Sermon Tone Analysis

*Sunday, January 6th, 2008*

 

 “How Great is Our God”

 

 

*Theme*: The greatness of our Creator

 

*Text:* Gen 1:1 – 2:3

 

*Key Verse:* God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very  good (Gen 1:31a)

 

 

*Interrogative: *Who

 

*Homiletical Word: *Created

 

* *

*Introduction:** 7448 Child’s Recount Of Eve*

The Sunday School teacher asked one little girl if she knew the story of Adam and Eve.

“First God created Adam,” she said, “and then He looked at him and said, “I think I can do better,” So He created girls.”

[1]

*1232 If The Earth Were*

If the earth were as small as the moon, the power of gravity would be too weak to retain sufficient atmosphere for man’s needs; but if it were as large as Jupiter, Saturn, or Uranus, extreme gravitation would make human movement almost impossible.

If we were as near to the sun as Venus, the heat would be unbearable; if we were as far away as Mars, we would experience snow and ice every night even in the warmest regions.

If the oceans were half their present dimensions, we would receive only one-fourth the rainfall we do now.

If they were one-eighth larger, our annual precipitation would increase fourfold, and this earth would become a vast, uninhabitable swamp!

Water solidifies at 32 degrees above zero.

It would be disastrous if the oceans were subject to that law, however, for then the amount of thawing in the polar regions would not balance out, and ice would accumulate throughout the centuries!

To prevent such a catastrophe, the Lord put salt in the sea to alter its freezing point!

(Psalm 104:24)

/—Our Daily Bread/

[2]

*READ: Gen 1:1 – 2:3*

*PRAY*

#. *Our God is the origin of all things (1:1)*

#.

Before 1:1 there was only God...(Elohim)

#.

This God “created” (bara)

                i.

Word “bara” ‘out of nothing’

           ii.

Every use (44x) in OT God is subject... man never “bara”s anything.

– man can “ya-sar” (form~/fashion) something out of some existing material (term used in Gen 2:7 God forms Adam out of the dust)

           iii.

Scientists take on God – illustration

#. “the Heavens and the Earth”

                                                              i.

All that is “up there” and all that is “down here” – the Hebrew mind would use opposites to emphasis the totality or their subject.

1.      all people = young and old or rich & poor

2.      (note: tree of knowledge of “good & evil” = all knowledge??)

3.      heaven & earth?

= everything up there & down here.

#. Refutation of 6 major belief systems... *Genesis 1:1 and other worldviews**.

*

What Does 1:1 Say to Those Who Interpret Reality Apart from a Personal, Infinite God?

•     To the atheist it says that Creation was the work of God.

•     To the polytheist it says there is only one God.

•     To the pantheist it says that God is apart from and independent of his creation.

•     To the evolutionist it says that the universe was created and did not evolve.

•     To the materialist it says that matter is not eternal but was itself created.

•     To the existentialist it says creation has a purpose

Willmington, H. L.: /Willmington's Bible Handbook/.

Wheaton, Ill.

: Tyndale House Publishers, 1997, S. 4

* *

* *

#. *Our God brings order to all things (1:2-31)*

#.

He brings order out of chaos                                                               i.

The Process has order

Details of each day...

1.      an introductory “And God said”

2.      a command “let there be...”

3.      a note of fulfillment “and it was so”

4.      and evaluation “God saw it was good”

5.      statement of time “there was evening and morning, one day.”

ii.

The Product has order

1.

Light – first and most important ingredient (1 John 1:5) ... God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all.

a.       Darkness = disorder therefore the first command “let here be light”

2.      Structure – the 2nd necessary ingredient

a.

He separates water from water, and water from land

b.      Chronological structure with the creation and placement of Sun and moon.

(not masters of light, but it’s servants)

3.      Contents – the final ingredient

a.

The land is empty – filling the earth with living things beginning on day 3 and ending on day 6 with the creation of man – the image of God – a reflection of God in several ways

                                                                                                                                      i.

Creativity

                                                                                                                                    ii.      3 in One~/body soul spirit – physical, spiritual, emotional

                                                                                                                                  iii.

Placed in dominant position over all other creation

                                                                                  iv.

Like the sun and moon reflect the light – we reflect the nature of God.

                                                                                    v.

God names the main components of His creation – then charges man to name the animals.

4.      Can you catch the meticulous order of all this?

Can one seriously entertain thoughts that this all came about by chance with no cause or designer?

*1467 “Nobody Made It”*

Sir Isaac Newton had a replica of our solar system made in miniature.

In the center was the sun with its retinue of planets revolving around it.

A scientist entered Newton’s study one day, and exclaimed, “My! what an exquisite thing this is!

Who made it?”

“Nobody!” replied Newton to the questioner who was an unbeliever.

“You must think I am a fool.

Of course somebody made it, and he is a genius.”

Laying his book aside, Newton arose and laid a hand on his friend’s shoulder and said: “This thing is but a puny imitation of a much grander system whose laws you and I know, and I am not able to convince you that this mere toy is without a designer and maker; yet you profess to believe that the great original from which the design is taken has come into being without either designer or maker.

Now tell me, by what sort of reasoning do you reach such incongruous conclusions?”

[3]

 

 

 

 

 

 

#.

*Our God completes all things (2:1-3)*

#.

The work is complete

                                                              i.

2:1 is as triumphant a proclamation as 1:1 is majestic

                                                            ii.

God stopped working – “rested” gives a false impression that He was tired and need time to recuperate – ludicrous

                                                          iii.

He just stopped working (sabat) – not because He was tired, but because He it was finished.