This is one of the great statements in all the Bible. God speaks, and what He speaks comes to pass. There is no struggle, no delay, no process of uncertainty. God does not experiment. He commands. The universe responds. His Word is sovereign.
The first recorded words of God in Scripture are words that bring light. That alone is worth pausing over. The God who is light brings light into a dark world. He does not negotiate with the darkness. He simply speaks, and the darkness is penetrated by light.
We are not told all the mechanics of this light, and the Bible does not pause to satisfy human curiosity at every point. The light-bearers-the sun, moon, and stars-will be appointed on the fourth day, but light itself is created on the first day. The One who is uncreated light is fully able to create light before He appoints its later earthly markers.
This also points us toward Christ. John 1 ties creation light to spiritual light. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). In the new heaven and new earth, the Lord Himself will be the light of His people. So from the beginning, light is connected to God’s presence, God’s truth, and God’s glory.
Notice again the method: “And God said.” Creation is brought about by the Word of God. Psalm 33:9 says, “For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.” This is not a slow, uncertain development. This is divine command. God said it, and it was so.
There is a practical lesson here. The same God who spoke light into the world is the God who speaks truth into our darkness. When God’s Word enters a soul, light comes. The sinner begins to see sin, grace, Christ, truth, eternity, and hope. The light of God is still powerful.
“Let there be light.” God had but to speak the word, and the great wonder was accomplished. How there was light before there was any sun, for the sun was not created until the fourth day of the week, is not for us to say. But God is not dependent on his own creation. He can make light without a sun. He can spread the gospel without the aid of ministers; he can convert souls without any human or angelic method, for he does as he wills in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.
This is one of the great statements in all the Bible. God speaks, and what He speaks comes to pass. There is no struggle, no delay, no process of uncertainty. God does not experiment. He commands. The universe responds. His Word is sovereign.
The first recorded words of God in Scripture are words that bring light. That alone is worth pausing over. The God who is light brings light into a dark world. He does not negotiate with the darkness. He simply speaks, and the darkness is penetrated by light.
We are not told all the mechanics of this light, and the Bible does not pause to satisfy human curiosity at every point. The light-bearers-the sun, moon, and stars-will be appointed on the fourth day, but light itself is created on the first day. The One who is uncreated light is fully able to create light before He appoints its later earthly markers.
This also points us toward Christ. John 1 ties creation light to spiritual light. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). In the new heaven and new earth, the Lord Himself will be the light of His people. So from the beginning, light is connected to God’s presence, God’s truth, and God’s glory.
Notice again the method: “And God said.” Creation is brought about by the Word of God. Psalm 33:9 says, “For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.” This is not a slow, uncertain development. This is divine command. God said it, and it was so.
There is a practical lesson here. The same God who spoke light into the world is the God who speaks truth into our darkness. When God’s Word enters a soul, light comes. The sinner begins to see sin, grace, Christ, truth, eternity, and hope. The light of God is still powerful.
“Let there be light.” God had but to speak the word, and the great wonder was accomplished. How there was light before there was any sun, for the sun was not created until the fourth day of the week, is not for us to say. But God is not dependent on his own creation. He can make light without a sun. He can spread the gospel without the aid of ministers; he can convert souls without any human or angelic method, for he does as he wills in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.