The Importance of Genesis1

10 January 2021 PM – Genesis 1:1 – Ge2021 – Scott Childs
Introduction: The Book of Genesis covers nearly 2400 years of history. That is more than one third of the history of the universe. The opening words of the book introduce us to God and His own firsthand account of Creation.
Bible scoffers often point out that Creationism is a theory of origins based faith in the Bible. However, they are not so quick to admit that Evolutionism is also a theory of origins based on faith in man’s ideas.
The beginning is past and cannot be observed or repeated. Therefore, the Genesis account of creation is very important. Beyond the creation account, the remainder of Genesis provides an abundance of important information for the human race.
Transition: This evening and Lord willing, next Sunday evening, we are going to examine several reasons for the importance of Genesis that I trust will fortify our faith.
  1. Genesis Identifies God as Creator of All
a.         God is the only eternal uncaused cause.
1)         In the beginning God (1:1). This verse presupposes that God has always existed. Yes, He is the only eternal uncaused cause of all that exists. (Psalms 90:2) “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.” “The book does not argue for the existence of God; it simply asserts that everything exists because of God.” The Bible Knowledge Commentary, vol.1, p.26.
2)         In the beginning God created. This opening verse flatly denounces every form of evolution. Every object and living cell in the universe displays design, detail and diversity that defies all evolutionary probabilities and testifies to the praise of the glory of an all-wise, all-powerful Creator God. All observable evidence points to a creator rather than to evolutionary accidents over billions of years.
3)     God made all things. (Nehemiah 9:6) “Thou, even thou, art LORD alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.” (Acts 17:24) “God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;” John’s Gospel affirms God’s creation. (John 1:1-3) “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.“
4)         God simply spoke and created. Eight times in Genesis 1 we read the words “And God said, let…” (v.3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26). (Psalms 33:6) “By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.” (Hebrews 11:3) “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.“
5)         God created by stretching out His arm. (Jeremiah 32:17) “Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:” (Isaiah 45:12) “I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.” (Jeremiah 10:12) “He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched out the heavens by his discretion.“
b.         God created all in six literal days.
1)         On Mt. Sinai, God spoke this of the Sabbath to Moses, (Exodus 31:17) “It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.“
2)         The Answers Book by Don Batten, Ken Ham and others lists the following evidence for six literal days of creation. The Answers Book, pp.95-97
a)         Each day in Genesis 1 includes a number and the phrase “evening and morning” (Gen 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31). In the Bible, outside of Genesis 1, whenever the Hebrew word yom (i.e., day) is used with a number or with “evening” or with “morning” it was always an ordinary day.
b)         In Genesis 1:5, yom occurs in context with the word “night”. Outside of Genesis 1, when yom and “night” are used together it always refers to an ordinary day.
c)         Other Biblical Hebrew words could have been used for a long period, but they are not found in Genesis 1.
3)         To use (2 Peter 3:8) “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” to claim that yom in Genesis 1 could mean 1,000 years is illogical. During Noah’s flood, it rained for 40 days not 40,000 years. In answer to Joshua’s prayer, God caused the sun to stand still for one day not 1,000 years. Jonah spend three days in the great fish not 3000 years.
4)         God clarifies the length of creation days in (Exodus 20:9-11) “Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Only literal 24-hour days makes sense here.
5)         The only motivation to translate yom in Genesis 1 other than a 24-hour day is to accommodate the long ages of evolution. That is not a biblical reason!
2.        Genesis is Essential to Bible Credibility
a.         Genesis 1-11 is Foundational
1)         In those eleven chapters, God explains Creation, Sin, Death, geologic formations caused by the Flood, and the formation of languages and dispersion by Babel.
2)         Douglas Hamp wisely wrote, “Genesis chapters 1-11 are the foundation of our worldview. Where we start often determines where we end up. If we interpret those six days to mean simply six days, then we have an easy path for the remainder of the Bible – what it says is what it means.” The First Six Days, Douglas Hamp
3)         The dates in Genesis lead us to the conclusion that God created all things about 6,000 years ago, not billions or even millions of years ago.
4)         Genesis 3 tells us of man’s disobedience, shameful consequences, and sin’s curse, but it also promises, in embryo form, the hope of a Redeemer. (Genesis 3:15) “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.“
5)         Genesis answers the questions,
a)         “Where did I come from?” God created your ancestor Adam from the dust of the ground, formed him in the image of God, and breathed into him the breath of life (Gen 1:27; 2:7)
b)         “Why am I here?” God created man to work, fellowship with God and glorify Him. (Revelation 4:11) “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” (Gen 2:15; 3:8)
c)         “Why do bad things happen to good people?” Bad things happen because sin entered the world (Gen 3). Sickness, disease, danger, disasters are all part of the curse of sin on this world. One day the curse of sin will be lifted for eternity. (Revelation 21:4) “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.“
6)         Henry M. Morris states, “The Book of Genesis thus is in reality the foundation of all true history, as well as of true science and true philosophy.” The Genesis Record, p.21
Conclusion: We have noted two reasons that Genesis is important to our faith in God. Ask God to use these facts to build up your faith! Next week we will continue.
Song: Chorus of God Made Everything