About
10,000 years ago there was nothing. No time, no space, no matter. There was
nothing in existence at all. Except God. God began his creation before Earth
ever had a start. The moment time started ticking, God made heaven and created
beings called angels to worship him and serve him. Ultimately, that would be
the role of all living things to come.
All physical matter was created in six
literal days. On the first day, God created the heavens and the Earth, but all
was empty. Our planet is the emphasis of the story and the first anything to
appear at all. It began as a shapeless mass of water but, at the first, if we
had been there, we would have seen nothing; there was no light. Then God said,
“Let there be light!” and everything snapped into beautiful colour, reflecting
this supernatural illumination. The first day, having begun with the light of
day, ended with night as evening came to completion.
On the second day, as light once again began
to glow its second dawn on the liquid Earth, God did another great work and the
water of the Earth became divided. Below, a smaller sphere of water formed and,
above that, the atmosphere, composed of water, encircled the earth. And, again,
darkness fell out of the evening upon the watery Earth.
The third day brought the greatest miracle
of the Creation yet. God had plans to bring the first biological organisms into
the world. But the world was still wholly made of water and, God wasn’t going
to limit them to an aquatic existence. He loves diversity and dry land was a
must for that. Suddenly, the water sank away and land rose from the waters. The
earth was no longer uniform blue. It was bi-color.
And then vegetation appeared. The face of
the earth flushed with green joy and the sea experienced its first and best
plankton bloom. Moisture filled the air and furbished the plants into life and
growth. The Lord made a very important statement for these living things. He
commanded them to reproduce “after their various kinds.” And it was so. They
could reproduce, change, diversify, transfer their genes in many varying ways,
but they would always be the same kind.
Day four and beauty became a feature of the
entire universe, rather than just earth. It doesn’t seem too remarkable until
you think about it. He made the sun, the moon, and the stars. Suddenly, light
was of a different sort. Day and night were dictated by something other then
supernatural light now. Light would now emanate from natural sources. The laws
of nature became more distinct, more like they are today.
If the days of creation had a biological
climax, day five was it. The water’s teamed with living creatures. Whales,
squid, turtles, you name it. With a second word the air erupted with music;
birds had just been created from the dust of the earth and sprung into the
atmosphere. But not just birds, every other flying thing streaked across the
sky to their first resting places. Pterosaurs, bats, and a fabulous array of
insects claimed earth as their own.
The sixth day was no less important for
biodiversity. Land had the plants, but now living souls would share the dry
ground. At a command, the ungulate herbivores, small creeping creatures, wild
dogs and cats, and a host of other creatures marked the finish of God’s creative
act of nature, and he loved them. All of these living creatures, regardless of
where they lived, were also commanded to reproduce after their kinds. And they
obeyed.
This day would be different than the rest.
Nature would not be left alone. It was God’s intent to make a keeper, a steward
of all that he had created, Adam, the ruler of all God’s creatures. The breath
of God coursed through man’s body and he became a conscious soul. God’s first
command to man was to name “the beasts of field” (those creatures that moved in
herds) and the flying creatures. The brilliant perfect mind that he had, Adam
found the task too easy.
God loves good stories and Adam was lonely.
It was time for the first romance. Adam fell asleep. This would be a special
creation. While Adam, all the land animals, and the flying creatures had been
made from mere dust of the earth, the woman would be made from Adam’s side. He
awoke and found the love of his life, Eve. God himself orchestrated the first
marriage.
Then God grew sober and he gave them a command; “Be fruitful and
increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea
and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the
ground.” Mankind would be solely responsible for the well being of the animals.
The second command of God was conservation.
Hey Caleb, nicely written. Things are fun to read when in story form. (Typo; God's breath didn't CURSE through Adams veins, it would COARSE through.) Dad
ReplyDeleteThanks Dad! I like visualizing what happened in the Bible and any other book I read. Though there weren't any humans there to observe most of the creation, it is still fun putting myself in the angel's shoes, if you will. Ha ha! I'll fix that spelling mistake right away.
DeleteCaleb
Caleb, that was beautiful. What a way to tell the story. You have such a way that it makes you feel like you are actually there. Thanks, son. xoxo Mom
ReplyDeleteP.S. 2nd paragraph - mater should be matter and then 3rd paragraph from the bottom... you have ...regardless of were they lived... should be where :^) xoxo Mom
Thanks Mom. I'll make those changes.
DeleteCaleb