.”
2. The recovery:
a. The power: The Triune God. “The Spirit moved upon the face of the waters” (Gen. 1:2); “His Son… by whom also He made the worlds” (Heb. 1:2); “God said (decreed), Let there be… ” (Gen. 1:3).
b. The process:THE FIRST DAY: “Light.” Natural light is the type of spiritual light and knowledge (2 Cor 4:6; 1 Pet. 2:9). “Darkness” becomes the symbol of moral ignorance (John 1:5; 3:19; Eph. 6:12; Col. 1:3). Division: “God divided the light from the darkness.” Here is a fundamental principle, “What communion hath light with darkness” (2 Cor. 6:14). Definition: In Hebrew the word “day” signifies warmth, heat, and the word “night” signifies a rolling up, night enfolds all in its darkness.
What a precious picture we have here of the blessed experience of our souls in regeneration. There was a time when our minds were in a state of utter confusion, when our spirits were enfolded in the ignorance of a spiritual night, but God commanded the light to shine into our hearts, and by the decree, He separated us from the gross moral darkness of sin, and brought us into the warmth of His light (Acts 13:47; 26:23; 2 Cor. 4:14; Col. 1:12; 1 John 1:7).
THE SECOND DAY: “God called the firmament heaven.” It is very obvious that what is meant here is the atmosphere, the vault of heaven sustaining watery clouds above the waters of earth.
The Word of God speaks of three heavens (2 Cor. 12:2). It might be suggested that the third heaven is the very abode of God, paradise (2 Cor. 12:4; Luke 23:43); the second, the starry heaven, the sky; and the first, the atmosphere brought in to existence by God on this second day.
We could not possibly study “heaven” without noticing that the child of God, according to the New Testament, bears to it a two-fold relationship. First, it is his eternal home (Phil. 3:20-21). “I saw a new heaven and a new earth… I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Rev. 21:1-2). “We according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwell-eth righteousness” (2 Pet. 3:13). In second place, it represents the sphere of delight in which even now the Christian may live. The Epistle to the Ephesians presents to all believers the challenge of a life in heavenly places. All our spiritual blessings are in heavenly places (Eph. 1:3). Our beloved Lord Jesus is there (Eph. 1:20). Our own present position through resurrection is there (Eph. 2:6). Angelic principalities and powers are there observing the manifold wisdom of God in the Church (Eph. 3:10). Moreover, in the heavenly places there are evil principalities, who dispute with us the enjoyment of that spiritual sphere, against whom we must stand (Eph. 6:11-18). To enjoy in this atmosphere of heaven, our innumerable blessings, to deepen communion with our Risen Head, to express the wisdom of God’s grace in us to invisible intelligences, and to actually appreciate our own position in Christ in heavenly places, we must put on the divine panoply provided for us and stand against the very emissaries of Satan.
THE THIRD DAY: On this day God brought to light the earth, the sea, the grasses, the herbs (plants), and the trees. It is interesting to note that all the grasses, the plants, and the trees, had the power to reproduce themselves. Here we have the three great divisions of the vegetable kingdom. As the Lord on the third day attired the earth in beautiful verdure, even so, does He long to see the growth and fruitfulness that make a Christian’s life lovely.
The work of the third day reminds us of Christ. He was the tender plant, the root out of a dry ground (Isa. 53:2), the tree planted by the rivers of waters whose leaf did not wither, and who brought forth fruit in his season (Psa. 1:3). Moreover, He was the grain of wheat which falling into the ground died and brought forth much fruit (John 12:24). In the second place, we are also reminded of the Christian, for he likewise is to be fruitful, “But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life” (Rom. 6:22).“We should bring forth fruit unto God” (Rom. 7:4).
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Joseph Reveals Himself
Genesis 45
Personal revelation: “There stood no man” (V. 1).
Tender affection: “Wept aloud” (V. 2).
Deep conviction: “They were troubled” (V. 3).
Gracious condescension: “Come near” (V. 4).
Complete restoration: “I am Joseph” (V. 4).
Loving consolation: “Be not grieved” (V. 5).
Full salvation: “To preserve you” (V. 5).
—John Hynd.
Pray for faith that can sustain you in the most trying circumstances. Remember that as a child in God’s family, you have nothing to fear but sin. Maintain nobility of spirit under the greatest stress and do not fall to the level of antagonists.