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Systematic Theology Part 18: From Nothing to Something

God's creation is amazing. We've all experienced that to some extent. Whether it's the fog on the fog rolling across the lake, a shooting star, snow on the fields or a woodpecker in the back yard, you can see how amazing God's creativity and power are. There are some amazing images out there, and the further you go the more you can see the creative power of God. Modern technology has given us some incredible views of the universe. Here are two of those views:

Images from the Hubble Telescope


Planet Earth


We are not going to take on the Creation/Evolution debate here. We've talked about that at length before and will again in the future. Instead we are going to look at the ACT of creation. We'll find out why its important, what it means and how it affects our lives and our faith.

Creation is not just a thing but is also an act. Here's a definition of Creation as an act:

"The Christian doctrine of creation is the free act of the triune God to create the entire universe from nothing, as well as every creature for his own purposes and glory. (David Nelson, A Theology for the Church, p243)

But, why study creation as an act?

1. The doctrine of creation is fundamental to faith.

Hebrews 11:3 says: "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."

The beginning of a chapter on people that believed and acted in faith is grounded in the belief and faith that the world was created exactly the way Genesis one depicts it. Belief in creation is the first great belief in faith and, as we will see, is foundational to EVERYTHING else we believe.

2. The doctrine of creation is a significant part of the whole of scripture.

The theme of creation runs through the entire text, from the original creation in Genesis 1 to God's recreation, the new heaven and new earth, in Revelation 21-22. We will see this as we discover the key truths about creation. The doctrine of creation is not limited to Genesis 1 and 2.

"God's creative work plays a prominent role in the biblical presentation of God." (Millard Erickson, Chrisitian Theology, p393)

3. The doctrine of creation has historically been a highly important part of the teaching and preaching of the church.

The first part of the Apostle's Creed says, "I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth." The church fathers knew that our understanding of the doctrine of creation affects our understanding of other doctrines.

"Alter the doctrine of creation at any point, and you have also altered...other aspects of Christian doctrine." (Erickson, p393)

The church, in recent years, has lost much of this distinction. It's time to intelligently get it back.
Let's start by looking at 4 key truths that generate from this doctrine of creation and see how they affect our lives as Christians.

Truth 1: God created everything

Everything is a tough concept because when we often say "everything" we don't really mean everything. Someone might remark that they left "everything" out on the court or field, but they obviously still have something. Someone might promise to give "all they have" for someone else, when in reality they will hold something back. A mugger might tell someone to give them "everything" but they probably don't want the coupon for toothpaste or the grocery list that's in their pocket. They just want money and valuables.

We have to get past this limited understanding of everything and realize that when Genesis 1:1 says that God created "the heavens and the earth" this means he created EVERYTHING. Not just most, but all.

Genesis 1 isn't the only place we see this truth proclaimed. Check out Acts 17:24; Ephesians 3:9; John 1:3; Revelation 4:11; Colossians 1:16; Revelation 10:6; Acts 4:24; and Acts 14:15.

The Bible is clear about the extent of God's creating. He created it all.

And since he created it all, there couldn't have been anything to begin with, so

Truth 2: God created everything out of nothing (Ex Nihilo)

Hebrews 11:3-What is seen was not made out of things that were visible
Colossians 1:16-everything has its existence because of Jesus
John 1:3-if it was made, it was made by Jesus
Romans 4:17-He calls into existence the things that do not exist."

God created "without the use of preexisting materials...he did not fashion and adapt something that already existed." (Erickson, p394)

Again, this is hard for us to fathom. We have all participated in the act of creation: a piece of art, a meal, a song, an essay. We've all made something, but everything we make is limited to the material that we have.

The original act of divine creation is unique. It cannot be compared to how we create. It is not limited to what exists. It "brings into existence what does not exist."

Erickson helps us see why this is important to other doctrine, namely the doctrine of God:

"He brought into existence the very raw material he employed. If this were not the case, God would not really be infinite. There would be something else that also was, and presumably had always been...God brought the raw material into being and endowed it from the beginning with the characteristics he wanted it to have." (Erickson, p400)

Truth 3: God created everything good

One word repeats itself over and over again in the act of creation: "good". But, what does God mean by good? Our understanding of good is often just "adequate". For God, who is also good in the most perfect sense, good means perfect. God created the world PERFECT!

Being infinitely good, God could not have created something that was not perfectly good. This carries a few implications:

1. There was nothing evil within God's original creation
2. God created the world with order and purpose
3. The goodness of creation places the responsibility for sin and evil on us. Human sin is an exercise of human freedom and therefore our responsibility, not just and outgrowth of our environment or society.

Since everything was created perfectly good, then it follows that

Truth 4: God created everything with intrinsic value

Matthew 6:26-30 shows God's love and care for a world with value.

"God loves all of his creation, not just certain parts of it. Thus we should also have concern for all of it, to preserve and guard and develop what God has made...Christians should be at the very forefront of the concern for the preservation and welfare of creation, because it is what God has made." (Erickson, p411)

This intrinsic value is lost on many of us. We value things that we want, and if we don't want it or care about it then it has no value to us. So, then, if we don't want it, we just throw it out. That's how babies end up in the trash. They have no intrinsic value in someone's mind. For God, though, his whole creation is of great value. He values us so much that he has rescued us from sin and suffering for all eternity through Jesus' very own suffering on the cross.

These truths should, in some way, impact how we live as Christians. Here are 4 ways we should be changed.

Since God created everything, we should love open-handed, realizing that we really own nothing. It's all his. He has blessed us with what we have so we can bless others.

Since God created everything out of nothing we should live humbly, realizing that, even in our greatest moments of inspiration and creativity we cannot compare to the creativity and power of God.

Since God created everything perfectly good we have to take responsibility for our sin, not excusing it by saying we are "just human".

Since God created everything with value we must respect and care for life. Recognize the dignity that even the elderly and disabled have. Protect the unborn. Care for the world God has given us.

If you're struggling with the science and the "proof" of evolution and all that you've learned that hits against the doctrine of creation, here are a few books to help your further study:

Partial Conversion? When a Love for God Fades

Here's a thought about "partial conversions" from D. A. Carson's devotional For the Love of God:

ONE OF THE MOST STRIKING PICTURES of what might be called a “partial conversion” is found in Luke 11:24-26. Jesus teaches that when an evil spirit comes out of someone, it “goes through arid places seeking rest ant does not find it” – apparently looking for some new person in whom to take up residence. Then the spirit contemplates returning to its previous abode. A reconnoiter finds the former residence surprisingly vacant. The spirit rounds up seven cronies who are even more vile, “and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first.”

Apparently the man who has been exorcised of the evil spirit never replaced that spirit with anything else. The Holy Spirit did not take up residence in his life; the man simply remained vacant, as it were.

There are three lessons to learn.

First, “partial conversions” are all too common. A person gets partially cleaned up. He or she is drawn close enough to the Gospel and to the people of God that there is some sort of turning away from godlessness, a preliminary infatuation with holiness, an attraction toward righteousness. But like the person represented by rocky soil in the parable of the sower and the soils (8:4-15), this person may initially seem to be the best of the crop, and yet not endure. There has never been the kind of conversion that spells the takeover of an individual by the living God, a reorientation tied to genuine repentance and enduring faith.

The second lesson follows: a little Gospel is a dangerous thing. It gets people to think well of themselves, to sigh with relief that the worst evils have been dissipated, to enjoy a nice sense of belonging. But if a person is not truly justified, regenerated, and transferred from the kingdom of darkness and into the kingdom of God’s dear Son, the dollop of religion may serve as little more than an inoculation against the real thing.

The third lesson is inferential. This passage is thematically tied to another large strand of Scripture. Evil cannot simply be opposed – that is, it is never enough simply to fight evil, to cast out a demon. Evil must be replaced by good, the evil spirit by the Holy Spirit. We must “overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:21). For instance, it is difficult to overcome bitterness against someone by simply resolving to stop being bitter; one must replace bitterness by genuine forgiveness and love for that person. It is difficult to overcome greed by simply resolving not to be quite so materialistic; one must fasten one’s affections on better treasure (cf. Luke 12:13-21) and learn to be wonderfully and self-sacrificially generous. Overcome evil with good.

ULead-Cheapened Grace

Here's a little recap of what Evan taught us last night:

Romans 5:18-6:7

Grace is mercy and forgiveness that we do not deserve that is given to us freely.

We benefit from this grace in several ways:
Forgiveness
New Creation
Eternal Life

We cheapen grace as we continue in sin and live as if we are not the new creation that God has made us into. God's grace is special and beautiful but we often live as if it's common and cheap.

Like a pig that has just been washed will immediately return to the mud, we often return to the mud of our sin even though we have been cleaned by the grace of God in Jesus Christ.

If we are these new creations, why do we transform back into these junk Camaro's? (Like bumblebee in Transformers 1)

"We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin." (Romans 6:6)

Funny or Not? Vol. 31

Some Great pics from the internet...what do you think? (I first saw these on this blog...a great one form moms and daughters, by the way!)

The inside and outside of a public restroom...one way glass...but could you actually use it?The ceiling of a smoker's lounge...poetic.

the painted floor of a 10th floor bathroom...don't know if I could actually walk across this floor!