#2 The Meaning of Man: His Duty and His Delight
Genesis 1:26‑31; 2:1‑25

 

Introduction

Within the last several weeks a rather frightening case was reported in the newspaper. Its implications are almost incredible. The suit involved an elderly gentleman who was apparently a bit senile, and who was also on dialysis. The family determined that the old gentleman had passed the time of productivity and, if he had the mental ability to reason it out properly, would have wished to terminate his meager existence. Had the nurses, who had grown to love this man, not protested, this man might be dead today.

 

We live in a frightening age. We now have awesome technological and biological powers in our hands, but no solid ethical or moral basis for the determination of how these powers are to be used. Not only have we made it con­venient and inexpensive to kill children while still in the womb, there is actually serious discussion of issuing a life certificate which would pronounce an infant legally alive, just as one is now legally certified to be dead. This certificate would not be issued until after the birth of a child, when a complete battery of tests could be administered. Any ‘inferior’ or potentially non‑productive infant would simply be rejected and not pronounced ‘alive’ and thus terminated. I am told that in some places of the world suicide is not considered a crime and counsel is now given to those who wish to pursue it—but not to convince them of the error of their ways!

 

In a day when the power of life and death seems to be more in the hands of men than ever before, we find our society in a moral vacuum in which these life and death decisions are to be made. The age‑old philosophical questions about the meaning of life are no longer simply academic and intellectual—they are intensely practical and must be answered.

 

In the light of such issues, never have these verses in Genesis 1 and 2 been of more importance than they are today. In them we find the meaning of man. I have therefore entitled this message, The Meaning of Man: His Duty and His Delight. To rightly understand this passage is to grasp eternal principles which should determine many of our ethical and moral decisions. Beyond this, we are reminded anew of what it is that really makes our lives worthwhile.

 

While we have already dealt with the six days of creation in a very general way, it is important for us to understand the relationship between the first three chapters of Genesis. Chapter one outlines creation chronologically. (Actually verses 1‑3 of chapter two should be included here also.)

 

God created the heavens and the earth, and all life in six days, while He rested on the seventh day. Man is pictured as the crown of God’s creation. In order to maintain a chronological format, only a very general description of man’s creation is given in verses 26‑31.

 

Chapter two returns to this matter of the creation of man with a much more detailed account. Far from contradicting chapter one, as some scholars have suggested, it greatly compliments it. While it is stated that God created man, both male and female (1:26‑27), it is described more fully in chapter 2. In chapter one man is given every plant to eat (1:29‑30), in chapter two man is placed in a lovely garden (2:8‑17). In the first chapter man is told to rule over all God’s creatures (1:26, 28), in the second man is given the task of naming God’s creatures (2:19‑20). Contradictions between these two chapters must be contrived, for it is clear that the writer of the first chapter intended to fill out the details in the second.

 

Furthermore, chapter two serves as an introduction and preparation for the account of the fall in chapter three. Chapter two gives us the setting for the fall of man which is described in chapter three. We are introduced to the garden (2:8‑9), the two trees, the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (2:9). The woman who was to be deceived is introduced in chapter two as well. Without chapter two the first chapter would be far too brief and the third would come upon us unprepared.

 

If chapter one is laid out in chronological fashion—that is in a sequence of seven days, chapter two is not chronological, but logical. Of course the events of chapter two fit into chapter one’s order, but the chapter is laid out differently. If chapter one is creation as seen through a wide angle lens, chapter two is viewed through a telephoto lens. In chapter one man is found at the top of a pyramid, as the crown of God’s creative activity. In chapter two man is at the center of the circle of God’s activity and interest.

 

This is the subject of this great passage of Scripture, the passage that covers God’s climactic act of creation: “The Creation of Man, Male and Female.”

         1.  God’s Word created man (v.26).

         2.  God and God alone created man, both male and female: created them with the highest dignity and honor, in His very own image (v.27).

         3.  God blessed man (v.28).

         4.  God gave man three great assignments (v.28).

         5.  God provided vegetation upon the earth to feed man and animals (v.29-30).

         6.  God saw that His creation was “good”—fulfilled its function (v.31).

 

Man’s Dignity (1:26‑31)

Since chapter two builds upon the bare details of 1:26‑31, let us begin by considering these verses more carefully. Man, as we have said before, is the crown of God’s creative program. This is evident in several particulars.

 

First, man is the last of God’s creatures. The whole account builds up to man’s creation. Second, man alone is created in the image of God. While there is considerable discussion as to what this means, several things are implied in the text itself. Man is created in the image and likeness of God in his sexuality.

 

And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Genesis 1:27).

 

This is not to say that God is male or female, but that God is both unity and diversity. Man and woman in marriage become one and yet they are distinct. Unity in diversity as reflected in man’s relationship with his wife reflects one facet of God’s personhood.

 

Also, man somehow is like God in that which distinguished him from the animal world. Man, as distinct from animals, is made in the image and likeness of God. What distinguishes man from animal must therefore be a part of His reflection of God. Man’s ability to reason, to communicate, and to make moral decisions must be a part of this distinction.

 

Further, man reflects God in the fact that he rules over creation. God is the Sovereign Ruler of the universe. He has delegated a small portion of His authority to man in the rule of creation. In this sense, too, man reflects God.

 

Notice as well that it is man and woman who rule: “… and let them rule … ” (Genesis 1:26, cf. verse 28).

 

Them refers to man and his wife, not just the males He has made. While Adam has the function of headship (as evidenced by his priority in creation,[1] his being the source of his wife,[2] and his naming of Eve[3]), Eve’s task was to be a helper to her husband. In this sense both are to rule over God’s creation.

 

One more point should be made here. There seems to be little doubt that in the provision God has made for man’s food, only vegetarian foods are included at this time:

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; 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’ (Genesis 1:29‑30).

 

It was not until after the fall, and perhaps after the flood, that meat was given as food for man (cf. Genesis 9:3‑4). Shedding of blood would have significance only after the fall, as a picture of coming redemption through the blood of Christ. In the Millennium we are told,

The wolf and the lamb shall graze together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox; and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall do no evil or harm in all My holy mountain, says the Lord (Isaiah 65:25).

 

Man’s dignity and worth are not imputed by man, but they are intrinsic to man as one who has been created in the image of God. Man’s worth is directly related to his origin. No wonder we are hearing such frightening ethical and moral positions proposed today.

 

Any view of man’s origin which does not view man as the product of divine design and purpose, cannot attribute to man the worth which God has given him. To put it another way, our evaluation of man is directly proportionate to our estimation of God.

 

I will venture to say that we who name the name of Christ are going to have to stand up and be counted in the days to come. Abortion, euthanasia, and bioethics, to name just a few, are going to demand ethical and moral standards. The bedrock principle upon which such decisions must be made, in my estimation, is the fact that all men are created in God’s image.

 

In this light, I can now see why our Lord could sum up the whole of the Old Testament in two commands,

And He said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and foremost commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself’ (Matthew 22:37‑40).

 

The attitude of the future seems to be to love only those ‘neighbors’ who are the contributors to society, only those who may be considered assets. How different is the value system of our Lord, who said,

Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me (Matthew 25:40).

 

In my estimation, here is where we Christians are going to be put to the test. Some are strongly suggesting that those who our Lord called ‘the least’ are precisely those who should be eliminated from society. May God help us to see that man’s dignity is that which is divinely determined.

 

(1:26) Man— Creation— Earth— Trinity: God’s Word created man. Man exists because God spoke man into existence. God used the power of His Word to create man. God simply spoke and man came into being. God spoke and the laws that caused man to form went into operation. God spoke, and the basic elements—the atoms, molecules, protons, neutrons, electrons, genes, DNA, and whatever basic element is ever discovered that makes up human life—came into being. God spoke, and the power of His Word formed and created man.

 

There are three very special points in this verse.

1.  God held a very special conference, a divine counsel, to create man. Note what God said, “Let us make man...in our image...after our likeness.” This is plural. God is speaking to Christ, His Son, and to the Holy Spirit. How do we know this?

 

First, because Jesus Christ revealed the Trinity to us (John 14:16-17, 26). God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit do exist. All three exist in perfect unity. They are all of one mind and purpose. Therefore, they are bound to discuss and decide things together just as any unified family does.

 

Second, because Scripture reveals that all three Persons of the Godhead were involved in creation (Genesis 1:1; Genesis 1:2; John 1:3; Col. 1:16; Hebrews 1:1-2). The Godhead would have certainly discussed the plans and work of creation while they were creating the earth. It is illogical to think they would not discuss their work.

 

Third, because God uses the plural here in Genesis. God says, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” God is not telling angels nor any other heavenly creature that they are to work together in creating man. God, not heavenly beings, is creating man. Man is the creation of God and of God alone. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit—the complete Godhead, all that God is—created His crown and glory: man.

 

Fourth, because God made man in His own image. God did not make man in the image of angels nor of any other heavenly being. This is not the stress of this creative act. The stress is this: God was making man in His own image and in His image alone. “Let us make man” is referring to God the Father talking with God the Son and with God the Holy Spirit. Man bears the very image of God Himself. Man was created...

 

The point is this: God held a very special conference, a divine counsel, to create man. The Holy Spirit, who inspires Scripture, is using the plural “let us” to tell us this. This is not to say that the full doctrine of the Trinity is taught here. Such is foolishness. God would never be known as a Trinitarian Being if we read only the Genesis account of creation and ignored the New Testament. But when we read and notice the plural, the seed of the Trinity is planted in our minds. And we know what is meant because of the revelation of Jesus Christ and of the Scripture as a whole. We know that the Holy Spirit has inspired Scripture, that He has deliberately led the writer of Genesis to use the plural.

 

Why? To show the great dignity and honor of man. Man was given the glorious privilege of being created by all the Godhead. God held a great counsel to plan man’s creation. Man’s creation was to be so special, so climactic—the very crown and glory of creation—that God called a very special conference to discuss the matter, a divine counsel that involved...

    

2.  God created man to be a very special creature: man was created in God’s very own image, after God’s very own likeness (see pt.1 above for discussion).

 

God created man for a very special purpose: to have dominion over all the earth. God planned and created man with a very special honor and responsibility: to look after all that He had created.

 

(1:27) Man— Creation: God and God alone created man, both male and female, created them with the highest dignity and honor, in His image. Why is God’s creation of man being repeated? Why is Scripture again declaring that God made man in His own image? Note exactly what the verse says:

“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them” (Genesis 1:27).

 

There are three reasons why God’s creation of man is being re-emphasized.

1. There is a need to stress that God and God alone created man. Human life did not just happen to come into being. The basic substance of human life did not come out of nothing—not the cells of man, nor the DNA, atoms, or molecules of man. Whatever the basic element of human life is—whatever man may yet discover to be the basic substance of life, whatever the raw matter and energy of life is—that basic substance did not just begin to form and mold life.

 

Human life was created by God and by God alone. Whatever the basic substances are that make up human life, whatever raw forces and laws cause human life, they were all created and put into operation by God. God and God alone, by the power of His omnipotent Word, created human life. God and God alone commanded human life to come into existence.

 

     2.  There is a need to stress the great dignity and honor of man. Man was created in the very image and likeness of God. Man is the crown and summit of God’s creation. Man is the creature to whom God has given His Spirit—His very own immortal breath, His life that lives forever. Therefore, man lives forever just like God. Man never ceases to exist.

 

Why has God given man an image, a likeness, of Himself? So that man will walk by faith and freely choose to love and worship God. God has given man enough of Himself to cause man to hunger and seek after God. Man has just enough of God’s image to drive him to seek after immortality and live forever.

 

3.  There is a need to stress that God made both male and female, both man and woman, in His own image. Woman was created by God as much as man was; she was made in the image of God as much as man was. Woman was given as much dignity and honor as man was. Woman is as much the crown and summit of God’s creation as man is.

 

Each one is as important to God as the other, to His plan and purpose for the world. Very simply stated, both male and female were created by and for God; therefore each one is created to God. Each one, both male and female, is to live to God’s glory, serving and worshiping God as the Creator, the Lord and Sovereign of all life.

 

(1:28) Man, Purpose— Marriage— Earth— Creation— Animals— Science: God blessed man and woman. This is a picture of a meeting that God held with man and woman soon after both had been created. Imagine how Adam (the first man) felt right after he had been created, when all of a sudden he was standing upon earth, experiencing the very first moments of life. He was aware of himself and of all his surroundings, the beauty and fruitfulness of the earth, but everything was strange, a complete puzzle. Who was he? Where was he? What was he to do? All these questions needed to be answered and answered soon after he was created. The same was bound to be true with Eve (the first woman) as well.

     This is the picture of what was happening in Genesis 1:28-30. God was meeting face to face with man and woman, blessing them and explaining who they were and why they were created and placed upon earth. Note that God blessed man and woman. What was the blessing? God blessed man and woman with...

·         the privilege of God’s presence, of fellowship with God.

·         the privilege of life, both life abundant and life eternal.

·         the privilege of being created in the image of God, of being the crown and summit of His creation.

·         the privilege of living upon earth with all its provisions for food and beauty.

·         the privilege of being male and female, of having the companionship of one another.

·         the privilege of reproduction, of filling the earth with their own species.

·         the privilege of having animals as fellow companions on earth.

·         the privilege of ruling and reigning over all the creatures of earth.

·         the privilege of work, of finding satisfaction and fulfillment in subduing the earth—through research, discovery, development, and growth.

 

Note: the blessings and privileges are given to every man and woman. But every person has to claim the privileges, diligently work at using them more and more for the benefit of oneself and of society—all in obedience to God.

 

Note that God’s blessing was personal: “And God blessed them and said to them” (Genesis 1:28). God spoke to man and woman personally, face to face.  

 

(1:28) Man, Purpose— Marriage— Earth— Creation— Animals— Science: God gave man and woman three great assignments or purposes.

1.  First, man and woman were to reproduce and fill the earth. This was to be a most wonderful assignment. Man and woman were to establish the closest bond imaginable—a relationship of love, care, trust, and loyalty with each other. They were to walk, work, and worship hand in hand as they journeyed through life together. The relationship they built was to serve as the basis for all other relationships upon earth and within the societies and nations of earth. All groups upon earth—whether societies or nations—were to walk together in love, care, trust, and loyalty.

 

Note: God had created many animals, but He created only one man and one woman. Why? There were at least four reasons.

·         To establish the family: to institute the rule and principle of one man and one woman for each other. There was to be no separation or divorce—no split families, no children without a father or mother—when God first created man and woman.

·         To build a much stronger love, trust, and loyalty within man and woman. Love, trust, and loyalty are weakened and destroyed when intimate relationships are carried on with other persons. When love, trust, and loyalty are weakened within the strongest bond known to man, that of the family, they are weakened in all the other relationships of life: at work, at play, with one’s country.

·         To teach man that all people are of one blood, from one source. Therefore, all people—all races and nations—are to live in peace and unity, working together to subdue the earth. There was to be no prejudice, discrimination, violence, greed, selfishness, or war upon earth—not originally, not when God first created man.

·         To teach that man is as important as woman and woman is as important as man, that all succeeding generations of men and women are to be as highly esteemed as the first man and woman were. There is to be no abuse and no enslavement of women or men in God’s creation. Both are involved in the mission of God for the earth.

 

2.  Second, man and woman were to subdue the earth.

 

3.  Third, man and woman were to have dominion over all the animals. Dominion means to rule over, to master, to control, to manage, to look after and care for. Originally, when God first created the animals and man, there was apparently no savagery among animals. Neither man nor animal ate other animals (Genesis 1:30, cp. Genesis 9:3). Man and animal lived side by side in peace and apparently with some affection for each other—at least among the higher order of animals. But man was the ruler, the dominating force, the leader among all the creatures of the earth.

 

(1:29-30) Food— Vegetation— Plant Life— Creation: God provided the vegetation of the earth to feed man and animal. Remember: God is meeting with man, sharing who man is and why he has been created and placed upon earth.

 

Note several facts.

1.  Man and animal were to be vegetarians in the original creation of the perfect earth. There was no such thing as eating flesh. Eating flesh came only after the fall (Genesis 9:3).

 

2.  Man and animal were given an abundance of food: vegetables, berries, and fruit. They were given every plant that bore seed and every tree that bore fruit.

 

3.  All the land of the earth was fruitful. There was vegetation and plant life everywhere, and there was more than enough. Note the words, “upon the face of all the earth” (Genesis 1:29). Apparently, there were no barren nor desolate lands upon earth.

 

4. Since the fall of man into sin, the earth and its fruitfulness have been affected. Man has abused and continues to abuse the earth and its plant life or vegetation, even to the point of threatening the survival of future generations. Man is rapidly destroying the earth’s plant life by housing and commercial developments and by pollution. Man is polluting and bulldozing the lands of the earth so rapidly that the earth’s resources are tragically being depleted.

 

(1:31) Man— Creation: God saw that His creation was “good”—everything created during the six days of creation, including man, fulfilled its function. This verse refers to all of God’s creation. It refers to man, yes, but God is also looking back over everything He has created. Note two facts.

     1.   Man was able to fulfill his purpose and function upon earth. Man was created in the image of God: he had the very breath—the immortal life—of God. Therefore, man was...

·         able to worship, fellowship, and commune with God (Genesis 1:26-27).

·         able to populate the earth (Genesis 1:28).

·         able to serve God by subduing, developing, and managing the earth (Genesis 1:28).

·         able to be fed and sustained by the resources of the earth (Genesis 1:29-30).

 

God looked at everything He had made, and “behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). The word “behold” calls attention to how good—how perfect—God’s creation was. God was extremely pleased with His creation. Everything was very good, perfect in every detail. Everything was exactly as God had planned it: everything was perfect in sustaining man upon the earth, perfect in providing a home for man as he went about fulfilling his God-given purpose upon the earth.

 

The Seventh Day: Creation of a Day for Rest and Worship, 2:1-3

If you could have been present to witness any event in Bible history, which event would you choose?

 

I once asked that question of several well-known Christian leaders, and the answers were varied: the crucifixion of Christ, the resurrection of Christ, the Flood, Israel crossing the Red Sea, and even David slaying Goliath. But one of them said, “I would like to have been present when God finished His creation. It must have been an awesome sight!”

 

Some scientists claim that if we could travel out into space fast enough and far enough, we could “catch up” with the light beams from the past and watch history unfold before our eyes. Perhaps the Lord will let us do that when we get to heaven. I hope so, because I would like to see the extraordinary events Moses described in Genesis 1 and 2.

 

Genesis 2 introduces us to a series of “firsts” that are important to us if we want to build our lives according to the basics God has put into His universe.

 

God had a great plan to remedy the situation, a plan that was going to create the earth in stages, in what is known as The Seven Days of Creation. We have already looked at the first six days.

·         Now, for a crucial question: why would God choose to create the world in stages, in seven days, instead of just creating everything all at once? The seventh day of creation tells us.

 

Therefore God launched time, He began time, right along with His creative acts. All earthly activity was to be measured by days and weeks, and man was to take one of the seven days, the seventh day, to rest and worship. This is the reason God did not create the world in one moment of time; this is one of the reasons why God created the earth in stages, in seven days.

 

Now we come to the final day of creation: “The Seventh Day: Creation of a Day for Rest or Worship.”

         1.  God finished the creation of the heavens and earth (v.1).

         2.  God rested on the seventh day from all His work (v.2).

         3.  God blessed the seventh day and set it apart as holy (v.3).

 

(2:1) Creation— Heavens— Earth: God finished the creation of the heavens and the earth. The Hebrew reads, “And finished were the heavens and the earth.” The word finished is stressed: creation is completed; God has now completed His plan of creation. The word finished means both completed and perfected. Creation was now completed and the product was perfected.

 

The universe had begun as an idea in God’s mind. God had set out to bring His idea of the world into being. He had created it step by step.

·         God’s plan of creation was now finished, completed, and perfected. This is strongly emphasized in this verse. Note the phrase “all the hosts of them.” This is a military picture. The idea is that “all the hosts” of creation were now finished and perfected:

 

All the hosts of creation had now been commanded and ordered, arranged and organized, marshalled and placed where they belonged. The innumerable hosts of creation had been finished, completed, and perfected just as God willed.

 

(2:2) Sabbath— Sunday— Creation: God rested on the seventh day from all His work. The word “Sabbath” isn’t found in this paragraph, but Moses is writing about the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week. The phrase “seventh day” is mentioned three times in verses 2-3. “Sabbath” comes from a Hebrew word shabbat that means “to cease working, to rest” and is related to the Hebrew word for “seven.”3-1

 

1.  Note the word “ended.” In the Hebrew it means to declare an end to; to declare finished (H.C. Leupold, Genesis, Vol.1, p.102). The idea is that God declared His work of creation to be finished.

 

2.Note the word “rested” (shabhath). It means to stop or cease from working. The idea is not that God rested from all work after creation. God does not need rest like man needs rest: He was not tired, burdened, pressured, or exhausted from His work in creation. Genesis 2:2 clearly tells us what God rested from or stopped doing: “He rested...from all His work which He had made [or created].” The word “work” (melakhah) means a special work, a very special job or task. The special work or task undertaken by God was creation; therefore, the work that God rested from was the work of creation.

 

The personal Sabbath of the Lord God (Gen. 2:1-4)

This first Sabbath didn’t take place because God was tired from all His creative work, because God doesn’t get weary (Isa. 40:28). God set apart the seventh day because His work of creation was finished and He was pleased and satisfied with what He had created. “And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good” (Gen. 1:31).

 

Three things are distinctive about this seventh day of the creation week.

·         First, there’s no mention of “evening and morning,” suggesting that God’s Sabbath rest would have no end. Unfortunately, man’s sin interrupted God’s rest; and God had to search for Adam and Eve and deal with them (3:8-9, and see John 5:9, 17).

·         Second, there’s no record that He blessed any of the other six days, but God did bless the seventh day (Gen. 2:3). In blessing it, He made it a blessing.

·         Third, after blessing the seventh day, God sanctified it (v. 3), which means He set it apart for His own special purposes.3-2

 

Jehovah is the God of time as well as the Lord of eternity. It was He who created time and established the rotation of the planets and their orbits around the sun. It was He who marked out the seven-day week and set aside one day for Himself. Every living thing that God has created lives a day at a time except humans made in God’s image! People rush around in the frantic “rat race” of life, always planning to rest but never seeming to fulfill their plan.

 

It has been said that most people in our world are being “crucified between two thieves”: the regrets of yesterday and the worries about tomorrow. That’s why they can’t enjoy today. Relying on modern means of transportation and communication, we try to live two or three days at a time, only to run headlong against the creation cycle of the universe; and the results are painful and often disastrous.

 

A famous Chinese scholar came to America to lecture and during the course of his tour was met at a busy metropolitan railway station by his university host. “If we run quickly, we can catch the next train and save ourselves three minutes,” said the host. The scholar quietly asked, “And what significant thing shall we do with the three minutes that we save by running?” A good question that could not be answered.

 

Henry David Thoreau wrote in Walden over a century ago, “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.” I wonder what he’d say if he saw the frantic people running up and down escalators in our airline terminals!

 

God had done many wonderful things during the six days of Creation, but the climax of the creation week was God’s “rest” after His work. As we shall see, God has sanctified work as well as rest, but it’s rest that seems to be the greatest need in people’s hearts today. Augustine was correct when he wrote, “Thou hast made us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee.”

 

The meaning can be stated several ways.

 

The point is this: God did not rest or cease from working. He only rested and ceased from the work that He had been doing that week. His work for that week—the work of creation—was completed. The rest of God was not...

   inactivity

   idleness

   slackness

   laziness

   slumber

   shirking duty

 

The rest of God was a sense of quiet peace and accomplishment over the creative work He had just completed. The picture is descriptive: God took a day, the seventh day, to stand back and enjoy His creative work. No doubt all the heavenly host joined in His celebration and declaration that the work of creation, the six great days of creation, was now completed. The seventh day of God’s rest—the rest of God—is an inner sense of...

   peace

   accomplishment

   fulfillment

   satisfaction

   assurance

   confidence

   completeness

   success

   purpose

   meaning

   approval

   security

 

God was very pleased with His work. Standing there on the seventh day, He felt that He had done a very good job. God had a deep sense of peace, satisfaction, and accomplishment. He was at rest with what He had done.

 

The great tragedy is this: few people have this rest of God, the rest of fulfillment, satisfaction, and purpose in life. Too few work diligently upon the job. Too few do all they can to meet the needs of people and of society. Most just routinely do their work, use as little energy and effort as possible, and selfishly do as little work as possible.

 

(2:3) Sabbath— Sunday: God blessed the seventh day and set it apart as holy. Note how clearly—beyond any question—God sets the seventh day apart.      “And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it [made it holy, set it apart]: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made” (Genesis 2:3).

 

There can be no question about what God is doing with the seventh day. He is setting the day apart from all the other days of the week.

 

Four significant things show this.

1.  God blessed the seventh day. Note: it is the day itself that is blessed. No other day was blessed, just the seventh day. The seventh day alone was honored with God’s blessing.

 

2.  God sanctified the seventh day. The word “sanctified” means to set apart and make holy. God actually consecrated the day and declared it holy. This is very significant: it means that the seventh day was being set apart as a permanent day. The seventh day was to have a permanence that the other six days did not have. Any kind of work could be done on the other six days, but not on the seventh day. The work done on the seventh day was to be the same week by week. It was to be a day set apart for a very special purpose. It was to be a day different from the other six days, a day that was to never pass away, a day that was to be given over to the work of holiness.

 

Note a clear fact: the seventh day is consecrated and declared holy by God. The very fact that God Himself does this means that the day is consecrated and holy. No matter how much man abuses the day of rest and worship, it is still consecrated and holy to God and His true followers.

 

What an indictment against man! How desperately we need to quit abusing the day of rest and worship. Many rest, but few give the day over to holiness.

 

3.  God rested and worshipped on the seventh day. No doubt, all the heavenly host rejoiced with God as He celebrated His glorious work of creation. The heavenly host—all the angels, seraphim, and cherubim of God—were bound to be praising and blessing God for His marvelous work. God is...

·         the Sovereign Creator

·         the Supreme Intelligence and Power

·         the Lord and Majesty of the universe

 

God is worthy of all glory and majesty, all dominion and power, all praise and thanksgiving, all worship and honor. The first seventh day, the great day of God’s rest, must have been one of the most glorious days of worship ever experienced in all eternity.

 

4.  God set the day apart as a day of celebration and commemoration. God sanctified and made the day holy, set it apart as a very special day and as a permanent day. Now note: the day was not set apart for God; it was set apart for man. God does not need a permanent day of rest. To say or think so would be foolish. The day of rest and holiness is set apart for man. Man needs the day for two very specific purposes.

a.  Man needs a day when he can rest, both physically and spiritually. Man needs a day when he can experience a quiet peace and sense of accomplishment over his work of the past week.

b. Man needs a day for worship and blessing, for praise and thanksgiving. Man needs a day that is set apart for him to concentrate upon God. Man’s attention span is short and the focus of his emotions does not last very long. Therefore, man needs one day out of every seven when he can focus his attention and emotions upon God, one day when he can concentrate upon God without major distractions. Man needs one day a week to worship God, to worship...

·         by praising God as the Creator of the universe.

·         by thanking God for life: the privilege and provision of life.

·         by acknowledging God as the Lord and Majesty of the universe.

·         by blessing God for the privilege of work and health throughout the week.

·         by serving God in the spirit of holiness and righteousness.

·         by asking God to meet his needs and the needs of others.

 

There is a difference between the Sabbath as observed by the Jews and others and Sunday as observed by Christian believers. The Sabbath is the last day of the week. It was a day when Jesus the Messiah was in the tomb, a day of great sadness for the true Christian believer. However, Sunday is the first day of the week. It is a day of great joy, for it was the day of Jesus’ resurrection, the day that He triumphed over death. It is called the Lord’s Day and is celebrated as a day of rest and joy, a glorious day for searching the soul and meditating upon God. It is the day of worship and of Christian fellowship celebrated by believers worldwide (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2).

·         It was Jesus’ custom to worship on the Sabbath (Luke 4:16).

·         It was Paul’s custom to worship on Sunday (Acts 17:2).

·         God’s people are not to neglect worship (Hebrews 10:25; cp. Acts 16:13).

·         God’s people are to remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy (Exodus 20:8; Exodus 31:14; Exodus 34:21).

·         God’s people are promised a special blessing for keeping the Sabbath day holy (Isaiah 56:2; Isaiah 58:13-14).

·         Polluting the Sabbath will bring the judgment of God upon a people (Ezekiel 20:13; Ezekiel 22:8, 15; cp. Numbers 15:32-35; Jeremiah 17:27; Ezekiel 20:13; Ezekiel 22:8, 15).

·         Buying and selling are not to take place on the Sabbath (Neh. 10:31; Neh. 13:15).

·         Helping the needy is lawful on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:12; cp. John 7:23; John 9:14).

·         Early believers worshipped on the day that Christ arose from the dead, that is, on Sunday, the first day of the week (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2).

 

The national Sabbath of Israel

There’s no mention of the Sabbath in Scripture until Exodus 16:23 when God gave the regulations to Israel about gathering the daily manna. From the way this commandment is worded, it suggests that the Jews already knew the importance of the Sabbath and were observing it as a day of rest. In giving the Sabbath to Israel, the Lord related this special day to other events in sacred history.

 

To begin with, when God gave Israel the Law at Mount Sinai, the Sabbath was connected with Creation (20:8-11). God was the generous Giver of all that they needed, and they must acknowledge Him by worshiping the Creator and not the creation. They were not to imitate the pagan nations around them (Rom. 1:18ff). Moses even mentioned the weekly rest needed by servants and farm animals (Ex. 23:12), so keeping the Sabbath was a humanitarian act as well as a religious duty. The Lord commanded His people to observe every seventh year as a Sabbatical Year and every fiftieth year as a Year of Jubilee. This would permit the land to enjoy its Sabbaths and be renewed (Lev. 25).

 

The Sabbath was not only connected with Creation, but at the close of the giving of the Law, it was vested with special significance as a sign between Israel and Jehovah (Ex. 31:12-17; Neh. 9:13-15). “Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you” (Ex. 31:13, nkjv). There’s no evidence that God ever required any other nation to observe the Sabbath, because the Jews alone were the chosen people of God.

 

There’s a third connection between the Sabbath and the Jews. When Moses rehearsed the Law for the new generation about to enter Canaan, he connected the Sabbath Day with their deliverance from Egypt (Deut. 5:12-15). The weekly Sabbath and the annual Passover feast would both remind Israel of God’s mercy and power in freeing the nation from bondage. Furthermore, this weekly day of rest would also be a foretaste of the rest they would enjoy in the Promised Land (Deut. 3:20;  12:10;  25:19;  Josh. 22:4). God had brought them out of Egypt that He might bring them into the Promised Land to claim their inheritance (Deut. 4:37-38). In the Book of Hebrews, this concept of a “promised rest” is applied to believers today.

 

The nation of Israel eventually declined spiritually and didn’t observe God’s laws, including the Sabbath law; and they were ultimately punished for their disobedience (2 Chron. 36:14-21; Ezek. 20:1ff; Isa. 58:13-14; Jer. 17:19-27). The Northern Kingdom of Israel was swallowed up by Assyria, and the Southern Kingdom of Judah was taken into captivity by Babylon.

 

By the time of the ministry of Jesus, the scribes and Pharisees had added their traditions to God’s Word and turned the Law in general and the Sabbath in particular into religious bondage. The few prohibitions found in Moses (Ex. 16:29; 35:2-3; Num. 15:32-36) were expanded into numerous regulations. Jesus, however, rejected their traditions and even performed miracles on the Sabbath! He said, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27).

 

The spiritual Sabbath of the Christian believer (Heb. 4:1-11)

Hebrews 4 brings together God’s creation rest (v. 4) and Israel’s Canaan rest (v. 8) to teach us about the spiritual rest that believers have in Christ (vv. 9-11). When you trust Jesus Christ through baptism for remission of sins, you enter the “new creation” (2 Cor. 5:17) and into His spiritual rest (Matt. 11:28-30). You also enter into the spiritual inheritance He gives all who trust Him (Acts 20:32; Eph. 1:18; Col. 1:12). Believers are not under bondage to keep the Law (Gal. 5:1) because the Holy Spirit fulfills the righteousness of the Law in us as we yield to Him (Rom. 8:1-3).

 

The first Christian believers met daily for worship and fellowship (Acts 2:46), but they also gathered together on the first day of the week, the day of Christ’s resurrection from the dead (John 20:19,  26;  Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2). The first day was known as “the Lord’s day” (Rev. 1:10); and to make the Lord’s Day into a “Christian Sabbath” is to confuse what these two days stand for in God’s plan of salvation.

 

The seventh day of the week, the Jewish Sabbath, symbolizes the old creation and the covenant of law: first you work, then you rest. The first day of the week, the Lord’s day, symbolizes the New Creation and the Covenant of Grace: first you believe in Christ and find rest, and then you work (Eph. 2:8-10). In the New Creation, God’s Spirit enables us to make the entire week an experience of worship, praise, and service to the glory of God.

 

The Jewish Sabbath law was fulfilled by Christ on the cross and is no longer binding on God’s people (Gal. 4:1-11; Col. 2:16-17). However, some believers may choose to honor the Sabbath Day “as unto the Lord,” and Christians are not to judge or condemn one another in this matter. When good and godly people disagree on matters of conscience, they must practice love and mutual acceptance and grant one another liberty (Rom. 14:1–15:7). “Therefore let no one judge you in food or in drink [the dietary laws], or regarding a festival or a new moon [the Jewish feasts] or Sabbaths” (Col. 2:16, nkjv).

 

The Meaning of Creation for the Israelites of Old

Before we approach the question of what the creation should mean to us, we must deal with its meaning for those who first read these inspired words from the pen of Moses. The initial purpose of this account was for the Israelites of Moses’ day. What should they have learned? How should they have responded?

 

(1) The creation account of Genesis was a corrective to the corrupted cosmogonies of their day. We have already said that Egypt, for example, believed in a multiplicity of nature‑deities. We need to recognize that Israel, due to her close and prolonged contact with the Egyptians, was not unaffected by their religious views.

 

“Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:14).

 

It was not enough to regard Yahweh merely as a god, one among many. Neither should He be conceived of as just the God of Israel. Yahweh is God alone. There is no other god. He is the Creator of heaven and earth. He is not merely superior to the gods of the surrounding nations; He alone is God.

 

The tendency to begin to confuse God with His creation was a part of the thinking of the ancient world. He must be regarded as the God of creation, not just God in creation. Every attempt to visualize or humanize God in the form of any created thing was a tendency to equate God with His creation. So it was, I believe, with Aaron’s golden calf.

 

(2) The creation account describes the character and attributes of God. Negatively, Genesis one corrects many popular misconceptions concerning God. Positively, it portrays His character and attributes.

·         God is sovereign and all‑powerful. Distinct from the cosmogonies of other ancient peoples, there is no creation struggle de­scribed in Genesis one. God does not overcome opposing forces to create the earth and man. God creates with a mere command, “Let there be … ” There is order and progress. God does not experiment, but rather skillfully fashions the creation of His omniscient design.

·         God is no mere force, but a Person. While we must be awed by the transcendence of God, we should also be His immanence. He is no distant cosmic force, but a personal ever‑present God. This is reflected in the fact that He creates man in His image (1:26‑28). Man is a reflection of God. Our personhood is a mere shadow of God’s. In chapter two God provided Adam with a meaningful task and with a counterpart as a helper. In the third chapter we learn that God communed with man in the garden daily (cf. 3:8).

·         God is eternal. While other creations are vague or erroneous concerning the origin of their gods, the God of Genesis is eternal. The creation account describes His activity at the beginning of time (from a human standpoint).

·         God is good. The creation did not take place in a moral vacuum. Morality was woven into the fabric of creation. Repeatedly, the expression is found “it was good.” Good implies not only usefulness and completion, but moral value. Those who hold to atheistic views of the origin of the earth see no value system other than what is held by the majority of people. God’s goodness is reflected in His creation, which, in its original state, was good. Even today, the graciousness and goodness of God is evident (cf. Matt 5:45; Acts 17:22‑31).

 

The Meaning of Creation for All Men

The theme of God as Creator is prominent throughout Scripture. It is significant that the last words of the Bible are remarkably similar to the first.

And he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. And on either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His bond‑servants shall serve Him; and they shall see His face, and His name shall be on their fore­heads. And there shall no longer be any night; and they shall not ­have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God shall illumine them; and they shall reign forever and ever (Revelation 22:1‑5).

 

The truth that God is the Creator of heaven and earth is not merely something to believe, but something to which we must respond. Let me mention just a few implications and applications of the teaching of Genesis 1.

 

(1) Men should submit to the God of creation in fear and obedience. The heavens proclaim the glory of God:

The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night reveals knowledge (Psalm 19:1‑2).

 

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened (Romans 1:20‑21).

 

Men should fear the all powerful God of creation:

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of His mouth all their host. He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; He lays up the deeps in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast (Psalm 33:6‑9).

 

The greatness of God is evident in the work of His hands—the creation which is all about us. Men should fear and reverence Him for Who He is.

Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, Thou art very great; Thou art clothed with splendor and majesty, covering Thyself with light as with a cloak, stretching out heaven like a tent curtain. He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters; He makes the clouds His chariot; He walks upon the wings of the wind; He makes the winds His messengers, flaming fire His ministers. He established the earth upon its foundations, so that it will not totter forever and ever. Thou didst cover it with the deep as with a garment; the waters were standing above the mountains. At Thy rebuke they fled; at the sound of Thy thunder they hurried away. The mountains rose; the valleys sank down to the place which Thou didst establish for them. Thou didst set a boundary that they may not pass over; that they may not return to cover the earth ( Psalm 104:1‑9).

 

(2) Men should trust in the God of creation, to provide their every need.

Then after his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, th