Saturday 21st January
Read Genesis 2:4-7
“This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
5 Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, 6 but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. 7 Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” (NIVUK)
In John’s amazing Revelation, he is shown the same ultimate reality from multiple perspectives. We have the joy of seeing the good news and its implications revealed in technicolour. Something similar occurs at the very beginning of Scripture also. In the majestic march of the seven days of creation as order is imposed for the benefit of man – revealing the importance of man’s place in the cosmos – we are shown a heavenly perspective. This is captured by the opening phrase, ‘God created the heavens and the earth’ (Genesis 1:1).
A new perspective is revealed near the beginning of the next chapter. We are given the ‘generations’ of the heavens and the earth (the Greek translation of which give us the title of the book – Genesis – which is an unfortunately inaccurate transliteration). These generations, or ‘toledot’ in Hebrew, provide key markers in the first book of the Torah signalling a new beginning. The new perspective we are granted is marked by the reverse word order. We are about to read about the ‘earth and the heavens’ (v4). It is a more intimate view of reality, viewed from below rather than above, and will provide an explanation of why things on earth don’t necessarily match up with things in heaven. It is essential reading. For this mismatch between earth and heaven, the desire of man to bridge a gap that God has established in the beginning, accounts for much that is wrong in the world. We are to understand at the end of this ‘account’ that grasping for heaven rather than having it given freely is sad and foolish.
Consider how Jesus teaches us to pray with that mismatch in mind – and ask earnestly for the desire to receive freely from God He deigns to give, rather than grasp things for yourself.
‘This, then, is how you should pray:
‘“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.”” (Matthew 6:9-13) (NIVUK)
Amen.
