The Creation of the Heavens and the Earth – Part 3
In our last topic, we saw that we want to help our physical and spiritual children learn to explain what God created on the fourth and fifth days of creation. In this topic, we will see what God created on the sixth day of creation.
In Genesis 1:24-25, we read, “Then God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind’; and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” Here, we see that Christ spoke all of the animals on the earth into existence on the sixth day. Just like the sea creatures and the birds, we see that the animals and creeping things on the earth were created with various species. People who reject the fact that God is the Creator of all things come up with many theories about the way the world was created, but they have no way to show how all of the different species of sea creatures, birds, animals, and creeping things came into existence. This shows us, right from the beginning, that man must either believe there is a Creator or choose to believe in the opinions of mankind who do not believe in a Creator.
First, we read that when Christ spoke, the cattle all came into existence at the same time. The word translated “cattle” is used to refer to cattle, beasts, and animals, both wild animals and tame animals, that provide part of our food today. This word is translated “beast” in Genesis 6:7, where we read, “So the Lord said, ‘I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.’” Then, Genesis 7:2 adds, “‘You shall take with you seven each of every clean animal, a male and his female; two each of animals that are unclean, a male and his female.’” A “clean” animal usually eats grass and plants, while an “unclean” animal often eats other animals.
Second, we read that Christ spoke the creeping things into existence. The word translated “creeping things” usually refers to the things that crawl on the ground, things like bugs that jump or creep and other similar creatures. Third, we read that Christ spoke the beasts of the earth into existence. This would include the animals larger than the cattle, such as the dinosaurs and other larger beasts. Job 40:15-19 says, ““Look now at the behemoth, which I made along with you; he eats grass like an ox. See now, his strength is in his hips, and his power is in his stomach muscles. He moves his tail like a cedar; the sinews of his thighs are tightly knit. His bones are like beams of bronze, his ribs like bars of iron. He is the first of the ways of God; only He who made him can bring near His sword.’” We see that this animal is called the first of the ways of God. None of the larger animals alive today would fit this complete description. However, the species that includes the dinosaurs would fit every part of the description. God looked at all of the animals He had created and saw that “it was good”.
Genesis 1:26-28 says, “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’” Suddenly, we see a change in the words used for creation. Notice the three underlined words: “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.” We see that the underlined words are plural. This points to the fact that God is One God in three persons. We saw in the topic on the first verses of this chapter that the entire Trinity was involved in creation. The Father willed the creation (1:1), the Spirit moved on the face of the waters (1:2), and then, Genesis 1:3 along with John 1:1-14 show that Christ spoke everything into existence.
This also means that mankind is different than any of the other creatures God made because we are made in the image of God. We have a body, soul, and spirit. Romans 8:15-16 says, “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.” The various animals, birds, and sea creatures have a body and soul (the soul is the mind, emotions, and will). They can be taught to do certain things for a reward, and at least part of these creatures show they have emotions and a will. However, they do not have a spirit, so the Holy Spirit of God can come into their spirit. As a result, mankind is the only creature in the entire creation that can communicate with God and become children of God. God also gave mankind dominion (rule) over all of the other creatures He had created.
We read that God created man in His own image. To be made “in the image of God” means to be made in the likeness of God. Genesis 5:3 says, “And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth.” In this verse, we see that Adam passed on the image of God to his descendants. As a result, mankind today still reflects the image of God. Then, Genesis 9:6 adds, “‘Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed; for in the image of God He made man.’” In this verse, we see that the basis for the death penalty for murder is based on the fact that man is made in the image of God. As a result, many of the people who are in rebellion against God today have worked to eliminate the death penalty for murder. In addition to creating man in His own image, God created the male and the female at separate times, as we will see in the following topics.
When God created the man and the woman, God blessed them and gave them three instructions. First, God told them to be fruitful and multiply. This meant that mankind was to spread out, populate the earth, and fill the earth with people. Second, God told mankind to subdue the earth. The word “subdue” means to bring into subjection. This meant that mankind is to tend and keep the earth. God told Adam, in Genesis 2:15, “Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.” Mankind is to make the earth productive so it can provide food for the people and carry out the purposes of God for the earth. Third, man was to have dominion over the birds and every living thing that lives on the earth. Here, we see that God gave mankind the responsibility to rule over all of the creatures on the earth.
Genesis 1:29-31 says, “And God said, ‘See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food’; and it was so. Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” These verses tell us why mankind was to subdue the earth. God said that the plants of the earth would provide food for mankind, as well as for the birds and the animals.
Until man sinned, all people, animals, and birds on the earth ate the plants of the earth, not other animals or creatures. God said that both the herbs and the fruit trees would provide seed so they could yield food for mankind and all of the other creatures. Here, we see that every kind of plant was able to reproduce seed that would cause it to keep reproducing food for the people and other creatures on the earth. God said this same thing would continue after the flood. Genesis 8:21-22 says, “And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in His heart, ‘I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done. While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease.’” Even through the flood, the Lord protected the various forms of seed so they could begin reproducing again after the flood.
The sixth day marked the completion of the creation of the earth. As a result, we see that God saw everything He had made and saw that it was all very good. In the previous verses, we read several times that God saw what He had made and that it was good. Now, we see that God gives a summary about all of the things He had created and saw that everything He had made was very good. The word translated “very” is translated several times “exceedingly”. This is the way the word is translated in Genesis 7:19, where we read, “And the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth, and all the high hills under the whole heaven were covered.” God also used this word when He told Abraham, in Genesis 17:1b-2, “‘I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless. And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly.’” God wanted to make it very clear that He was very joyful when He saw everything He had created.
Then, we are reminded one more time that the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Throughout the Old and New Testaments, we will see that this is the way the Jews referred to their days. Each day began at sundown and ended the next day at sundown. As a result, this is an important thing to know when you are reading the Bible, because it will help you to understand certain statements that are made in various places of the Bible. We also want to help our physical and spiritual children understand what God created on each day and see that when God was finished with His work of creation, He was very joyful with the results. May the Lord
richly bless you as you help your children learn to explain how God created the heavens and the earth.
