CREATOR OF HEAVEN AND EARTH
A scientist approaches God and says to Him, "God, we don't need You anymore. Science has finally figured out a way to create life out of nothing. We can now do what You did in the beginning." "Oh, is that so?" replies God. "Yes," says the scientist, "We can take dirt and form it into a human likeness, and breathe life into it, thus, creating man." "Well, that's very interesting," God said. "Show Me." So the scientist reaches down, grabs a handful of dirt, and starts to mold the soil into the shape of a man. "No, no," interrupts God, "Get your own dirt!"
It’s funny the things you discover while you are preparing a sermon. Trying to focus my attention on God the Creator led to research on Genesis 1 and learning the various theories of the age of the universe and the process of creation. In reading Genesis 1:1-2 more closely it does seem to indicate that there was something there, in the beginning. There is water, earth, and darkness mentioned in those verses. There was also chaos and confusion, which still continues to this day among those who argue creationism versus evolution.
For example, the gap theory states that the familiar “in the beginning” that we all know as the start of creation is actually a restart after the fall of Satan and the ensuing destruction of the first creation. This is just a theory, of course, because it’s impossible to derive too much from two lines of Scripture in a non-historical book like Genesis with its two creation stories. These chapters were not written in terms of modern science, but neither were they written in what would have passed for science in ancient times.
The pursuit of such matters takes us off the track and poses the problem of missing the point. The point is that God’s first role with respect to human beings is as Creator. This is one of the ways He is identified in the Apostle’s Creed. In the creed God is given only one statement out of twelve, but as God maybe that’s all He needs in order to be known. We call God by many names, but the composers of this creed chose a relational term and an occupational term.
Father is a relational term of being, yet also of action, and Creator is an occupational term of action, yet also of being. These are two parts of God’s nature, and God must always be understood in relationship. The Father is, and the Creator does. Both have something to do with us, so both should be acknowledged. Let’s take this statement piece by piece.
We believe in God. In the case of Genesis 1, the word is Elohim, which is a way of speaking of God’s majesty, sovereignty, and power. In Genesis 2, the word used for God is Yahweh, His personal name. God goes by many names, attributes, actions, and images. He makes Himself known in ways that are both powerful and personal. He might be Redeemer, or King, or Sustainer, or Comforter or Holy One.
Or Father. That’s how Jesus referred to Him in front of His disciples, and claimed oneness with God. He is the Father of Christ, but also the father of Adam and all of humankind. The difference between Adam and Jesus is that Adam was created, while Christ was conceived. Another creed, the Nicene Creed, emphatically states that Jesus was begotten, not created.
Jesus’ relationship to God His father is a model for us. We have God as a Father, our eternal Father, and we have access to Him only through His Son. Our belief in Christ enables us to be called children of God. Only through Christ do we have that luxury. Some people feel that addressing God as Father creates problems for those who don’t have a good relationship with their earthly fathers. But fatherhood speaks to the nature of who God is.
He is the truest father we can know because He is the Father Almighty. The word means just what it says – all power, all strength, and all resource. God has it all and there is no one greater. As the prophet Isaiah said, God needs no one to teach Him anything or help Him with anything. He needs no instruction. Isaiah’s words were the equivalent of someone in our society saying, “Where have you been, under a rock?”
“Do you not know? Have you not heard?” If you have no knowledge of God or His nature, then you have reason to question what He could do for you or what you could ask of Him. He has no end. He has no weariness or loss of strength, and neither will anyone who trusts in Him. When I was much younger Isaiah 40:31 was my favorite verse. It gave me a sense of hope and confidence. Now that I am older other verses have taken precedence, but this one continues to turn up sometimes at funerals.
If these words bring comfort to the grieving, how much more should we take comfort in them every day? God has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? He has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales. And He knows us each by name and loves us unconditionally. Amazing.
What makes Him so amazing is that He literally did measure the oceans in His hand and mark the dimensions of heaven. For the Christian, one of the first steps of faith is to believe that God created the world. Hebrews 11:3 says “By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.”
The law of conservation of mass may say that matter cannot be created or destroyed, but God is believed to have created the world ex nihilo – Latin for “out of nothing”. Take it for what you will, for faith has been fighting with science for centuries. Lee Strobel is an investigative reporter who was an atheist, but in seeking to find proof became a believer. He has written several books arguing against disbelief, all with tireless investigation and expert interviews.
In his book, The Case for a Creator, Strobel wrote about the facts of what God has created, both the heavens and the earth. To quote, “Earth’s location, its size, its composition, its structure, its atmosphere, its temperature, its internal dynamics, and its many intricate cycles that are essential to life – the carbon cycle, the oxygen cycle, the nitrogen cycle, the phosphorus cycle, the sulfur cycle, the calcium cycle, the sodium cycle, and so on – testify to the degree to which our planet is exquisitely and precariously balanced.”
As for the heavens, their design is remarkable too. According to Strobel’s research, the moon stabilizes the tilt of the Earth’s axis. If the moon were not there, then our tilt could swing wildly over a large range, resulting in major temperature swings. If our tilt were more like sixty degrees, the north pole would be exposed to the sun for six months while the south pole would be in darkness, then vice-versa. Instead, it varies by only about one and a half degrees – just a tiny variation, because the gravity from the moon’s orbit keeps it stabilized.
We should be in awe every time we step out the door in the morning, from the glare of the sun rising until it sets in pastel colors across the sky. God has given us a magnificent place in which to live. Showing our appreciation is a good thing. Max Lucado said, “Who has more reason to worship than the astronomer who has seen the stars? Than the surgeon who has held a heart? Than the oceanographer who has pondered the depths? The more we know, the more we should be amazed.”
This was Peter’s sentiment when he wrote to those early believers who seemed to discount God’s might and power and knowledge because they thought God was slow in returning. Peter reminded them that God created the world, the heavens and the earth, using the strength of the mighty waters to both destroy and create. God would one day do the same thing all over again, this time with the power of fire to undo His creation.
The time element that the people were holding against God had no basis, for God’s timing is so vastly different from ours that a thousand years are like a day to Him, and a day is like a thousand years. While we cannot conceive what that feels like, we can be appreciative of how God is able to oversee us in real time, in future time and yet allow us to make our own choices and enjoy His wonderful creation without doing our part in caring for it.
Sometimes when life is at its most difficult, we lose perspective. It’s easy to lose sight of the trees because of the immensity of the forest. That’s when we most need to remember. Look at the world around you and rejoice that the creator of the universe knows your situation. God understands your fears, your hopes, your dreams, and your pains. God’s wisdom is unsearchable, and God’s power is unmatched. Remember whose you are, and rest in God’s holy presence. Look up at the stars, and receive the gift of perspective. God is so big, and you are so small, and God is holding you in the palm of His hand.
God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth. This is not all we know of God, to be sure, but the authors of this creed felt that this was enough to clarify who God is within the beliefs of the Christian faith. Does it seem limited to you? Does it make God too small? Then consider for yourself what you know of God and whether or not you are limited in your own perspective. Ask God to reveal more of Himself to you in ways that you may have never imagined, that you might be able to declare your own creed of belief to Him.
