Jeremiah 10:11-14 (ESV)

Thus shall you say to them: “The gods who did not make the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.”

[12] It is he who made the earth by his power,

who established the world by his wisdom,

and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.

[13] When he utters his voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,

and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.

He makes lightning for the rain,

and he brings forth the wind from his storehouses.

[14] Every man is stupid and without knowledge;

every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols,

for his images are false,

and there is no breath in them.

The debate rages between proponents of intelligent design, pure evolution from nothing, and the creation of all things by a wise and powerful Creator God. It is a debate that matters. There is much more at stake than just the truthfulness of a few texts of Scripture, although that is not an insignificant issue.

The fact that God is the Creator of all things and sustains the created order is a testimony of His wisdom

Proverbs 3:19 – The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;

by understanding he established the heavens;

It speaks of His power

Psalm 65:6 – the one who by his strength established the mountains,

being girded with might;

It reminds us that He owns the whole thing, meaning that to misuse the planet is to abuse someone else’s property.

Psalm 24:1-2 – A Psalm of David.

The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof,

the world and those who dwell therein,

[2] for he has founded it upon the seas

and established it upon the rivers.

It tells us that God is more glorious than we can possibly imagine

Psalm 19:1 – To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

The heavens declare the glory of God,

and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

The creation is a reminder to us that God is in charge

Isaiah 45:9 – “Woe to him who strives with him who formed him,

a pot among earthen pots!

Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’

or ‘Your work has no handles’?

The debate between those who believe that the universe is the product of a wise God and those who believe the universe is the product of itself is of crucial importance. Take God out of the creation and there is no reason for worship. There is nothing or no one to whom we are accountable. There is no truth to be received, but only principles that we make up depending on the situation. There is only survival of the fittest, not compassion and mercy.

God, as the sovereign Creator of all that is, is where the Gospel begins. God made everything and He made us – the God who made us has told us how to live in peace with him – we have violated every command and precept handed down to us by a loving God and we need to be recreated. And this is what He has done.

Take God out of the picture in creation and there is no one to be accountable to. There are no laws that are handed down to us. There is no higher authority. This is why there are atheists. Easier to believe that God does not exist than discover that He does and have to govern one’s life accordingly. Actually, take God out of the picture, and there is nothing at all.

There may be allowances made regarding some details of how God created everything, but this cannot be surrendered – God did it. The earth is His and we are his creatures. Mankind has always been man and is made in the image if God and is eternal and can only find forgiveness and purpose and meaning and help, in the God who has made him. If this is not true then nothing in the Bible is true either and followers of Jesus Christ are deluded fools, which is precisely what the “new” (and old) atheism maintains.

God who made us is the only One who can tell us how to live our lives. Since He made us in his image we can only find hope and satisfaction in Him. He is the reason we are here and we are all wandering souls with no direction until we rest in Him.

The Apostle Paul compares God’s fiat “let there be light” to what happens in the soul when a person realizes his need for Jesus Christ. So God is still creating. Every time someone comes to Christ for the forgiveness of sin God has said, “Let there be light”. That is how dead we are. If He does not come and enable us to believe we will not. O Lord, thank you for being the great God of creation that you are. And thank you for creating new creatures in Christ. Forgive us for acting and thinking at times as if you had never said “Let there be light” into our souls. Help us to live as children of light.

2 Cor. 4:6 – For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.