God’s Crowning Act

I don’t know if you are aware of this or not, but there are two versions of the creation of mankind. First, there is the woman’s version. She says that God created man and then paused and said, “I can do better than that,” and then He created woman. Then there is man’s version. He says that God created man and then God rested. Afterward, He created woman, and since that time neither God nor man has had any rest!

Actually, there are two accounts of creation in the Bible. One is found in Genesis 1 and the other in Genesis 2. But contrary to what some critics of the Bible say, these two accounts are not contradictory, but complementary. Both accounts proclaim the same truth: Man (and I am speaking generically of both men and women) is God’s ultimate creation as evidenced by God’s unique plan, pattern, process, and purpose in His creation.

Critics of the Bible say that Genesis 1 and 2 represent two contradictory accounts of creation and must have been written by two different authors. They maintain that these two accounts were then put together by some editor who apparently did not even have enough sense to realize they were contradictory.

Their reason for saying this is twofold: First, they point out, there are two different names used for God. In Genesis 1, we find the more general name of God, “Elohim”—the creator God. In Genesis 2:4, the critic says, is the name “Yahweh”—the redeemer God of Israel. So, therefore, two names must mean two writers. 

Yet today we often use different names or titles to refer to the same person. Many times, I will be having a conversation with someone in the church, and they will initially address me as “Dr. Jeffress,” and then halfway through the conversation, they will call me “Pastor,” and by the time we are finished talking, I am “Robert” to them. And then one of the triplets will run up to me and call me “Paw Paw.”  All those terms refer to me, but they refer to a different aspect of me: Dr. is a term of respect, Pastor refers to my work, Robert is a term of familiarity, and Paw Paw is a term of endearment reserved for three very special people. 

It is the same here. The different names of God refer to different characteristics of the same person. Elohim, the mighty creator God. Yahweh or Jehovah, the personal God, the Redeemer God.

The critic also points out what appears to be a different order of events in Genesis 1 and 2. But a careful examination shows that Genesis 1 is a broad outline of all of creation, while chapter 2 zeroes in on the creation of man. Genesis 2 is not a chronological account of creation. The subject of this passage is the creation of man—and the rest of creation—plants and animals—are mentioned here only as they relate to man.

If there is one thought I want you to carry away from this message, it is this: God has uniquely created you for a purpose. You are different from every other object of creation, as evidenced by God’s unique plan, pattern, process, and purpose in your creation.

1. God’s Plan for Man’s Creation (Genesis 1:26a)

I want you to notice a contrast here between God’s creation of other objects and His creation of man.

Every other time in Genesis 1, the text says something like, “And then God said, let there be light, and then God said, let there be a firmament, then God said, let the earth sprout forth vegetation, then God said, let the water teem with swarming things.”

In other words, God said something, and it immediately happened. But here, the phrase is different. God says, “Let Us make man in Our own image.” The thought here is that there was a pause, there was some great consultation in heaven that took place before God created man. It was a carefully thought-out plan.

Now, the natural question here is to whom does the word “Us” refer?

I think the best way to understand this word “Us” is as a reference to the Trinity, God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. All three persons of the Godhead were equally involved in the creation process. In Genesis 1:1, you have God the Father creating, and in 1:2, you have the Spirit of God moving over the surface of the waters. And in Colossians 1:6, you find Jesus the Son involved in Creation. “For all things were created by Him and for Him.” 

The fact that you have a picture here in verse 26 of all three persons in the Godhead being in consultation over the creation of man shows the uniqueness of man in God’s plan and purpose. 

2. God’s Pattern for Man’s Creation (Genesis 1:26b)

But there is one thing that distinguishes us from every other part of creation. God has also given us a Spirit—a God consciousness. Animals have no sense of a divine being, they do not think about death and eternity, and they are not filled with guilt and shame over their sin.

Only man feels that emptiness apart from God. Only man feels the futility of existence. Only man can experience every achievement, every pleasure in life, and still conclude like Solomon, “worthless, worthless, everything is worthless.” 

That is what sets man apart from all of God’s created world.

3. God’s Process for Man’s Creation (Genesis 1:27; 2:7)

One reason I love the Bible is because it tells us the way things really are. In Genesis 1:27, you find two equal truths about us. We find both the frailty of our being and the dignity of our being.

Whereas, He created the other entities in the universe from a distance without a touch, He was intimately involved in the formation and the invigoration of our being. 

Genesis 2:7 reminds us that life is a gift from God. We breathe in, and then we breathe out. But we can only take one breath at a time. We must breathe in again, or we die. What a wonderful reminder of our utter dependence upon God. 

4. God’s Purpose for Man’s Creation (Genesis 1:28)

Why did God create us? There is both a stated and an implied reason for our creation. First, the stated reasons: 

• Fill the earth
• Subdue the earth
• Rule over the earth

God created man to glorify Himself and to have fellowship with Him. 

But, we should never forget that the ultimate reason God created us was not for our happiness, not for our pleasure, or for the fulfillment of our goals. God created us to glorify Himself.