God Created

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)

This is the first mention in the Holy Bible of the name of the Creator of everything..God.

The Hebrew word used here is 'elohiym, (pronounced el-o-heem'). It is in the plural form, meaning "gods", and it is preceded by a specific article meaning "the", referring to the supreme God. It is derived from a word meaning to twist, implying to be strong.

The word for created is bara', meaning to produce, to bring into being from nothing. It was also used to mean cutting down a forest, selecting, or feeding.

Taken at face value, these two words suggest a Person, one Creator Who personally brought into existence all matter and substance. These words carry implications of strength, imagination, and purpose.

It seems a paradox to combine a word that is in the plural form with the specific article "the". The combination produces a picture of strength (many) joined in unity (one). This is the first evidence in the Bible that supports the concept of a triune God: three persons forming a completely unified godhead. Later in the Bible we will see specific references to acts of the different persons in this godhead.

A God of more than one Persons is unified as One. Why would this God choose to create? He was already self-existent...He did not need a heaven or an earth in which to dwell. He was already in communion with the other persons of the Godhead...He was not lonely or in need of companions. What motivated God to create?

We can see a dim picture in our human lives that may help illustrate God's motivation. Humans are born with a desire to create. We see that most clearly in artists. Why would an artist paint a picture or form pottery? Of course there are many earthly, natural reasons: financial gain, popularity, functionality, decoration. But if you strip all these "incentives to create" away, an artist will still be driven to create. Why? In a word, love. Love is the motivation for creation.

Think about it. An artist envisions a picture, or a song, or a sculpture, imagining the lines and color and texture. There is little reason to make his imagination concrete unless he desires others to experience the same feelings that he has. This sharing of good things with others is the most basic expression of love.

Of course, love can be distorted, perverted, and mis-used. An evil heart can imagine evil art, and can desire that others be infected with evil. But in a perfect world, only good would be shared, and love would remain pure.

And by definition, God is perfect!