In The Beginning: Genesis 1

In the Beginning: Genesis 1

Welcome readers to The Daily Manna! Here we read God's word as our daily manna. Allowing it to nourish and transform us into the image of Christ. 

Today's topic is the very first book of the Torah and the old testament: Genesis. Genesis was written by Moses along with the first other 4 books of the Bible. This book is the story of our creation and beginning. 

The Beginning

Now, the word Genesis means “origin” or “beginning.” The purpose of the book is to show the beginning of the world, humanity, and God’s plan for creation, life, and His plan to bring redemption to a fallen world in only the way God can. 

Today we will be taking a deep dive into Genesis chapter one. This is a breakdown of the summary of Genesis 1 that will show the six days of creation.

Basic Summary of Genesis 1

Day 1: Light and darkness

Day 2: Sky and waters

Day 3: Land, seas, and vegetation

Day 4: Sun, moon, and stars

Day 5: Birds and sea creatures

Day 6: Land animals and mankind (made in God’s image)

Day 7: God rests — completion and blessing

Key Themes and Meaning

Elohim: God the creator

If we take a look at Genesis 1 we can see God as Creator (Eliohim): Everything begins with Him. He is intentional and powerful. In Hebrew the word “bara” is used for the word “create” which means “to make from nothing”. The word “Bara” is used almost exclusively for divine activity. 

It's also interesting to point out that the Trinity can also be seen here in the first two verses in Genesis. That is (father, son, and holy Spirit) 

 Don't believe me? Let's take a deeper look at verses 1 through 3: 

Genesis 1:1-3 (NIV) reads:

1. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2. 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. 3. "And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.”

Interesting: 

1.“God created”: the father, 2. “The spirit of God hovering”: The Holy Spirit, and 3. “God Said”: the Son who was also the word of God. 

Order and purpose: 

If you notice, Creation wasn’t random; God brings structure out of nothing. The Verses 1:3-24 discuss how the earth was formed and then later how vegetation and animals were created. 

The earth was formless, empty, Dark. Notice how he starts separating. He separated light from dark. He gave the earth form in stages. Then he made the sun, stars, moon to govern time and season. 

From there he makes the birds, the sea creatures, the vegetation, and then animals. Notice how he says “according to its kinds” after each one is created. This means that God created each living thing to reproduce and remain within its own species—plants, animals, and humans follow the design He intended. He then blesses them to be fruitful and multiply. 

Humanity’s identity

Genesis 1:26 “ then God said “let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness”.” 

Made in God’s image, set apart to reflect His nature. Man was created differently than all other species. Notice how the passage above says “in our image” and “in our likeness”. This is the Trinity mentioned yet again. 

Just like God is 3 in 1. We are also three and one. We have a soul, a spirit, and a body. Just like the image of God. How cool is that! 

Got them blessed and told them to have dominion over the Earth. 

God’s goodness

Every time God created something he would say “And God saw that it was good.” Now what does “it was good” mean? 

He says it was “good” to affirm that His creation was perfect, complete, and in harmony with His will. It shows that everything He made had purpose, order, and reflected His goodness. It also highlights that creation is inherently valuable because God made it.

Notice how there is no mention of death anywhere in Genesis before the fall of man. Because that was not what God intended when he designed us. He intended us to be fruitful and multiply. 

In verse 31 it mentions how God saw all that he made and it was very good. This was showing how everything worked in harmony and perfectness according to God's plan. And this was the whole creation in 6 days. 

Reflection for Today

What does this teach us about God’s character?

How can we see His creative hand in our daily lives?

Are we reflecting His image in the way we live, create, and care for others?

Closing 

As we reflect on Genesis 1, we are reminded that God is a powerful, intentional Creator. Everything He made—light and darkness, the seas, the stars, and humanity—is good and purposeful. Today, we are called to recognize His hand in the world around us and in our own lives, to live in a way that reflects His image, and to honor His goodness in all that we do.

Let us pray:

"Lord, thank You for Your perfect creation and for making us in Your image. Help us to see Your beauty in all things, to live in harmony with Your design, and to reflect Your goodness in our daily lives. Amen."