Very Good

God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.  And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.  Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts.  By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 

Genesis 1:31-2:2

Six times God surveyed what He had created and found it good.  Yet now, having completed this universe and created man in His own image to manage that creation the verdict changes.  Upon completion God sees that the whole system is very good.  God was pleased by the finished work of His hands.  As any artist or craftsman knows; that pleasure comes from the fact that His perfect artwork reflected His character – His power, His love, His artistry and His love.  It was “very good” now because it reflected the Creator more clearly now than it had at any given point.  When Sin entered this world the mirror of Creation became a less effective tool to see the character of God.  Death and decay did not destroy all the beauty of the earth, but it did make it harsh, dangerous, and even cruel.  No longer can we look at the created world around us and see a perfect illustration of the Creator.  God’s love was too great to allow His beloved children to die, alienated from Him.  He revealed Himself through His Son Jesus Christ – “the visible expression of the invisible God”.  He revealed himself through His word – The Bible.  He reveals Himself through the amazing power of His Holy Spirit at work on the heart of every living being – convicting the unbeliever and indwelling the believer.  Though many of the things that were created to make Him known have been fractured His purpose has not been thwarted.  At the end of all things Christ Jesus will stand upon the redeemed earth – victorious!  By His provision at the Cross – we who humbly accept His grace will stand with Him.  Not because of the works which we have done, but because of His amazing Grace.

The Image of God

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”  God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Genesis 1:26-27

God had created a beautiful and wonderful paradise.  Truly, we cannot even imagine what the earth looked like, and how it functioned at this point.  Before sin’s stain had entered the world there was no death, nor was there catastrophe, nor destruction.  The plans and the animals of both land and sea worked together in a perfect and harmonious system.  A person’s faculties could reach their end simply seeking to imagine this wonderful world.  Yet, God’s creation still awaited its pinnacle.  God intended this new and beautiful creation to be ruled by a type of creature who bore His own image.  Upon examining the wonders of the natural world it is expected that we will be awestruck and impressed.  Yet the greater miracle is the place of humanity in that marvelous creation. 

Humanity was designed to represent God in this Creation, caring for it and looking after it through moment by moment reliance upon Him.  Humanity was created and given this amazing domain.  Humanity alone was impressed with the very image of God – a finite reflection of His infinite power, will and majesty.  Humanity failed to fulfill God’s desire and plan, but in His grace God provided a provision for all of our failures.  This original mandate will finally be fulfilled when Jesus Christ sets foot again upon this earth and rules and regulates it, at long last, with all of the wisdom and power that is needed.  God gave a command for mankind’s mission upon this earth, and then provided for that mission to be completed.  All to His glory, all in the person and work of His Son, Jesus Christ.

Wonderful Words of Life

There is power in the written word. Certain documents have influenced history, and continue to do so long after they were penned. The Iliad and The Odyssey continue to inspire even the modern imagination. The Republic, The Prince, Les Miserables, Hamlet, and the list goes on and on. These amazing works have a sense of universality. They portray something deeply human, their characters, struggles and themes. However, all of these great books can only go so deep.

Only the Word of God is: "...living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, ad able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12). There is no other book that has that property. The Holy Spirit carried men along as they wrote it, leading them to choose the exact words He wanted. God sovereignly protected the Bible through generations of persecution and difficulty. The Holy Spirit then illumines the believer so that the word may be understood. From start to finish the Bible is miraculous.

Psalm 19:7-10 tells us that God's word is perfect, that it is God's tool for restoring our souls. It is something we can count on and it will make us wise in our foolishness. It causes our hearts to rejoice and enlightens our eyes, the word of God is more valuable than gold, and sweeter than honey to us. The Bible is all of this and more, what an amazing privilege to have this miracle of the Lord at our fingertips each day!

Sing them over again to me,

Wonderful words of life;

let me more of their beauty see,

wonderful words of life;

words of life and beauty

teach me faith and duty.

Beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of life.

Philip P. Bliss