God Rested – Day 7

Posted on May 7, 2012 by JaniceDGreen

On the seventh day God rested from his work. God called this day a holy day. Read it yourself in Genesis 2:1-3.

Although it wasn’t yet a commandment, God set an example for people to follow by resting on the seventh day. He also set the day apart when he called it a holy day.

Many years later when God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses, he included the commandment to remember the Sabboth and keep it holy. God also said not to do any work nor to expect others to work for us on that day. See Deuteronomy 5:12-15.

Opinions swing from one extreme to the other on how to keep the Sabbath holy. Many of our grandparents were so strict that children weren’t allowed to play ball in the yard. Children and adults alike were expected to sit quietly all day and meditate on God. Others have rejected these strict rules and have gone to the other extreme where anything goes on Sunday. They feel that if they spend an hour or two in a worship service, then they can do as they like for the rest of the day.

I personally think we need to honor God with more than a couple of hours in church. God rested the whole day. But I don’t think we need to be idle to rest. Many activities are restful, and for people whose work keeps them sitting at a desk eight hours a day, the most restful thing they might do might include an activity that gets them moving. I remember getting a gentle scolding from a neighbor because I was pulling weeds in my flower garden on a Sunday afternoon. But to me, this was a restful break from the normal activities I did during the week. I could enjoy the birds at the nearby feeders and bluebirds at their nest box while enjoying the fresh air. But, if I had stayed out there several hours and then came in with a backache, I would have to redefine it as work and not a form of rest.

Jesus said that God created the Sabbath for man, he didn’t create man for the Sabbath. This is how he defended the disciples who plucked some grains from a field and ate it on a Sabbath day. See Mark 2:25-28.

People also debate over whether Christians are wrong in making Sunday their holy day of worship in place of the original Sabbath which was Saturday, the seventh day of the week. I can’t in good conscience take a firm stand on this either way. But I know that God has a big heart. I believe he is more concerned that we love him from our hearts than he is on our getting every detail right in a legalistic way. I believe God has room in heaven for people who worship him, whether they make their holy day of rest on Saturday or on Sunday.

Another issue I want to address is that God rested on the seventh day, but that doesn’t mean he was finished working. He had a new week in front of him following his day of rest the same as we do. If God took a permanent vacation beginning on the seventh day it would set the example for all of mankind to do nothing.

So what does God continue to do? The Bible doesn’t exactly spell for us what God does on a day by day basis. We know he is involved in the lives of his children. We read about his covenant with Abraham and his descendants. There are clues all through the scriptures that tell us about God’s intervention in the lives of mankind.

The Bible isn’t as specific about God’s continued involvement in the creation process, but the evidence shows us that his hand is always at work. We know that changes have taken place in our world and in the environment over the years. Fossils show us animals that are no longer in existence today. Astronomers using the Hubble telescope tell us that new galaxies continue to be created in the heavens. It makes perfect sense to me that God continues to be involved in our changing world.

Sadly, there are those who would limit God, or worse, would deny his existence because the don’t think he could be big enough to create a universe as big as ours and still be involved in our daily lives.

But God is bigger than anything we can imagine. If we were capable of imagining all of who God is and what he can do, our minds would have to be as big his. Of course, they are not. God, and God alone, is worthy of our worship and praise.

Listen to: God and God Alone by Steve Green

The Creation by Janice D. Green

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Land Animals and People – Day 6

Posted on April 28, 2012 by JaniceDGreen

6th day of creationOn the sixth day of creation God created the animals that live on the land. The last being that God created was people – the most glorious of all his creation in that he created people in his own image. Read about the sixth day of creation in Genesis 1:24-31. Using this link you may read it in several translations for a more complete understanding.

God made all of the land animals including both domestic animals and wild animals, any and all animals that move along the ground.

After God made the animals, he made people, both male and female and told them to have children and to fill the earth. He also instructed them to rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the animal world. God gave the people the seed-bearing plants and trees for food. The animals were to eat the green plants.

To me, the most important take home messages of the first chapter of Genesis are (1) God created everything that exists, and (2) God created people in his image – we didn’t just happen and we are elevated above all other forms of life in creation. This is not human arrogance, it is God’s design for mankind.

Adam and Eve are not named in the first chapter of Genesis, but I have no problem believing that these were the male and female people God created on the sixth day. When God described the Garden of Eden later in Genesis 2 he supplied more details about this special garden, and began the account of Adam and Eve. He does not concern himself with telling which day everything happened on. This account simply begins when God created Adam and Eve.

I love the choral arrangement, The Majesty and Glory of His Name (as sung by Tom Fettke The Winter Haven Choir Festival 2009), and include it here because is expresses so well the awesomeness of God’s creation as well as the amazing relationship between God and man and the angels. This anthem is taken from Psalm 8. You might enjoy trying to read and listen at the same time.

Look for activities to go with Day 6 of creation at this link.

The Creation, a Bible storybook for children by Janice D. Green

 

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God creates birds and creatures of the sea – Day 5

Posted on April 27, 2012 by JaniceDGreen

On the fifth day God created the creatures that live in the sea and the birds of the air. Read it for yourself in Genesis 1:20-23. You may select your favorite version of the Bible, or better yet read it in more than one version for fuller understanding.

God created the fish and other kinds of life found in the sea. Here are a few videos I found to show the diversity found in our oceans. Some were developed with political intentions, so it may not suit your purposes to use them with children.

http://marinebio.org/gallery/video/

http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-videos/sea-creatures-deep-video-national-geographic-and-census-marine-life (Deepest ocean creatures)

I believe it is worth noting that one of the sea creatures named in the Bible was the leviathan. You can learn more about this terrifying creature by reading Job 41. The leviathan could easily be one of the dinosaurs and it is evidence that dinosaurs, and man did co-exist before the dinosaurs became extinct. Many want to diminish this animal as if it were a crocodile, but no crocodile fits the description given in the later verses. The pictures that the orientals paint of dragons more readily fit the description given in Job 41.

Not only did God create the creatures in the seas on this day, he also created the birds. Now that there were trees where the birds could build their nests and other plants they could perch on, God was ready to create the birds. What beauty he brought into the world when he created them. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology at Cornell University offers a fantastic website that teaches us many things about the birds. Spend time exploring it, especially their Bird Guide and learn more about God’s handiwork.

In Matthew 6:26, Jesus used the birds as an example of how God takes care of the birds and he will also take care of us.

Stand in awe of God’s creation and know that he is the One who is supreme then and now.

Look for activities to go with Day 5 of creation at this link.

The Creation, a Bible storybook for children by Janice D. Green

 

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Sun, Moon, Stars, & Planets – Day 4

Posted on April 24, 2012 by JaniceDGreen

On the fourth day of creation God created the sun, moon, and stars. Read it for yourself in Genesis 1:14-19. God must have included the planets and galaxies as well. At the time Genesis 1 was written people probably knew nothing about planets, and they definitely did not know about galaxies. They would have thought all the tiny lights were stars.

We can’t answer all of our questions about how God made the sun, moon, and stars, because the explanation isn’t there apart from the basic words, “God said…” We can have fun speculating over whether he used the rest of the waters he created “In the beginning…” and separated on day two, or did he speak the sun, moon and stars into existence from scratch. It obviously wasn’t important at the time for God to spell out all of the details. If it wasn’t important then, it isn’t important now either. What is important is that God created them.

I find the idea of the “Big Bang Theory” quite fascinating. It seems quite consistent with God’s speaking the earth into existence.

These verses go on to explain that these heavenly bodies would be used to mark time and the seasons. Until God created the sun and moon and put everything into motion, the measure we have for a 24-hour day didn’t exist. Our day is defined by the rotation of the earth with the “daytime” being determined by when the sun shines on a particular part of the earth, and the “nighttime” being determined by when the sun does not shine on that part of the earth. On earth, there is always both daytime and nighttime somewhere, but the length of a “day” is the amount of time it takes the earth to make one complete rotation.

I will continue to emphasize the importance of the sequence of the Genesis account of creation. It continues to be true to scientific understanding. A seed can be planted any time of year and it can germinate. So God could create plants before he created the sun, moon, stars, and before he set the seasons into motion. But the seasons must be there before they can propagate and cover the earth, so it had to follow right behind creating the plants.

Visit a planetarium if there is one near you. There is so much to learn about our awesome universe and beyond.

Here is a video to help you understand how huge our universe really is. Keep in mind that the God who created it all is even bigger. Size of the Universe from YouTube.com

I just learned of an awesome book Hubble Reveals Creation by an Awe-Inspiring Power, by J. Paul Hutchins I would love to read. Follow the link to learn more about this book.

Look for activities to go with Day 4 of creation at this link.

The Creation, a Bible storybook for children by Janice D. Green

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