Question 9: Creation

Question 9: What is the work of creation?

Answer: The work of creation is God's making all things of nothing, by the word of his power, in the space of six days, and all very good.

This question takes us directly to Genesis 1, which begins, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." It is essentially a brief commentary on this chapter. "Of nothing" indicates that God did not simply organize pre-existent material into a universe. He created the material. We can see the importance of this distinction when we come to Genesis 1:2, which refers to an earth that is "formless and void." Here we have existing material that needs organization. God integrates creating work and organizing work over the course of the six days. But the first act, recorded in Genesis 1:1, was creation out of nothing. "By the word of his power" is demonstrated in the repeated idea that God spoke and then something happened. The first example of several is in Genesis 1:3, "And God said, 'Let there be light.' And there was light." The phrase "in the space of six days" reflects the counted days of creation, and although there is some debate about this phrase, it is best to understand it as six "normal" days rather than unspecified periods of time. Finally, the catechism reminds us that on the last day of creation, according to Genesis 1:31, "God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good."

The story of creation helps us to see that God's character and his actions go together. When the catechism described God in question 4, it said that God has infinite wisdom, power, goodness, and truth, among other things. The created world displays God's incredible wisdom in both its grandeur and precision. The means by which God created displays his extroardinary power, that with nothing more than words he is able to build a universe. The original perfection of creation reminds us that God is never the author of evil, but only does what is good. The story of creation itself reminds us that no matter what people may speculate about how this world came to be, God insists that he tells us the truth, and his word is to be honored as giving us an accurate account of what really happened.

What are some things that the creation teaches you about God? Praise God for those things today.

Reference: Explanation of the Shorter Catechism by Thomas Vincent