“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1 (ESV)
The basis for the propositional truth for the worldview of Biblical Theism, and its consequential implications including being accountable to the God of the Bible, stems from the very first verse from the first chapter of the first book of the Bible: Genesis 1:1. This verse is not an archaic, ancient or outdated text having no application to our lives today. Instead, the text establishes the foundation, source and starting point for all the biblical theist believes, and consequentially does, in knowing and living for God the Creator.
To begin with we observe the event of creation. “In the beginning” (Genesis 1:1, ESV). The phrase is one word in the Hebrew (רֵאשִׁית / rēʾšît). It refers to the point in time which is the beginning. It is the beginning of time at the point of the initiation of life that God created. The word appears fifty times in nearly all parts of the Old Testament. The primary meaning is “first” or “beginning” of a series.
Secondly, we observe the person responsible for creation: God. The word for God is אֱלֹהִים / ʾělohîm. This refers to the One, True God. We should note that though the form is a grammatical plural, the meaning is singular and many sources believe this implies a plurality of majesty or stateliness.
Another category meaning of ˒ĕlōhı̂m. surrounds his majesty and glory. He is the “God of Eternity” (Isaiah 40:28); “God of Justice” (Isaiah 30:18); “God of Certainty” (Isaiah 65:16); “Living God” (Jeremiah 10:10); and “This Holy God” (I Samuel 6:20). God is known as “The Living God, Speaker from the Midst of the Fire” (Deuteronomy 5:23; I Kings 18:24); “God, the Bringer of Prisoners into Prosperity” (Psalm 68:7); “God … the Bringer out to you Water from the Flinty Rock” (Deuteronomy 8:15); and “Your God Who Separated You from the Peoples” (Leviticus 20:24).
One of the most far reaching group of titles of ˒ĕlōhı̂m. are those relevant to the Savior God. These include “Their God” (Genesis 17:8); “The God of Abraham” (Genesis 26:24); “The God of Abraham … and the God of Isaac” (Genesis 28:13); “The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob” (Exodus 3:6). It is estimated that more than one hundred such titles are found in the Old Testament. Sometimes to these titles is added the personal name, “Yahweh” (Gen 24:12).
Finally, there are titles which express intimacy with God. These include “The God of Nearness” (Jeremiah 23:23); “Your God in Whom you Trust” (2 Kings 19:10); “God Your Chastener” (Deuteronomy 8:5); The God Feeding Me My Life Long Until Now”(Genesis 48:15); “God of My Righteousness” (Psalm 4:1); “God of My Mercy (Psalm 59:17); “God of My Strength” (Psalm 43:2) and “Our God Being Merciful” (Psalm 116:5).
It is this all supreme ˒ĕlōhı̂m./ God who created (בָּרָא, בָּרָא, בָּרָא / baraʾ, baraʾ, bara’). It was He who fashioned and shaped that which had not been in existence prior to His command for it to come into being. He created the universe at a particular point in time and space, which He also created, and the impact of the act continues to the present day.
The root bārā˒ means “to create” something from nothing. It also means to initiate something new and to bring into existence that which did not exist before (Isaiah 43:1; Ezekiel 21:30; 28:13-15). The word also possesses the meaning of “bringing into existence” in several passages (Isa 43:1; Ezk 21:30 [H 35]; 28:13, 15). God’s actions indicate that He is sovereign (Psalm 89:11-12; Isaiah 40:21-26), purposeful (Isaiah 42:1-5; 45:12), majestic (Amos 4:13) and orderly (Isaiah 45:18).
Dr. R. C. Sproul writes, “God’s sustaining providence means that every created thing depends on something outside itself for its origin and continuation. This something is God. Unlike His creation, however, our Creator depends on nothing outside Himself for His existence. He is self-existent, having the power of being in Himself. We were created in time, and in God “we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:22–34). God, however, is. We know Him by His covenant name, “I AM WHO I AM” (Ex. 3:14). There never was a time when He was not, and there never will be a time when He will not be. As dependent creatures, we rely on the Lord for our standards of right and wrong, our knowledge, and much more. We know our place in the universe only when we remember that He is our Creator and we are His creatures”
Soli deo Gloria!
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