Creator God. Provider God.

Genesis 1.

"In the beginning... God ... created the heavens and the earth."  Genesis 1:1

The creation account is one that many of us could recite in its entirety.  We know it like the back of our hands.  We have made many a mobiles or drawings of each and every day.  We know the sun, the moon, the land and seas,  the birds, the wild animals.  But do we recognize and know the God who created it all.  Rarely, if ever have I taken a look at the God who created it all in the midst of the creation account in Genesis 1.  Are we awed by all He did?  Are we taken aback by His grace?  Are we astounded by His provision? This is what I discovered Saturday morning while reading Genesis 1.

God existed before the creation of the world.  Genesis 1:1 could have simply stopped at "In the beginning God."  There would be no need for 1 Samuel or Micah or John or 2 Peter.  The story did not have to continue because God did not need us.  He is sufficient in Himself.  But the story did not stop there.  Genesis 1:1 continued with thirty-one more verses, and the Bible ends with Revelation.  And God created man and woman on the sixth day.  I am overwhelmed and in awe of how much God loved us in simply creating us.  Why would He even create us?  He surely didn't need to.  I am overwhelmed confidently knowing that He created man and woman to enjoy Him, to worship Him, to be provided for by Him - to be loved by Him.  This is the chief end of man - to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

There were six days of creation.  God planned each day in accordance with His greater purpose.  Each day is a progression built upon the previous day.  He didn't start with the animals and end with the land.  No.  He made the seas and separated them to create land.  He then provided vegetation in the form of seed-bearing plants and trees.  Then He made the animals because they now had a place to live and food to eat.  Our God is methodical. Our God is the Creator.

Ending with the creation of man and woman on the sixth day, I realized how much God meant to provide for His children since the beginning of creation.  With the progression of each day, God added and built upon previous days to provide a world in which man could live and be provided for.  Everything was set in place and perfected before bringing man into the world.  It was just as if the last piece of silverware was placed on the Christmas dinner table before all of the guests arrive.  God wanted everything to be ready for man's enjoyment.  God's love for man is shown in His provision of a place to lay his head and be dry; food to eat; trees for shade from the heat; and a woman as a companion.  In Genesis 1: 29-30, God gives man everything.  He literally names everything that has been created for man's benefit and good, and He gives it to him.  Our God is the Provider.

It is by no mistake that Genesis 1 ends with God seeing everything He has made and it being "very good"  He delighted in man.  He delights in us.  He loved man then.  He loves us now.  I am confident that our God pursues us with diligence, so we will live a surrendered life to Him and enjoy Him completely.

He is our God.  He is our Creator God.  He is our Provider God.