What do you think of when you think of creation? When I think of creation my mind goes to Genesis chapter 1 verse 1, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. I think of my new son, Benaiah, who was born just four months ago. I also think of an artist with a blank canvas ready to unpack something never seen before, a brand new creation hidden only in their mind. A few weeks ago I was talking with one of the kids in our church who said he had a funny dream to share with me. He said it was so funny that he woke up laughing that morning. He then described an artist who was painting but not with his hands--he was painting with his mind! There were all sorts of colors and singing and dancing. He then smiled and said, That guy is so silly and he ran off.
Again my mind went back to the story of creation and I thought how fun it must have been to watch God at work. We might have laughed with joy as we watched Him bring into existence something new. Creating something brand new out of nothing with only words and, perhaps in light of my little friend's dream, singing and dancing. This was a powerful moment full of joy and amazement.
After the seven days of creation I don’t believe God put down His paintbrush. I believe the seven days of creation served more as a base coat to what He had planned to paint for the rest of history. He would then add the details to the story through stories like the flood , and people like Abraham, Rahab, Esther and so many more. Center to his masterpiece is His Son, Jesus, who would bring light and beauty back to the painting. Still I don’t think He sets down the brush after adding Jesus to the painting.
Last week at the 11 o’clock service in Danville, we watched as God the Creator brought about new life through Jesus. Two ladies surrendered their life to Jesus and were baptized. These were the first two to be baptized in our new baptistery. A verse that came to my mind says, If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here! (2 Cor. 5:17) God still is creating new life in the hearts of people across this city. My heart was filled with joy as the tears came down and I celebrated how great it was to watch God at work. The greatest artist of the world started painting with a blank canvas for our lives. This week Jon’s going to introduce a new series called “God the Artist” and I can’t wait to watch as we look closer at how creative God is.
Dave Rizer, Danville Campus Pastor