Devotional - 99-02-23 - C2: Creation

The Holy Alphabet Series

Genesis 1:31, "And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good..."

In the Alphabet this week Port is still on "C", this time Creation. People spend their lives studying whether creation was a literal six days, a span of six days spaced over thousands or millions of years, or any number of other possible theories. Port makes things fairly simple for us.

Creation is...1. "Gods making all things of nothing." This is known as Creatio ex nihilo (Creation from nothing) and Creatio de novo (Creation from new things). The idea being that when God created the heavens and the earth he really created, not simply reformed something that already existed.

Creation is...2. "By the word of his power." If you take a moment and skim through Genesis 1 you will find that the creation days end with, "God said, and there was", "God said, and it was so". It was done by His word.

Creation is...3. "In the space of six daies." Port is a proponent of the six day theory. It is, after all, the simple reading of the text and when trying to understand a Biblical text, the simplest reading of the text is given strong consideration.

Creation is...4. "All very good." Port is taking the conclusion of Creation given in Genesis 1:31, where God looks upon what He has made and finds it "all very good."

I find what Port wrote on Creation refreshing. There are few people today who could say what Port says without qualifying something, or maybe taking issue with the literal six day view. The Creation has become in theological circles a subject of endless, heated, and often fruitless debate. How refreshing to have a simple statement on Creation that is not clouded in controversy or guarded qualifications.

Almost everyone has personal convictions on Creation, the Rapture, Tribulation, Baptism, and all those other areas Christians can't agree on. It is good to come to terms with what you personally feel Scripture teaches in all areas of life, doctrine and eschatology. But having these views, people often fall trap to thinking that they are right and begin to try to win converts to their particular view while fighting those who take another side.

Controversy is rarely helpful. "The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves." Romans 14:22 Whatever your views on Creation or other various issues, wise people and well studied people have taken other views. A t-spoon of humility is often good to take with our convictions.

Soli Deo Gloria,
T-

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