Day 2: The Formation 

The book of Genesis is quoted over 200 times in the New Testament, more than any other biblical book. That tells us just how significant and foundational Genesis is. Written by Moses and inspired by God Himself, Genesis covers at least 2,500 years of human history. The title of the book, genesis, is a Greek word meaning origin or birth. This is the beginning of everything. 

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (Genesis 1:1). This verse is the doorway to the Bible. You can't get to any other part of the Bible unless you go through Genesis chapter 1, verse 1. And if you can believe Genesis 1:1—if you can believe that your God is powerful enough to create the heavens and the earth—believing the rest of the Bible is easy.

"In the beginning." You can't go back any further than that. "In the beginning, God…." That's how the Bible begins. Notice it doesn't begin with philosophical arguments for the existence of God. It assumes His existence. And He is the only one who can speak with real authority on creation because He was the only one who was there. 

As Genesis continues, the days of creation are detailed. The first day, God created light and separated the light, "Day," from the darkness, "Night" (see vv. 3-5). He then created the atmosphere and separated the water in the sky from the water on the earth (see vv. 6-8). Next, He gathered the waters together, creating both seas and dry land (see vv. 9-10), then plants (see vv. 11-13), the sun, moon, and stars (see vv. 14-19), and finally animals (see vv. 20-25). "Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…. So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them" (vv. 26-27). By Genesis 2:1, God had finished creation. So, He rested.

One word often causes people to stop right here: creation. For many, the idea of a God with a special creation turns them off, not because of intellectual reasons as much as moral reasons. If there is a God, then there is a moral standard. Get rid of God, and you can get rid of all rules and regulations and do anything you want. 

Yet with absolute authority the Bible says, "This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens" (Genesis 2:4). 

Out of nothing…everything. If it's a clear night tonight, walk outside into the darkness and just look up. Look at the stars and try to imagine how many there might be and how far they are out there. If the art on display in the night sky is that beautiful, what must the artist be like? This is the overarching theme of the Bible: pointing us to the very artist Himself.