LESSONS FROM THE ACCOUNT OF CREATION.
By Mrs. Julia Loomis
WHERE, in all the literary productions of man, can language be found comprehending so much as the few simple words which open the account of creation?—"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep." Here we pause in silent awe; for language can not portray, nor imagination conceive, the grossness of that darkness which knows no light. But we read on: "And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light; and there was light." Now the silence is broken, and praise to God is on our lips; for we remember when our hearts, like those dark waters, were all darkened by sin, without God, and without hope, how this same blessed Spirit moved upon our hearts, brushing aside the dark veil which sin had drawn over them, and whispering hope and comfort through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We remember, too, how our hearts yielded to the gentle wooing of the Spirit, "and God said, Let there be light; and there was light." As we pass along down through the account, let us note other lessons that may be drawn from it. Each day had its appointed work, and that work was complete at its close. The lesson for us in this seems to be that the work of each day should be planned, and no more should be undertaken than can be accomplished with satisfaction to ourselves and to those with whom we have to do. And here a beautiful thought presents itself, that, at the close of each day's work, the infinite Creator paused for retrospection, "and God saw that it was good." O, if we could, at the close of each day, look back upon its record without one regret, what might not be accomplished in a lifetime, for the uplifting of mankind! We notice that no animal life was created until everything necessary to its well-being was provided, which shows the tender mercy of God toward all his creatures. This brings us to the creation of man. "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." Here is the first intimation in our English Bible that we have of a colaborer in the work of creation; and the question naturally arises, Who is this personage? The Bible student finds the answer to this query in the first chapter of John. There he is called "the Word," and John declares, "All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made." John 1:3. Verse 14 tells who the Word was: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us."8From these God-breathed truths we learn that this was none other than the Son of God, who afterward gave his life for our redemption. "Let us." How fully do these words express the unity of the Father and the Son, the oneness of purpose, and the perfect confidence of the Father in the Son! As we read on, and find that man was to be given dominion over the whole earth and every living thing, we pause again to reflect; for we can not conceive of a finite being capable of such a position. And when we try to consider the wonderful capabilities of man at first, and compare with that our present dwarfed condition, we can not but wonder at the forbearance of God in providing for our restoration. So man was created, and the six days' work was done. "And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good." Here finite wisdom would say, It is enough. But not so with Infinite Wisdom. He had provided for man's animal nature. He had also provided for his physical nature in the six days of work, for which he had set the example. But the Creator had endowed man with higher powers than these, capable of communing with himself, and searching into those great truths which were the foundation of his throne. He also required man's worship. It was his by right; for to the Creator man owed his life, and the beautiful world he had made for his dwelling-place. So, for man's highest good, the all-wise Creator added a rest-day to the weekly cycle; by resting in it himself: "And he rested on the seventh day from all his work." In what way could he have endeared the day to mankind so perfectly as by resting in it himself, making the day holy with his own presence. He also set a perfect example for man; for Christ said, "The Sabbath was made for man." And then, to make the day more sacred and secure, "God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it; because that in it he had rested."