John 1:1-3[1]
As preached at Rolling Hills Church on Sunday, June 26th.
The New Testament teaches that God made all things through Jesus Christ.
When I say, 'Creation', what Scripture passage comes to mind? Genesis 1. In fact, let me read Genesis 1:1, and if you know it quote it with me. "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." What a majestic beginning to the Bible! And church family, friends, and guests, those ten words are absolutely true.
Of course many believe, in light of scientific discoveries in the past two centuries, that this passage must be interpreted metaphorically, not literally. While it is vastly helpful to make a scientific case to support the biblical creation, today I would like to simply show the case for creation from the New Testament. Before I do I would like to define a few different theories of our beginnings.
Evolutionary origin of life. This is the belief system based on atheism; no God. Let me give you the Wikipedia definition of evolution's origin of life theory: "Highly energetic chemistry is believed to have produced a self-replicating molecule around 4 billion years ago and half a billion years later the last common ancestor of all life existed. The current scientific consensus is that the complex biochemistry that makes up life came from simpler chemical reactions. The beginning of life may have included self-replicating molecules such as RNA and the assembly of simple cells." This is essentially a big-bang theory. Things went from very small to very large, and from disorder to order.
Deistic evolution. This is the belief that there is a God or Deity, and He initiated the evolution process and let it go. He is watching His work develop on it's own. Proponents of this theory do not necessarily believe in the God of the Bible or His Son Jesus Christ.
Theistic evolution. This view, held by some Christians, holds that Genesis chapters 1-2 are false, but God initiated and guided the evolutionary process.
Day Age Theories. There are several of these, but the summary is that these people believe that the word 'day' in Genesis 1 is not literal, but represents a much longer time frame. Some believe they happened in sequence, some believe the sequence in Genesis one isn't to be trusted but God still did it, etc. One view is the Gap Theory; this is the belief that, based on Isaiah 14:12-14, Ezekiel 28:11-17, and Jeremiah 4:23-26, that God created everything in Genesis 1:1, there was this long thriving age, then Satan brought it to ruin, God destroyed everything and started over in verse 2. This is how they explain the old earth belief as well as support the view that God would never make anything formless and void.
There are at least seven day-age theories, and they support somehow re-interpreting the Scriptures to support the general evolutionary belief that the earth is very, very old.
Fiat Creation Theory. This is the belief that Genesis 1-2 are literally true, and that yom (the Hebrew word for day) means a literal 24-hour day, as it would have to when referred to in Exodus 20:11. "For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy."
This is consistent throughout the Scriptures. Most fiat creationists, and that's the school of thought I fit into, believe that God made a mature earth (mature Adam and Eve) and that the flood explains many things we would otherwise struggle to grasp. In light of such views and beliefs, let's survey what the New Testament has to say about Creation.
John 1:1-3 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.
John's language sounds a lot like Genesis 1:1, doesn't it? John is making the case that Jesus is the Messiah. John 20:31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. His starting point is that Jesus is eternally pre-existent (He was before anything), eternally with God (Trinity of Father, Son, Holy Ghost), eternally God ('Word' referring to the Christ), and that He is eternally Creator[2] (all things were created through Him). Jesus is God; and yet God created everything through Jesus. Contrary to what some say, God didn't create Jesus in the beginning; Jesus is God, and all things were created through Him. Let's move on…
1 Cor 8:6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.
Here the apostle Paul, while teaching about offering food to idols, weighs in with his belief that there is One God, and Jesus is One with God, and all things are 'through' him. He teaches this more directly in the next passage we'll go to…
Col 1:15-17 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
So here are two of the apostles teaching us that all things were created by Jesus Christ. Through Him and for Him; and in Him all things hold together. Think of the vastness of creation, church family; and think of the miniaturization of the parts of a molecule. This same Jesus Christ, who created all things, still sustains all things. How wonderful our God is! How powerful, how awesome our Lord is! All of creation came from his thoughts!
Henry Ford is known as the creator of the car; but he depended greatly on his friend Charles Steinmetz, who was a mechanical genius. It was said of Charles that he could build a motor in his mind, and if it broke down, he could fix it in his mind! One day the assembly line at the Ford plant broke down; none of the Ford men could fix it, so they called Mr. Steinmetz. He tinkered for a few minutes, threw the switch, and it started running again. A few days later Ford received a bill from Steinmetz for $10,000. Ford wrote back, "Charlie, don't you think your bill is a little high for just a little tinkering!" His friend sent back a revised bill: "Tinkering, $10. Knowing where to tinker, $9,990." The Lord Jesus Christ knows all things; He created and sustains all things; that knowledge lies with Him alone.
Heb 1:1-3a Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.
This writer of Hebrews confirms the same truth; that all things were made through Jesus Christ, and this same Christ sustains all things. God spoke the world into existence through Christ, and by His word all things are upheld. Let's move on to
Hebrews 11:1-6 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
Let's focus on verses three and six. I bring this out because verse six is so strong on believing God exists! To believe this God exists is to, according to verse three, believe that this God created the universe! So this writer of Hebrews believes Genesis 1 literally, holding fast to God's work of creating all things out of nothing, 'ex nihilo'. This is an issue of faith to believe this God; without faith it is literally impossible to please God.
The 24 elders in Revelation 4:11 sing this song before Him who sits on the throne: "Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created." this song before the throne gives God praise for His creation: he made all things, and He sustains all things.
Church, all of creation gives God praise, and brings Him glory. How could it bring Him glory if he didn't create it? Back to Paul's writings…
Romans 1:20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
The pre-conception of Paul here is that God created everything – 'they have been made'. God reveals Himself to us generally in nature, and specifically in the Holy Bible. Not only does the Old Testament strongly teach that God created the heavens and the earth, and all that there is through Christ, but the New Testament re-affirms and teaches the same truth!
The New Testament teaches that God made all things through Jesus Christ.
Now church, let me pose a few questions for us to consider before we go…
If this Christ created all things, and sustained all things, can He not work in our hearts?
Can He not convict and cleanse us of sin? Answer our prayers?
Can He not change our beliefs, thoughts, worldviews, and our habits?
Can He not easily empower us to worship Him in truth and in spirit?
Can He not, who made all things and who sustains all things, fill us with His Holy Spirit to love and serve one another as the body of Christ?
Can He not, who made all things and who sustains all things, fill us with His Holy Spirit to share His gospel to a godless world?
This power to create life was demonstrated at the tomb when God resurrected Jesus. This power to create life is demonstrated when He regenerates a lost and dying man, woman, or child and brings them to Himself in faith for eternal life.
Consider the greatness of Jesus Christ our Savior: the Creator, and Sustainer of all things.
[1] All Scriptures, unless otherwise noted, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (via E-Sword Software) © 2001 Crossway Publishing. All Rights Reserved. I paste them in red for distinction.
[2] From Kent Hughes excellent commentary John, © 1999 by R. Kent Hughes, published by Crossway Books.
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