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Grounded-In-Biblical-Truth |
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Genesis 1:1
" in the beginning god created the heavens and the earth"
Elsewhere in Holy Scriptures the Creator is identified as the second Person of the Holy Trinity, God the Son, Jesus Christ (e.g. Psalm 102:25-27 with Hebrews 1:10f; John 1:3; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Colossians 1:16f; Hebrews 1:2; more on this later). (This was, of course, in conjunction with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit.)
The account of the creation in Genesis chapter 1 teaches us many things regarding Christ the Creator. All these are applicable also to the work of Christ in the "new creation" (2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15).
This new creation presupposes an old creation. The old creation, known also as the "old man" (Romans 6:6; Ephesians 4:22; Colossians 3:9), is what all mortals are in their natural state (that in which we all were born), "in Adam," the first man. Adam entered into a covenant with God, in which God promised eternal life contingent upon Adam's obedience, but death if Adam disobeyed (Genesis 2:15-17). Adam disobeyed, and consequently died immediately in the sense of being separated from God (Genesis 3:1-8,22-24).
Since Adam stood before God as the federal head and representative of the whole human race, we all sinned and died in him (Romans 5:12ff). Our old nature is therefore "corrupt according to the deceitful lusts" (Ephesians 4:22) and "dead in trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:1).
In the work of the new creation, Jesus Christ regenerates those who will believe, resulting in the "new man." This new man is therefore "created according to God, in righteousness and true holiness" (Ephesians 4:24), "renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him" (Colossians 3:10). "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17).
We therefore in this message will observe that what is true of Christ the Creator in creating the physical universe is also applicable to Him in creating the new creation. For example:
I. Behold the power of Christ in creation! He manifested His power by creating the universe en toto, "in its entirety." "All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made" (John 1:3). "For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him" (Colossians 1:16f). And He manifested His power by creating the universe ex nihilo, "out of nothing" (as it were), without pre-existing materials. "[T]he things which are seen were not made of things which are visible" (Hebrews 11:3). No one but God has such power. God the Son, Christ Jesus, has such power.
Behold the power of Christ in the new creation! In regenerating sinners "dead in trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:1), He does not transform or renew the old nature. Rather, He creates ex nihilo ("out of nothing") an entirely new nature (which will throughout this life be in constant warfare with the old nature [Romans 7:15-25]). What power!
II. Behold the authority of Christ in creation! He manifested His authority by creating the universe by fiat, the mere command "Let there be ..." (vv.3,6,9,11,14,20,24,26). "By the word of the LORD the heavens were made" (Psalm 33:6; cp. Hebrews 11:3). "For He commanded, and they were made" (Psalm 148:5b).
Behold the authority of Christ in the new creation! He Himself acknowledged to His Father that "You have given [Your Son] authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him" (John 17:2). And He has bestowed this life by fiat, a mere command. He describes this aspect of the new creation in Ezekiel 16:6: "And when I passed by you and saw you struggling in your own blood [What an apt description of the old nature!], I said to you in your blood, 'Live!' Yes, I said to your blood, 'Live!'" Life is given to dead sinners by a mere command! When Christ commands the dead to live, they obey! What authority!
III. Behold the sovereignty of Christ in creation! "For I know that the LORD is great, and our Lord is above all gods. Whatever the LORD pleases He does" (Psalm 135:6). It pleased Him to create the universe. He therefore did so unhindered. "He does according to His will .... No one can restrain His hand or say to Him, 'What have You done'" (Daniel 4:35). He is the Sovereign of sovereigns. We therefore repeatedly read that upon the declaration of each creation fiat, "it was so" (v3,9,11,15,24,30).
Behold the sovereignty of Christ in the new creation! "[T]he Son gives life to whom He will" (John 5:21). Scriptures know nothing of the impotent and pitiful "Jesus" of those heretics who erroneously portray the Son of God as trying His best to save all He can, and who is frustrated by those who will not let Him do so. Rather, no one or thing, nor all persons or things together, can prevent Christ from accomplishing His pleasure. What sovereignty!
IV. Behold the glory of Christ in creation! His purpose in creating the universe was no other than His own glory, to manifest "His eternal power and Godhead" (Romans 1:20). This manifestation of glory was not an empty show, an exhibition to be admired by His creatures. Rather, its aim was the promotion of their welfare and perfect happiness. We see here the unselfishness of God, who had in mind the good of others in all that He did in creation. For this reason men ought to "glorify Him as God" and be "thankful" (Romans 1:21; Revelation 4:11).
Behold the glory of Christ in the new creation! Listen to the saints in glory sing of His glory: "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing! ... Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever" (Revelation 5:12f). What glory He deserves!
V. Behold the sufficiency of Christ in creation! "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (v.1). He alone created the universe. No one else could have aided Him, because there was no other, as all others are creatures. "Without our aid He did us make" (from William Kethe's metrical version of Psalm 100).
Behold the sufficiency of Christ in the new creation! Holy Scriptures do not teach synergism, the ancient heresy holding that in regeneration there is a cooperation of divine grace and human activity. This is the heresy of Pelagians and Arminians. They deny that the will of man is in bondage to sin and Satan (2 Timothy 2:26) by averring instead that man has "free will." And they deny that God is sovereign by averring that He cannot regenerate a sinner unless the sinner permits Him to do so. They therefore aver that man has a part in his own regeneration -- as though the dead may have a part in bringing himself to life! (One of them has even written a best-seller pompously entitled How to Be Born Again!) Some say they cooperate by "making a decision for Christ"; others by some outward act such as baptism or sabbath-keeping. They greatly err! Christ is altogether sufficient in regenerating the dead. He does not require our aid. What sufficiency!
VI. Behold the satisfaction of Christ in creation! The reason for this satisfaction is repeatedly declared: "And God saw that it was good" (vv.4,10,12,18,21,25). We finally read that at the conclusion of the work of creation, "Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good" (v.31). How good? It received His approbation -- and He approves of nothing that is not absolutely perfect! It is therefore with good reason that we read that afterward "God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done" (2:2). He rested not because He was tired. "The everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary" (Isaiah 40:28). Nay, God rested because He had created all that was to be created, and because all He had created was perfect.
Behold the satisfaction of Christ in the new creation! In His prayer as the High Priest of God's elect recorded in John 17, He acknowledges that His purpose in coming to earth was to regenerate God's elect (v.2, as noted above). He then declares, "I have finished the work which You have given Me to do" (v.4). He therefore entered into the sabbath of salvation -- which is far sweeter than the sabbath of creation -- and brings into it all who believe in Him (Hebrews 3:7-4:11). What satisfaction Christ has obtained!
Have you found satisfaction in Christ the Creator alone?
Your servant for Jesus' sake.
Address all questions to pastor
Daniel E. Parks (2 Corinthians 4:5) e-mail RedeemerBC@aol.com
Pastor, Redeemer Baptist Church
2801 Cleveland Boulevard, Louisville, KY 40206 / 502.899-9205
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