01: Jesus, Creator of Heaven and Earth – Thought Starters
[Thought questions for Jesus, Creator of Heaven and Earth January 2, 2013]
Image © Steve Creitz from GoodSalt.com
1. Jesus the Creator of heaven and earth. Do you believe that Jesus created the heaven and earth? Does everyone you are discussing this week’s lesson with have a similar belief? Do you know of any Seventh-day Adventist who does not believe that God created the world? What is the purpose of this lesson topic for the next three months if all of us believe exactly the same? Do you know of people who are loving, kind, helpful, and declare a love of God but do not believe in Creation? Or people who are Creationists to the core, but use ridicule and scorn in defending their beliefs?
2. The beginning. How much does the Bible say about the creation of the world? Does God explain how the heart, brain, bones, limbs and body functions were created? Why not? What about the complex and powerful structure of body cells? Read Genesis 1:1 again. Do the words “the earth was without form, and void” mean there were no building materials on earth? Did God use formless preexisting matter to shape or build trees, fish, and other elements of creation? Can you understand why scientists feel they must reject the Bible account that boldly states that God made the world from nothing?
3. The Heavens Declare. Have you ever traveled thousands of miles north or south from your residence and looked up, amazed, at the differences in the stars of the sky? Or do you sometimes spend time admiring the density and the diversity of the sky on a dark night? Do you watch with interest the latest reports of space exploration? What would happen if gravity became slightly weaker? Or if a huge storm on the sun disrupted the entire energy system on earth? Do you think Satan has any control over the atmosphere? the universe? the cosmos?
4. The Power of God’s Word. Can a mere human like you or I ever understand how a “word” can be as powerful it is portrayed in Scripture? What does the apostle John say about the power of the Divine Word in the first verse of his gospel? A single word can project feelings and information far beyond the word itself, and millions of times more so, the words of Jesus can represent the magnitude and power of being God. Does that amaze you? How does God’s Word help us understand the God of Creation?
5. Creator of Heaven and earth. The brain is an amazing complex of neurons and transmitter cells and much more, but how does the circuitry of heaven and earth compare with the way our brain functions? Can you believe in God and still be an evolutionist? If not, should we even try to reach evolutionists with the Bible story of creation? Would you like to print out a copy of this week’s Sabbath school lesson and share it with all the high school science teachers in your town? Why not? Are there effective ways to proclaim our devotion to the God of Creation in our community?
6. The Creator’s miracles. While on earth Jesus performed several miracles. Since turning water to wine would be impossible if all you had was water, how did Jesus perform that miracle? With that miracle as well as the one in which He fed thousands from five small loaves of bread and two fish, was He depending on existing material? If not, where did the molecules that made the food come from? Then there’s the blind man. Did Jesus perform surgery? How will He heal the wounded and lame at the Second Coming? If God’s Word is so powerful, how can we show our dedication to studying this phenomenon of eternity?
7. We can’t explain it. Pick up almost any book on science or medicine. Will you find situations described in the book that cannot be fully explained? Does the author now and then say, “More study is needed…” or “Results are not conclusive…?” Is it ever appropriate to say that about our knowledge of what God has revealed to us in Scripture? Is it a lack of faith that leads us to say, “I don’t know,” or “The Bible doesn’t seem to make that plain”? Or is just being honest to admit that so much about the origins of the world, the beginning of sin, and final events are not fully understood by us?
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I like sabbath school lesson
I enjoyed this thought provoking lesson. Especially when it asks the question, "Where did the matter come from". I will be back here again right after the Sabbath ends tomorrow for further study.
The mistry of creation simply tells us our imagination and understanding is far below what is needed to comprehend what God is, How great is He. For us to come to terms with the understanding of the divine nature of God, we only need faith and the heavenly intervention to discern the divine things. God is God, our Redeemer, our Saviour and above all He is our Creator
God’s plan may not be known by Angels before being published, why God published and executed his plan while he was seeing the death which was to come?
What is the main cause of human sufferings? Is the execution of the creation plan? Or is the choice of man?
From the execution of the plan some people will be lost and others rescued. What would be lost if God’s plan has been stopped and changed?
God will stop the sin forever when Jesus will come. Why didn’t God do this before making the world to suffer? Do not say that it is to show His righteousness to angels because Angels would not know what that God has done. This should remain the secret of God as He has other many secrets.
Just to say thanks for all you do. I have been using your note to assist in the preparation of the Sabbath school lesson for many years.
Your brother in CHRIST Royce
The identification of Jesus as the Creator is an important aid in evaluating claims about the creation. The Jesus Who created is the same Jesus Who walked among humans, relieving their suffering, comforting their sorrows, and healing their diseases through the power of His word. His example powerfully agrees with the biblical teaching of a good initial creation, without violence or suffering or death. These principles falsify any theory that claims that humans developed over long ages of time, regardless of what claims are made about God's involvement in such a process. It is inconceivable that Jesus would come in the flesh to condemn the kind of behavior that He Himself used in creating. No version of evolution can be reconciled with the life and teachings of Jesus, nor can such theories be reconciled with any responsible reading of Genesis.