The Facts
God creates:
The Story
God before time → God speaks His creation into being → God fills the heavens, sea and land with life → God creates mankind → Everything was very good
Genesis begins with a simple statement:
"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." — Genesis 1:1 KJV
Before anything that we can see existed, God was there. He created the heavens, the earth, light, the seas, plants, the sun, moon and stars, the birds, the animals and finally mankind.
The creation is presented as taking place over six days, followed by God's rest on the seventh day. Each day is marked by "evening and morning". At the end of the sixth day God saw everything that He had made, and "behold, it was very good".
Genesis then tells how God made Adam from the dust of the ground and Eve from Adam. They were made in God's image and were given a unique place within God's creation.
The chapter repeatedly shows the pattern: God speaks → creation comes into being → God sees that it is good.
Genesis probably contains some of the first writings ever made. The New Testament and the early church consider Genesis to be the first of the five books of Moses (the Pentateuch — Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy), the foundation of everything that follows.
Genesis means "the beginning". If Genesis is the beginning of all things. Genesis one is the very, very beginning of all things.
Six Days
The Hebrew word for day, when used with "evening and morning" and numbered days, consistently refers to ordinary days. So Genesis chapter one is saying that God made all things in just six days comparable to our 24-hour days. We should not try to read millions of years of evolution into Genesis one. It does not support that. And millions of years of evolution through death, violence and struggle can hardly be called "very good".
God
The universe is not the result of an accident or random events; it is a creation of the uncreated God who was before "the beginning"
Mankind
Adam and Eve: male and female, both created in God's image. Mankind is different from the other animals. That is why killing a lamb is dinner preparation, but killing a man is murder.
"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 KJV
God then blessed mankind and gave them a command and a responsibility: they were to be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and have dominion over the living creatures. Mankind was placed in a position of authority over God's creation, not as its owner, but as one who was to rule over it under God.
God also gave mankind the plants and fruit of the earth for food. The animals were likewise given green plants for food. This describes the original provision of food in God's very good creation, before the entrance of sin and death.
"And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion..." — Genesis 1:28 KJV
"Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed... and every tree... to you it shall be for meat." — Genesis 1:29 KJV
Genesis must be read alongside the rest of Scripture. The Bible develops its themes over time with later passages helping us understand earlier ones.
The New Testament identifies Christ as central to Creation:
"All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made." — John 1:3 KJV
The "Him" is Jesus Christ. John 1:1–3 teaches that the One who created all things was the eternal Word, who was with God and was God.
Paul likewise teaches that all things were created by Christ and for Christ. (Colossians 1:16).
The New Testament also confirms that Adam and Eve were real people. Jesus refers to their creation when teaching about marriage (Matthew 19:4–5), while Paul refers to Adam as the first man (1 Corinthians 15:45).
Jesus is not named in Genesis chapter one, but the New Testament tells us that He was intimately involved in the work of creation. John begins his Gospel by taking us back to the beginning:
Genesis 1 also introduces the contrast between darkness and light. God said, "Let there be light", and light came into the darkness. John uses this same language when he introduces Christ as the One who is the "Light of men" (John 1:4–9).
The New Testament also describes Jesus as the last Adam (1 Corinthians 15:45). Genesis 1 introduces us to the first man, Adam, created by God and made in His image. The full significance of Adam and Christ as the first and last Adam will become clearer as the story of Scripture unfolds.
Genesis chapter one therefore gives us important foundations for understanding Christ: He is the Creator, He is the source of life and light, and He is the One whom the New Testament identifies as the last Adam.
Genesis reveals God as the eternal Creator who made all things by His power. He is not part of creation; He stands above it and rules over it. The uncreated creator.
Genesis 1 also gives us the first glimpse at the Trinity, one God, three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. "Let Us make".
Genesis also gives us a foundation for understanding who we are. We are not merely another part of the animal kingdom. Being made in God's image gives mankind a unique dignity, while being given dominion gives mankind a responsibility. We are to exercise authority over God's creation under God's authority. Genesis also shows that mankind's original food was provided from the plants and fruit of the earth. The later permission to eat meat comes after the Flood in Genesis 9.
The world we see today is not the world as God originally declared it "very good". Genesis provides the foundation for understanding the entrance of sin, suffering and death, but that is for chapter three. Genesis one shows us a good and perfect creation.