24.1 The Creation
© 2015 Christ Revealed Bible Institute
For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now (Romans 8:19-22).
What is the creation?
The Heresy Verse
But first, what is this verse? This verse, set here by Paul as the climax of his gospel, the top of the most important chapter of his writing career, is the great heresy verse of the Bible – the manifestation of the sons of God. This line has been at the center of my own knowledge of God for 38 years, yet I have known fellow Christians to run away from me because I actually consider seriously this critical part of Paul’s gospel. Almost all ministers of the gospel avoid this verse through their entire career; they will preach right up to it and then preach right on after it – but no one allows the manifestation of the sons of God except – those heretics to be avoided.
The Whole Picture
No other verse in the Bible is more violently thrust over there into heaven somewhere, far away into the future. Any thought that this word might have meaning, let alone fulfillment, for our lives right here overthrows the entirety of the “go to” heaven replacement for Christ manifest in the flesh. NOT on this earth! NOT in human flesh! The proof that Nicene Christianity has replaced Paul’s gospel with the lie (It’s all for heaven after we die) is the absence of this direct connection between Romans 8:19 and Romans 8:29.
Of truth, even though we have pulled two of the most important verses out of this passage, Romans 8:18-30 is one larger thought and must be read and known as a whole.
Motive, Opportunity, and Means
The motive of God, the WHY: that He might be the firstborn among many brethren – many sons to glory. The opportunity of God, the WHAT: the manifestation of the sons of God – the glory to be revealed in us. The means of God, the HOW: laboring in birth pangs together – Likewise the Spirit also helps us in our weakness – God and us working together to penetrate all things with goodness.
You might have noticed how our passage through the HOW verses and into God’s opportunity verses, love one another, has brought us into a state that can best be described by one word. – Travail.
What Is Creation?
This ninth “verse” states four specific, but very large facts regarding the creation – let’s list them by human time.
1. The creation was subjected to futility. 2. The creation eagerly awaits with earnest expectation –for something. 3. The creation groans and labors with birth pangs. 4. The creation will be delivered from bondage into this something it expects to happen.
In this session, we want to address points one and two; in Session 25, we will explore points three and four. But first we must ask – what is creation?
Out of “Nothing?”
| Ktistes | Ktisis | Ktizo |
| The Creator | To create | The created |
Three forms of the same word – the sense is first, to found a city, second, to form or shape something, and third, to make something out of nothing (as everyone imagines).
God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did (Romans 4:17b). – All things were made through Him (the Word), and without Him nothing was made that was made (John 1:3). – By faith we understand that the ages were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible (Hebrews 11:3).
A Nice Poem
Connecting the Greek words to the English words in the second part of Hebrews 11:3 is a bit confusing – yet this confusion has led to a confused Christian mind regarding all things that exist, the entirety of what is called creation, the spiritual heavens, in which dwell angelic creatures, the earth, including planets and stars, that is, the physical, and the ages, or the frames of time set by God.
Everyone thinks these things just appear out of “nothing.” Thus everyone misses the substance behind all things. “He hangs the world on nothing” is a nice poem, just not true.
| Me ek - | phainonomenon | blepomenon | gegonenai |
| Not out from | visible appearing | the looked at | have become |
Substance Behind
The visible, the appearance, that which is looked at, comes out from something else, something invisible, something that does not appear to anyone, something solid and unmoving, yet unknown by everything created.
You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You remain; and they will all grow old like a garment; like a cloak You will fold them up, and they will be changed (transformed). But You are the same, and Your years will not fail (Hebrews 1:10-12). Remember that all time words referring to an ALL here NOW God must be figurative only.
Workings Not Seen
We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are age-abiding (2 Corinthians 4:18). – Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1).
| Pistis elpisomenon hypostasis | pragmaton elenchus ou blaphomenon |
| Faith – of hope the assurance | of workings not seen – the proof. |
The second “things” is the only time the English “things” is the translation of a Greek word and not just stuck in to make sense.
- Pragma: a deed, a thing done, an action, an affair – the things being done in the invisible, that is, inside of God.
- Hypostasis: assurance, substance, reality. (We have already encountered this word in Hebrews 3:14 – CONFIDENCE.)
- Elegchos: a proof – proof that leads to inner conviction.
An Invisible God
Let’s put this all together now.
An invisible God, All HERE NOW, inside of whom are mighty workings and unending energies, ceaseless labor and almost violent action existing entirely inside of pure and perfect rest. All things that exist, exist first inside this invisible God as part of Himself, His thoughts, His mighty Being. In God, all things are perfect and complete, unchanging and forever. Then God speaks Words, the Person of the Lord Jesus, out from which all things that were unchangeable inside of God now appear in the visible creation, both heaven and earth. – Heaven is NOT invisible; we are simply blind at present. Real humans see the heavens all around all the time.
The Connection
This Word is light (Let there be light), and instantly, all the workings inside of God now come into visibility, out from God. BUT – they are different, now that they appear. All things, unchangeable inside of God, become subject to time, to the movement of matter through space (the Bible clearly places angels inside the realms of time), to the unfolding of God’s purposes through the seasons, through the ages.
Everything, then, has two parts: it’s original existence inside of God as part of God, unchangeable and incorruptible, and it’s present appearance in the creation, subject to change. The connection between these two sides of everything is the connection of WORD and FAITH.
God’s “Problem”
In the next lesson, we will explore this vanity of all the creation, the vanity (and the glory) of being subject to change. But God’s “problem,” and thus creation’s problem, is simply this: God is Love; that is, God cannot sin; God cannot violate the integrity of any created person. God must, by His very nature, set all things free of Himself, even though all things created come out of Him and retain their entire substance inside of His mighty energy. Yet that same energy WILL draw all things back into Himself, back into Love.
I cannot tell you how much I love writing these lessons, for this has never been so clear to me as now.
Levels of Creation Appearance
We see, then, four levels of appearance.
1. Appearance as God intends, still subject to vanity. 2. Appearance as marred by sin and rebellion. 3. Appearance as reduced and muddled by the limitation of human seeing. 4. Appearance that is not, that is just made-up nonsense, but still, fervently believed by those who are blind.
Part of our task as we walk wisely through this world is to separate between these levels of creation appearance (in both heaven and earth). Too many of our brethren live in 2, 3, and 4, but especially 4 in today’s world. We understand level 1, but we live only by substance.
47 Ronin
There is a Japanese tale turned into a movie titled 47 Ronin, starring Keanu Reeves. I like this movie a lot; it is a great story, filled with wisdom. But there is one scene in the movie that speaks so strongly to us right now. Feel free to watch the movie. The scene to which I refer is when the half breed, Kai, played by Reeves goes with Lord Kira, the leader of the band of outcast Samurai into the cave of half spirit/half flesh beings to retrieve needed swords. Kai tells Lord Kira NOT to draw his sword, regardless of what appears to his eyes, regardless of WHAT HE SEES.
An Illusion
Lord Kira “sees” his men rush into the cave to rescue him. He “sees” them attacked by the half spirit entities in the cave. He “sees” them being slaughtered one by one. Lord Kira has his hand on the sword hilt and wants, with every fiber of his being, to draw his sword and attempt to save his men from destruction. But because he is a Samurai, he holds and does not draw. When Kai comes back, the swords are given to them. The two go back out to find all the other men alive and well outside the cave. Everything Lord Kira “saw” was an illusion; it was not real. His men never were in the cave being slaughtered.
The Plant as Appearance
We walk by faith and not by sight BECAUSE the outward appearance of created things in both heaven and earth is NOT telling us the truth.
Let’s consider again those four levels of appearance, however. The first level of appearance is entirely of God. Appearance is not false, as some imagine. Think of a plant. The plant is in-between seed and seeds, yet it appears as something totally different. The seed is the substance; the plant is the God-intended appearance of the seed, leading to further seeds.
But appearance levels 2, 3, and 4 are death traps.
Defining Creation
Let’s define creation from this study.
Creation is the plant, the womb of God, by which God brings forth Life out from Himself, Life that will become many who are just like the Lord Jesus Christ. Creation, that is an outward appearance looking quite different either from the original life or from the life coming forth, is necessary because God must set all things free of Himself. God wins only that which comes back to Him by love.
The plant does not define the seeds; neither does the womb or the placenta define the child being birthed. Creation is set free, then, by being won by Love into the revealed liberty of the newly brought forth sons of God.