KAVOD SERIES · PART ONE · ARTICLE 4
THE GLORY DUE HIS NAME — GOD MAKES HIMSELF KNOWN
In our previous article, we stood with Moses before the burning bush and heard God declare, “I AM THAT I AM.” God does not depend upon anyone or anything outside Himself. He was not created. He did not come into being. He simply and eternally is.
That truth carries us directly to the opening words of Scripture:
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.”
God did not begin “in the beginning.” The beginning began because God willed it.
Before there was light, matter, time, space, earth, or sky, God was there. He was not waiting for creation to complete Him. He lacked nothing. The universe did not give God life; God gave life to the universe.
The God who revealed Himself to Moses as I AM is introduced on the opening page of Scripture as Elohim—the Mighty Creator.
The Bible Begins with God
The Bible does not begin by offering an argument for God’s existence. It does not introduce Him as one possibility among many. It begins with God already present, already sovereign, and already acting.
“In the beginning God.”
Those four words place everything else in its proper order. God is first. Creation is second. God is eternal. Creation is dependent. God commands. Creation responds.
This distinction between the Creator and His creation is foundational to the Christian faith. Everything we can see, touch, measure, or study belongs on the created side of that dividing line. God alone stands above it.
The universe is not eternal. Nature is not divine. Humanity is not the highest authority. The heavens and the earth are the workmanship of God.
Elohim—The God Who Creates
The Hebrew word translated “God” in Genesis 1:1 is Elohim. It is the first designation for God encountered in the Bible, and here it directs our attention to His limitless power, sovereign authority, and creative majesty.
Elohim is plural in form, yet when it refers to the true God in Genesis 1:1, it is joined to a singular verb: God created. The Creator revealed in Scripture is one God.
We should not turn the Hebrew grammar into a secret formula or claim that the word Elohim by itself proves the doctrine of the Trinity. The Trinity is revealed through the whole testimony of Scripture. Nevertheless, even the opening chapter begins unfolding that fuller revelation. God speaks, the Spirit of God moves upon the waters, and the New Testament later reveals that all things were created through the eternal Son.
This designation is not given merely to satisfy our curiosity about an ancient Hebrew word. It tells us who stands behind everything that exists.
Creation has a Creator, and Scripture first identifies Him as Elohim.
“And God Said”
Genesis 1 repeatedly gives us one of the most powerful declarations in all Scripture:
“And God said.”
God did not struggle against some equal and opposing power. He did not discover creation or shape a universe that already existed independently of Him. He spoke, and creation obeyed.
Light appeared. Waters were divided. Dry land emerged. Vegetation sprang forth. The heavens were ordered. Living creatures filled the seas, the skies, and the earth.
Then God looked upon what He had made and declared it good.
Hebrews explains:
“Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” —Hebrews 11:3
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The power of Elohim is beyond human comparison. We make things by using materials God has already provided. A carpenter requires wood. An artist requires pigment. A builder requires stone, steel, and earth.
God required none of these. Everything the craftsman uses first came from the hand of the Creator.
Creation Declares His Glory
Creation is not God, but creation belongs to God and bears witness to Him.
The heavens do not declare their own glory. They declare the glory of God. The sun, moon, stars, mountains, oceans, forests, and living creatures testify that wisdom and power greater than our own stand behind them.
Psalm 96 draws the distinction clearly:
“For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.” —Psalm 96:5
An idol is something fashioned by human hands and then treated as divine. Elohim is the God who fashioned the hands.
Creation cannot tell us everything we need to know about God. It cannot explain the cross or announce the saving terms of the gospel. For that, we need God’s written Word. Yet creation leaves humanity without excuse because it continually displays His power, wisdom, order, and divine majesty.
For the Christian, the created world should never become ordinary. Every sunrise, changing season, field of flowers, and star-filled sky should turn our attention beyond the gift to the Giver.
The proper response to creation is not worship of nature, but worship of nature’s God.
Made in the Image of Elohim
The crowning act of God’s creation was not the formation of the stars or the filling of the oceans. It was the creation of mankind.
“And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” —Genesis 1:26
Human life possesses unique dignity because men and women were created in the image of God. We are not accidents produced by a universe without purpose. We were deliberately made by Elohim to know Him, represent Him, exercise faithful stewardship, and live for His glory.
Being made in God’s image does not make us divine. It means that our value, identity, and purpose come from Him.
We do not create ourselves. We do not belong solely to ourselves. We are creatures entrusted with life by our Creator, and we are accountable for how that life is lived.
This is not a burden imposed by an uncaring power. It is the gracious order established by the God who looked upon His creation and called it very good.
The Creator Revealed in Jesus Christ
The New Testament brings the creative work of God into its fullest light by revealing the eternal Son.
John writes of Jesus Christ:
“All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” —John 1:3
Paul declares:
“For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible.” —Colossians 1:16
Jesus Christ is not part of creation. He is the eternal Word through whom creation came into being. The One who walked beside the Sea of Galilee made the waters. The One who multiplied the loaves created the grain. The One who opened blind eyes fashioned human sight.
Then the Creator entered His creation to redeem fallen creatures.
The hands through which all things were made were pierced on the cross. The Lord of life entered death and rose again so that sinners might be reconciled to God. The gospel is not a plan devised by humanity to reach its Creator. It is the gracious work of the Creator coming to save His people.
Because This Is Who God Is
Because God is Elohim, we can worship Him with reverence. The God we approach in prayer is the One who called the universe into existence.
Because God is Elohim, we can trust Him. Nothing in our lives is beyond the wisdom or power of the One who made heaven and earth.
Because God is Elohim, we must obey Him. The Creator has the authority to define what is good, true, righteous, and pleasing in His sight.
Because God is Elohim, our lives have meaning. We were created by Him, bear His image, and have been called to glorify Him.
And because Jesus Christ is the Creator and Redeemer, the Christian can live with confidence that the One who began His saving work will not fail to complete it.
We were not made merely to admire creation. We were made to join creation in giving glory to God.
A Prayer of Worship
Elohim, mighty Creator of heaven and earth, You alone are eternal, sovereign, and worthy of worship. Forgive us for treating Your works as ordinary and for living as though we belonged to ourselves. Open our eyes to behold Your wisdom, power, and goodness throughout creation. Teach us to remember that we bear Your image and that our lives were made for Your glory. We praise You for Jesus Christ, the eternal Son through whom all things were created and through whom sinners are redeemed. May our words, our work, and our worship give unto You the glory due Your name. Amen.
The God who created us possesses the rightful authority to direct us. He is not merely our Creator. He is Adonai—our Lord and Master.
Next in the journey: Adonai—Our Lord and Master.
Scripture to Carry With You
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” —Genesis 1:27
“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.” —Psalm 19:1
“For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible.” —Colossians 1:16
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