Welcome to Word of Life Study Series- The Pentateuch! As we explore the creation story together, there will be some insights that perhaps you have never known before concerning Genesis 1:1. The time before Adam and Eve ever came on the scene and the fact that the earth had to be re-created once again according to 2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:5. The book of “Genesis” in the Bible means “Beginning”, but God has no beginning and is from the dateless past, so really the book of Genesis is really talking about humanity’s beginning or start on the earth.
1. Dateless Past
According to Christian doctrine, God alone is eternal. With the exception of God, the material universe, and everything else in all creation had a beginning. They were absolutely created, made “out of nothing,” by the power of Almighty God. Many of the pagan nations of the ancient world had their own creation stories. But in these stories, their gods evolved out of natural processes connected with the world itself. They believed the material universe was eternal, and it brought their gods into being. But Genesis declares that God existed before creation and is in full control of the physical universe. He called the physical world into existence out of nothing but by His own spoken Word. His power is absolute. He does not have to conform to nature and cannot be threatened by it- in this God is absolutely Sovereign.
2. The First Creation
Genesis 1:1- In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. So what happened between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2? When God looked at the dark empty expanse of the universe, He did not say what He saw, but what He wanted- Psalms 33:6, 9. Genesis chapter one verse one, depicts the creation of angels and the inhabitants of this planet in that age before Adam and Eve. This original creation is referred to as the Pre-Adamite world for reference; or simply the world before Adam and Eve.We cannot say exactly how old the earth is because we do not know when the beginning was. God’s creation of the heavens and the earth in the beginning as stated in Genesis 1:1 could have been millions and billions of years ago. If geologists can prove the age of the earth to be what they claim, we have no scriptural authority to disagree. They cannot contradict the Bible, for it does not reveal any time element in connection with the earth’s original creation. This much is certain, according to Scripture, the earth is more than 6,000 years old, and there were inhabitants on the earth before the days of Adam.
3. Our Present Creation
Earth’s second perfect state and second habitation, began with the restoration of day and night. Notice what is being said in Genesis, “God Said,” He established the heavens and the earth with faith filled words. It is important to note that originally, God had created a canopy that was saturated with water, high above the earth- separated by an expanse of sky or air. This created a greenhouse effect that kept out harmful rays from the sun and allowed for conditions that would be lush and green on the whole surface of the earth. Before Noah’s flood, the earth never experienced rain, but a mist (KJV) and streams came up from the earth to water the whole surface of the ground- Genesis 2:4-6.