To Know God: Part 2

Introduction

Well, good morning! I hope you’re ready to dig into God’s Word. Amen?

Listen, before we get started let’s recite our mission verse together…Matthew 28, verses 19 & 20…the verses, they’ll be on the screen…I’ll get us started.

English Standard Version (Chapter 28)

19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

[Prayer]

Alright, if you have your Bibles open ‘em up with me to Genesis chapter 1…Genesis Chapter 1.

We’ve been looking at the first chapter of the Bible for a month now…and what we’ve been doing, is building a foundation for the rest of Scripture and the gospel message. In verse 1, we really took a deep look at the main character of the Bible. The Scriptures…the gospel message…it’s all about God…and specifically its about a Triune God that’s always existed in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And what we really saw was that all of God’s Word…it’s meant to exalt Jesus.

And then, we looked at verses 1 and 2 together.

While the Bible’s about one God, it’s also about the work he came to do…it’s about his work in redemption…about the gospel…the good news of Jesus Christ. And what we saw in those verses its that what happened physically…where God created the heavens and the earth…and as he began to transform that new creation and sustain it…he also does in us spiritually when we experience salvation. We become new creatures in him and then we’re transformed and sustained through the Spirit of God.

And then last week…we began looking at the first few days of creation. And what we saw, based on those verses in Genesis and looking at what was written in other places…we saw a God that wants to be known. The first several days of creation, they reveal to us…the character and nature of God. Not only do we see a God that wants to be known…but we see a God that’s purposeful in what it is he does and we see a God of structure and of order. Everything he does, he does it with the end in mind and he does it in order to bring about his goodness…all for his glory. And because of that, we see that purpose and meaning, it’s found in this God of creation.

To know God, it’s to worship God. The more you know about the person and work of God, the more it draws you to him and the more it causes you to love him. You can’t hear the message of good news and not be changed by it…because to know God, it’s to worship God.

And listen, what we saw through the first three days of creation…we saw God shaping and molding this place we’d call home. He gave it purpose and structure and he made it all good. And what we’re gonna see in the last several days of creation is God begin to give this new world life. And listen, the picture we get of God here this morning…it’s him as a provider. Everything he does in the latter parts of the creation story…its to provide for the people he’d make in his image…the people he made to inhabit this newly formed earth.

Listen, several years ago…I came down with Mono…I was in my late twenties and I’m not gonna lie it had to be the worst sickness I think I’ve ever had. I don’t typically go to the doctor because I’m a kid at heart and I like to just lie around and do the typical man thing and just act like a big baby…but listen, when I got sick with Mono…my throat got so sore and it swelled up so much that my tonsils began touching…it was miserable. I won’t even tell you all the stupid things I did to try and not go to the doctor…but I finally realized I had to do something, so I went to the ER one night and it was so bad I had them calling other nurses and doctors in just to see how bad it was. But anyways, I got diagnosed…they prescribed me some medicine and I went home…but listen, those next few weeks, Brittany took the best care of me. She cooked me everything I liked…She made sure I was constantly warm…she made sure I had drink in my cup and that I had my medicine…she even went out and she bought me a ton of different video games. She took great care of me…she did such a good job understanding everything I needed…I didn’t wanna be well again. I milked that Mono for as long as I could…because listen, I didn’t want to be out of her care. She was a great provider.

Listen, as we walk through these next several verses in Genesis 1…that’s exactly what we see in these next several days of creation…God’s given us everything we need not only to know him but to find real satisfaction and joy in this new world he’s formed. And he’s taken such good care of us…it should cause us to constantly cling to his nurturing nature. We shouldn’t wanna leave his presence....because to know God, its to worship.

And so, if you’re there with me…let’s stand together as we read these verses. Starting in verse 11, “11 And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” 21 So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

Thank you, you can be seated.

Listen, as we explore these last few days of creation…there’s three things I want you to see about God as a provider…1.) God is a nurturing provider, 2.) God is a thoughtful provider, and finally 3.) God is a creative provider.

1.) Day Three: God is a Nurturing Provider (vv. 11-13)

Point number one…God’s a nurturing provider.

Last week, if you were with us…we stopped at verse 10 which was smack dab in middle of day three where God began separating the waters and the land.

Verse 11…God begins to give this new world life. It says, “11 And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.”

Listen, God was pretty busy on day three, right? He really gave the earth shape…and now here he is giving it plant life…which for the record…I believe this is one of those additional clues God gives us to show that he created everything in six literal days. If you’re one of those Christians that believe Genesis 1 has to fit into science and prove science right…then certainly you’re well versed enough in science to know that plants need sun light to thrive long term. And so this would mean it was impossible for there to have been millions and billions of years between these literal days. Plants need sunlight to survive, right? And sunlight, it wasn’t created until the next day…on the fourth day. Now plants and vegetation surely would’ve been good for a day or so…but for millions of years without the sun? That’s just not how science works…it’s only possible for this to have been a literal day....or you can’t believe anything else Genesis 1 tells you.

But listen, that’s not the purpose of this verse…the original readers, they didn’t argue about how to read Genesis 1…it’s what God’s showing through Day 3 that’s the purpose…and what it shows us is that God’s a nurturing provider.

When God planted the trees and all this vegetation came up from the ground…you have to remember last week…he does these things with purpose and with structure…he always does things with the end in mind. Plants are so much more than plants…they provide food…and oxygen for his people and creation to live and thrive…they provide the materials for shelter and it would be plant life that provided the first covering for man…eventually these plants would yield medicine and ways for man to heal themselves . Even so many of the things that bring us joy and pleasure today, they come from plants and trees. If you enjoy playing baseball…that bat, most of ‘em, they’re made of wood, right? Our homes and our furniture…they’re all made of things God brought forth on day 3.

You see…on day 3…God’s showing his people that he was gonna give them everything they needed to survive…and not just survive by thrive and truly find satisfaction in him and his creation. He’s a nurturing providing. He doesn’t just give you what you need here and now but he gives you what you need to grow and thrive. That’s what day 3 shows us…and notice he gives us that long before he brings us into existence. He wanted to take care of all of our needs before we even knew we needed anything.

Guys, if God did that physically for us…spiritually, why do we struggle with the idea of God doing the same thing? God knew long before he ever created us…that we’d need a Redeemer. He knew long before our existence he’d have to come and save us from ourselves…which is why before he created us he chose us in him. Paul writes in Ephesians 1:4 “even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.”

If God thought of everything we needed before he created us…he does the same for us spiritually. He provided everything we needed in him to experience him fully through Christ long before you and I ever needed it. He’s a nurturing provider.

These verses, they also show us the first major theological significance of the creation accounts. The words “seed” and “fruit”…where Moses writes, “plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit,” its giving us an “offspring” metaphorical meaning…it’s showing us about the multiplication of God’s creation. As we’ll learn more next week when we talk about man and their responsibility…plants and other living creatures, they’ll also reproduce…except in this instance, they reproduce for man’s benefit…these plants and these trees, they sprout seed and fruit so that man can be sustained. It’s just another sign of God’s nurturing care for those made in his image.

God is a nurturing provider…giving us what we need to live and to thrive.

2.) Day Four: God is a Thoughtful Provider (vv. 14-19)

Point number two…God’s a thoughtful provider.

Verse 14, “14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so.”

So here’s Day 4…and God gives his creation time that’s determined by the sun and by the moon and stars. And listen, this is a different light source than what we seen on Day 1. God’s showing us his thoughtfulness through his creative works. He creates the sun and moon to give man structure…These light sources, they’d help to distinguish day from night…they’d allow man to have signs for the passage of time by marking certain seasons, and days, and years.

But even the thoughtfulness that went into creating our solar system just the way that it is. Scientist, they tell us that if our world were just fractions closer to the sun, we’d burn up…or if we were further away, we’d all freeze. Even the way all the other planets revolve around the sun in our solar system…it sustains us and protects us…it allows us to thrive.

Even the fact that our world is tilted at just the right angle…23 degrees…its that angle that gives us our seasons and allows life itself to occur. We lose that…we lose everything. Science would tell us that all of this, its just by chance…but the Bible’s showing us its all due to a thoughtful Creator.

Guys, understanding that the cosmos…the order of it…the chances of it just happening as it’s taught in our public schools…by chance or whatever…it removes the thoughtfulness of its Creator. Its removes the character of God.

In the 17th century…there was this mathematician and philosopher Sir Isaac Newton…Newton was a believer and he had made this mechanical replica of our solar system. And at its center, he placed this huge golden ball that represented the sun, and around it, he placed these smaller spheres that revolved around this golden globe. And all these spheres, they were geared together with all these different cogs and belts that made ‘em move around the sun in this just perfect harmony. And one day as Newton was studying this model, an unbelieving friend came by and he was just amazed at this replica…and he turned to Newton and he asked, “Who made this for you?” And without even a pause…Newton said, “Nobody!” He said, “All these balls and cogs and belts and gears, they just happened to come together on their own, its a wonder of wonders....it was just by chance they began revolving in their set orbits and with perfect timing.”

Of course, he was joking. You see, what Newton was suggesting…if man recognized that a replica that demonstrated this much precision had to be made by someone…surely you can look at our solar system and question the same precision. There’s so much thought that God places in how all this comes together.

I mean…just think about even the functions of the sun and moon. They say there’s less depression during the sunny months, right? But why? Because the sun, it gives us vitamin D…something we need as humans…there’s photosynthesis that occurs for the plants and all that vegetation that we just read about, right? The tides, they rise and fall because of the moon. There’s so much function in what these things do for us…because there’s so much thought in how God created it.

And listen, here’s what it means for us…if he put that much thought in creation…then he’s certainly done the same for us physically. That’s why David says in Psalm 139, “13  For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.14  I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.15  My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, formed in the depths of the earth.”

God made you with thoughtfulness…he made you just the way he intended. And listen, spiritually…its the same. He puts thought into our salvation…he worked out the plan for our redemption long before Jesus ever came into this world…long before he hung on a tree to be the substitute for our sins.

We looked at this at Christmas…but Genesis 3:15…it says, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

God promised Jesus would come long before he ever came…and he knew exactly what would have to happen to provide us with that deliverance.

He’s a thoughtful provider.

3.) Days 5 & 6: God is a Creative Provider (vv. 20-26)

Point number three…God’s a creative provider. On days 5 and 6, God does something very different. He begins to give this world real, intelligent life…and what we see is we see him as this creative provider.

Verse 20 says, “20 Then God said, “Let the water swarm with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” 21 So God created the large sea-creatures and every living creature that moves and swarms in the water, according to their kinds. He also created every winged creature according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” That was the fifth day…and then verse 24…the sixth day, “24 Then God said, “Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that crawl, and the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so.”

Listen, at no point in this passage do we see anything about the idea of evolution…but we do see something special about God here and we do learn more about science here in these verses. Everything God created…it was according to their own kinds. We see his creative work here....I mean, from the orca whale to the mosquito to the grizzly bear, right?…All of these things....he made them so creatively and according to their kinds.

And listen, if you were to chase the rabbit trail and just begin studying these different creations he’s made…it would blow your mind…at just how creative God really is…at how he’s thought of just everything when he created everything.

I mean just think about a coconut…right? There’s billions of ‘em on this planet…but for the most part they’re all round…they’re covered in husk…and guess what? When they fall off the tree, because they’re typically on the shorelines of oceans, they fall into the water. Now, most salt water’s gonna kill any kind of vegetation, right? Like, if I drop a banana in the ocean, guess what’s gonna happen? It’s gonna rot and die…not with a coconut…it’s shape and it’s buoyancy, it allows it to float…and listen when it’s pushed back on shore from the waves, the way it’s designed its one of the few plants that can drink salt water and sprout roots. That’s crazy, right? That’s God’s creative work here. And then when it turns into a tree…it’s one of the few tree’s that grows with a natural bend in its trunk. Most trees, they grow upwards towards the sun, right? But coconut trees they bend at an angle towards the ocean because the reflection of the sun makes it think its in that direction…but there’s purpose there…that angle in its trunk makes it possible for the coconut to fall into the ocean and not the sand…and because its in the water, it can grow and thrive from the salt water. God’s creative.

Or even just the way he’s perfectly designed the mating seasons of certain animals. Where’s all my hunters at? Guys, our hunting seasons, they revolve around those reproductive seasons…and guess what? Those haven’t changed since creation began. Because God put creative thought into how each animal was made according to their kinds. That’s why God tells Job in Job 39…this is the CSB translation, “1 Do you know when mountain goats give birth? Have you watched the deer in labor? 2 Can you count the months they are pregnant so you can know the time they give birth?” The mating seasons of deer, they haven’t changed since God created them.

But look at what else he tells Job about the rest of creation. He goes on in verse 13, “13 The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, but are her feathers and plumage like the stork’s?, 14 She abandons her eggs on the ground and lets them be warmed in the sand. 15 She forgets that a foot may crush them or that some wild animal may trample them. 16 She treats her young harshly, as if they were not her own, with no fear that her labor may have been in vain. 17 For God has deprived her of wisdom; he has not endowed her with understanding. 18 When she proudly spreads her wings, she laughs at the horse and its rider.” Verse 26, “26 Does the hawk take flight by your understanding and spread its wings to the south? 27 Does the eagle soar at your command and make its nest on high? 28 It lives on a cliff where it spends the night; its stronghold is on a rocky crag. 29 From there it searches for prey; its eyes penetrate the distance. 30 Its brood gulps down blood, and where the slain are, it is there.”

Now listen, God’s reprimanding Job here…but its the same point I’m trying to make this morning. God creatively made each living thing so that they could have exactly what they needed. He designed and created each living creature in such a way that would allow them to grow and thrive in each of the environments he placed them in. The way he designed them at the start of time…gave them everything they needed…and it was meant to point us back to this Creative Provider. When we look at each of these living organisms…it should cause us to see God’s creative work in providing for his creation.

But real quickly…notice it also says, he’s created them according to their own kinds. He’s setting parameters around his creation…and its really a scientific type of word here. He’s separating his creation…and this separation, it revolves around his charge to each of ‘em…which is around procreation, right? The vegetation, it was created it such a way that they could reproduce within their own kinds. He says the same with creatures he created in the water and of the air and of course there’s those according to their own kinds on the land. Listen guys, no matter what I do…I can take a cat and a dog…and I can try to mate them together, right? But guess what’s not gonna happen? It’s not gonna produce a baby.

Let me read some science to you for a second…I’m quoting a science article here…It says, “Creating hybrids of animals that are genetically distinct from each other - such as a dog and cat - is scientifically impossible, as is one species giving birth to an entirely different one.”

Listen, we don’t have enough time in the day for me to tell you how idiotic some of the stuff they’re teaching in school really is…but here’s one thing…macro-evolution is impossible because it’s impossible to procreate outside of each kind that God created. And if you don’t believe the Bible…science actually tells us that too. He created each living species creatively and uniquely according to their kind…because he’s a creative provider.

And listen, we’re no different. In fact, he put even more creative thought into us. Verse 26 says, “26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.”

Just like everything else…we see God as a creative provider when he made us....we’re even more special…we’re made in his image, according not to our own kind but according to his likeness…we’re gonna talk more about this next week. But here’s what I want you to take away this morning. God is nurturing…he’s thoughtful…he’s creative…and we see all of that at the foundations of the earth. That’s God character…and it shows us so much about this God we follow…about the God that’s saved us.

Closing

And listen, just like Isaac Newton joked with his unbelieving friend…we don’t even really need the Bible to see that....we see all of this in his creation. This can’t be an accident…this stuff couldn’t have just happened by chance…No! It’s pointing to a grand designer that’s made it all with purpose and meaning and thought and care. It’s pointing to a God that loves us and wants to be with us. That’s what Genesis 1’s all about. It’s pointing us to the Triune God…a God made up of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit…and it’s pointing us to our need to be made into something new…it’s pointing us to our need for redemption…and its showing us about this God that makes all of that possible.

Every head bowed and every eye closed.

If you’re believer here this morning…how’s that truth impacting your life? How’s it growing you? Just as we talked about a couple of weeks ago…the Spirit of God, he should be constantly transforming you…changing you, shaping you, molding you into what he deems good. How’s that going in your life? What do you need to get rid? What do you need to lay at Jesus’s feet to allow him to keep doing that?

How are you seeing your different opportunities he gives you as ways to make him known? Because that’s part of this transformation…you begin to care more about his kingdom than anything else? Maybe its seeing your workplace as a mission field…or your resources as a means to advance the gospel…maybe it’s surrendering your life to full-time vocational ministry…I’ll be honest, I believe there’s men and women in this congregation that are called to ministry and they just haven’t turned to him fully. And listen, I’m not talking about our young people either…there’s some of you retired…and God’s calling you in the same way. You’re not willing to give stuff up…listen, whatever it is…would you respond this morning and just give it all to the God of creation…a God’s that carefully and thoughtfully created you…would you come and just get on your knees before him. That’s what these steps this morning represent. And listen, you don’t need me to tell you when to come…just come.

But maybe you’re here this morning…there’s this unexplainable feeling in your chest right now…its tugging at you…you feel the weight of everything you’ve been going through lately…all the things you’ve had walk through alone…no one’s understood it…you’ve searched for answered…and you’ve hopelessly found nothing. You feel this tug and it’s showing you all that…that there’s something wrong…something that needs to be fixed and mended…it’s telling you to do something…to turn away from all that junk....Listen to me, that’s the Spirit of God…and he’s trying to show you there’s a solution to all those problems…there’s meaning and purpose to everything you’ve gone through…But you have to repent and believe…you have to turn to Jesus and ask him for forgiveness…you have to believe that he is God and that he came to us…he lived a perfect life…he went to the cross because of our sins…he died and experienced on punishment…and he raised to life because he is God…you have to believe that…because when you do that…that’s when he makes you new…but you have to take that step of faith. You have to give your life to Jesus. Guys, don’t wait until it’s too late to make that decision…Jesus has so much for you today.

Would you come? Listen, I’ll be down front…and I wanna show you how Jesus can change everything for you....would you come? And listen, this invitation, its not just for those that need Jesus this morning…its for everyone that just needs to seek him…would you be bold…would you be humble this morning and just seek him?

And so you come…this is your time.

[Prayer]