Genesis 1.14-19-The Fourth Day of Restoration
Sunday August 7, 2005
Genesis: Genesis 1:14-19-The Fourth Day of Restoration
Lesson # 5
Please turn in your Bibles to Genesis 1:1.
This morning we will study Genesis 1:14-19, which records the 4th day of restoration.
Genesis 1:1 records the initial creation that was inhabited by only angels, and Genesis 1:2 records the aftermath of God judging the rebellion of Satan, which began in the original Garden of Eden (Ezek. 28:12-19; Isa. 14:12-14).
Therefore, the six days recorded in Genesis 1:3-31 are a record of the restoration of the original creation that was judged by God for the rebellion of Satan and this restoration was accomplished in 6 literal 24-hour days.
In Genesis 1, we see God working in the midst of darkness in restoring creation, which typifies God’s work in our lives.
2 Corinthians 4:6, “For God, who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness,’ is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”
Just as God’s power was manifested through the impotence of the destroyed creation so His power is manifested through our impotence.
2 Corinthians 12:9, “And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.”
God working in the midst of darkness typifies God’s work in our lives where at the moment of salvation we have been called out of the spiritual darkness of Satan’s cosmic system and transferred into God’s kingdom, the kingdom of light.
Colossians 1:13, “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son.”
Since we no longer belong to the spiritual darkness of Satan’s cosmic system but rather belong to the light of God’s kingdom, we are to live our lives in a manner that is consistent with this fact.
Ephesians 5:8, “for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light.”
Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning (bere’shith, “in eternity past”) God created (bara, “created out of nothing”) the heavens and the earth.”
Genesis 1:2a, “(waw disjunctive construction, “however”) The earth was (perfect tense of hayah, “became”) formless and void (tohu waw bohu, “empty desolation” signifying divine judgment), and darkness (darkness signifies divine judgment in Scripture) was over the surface of the deep (earth was flooded with water also signifying divine judgment).”
Genesis 1:2b, “And the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.”
Genesis 1:3-5 records the first day of restoration.
Genesis 1:3, “Then God (the Son) said (`amar, “to command”), "Let there be light"; and there was light.”
Genesis 1:4, “God (the Son) saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.”
Genesis 1:5, “God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.”
The division of physical light from darkness and day from night is symbolic of what has taken place in the spiritual realm in the angelic conflict between the kingdom of Christ and the kingdom of Satan.
The restoration of light typifies or parallels the incarnation of the Son of God who is the Light of the world.
Genesis 1:6-8 records the 2nd day of restoration.
Genesis 1:6, “Then God said, ‘Let there be an expanse (raqia, “atmosphere”) in the midst of the waters (earth was flooded with water), and let it separate the waters from the waters.’”
Genesis 1:7, “God made (`asah, “restored”) the expanse, and separated the waters which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so.” NASU
The waters “above” the earth’s atmosphere were a vast blanket of transparent water vapor that provided uniform temperatures over the entire earth and filtered out destructive energies from outer space, which contributed to the longevity of the Antediluvians (individuals who lived before the Flood of Noah).
Genesis 1:8, “God called the expanse heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.” NASU
The Lord Jesus Christ does not employ tov, “good,” after the second day of restoration as He does after the first, third, fourth, fifth and sixth days since Satan and the fallen angels inhabit the earth’s atmosphere.
Ephesians 6:12, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
The insertion of the atmosphere that ‘divided” the mass of water that flooded the earth into two bodies of water typified Christ’s cross which divides the human race into either believers or unbelievers.
Genesis 1:9-13 contains the record of the 3rd day of restoration where the Lord caused the flood waters that covered the entire earth to be gathered into one place so that the dry land underneath might appear.
Genesis 1:9, “Then God said, ‘Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear’; and it was so.” NASU
Genesis 1:10, “God called the dry land earth, and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that it was good.” NASU
Genesis 1:11, “Then God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit after their kind with seed in them"; and it was so.” NASU
Genesis 1:12, “The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, after their kind; and God saw that it was good.” NASU
Genesis 1:13, “There was evening and there was morning, a third day.” NASU
As we see in the third day, the Lord caused the earth to bring forth fruit, which typifies the resurrection of Christ.
1 Corinthians 15:20, “But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.”
Genesis 1:14-19 records the 4th day of the restoration of planet earth and the stellar universe from the judgment it received as a result of the Satanic rebellion.
Genesis 1:14, “Then 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.’”
Genesis 1:15, “and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth’; and it was so.”
“Lights” is the noun ma’or (pronounced: mah-ore), which literally means, “light-givers, generators of light” and refers to the stellar universe, which is the 2nd heaven and is composed of various luminous bodies such as moons, stars, suns and planets that generate light.
The spiritual application is that the believer is reflecting the Light of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ when he is in fellowship with God by obeying the Father’s will as it is revealed by the Spirit through the communication of the Word of God.
Philippians 2:14, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing.”
Philippians 2:15, “so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world.”
On the 1st day of restoration, the Lord said, “Let there be light (‘or)!” but on the 4th day of restoration, He said, “Let there be lights (‘ma-or, “light-givers).”
First of all, we have “intrinsic” light restored to the original creation that was judged for the Satanic rebellion, which found its source in the manifestation of the glory and presence of God and then here on the 4th day we have generators of light restored.
These luminaries were to serve a 5-fold purpose according to Genesis 1:14: (1) To divide the day from the night (2) Signs (3) Seasons (4) Days (5) Years.
Genesis 1:16, “God made (verb ‘asah, which is pronounced gah-sah and means, “to restore”) the two great lights, the greater light (the earth’s sun) to govern the day, and the lesser light (the earths’ moon) to govern the night; He made the stars (stellar universe) also.” NASU
The sun generates light and the moon reflects the sun’s light, thus the sun is greater and the moon lesser of a light-giver.
Genesis 1:17, “God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth.”
Genesis 1:18, “and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good.”
Genesis 1:19, “There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.”
In the fourth day’s work typifies our Lord’s ascension and session.
"Two great luminaries" typify Christ and His church and just as the moon reflects the light of the sun so the church reflects the light of Christ meaning the church is to reflect the character of Christ.
Just as the sun and the moon are "to be a cause of illumination upon the earth” (v. 17), and secondly, they are "to rule over the day and over the night" (v. 18) so it is with Christ and His people.
During the present interval of darkness, the world’s night, Christ and His people are "the light of the world," but during the Millennium they shall rule and reign over the earth.
This leads us to the communion service.
So could we have our deacons pass out the communion elements and let us take a few minutes to mediate upon the Lord and prepare ourselves for the Lord’s Supper.
The Lord’s Supper is a commandment given by the Lord Jesus Christ to every church age believer to bring into remembrance His Unique Person and Finished Work on the Cross, both of which serve as the basis for fellowship with God and each other as members of the Body of Christ.
In the communion service, the bread portrays the sinless humanity of Christ, which was sacrificed for us and the wine portrays His spiritual death as our Substitute, both of which serve as the basis for fellowship with God and each other.
1 Corinthians 11:23, “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread.”
1 Corinthians 11:24, “and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’”
1 Corinthians 11:25, “In the same way {He took} the cup also after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink {it} in remembrance of Me.’”
1 Corinthians 11:26, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.”