“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light.” Genesis 1:1-3
How did the eternal God create the heavens and the earth? The Hebrew word for “created” (בָּרָ֣א) indicates that God created the heavens and the earth out of nothing. He spoke the word, saying, “Let there be …” and it came into existence. As “God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light,” so God created all things by His mighty word (Read Genesis 1:1-2:3).
O all-wise and almighty God, I praise and honor You for calling all things into existence by Your mighty Word. Amen.
“To man He said: ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.’ ” Job 28:28
What is it to have true wisdom and understanding? It is to fear and honor the Lord God who made us and to depart from evil by repenting of the sin and wickedness in our lives and looking to God for mercy and forgiveness in the shed blood of Christ Jesus, our Savior.
O gracious God, have mercy upon us, forgive our foolishness for Jesus’ sake, and grant us wisdom from Your Word and the understanding needed to depart from evil and to live for You. Amen.
“God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM.’ And He said, ‘Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, “I AM has sent me to you.”’” Exodus 3:14
What is God’s name? That is what Moses asked God when God appeared to him at the burning bush to send him back to Egypt to lead His people out of captivity. God’s answer, “I AM,” fittingly describes Him as the eternal God who is. He has no beginning and no end. He always was, He always is, and He always will be! The true God – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, our Maker and our Redeemer – is the eternal “I AM.”
O eternal God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – You created me, and You redeemed me! Grant that I may honor You as the true God and look to You for mercy in the shed blood of Christ Jesus, the only-begotten Son and my only Savior. In His name, I pray. Amen.
“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 nothing was made that was made.” John 1:1-3
The Word, identified in verse 14 of John 1 as “the only begotten of the Father” who took on human flesh and lived among us, already was in the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth. He “was with God,” and He “was God.” He was there in the beginning with God the Father and the Holy Spirit of God. “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” The only-begotten Son of God, who, in time, took on human flesh and became a true man in the person of Jesus, is the eternal God, our Creator, and our Redeemer.
Christ Jesus, You are the eternal Son of God, my Maker and my Redeemer. Grant that I worship and adore You for who You are and place my faith in You and Your atoning sacrifice on the cross for my salvation. Amen.
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” Genesis 1:1-2
In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, God already was, for He has always been and always will be. As Moses wrote of God in Psalm 90:2, “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.” God is eternal, without beginning and without end. And note that the Holy Spirit of God “was hovering over the face of the waters,” for the Holy Spirit, too, is eternal.
O eternal God, my Creator, grant that I honor and revere You for who You are, the almighty God who was and is and ever shall be. Amen.
