Genesis 1:2-5 NIV
“Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.”
INSIGHT
-The Hebrew words tohu and bohu render the meanings unformed and unfilled. The other Hebrew word bara means to fashion or produce. It also means bringing into existence or creating by fashioning matter into a new form. Jehovah Elohim means God our Creator, who created all things by His divine power and capacity. Creator is one of God’s supreme attributes. In the above scriptures we discover that God pre-existed time, space and matter, and He is not bounded by either of these aspects. The holy Trinity is predominantly involved in creation. We find the Holy Spirit hovering over the waters, Jesus Christ is the first born over all creation, and the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15). It is prime to also note that the creation order begins with God fashioning light and separating light from darkness. If God would have created man before light, would he/she really see anything or be able to function according to God’s divine will? God’s creation is therefore perfect, and we are called to worship Him for Who He is. John 8:12 reminds us that, Jesus is the light of the world, and whoever follows Him will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.
PRAYER
Jehovah Elohim we thank You and bless Your holy name for You are our God, creator of the heavens and the earth, and all that is therein. We appreciate You Holy Trinity One God for creating us and for bringing us this far. You are our Creator and Shield, our God in whom we put our trust. Thank You for enabling us to see this day and to come this far. May You bless us and enable us to do that which You have fashioned for us to do even before the creation of the earth. May You shed Your Light in us to eliminate every form of darkness in our hearts and help us to hear Your voice and follow You each time. We pray this believing and trusting in Jesus mighty name. Amen
Further reading: Colossians 1:15-17
Genesis 1:6-10 NIV
“And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. God called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day. And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.”
INSIGHT
-Before the beginning, God had a specific plan to fulfill His eternal purpose, with many different aspects revealed to us through His creation. After God created light and separated light from darkness, He separated the waters below and the waters above. He designed a firmament or an expanse to divide the waters on the land from the water vapor in the sky. The waters above the firmament probably constitute a vast blanket of water vapor above the troposphere and possibly above the stratosphere as well, in the high temperature region now known as the ionosphere and extending far into space. The water below forms the seas, oceans and other water bodies that were separated from the dry ground. Therefore, the Psalmist in Psalm 19:1-4 explains that “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.”
PRAYER
Abba Father our God we honor You and give You all the praise. You are the King of kings and Lord of lords. You are the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. We thank You and exult Your holy name. We humbly beseech You Lord to preserve us from destruction of the elnino rains. We humble call on You to give us rain and productivity as a drought is coming for the next two years according to Your prophetic word. We humbly come at Your feet asking You to forgive us all our sins, trespasses and shortcoming and cleanse us with Your precious blood merciful Savior. May You heal our land dear God. May You bless us, our families, churches, communities, nation and all the nations of the world, and grant all people the gift of salvation through Your mercifil love. We pray for the county of Israel and all the war torn countries, that Lord You may grant them peace. May You protect all our armed forces including those who have been chosen to fight in other countries including Haiti, Congo, that You may grant them Your peace, our Prince of peace. May You bless our going out and coming in, may You bless the work of our hands and give us the grace of fruitfulness. May You bless us in the city and in the country. May You grant us the dew of heaven and make us prosperous in every sphere of our lives. Oh God of all creation, bless this our land and nation. May justice be shield and defender. May we dwell in unity, peace and liberty. May plenty be found within our borders. Amen
Further reading: 2 Chronicles 7:14, Deuteronomy 28:1-14
Genesis 1:11-13 NIV
“Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.”
INSIGHT
-God in His creative genius created diverse species of vegetation, flora and fauna in all uniqueness. Having the dry ground and water, vegetation had a chance to survive. “The grass grows for the cattle, and plants for people to cultivate bringing forth food from the earth” (Psalms 104:14). Some plants are rooted within the soil to capture the correct nutrients to ensure the right growth. Some grow in water and others on water. Little is known whether there is vegetation in the outer space, although very little is also known on the numerous other galaxies apart from the one we live in. The supremacy and wisdom of God is viewed from His work of creation. God’s creation work is perfect and whatever He does is for the good of all. The trees of the forest then sing, they sing for joy before the Lord (1 Chronicles 16:33).
PRAYER
We exalt You our God and King. We praise Your name forever and ever. Every day we praise You and extol Your name forever and ever. Great are You Lord and most worthy of praise. Your greatness noone can fathom. One generation commends Your works to another; they tell of Your mighty acts. They speak of the glorious splendor of Your majesty and we meditate on Your wonderful works. They tell of the power of Your awesome works and we proclaim Your great deeds. They celebrate Your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of Your righteousness. Lord You are gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. Thank You for loving us and choosing us. May You deliver the nation of Israel and grant it peace. May You be exulted in all the earth. May You do a thing in our lives and deliver us from every evil. Our Father who art in heaven; hallowed be Your name; Your Kingdom come; Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptations but deliver us from evil; for thine is the Kingdom the power and the glory; forever and ever. Amen
Further reading: Psalm 145:1-8
Genesis 1:14-23 NIV
“And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day. And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day.”
INSIGHT
-God allowed for tremendous variations within a kind of object or form, and one kind will never become another in creation. God created the celestial with unfathomable characteristics and matter, transcending space and time. God created the sun and the moon, to separate day and night, and the stars with great dynamism. God then created all the water creatures and the birds, and He blessed them and gave them the ability to multiply and increase.
PRAYER
Dear heavenly Father we declare that only You are God in all the heavens and the earth. We come before You with thanksgiving in our hearts, thanking You for You are Great and greatly to be praised. At Your name Jesus every knee should bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ You are Lord to the glory of God the Father. No weapon fashioned against us shall prosper and no tongue raised against us shall prevail in the name of Jesus Christ. We shall overcome by the word of our testimonies and by the blood of the Lamb. We are more that conquorers in You Christ Jesus. May You protect us with Your precious blood and Your hedge of fire. May You forgive us all our sins and trespasses merciful Savior. May You deliver us from every evil and secure us in Your pinions. May You heal all our diseases and deliver us dear Jesus. May You prosper us financially, spiritually, economically, physically, biologically and all spheres of our lives. We exult You Lord and honor You, in Jesus mighty name we pray trusting and believing. Amen
Further reading: Job 38:31-33
Genesis 1:24-31 NIV
“And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.”
INSIGHT
-God created man in His own image and likeness that we may rule over the other creatures. He gave us dominion and blessed us so that we may be fruitful, we may multiply and fill the earth. God gave us His only begotten Son Jesus in the nature of man to save and set us free from eternal death and condemnation. God calls us to believe Him and remain in Him and He will guide us in our divine purpose as we represent Him on earth in His image and likeness.
SUMMARY
Genesis in Hebrew means the beginning of something or someone. The book of Genesis outlines the beginning of the universe, galaxies, light masses, plants, animals, fish, human beings, sin, death etc but we cannot find the beginning of God our Creator. We know that God existed before the beginning, and He is the Beginning and the End. He was before and He exists forevermore. God is the author of creation and created all things. Jehovah Elohim means God the Creator. Science has tried to prove the creation story wrong, but it finds premise within the creation of the universe. The Hebrew word bara means to fashion or produce, and we find God creating from nothing, an ability only He has. No man can create anything from nothing but only God. The intricate balance of our ecosystem argues strongly for the existence of a Creator. We live in a very complex world. On the first day God created the heavens and the earth. He created light, and He separated light from darkness, day and night. On the second day, God created a firmament to separate the waters below and the waters above. On the third day God created the sea and dry land. He then created vegetation. On the forth day God created the sun, moon, stars and the celestial. On the fifth day God created the birds and sea creatures. On the sixth day, God created every kind of livestock and wild animals. He then created man in His own image and likeness. God then rested on the seventh day not because He was tied but He had finished His work and sanctified it holy. Every seven day then became the Sabbath, and on the fiftieth year He declared it the year of Jubilee when all the captives were set free. God also orchestrated the plan to set mankind free from the sin of the first man; Adam. “The first man, Adam, was created a living being” but the last Adam is the life-giving Spirit” (1 Corinthians 15:45). “In the Beginning was the Word and the word was with God and the word was God” (John 1:1). God created through speech and whatever He declared became, and when He speaks becomes the Word of God.
PRAYER
Worthy are You our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created. Lord Jesus You are our God and none can compare to You. We honor You Lord and give You all the glory and praise. You are Sovereign Lord and all creation worships You. We bless Your name Lord Jesus and magnify Your name Jehovah Elohim Creator of all. You created us in Your own image and likeness and have called us to remain in You as You are in us, and to be holy because You are Holy, may You help us and grant us Your grace. You alone are the Lord. You have made the heavens, heaven of heavens with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to all of them and the heavenly host bows down before You. May You bless us and keep us. May You shine Your face towards us and be gracious unto us. May You show Your countenance unto us and give us peace. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us now and forevermore. Amen
Further reading: Proverbs 8:22-31, Revelation 4:11