DAY SEVENTEEN - BIG PICTURE IN A YEAR - THE CREATION
“In the beginning was the Word..”
John 1: 1
Reading: Psalm 33: 6; John 1: 1-3
Yesterday we introduced the fact that the creation was a product of the Triune God, and that the very first intimations of Trinity are found in the opening verses of the Bible.
Our main reading for today, John 1: 1, is plainly purposeful. John clearly intends to draw a line between the opening words of his gospel, and the opening words of the Old Testament. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:1-3). First of all, if you look this passage up and scroll your eyes down to verse 14 (“the Word became flesh and dwelt among us”), it’s clear that “the Word” is Jesus Christ. The next thing to notice is that Jesus is explicitly called “God” in verse 1. And, as we highlighted earlier, John clearly echoes the opening lines of Genesis when he begins his gospel with the same phrase: “In the beginning.” One thing that is truly astounding here is that Jesus is given credit for creating…everything. That’s what verse 3 plainly states, that all things were made by him, and nothing was made apart from him. This also implies that Jesus was uncreated, if he were created then something (namely himself) would exist that he didn’t create, and the verse says there’s nothing that is made that was not made by Jesus.
Prayer
Not only my Saviour, my Creator as well. I worship you now in truth my Lord Jesus, as God, for that is who you are.
For the family
Explain
Explain how Jesus is the Word of God and was therefore the way in which God the Father created everything.
Engage
Help your kids to think about this...Jesus made the world for me.. but the whole world was made for Jesus...if I was made for Jesus.. what does that mean for my life?
Younger kids
Open their Children’s Bible to and read, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Invite the children to repeat the scripture with you, a few words at a time. Explain that Heavenly Father had Jesus Christ make the world and everything in it; Jesus also made the sun to give us light. Invite the children to raise their hands above their heads in a circle and say “sun.”
Tell the children that Jesus made the stars we see at night. Invite the children to open and close their hands like stars twinkling and say “stars.”
Point to the trees outside and tell the children that Jesus made the plants. Invite the children to stand and stretch their arms high, pretending to be trees blowing in the wind. Invite them to say “trees.”
