Genesis 1:1 says “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” The English word “God” is “Elohim” in Hebrew, which means “Strong One.” So in Genesis 1:1 God introduces Himself to us as The Strong One.
But God knew that it wouldn’t be enough just to say He was strong. So the rest of Genesis 1 is the record of a demonstration of God’s power. To prove His power and might God speaks creation into existence.
- On day one God created the day and the night.
- On day two God created the sky.
- On day three God created the land, the sea and the vegetation.
- On day four God created the sun, moon and stars.
- On day five God created the creatures of the sea and the birds of the air.
- On day six God created the livestock, the wild animals and last of all mankind – the pinnacle of His creation.
One year at camp a friend didn’t believe me when I told him I could do twenty one handed push ups so I had to prove it with a demonstration. This is what God is doing in Genesis 1. God proved His power by turning an uninhabitable mud pit (for God hadn’t yet separated the land from the water) into a planet teeming with life! And the Bible records that creating the world was so easy for God He didn’t even have to use His hands – only His words! He just spoke creation into existence!
Why did God do this? And He did this to boost our trust and confidence in Him. All throughout the Bible God tries to boost our confidence in Him by demonstrating His strength and power so that we’ll trust Him in every circumstance. It’s only when we really believe that God is strong and powerful that we’ll turn to Him for help in any and every situation.