One of the things which greatly accelerated the increase of wickedness during this period was the abuse of the marriage ordinance. As noted in a previous chapter, the descendants of Cain were grossly materialistic, immoral, and wicked. On the other hand, Seth and his descendants represented the lineage of righteousness. Though few in this line were sufficiently notable to be included in the Biblical record, they preserved the knowledge of God in the world. By Divine grace they were enabled to live pure and upright lives notwithstanding the natural depravity of the human heart and the engrossing wickedness of their companions. There was in their hearts an abiding consciousness of God's presence, a sense of intimate fellowship with the Infinite, the appropriation of spiritual provisions more real than the closest human relationship. They were the living witnesses of God in the world's darkest period.
Certain members of the Sethite line ignored the moral and religious barriers between the families, and took wives from among the Cainites. This fact is stated in the passage: "The sons of God saw the daughters of man that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose." To interpret this passage as referring to the marriage of angels with mortal women violates the truth revealed through Divine inspiration. The meaning is simply that the moral requirements in the marriage relationship were discarded. The separation Divinely ordered between the Sethites and the Cainites was set aside, thereby permitting the sons of the Sethites to marry the daughters of the Cainites. This situation led to an indescribable state of spiritual decline and wickedness, involving both lines of the human family in the curse of the approaching deluge. Of all the descendants of Seth then living on the earth only No'ah and his family were saved.
Friday, February 5, 2016
Thursday, February 4, 2016
Story 4: Seth And His Descendants l
After their son A'bel had been slain by his brother Cain, and Ad'am and Eve had been deprived of Cain as a result of the curse of God upon him, a third son was born to them. He was called Seth, which means "compensation" or "substitute." At the time of his birth his mother exclaimed: God hath given me another."
Little is known of Seth except there sprang from his lineage E'noch and No'ah, the two most notable characters of the next few centuries, and that he was head of the Messianic line which Je'sus came into the world. Ad'am reached the great age of 937 years, and many sons and daughters were born to him and Eve. These children increased in the same manner, as did their descendants, and since people of that era often lived eight or nine centuries the population was greatly increased.
For a period of more than a thousand years the history of the human race was overshadowed with a pale of silence and oblivion. The multiplied thousands who lived during that period had ideas, emotions, and habits common to all humanity, sustained relations to one another and to the universe much the same as those who live today, and owed supreme allegiance and obedience to God. New discoveries were made, great deeds were wrought, communications received from God, and the race moved forward in material progress. The Divine record, however, mentions only the fact that the people increased in wickedness until God so greatly repented their creation that He brought upon the world a deluge which destroyed every living creature except those who were preserved in the Ark which Noah prepared under His direction. As God looked down upon the world He saw that every imagination of man was continually evil, there were no doubt some good men whom the knowledge of God kept alive on the earth throughout that dark period. Only one man, however, was sufficiently distinguished for righteousness and true spiritual religion to gain recognition in the sacred annals. His name was E'noch, the subject of our next chapter.
Little is known of Seth except there sprang from his lineage E'noch and No'ah, the two most notable characters of the next few centuries, and that he was head of the Messianic line which Je'sus came into the world. Ad'am reached the great age of 937 years, and many sons and daughters were born to him and Eve. These children increased in the same manner, as did their descendants, and since people of that era often lived eight or nine centuries the population was greatly increased.
For a period of more than a thousand years the history of the human race was overshadowed with a pale of silence and oblivion. The multiplied thousands who lived during that period had ideas, emotions, and habits common to all humanity, sustained relations to one another and to the universe much the same as those who live today, and owed supreme allegiance and obedience to God. New discoveries were made, great deeds were wrought, communications received from God, and the race moved forward in material progress. The Divine record, however, mentions only the fact that the people increased in wickedness until God so greatly repented their creation that He brought upon the world a deluge which destroyed every living creature except those who were preserved in the Ark which Noah prepared under His direction. As God looked down upon the world He saw that every imagination of man was continually evil, there were no doubt some good men whom the knowledge of God kept alive on the earth throughout that dark period. Only one man, however, was sufficiently distinguished for righteousness and true spiritual religion to gain recognition in the sacred annals. His name was E'noch, the subject of our next chapter.
Monday, February 1, 2016
Story 3: The Birth Of Cain And A'bel ll
Soon afterwards the Lord apprehended Cain and inquired of him: "Where is A'bel thy brother?" Cain sought to evade the question by asking , "Am I my brother's keeper?" Then the Lord declared that A'bel's blood was like crying to Him out of the ground. For this evil deed Cain was cursed as a vagabond to wander over the earth, a continual exile without a home.
God placed a mark upon Cain, and sent him away with the announcement that anyone who harmed him should be punished. Cain and his wife went into a distant land, and there his children were born. He built a city which he named after his first son, whom he called E'noch. Included in the curse of God against him was that the land should no longer yield its fruit to his efforts, and he was therefore obliged to turn to industrial occupations for a livelihood. Bitterest of all his sufferings must have been the constant image of his murdered brother in his conscience, and the hours of remorse and anguish as the blood of his own mother's son clung to his hands.
Not one item of moral goodness is recorded of Cain's descendants. They became leaders in arts and crafts, advanced in worldly wisdom and material prosperity, and spread abroad in the land. Seven successive generations are mentioned in the Bible, but there is no indication that any of them ever worshipped God or performed any religious or moral deed worthy of record. La'mech, the fifth in the line of Cain's descendants, was the first polygamist, also a murderer. In the remorse of conscience he said:
"Adah and Zillah, hear my voice!
Ye wives of Le'mech, hearken unto my speech:
For I have slain a man to my wounding,
And a young man to my hurt.
If Cain hath been avenged sevenfold,
Truly Le'mech, seventy-and-sevenfold."
In the sixth generation they introduced refinements into the system of society. Ja'bel stabilized the occupations of the shepherd and the herdsman. Tu'bal Cain promoted the use of scientific tools, and Ja'bal excelled in music and poetry. The Cainite line excelled in worldly ambition, in wealth and luxury, and in material knowledge. Their moral and spiritual decline, however, led to their complete extinction in the deluge which soon came upon the world.
God placed a mark upon Cain, and sent him away with the announcement that anyone who harmed him should be punished. Cain and his wife went into a distant land, and there his children were born. He built a city which he named after his first son, whom he called E'noch. Included in the curse of God against him was that the land should no longer yield its fruit to his efforts, and he was therefore obliged to turn to industrial occupations for a livelihood. Bitterest of all his sufferings must have been the constant image of his murdered brother in his conscience, and the hours of remorse and anguish as the blood of his own mother's son clung to his hands.
Not one item of moral goodness is recorded of Cain's descendants. They became leaders in arts and crafts, advanced in worldly wisdom and material prosperity, and spread abroad in the land. Seven successive generations are mentioned in the Bible, but there is no indication that any of them ever worshipped God or performed any religious or moral deed worthy of record. La'mech, the fifth in the line of Cain's descendants, was the first polygamist, also a murderer. In the remorse of conscience he said:
"Adah and Zillah, hear my voice!
Ye wives of Le'mech, hearken unto my speech:
For I have slain a man to my wounding,
And a young man to my hurt.
If Cain hath been avenged sevenfold,
Truly Le'mech, seventy-and-sevenfold."
In the sixth generation they introduced refinements into the system of society. Ja'bel stabilized the occupations of the shepherd and the herdsman. Tu'bal Cain promoted the use of scientific tools, and Ja'bal excelled in music and poetry. The Cainite line excelled in worldly ambition, in wealth and luxury, and in material knowledge. Their moral and spiritual decline, however, led to their complete extinction in the deluge which soon came upon the world.
Saturday, January 30, 2016
Story 3: The Birth Of Cain And A'bel l
Driven from the Garden of E'den under the curse of God, Ad'am and Eve went into the world to set up another home and to work for a livelihood. In the course of time their home was blessed by a first-born son, Eve called him Cain.
The next birth recorded is that of A'bel, whose name had been taken to mean either "vanity" or "short lived." The name could therefore indicate either the pride with which was accepted, or the untimely death soon to overtake him at the hands of his brother.
As the two boys grew into manhood they were taught to work. They were not allowed to grow up in idleness and sloth, but were instructed and trained for the active duties of life. A'bel became a keeper of sheep, while Cain chose to work in the fields, raising grains and fruits. Each followed his chosen vocation industriously, achieving prosperity .
When Ad'am and Eve lived in the Garden of E'den they enjoyed a close personal fellowship with God, carrying on intimate conversions with Him. When the barrier of sin separated them from God they were required to build an altar of heaped up stones on which they offered blood sacrifices in atonement for their sins. Before the altar they made their confessions and prayers to God, and asked God to bless them.
Cain and A'bel were taught to make such offerings to God. They grew into manhood with a sense of their obligations for worship, and were faithful in practicing formal sacrifices on the altar. Each of them brought to the Lord offerings from the fruits of labor, presenting them in formal worship.
Just as there were differences in the offerings presented to God upon the altar of sacrifice, so there were fundamental differences in the meaning of the offerings, and in the spirit in which they were given. Cain brought of the fruits and grains which he had grown, but did not take the time or trouble to select the best. A'bel brought of the firstlings and best of his flock, which he killed and burned on the altar as a blood offering to the Lord. His offering conformed to the religious instructions received from his father, both in regard to the form and substance of the offering, and in the motive and spirit with which it was made. Cain's offering was unacceptable to God, not only because of his failure to provide the right sort of sacrifice and to conform to the manner prescribed by God, but because his heart was not right before the Lord.
God was well pleased with A'bel's offering and gave tokens of its acceptance because it was made in obedience to Divine law, was an offering of faith, and clearly indicated reliance upon Divine grace for the forgiveness of sin. He rejected the offering of Cain, who exhibited the spirit of sin in his heart by becoming angry with God instead of confessing his wrong and asking forgiveness. He therefore stealthily fell upon his brother while he was in the fields caring for his flocks. So Cain slew A'bel, and so the first child born into this world became the first murderer.
The next birth recorded is that of A'bel, whose name had been taken to mean either "vanity" or "short lived." The name could therefore indicate either the pride with which was accepted, or the untimely death soon to overtake him at the hands of his brother.
As the two boys grew into manhood they were taught to work. They were not allowed to grow up in idleness and sloth, but were instructed and trained for the active duties of life. A'bel became a keeper of sheep, while Cain chose to work in the fields, raising grains and fruits. Each followed his chosen vocation industriously, achieving prosperity .
When Ad'am and Eve lived in the Garden of E'den they enjoyed a close personal fellowship with God, carrying on intimate conversions with Him. When the barrier of sin separated them from God they were required to build an altar of heaped up stones on which they offered blood sacrifices in atonement for their sins. Before the altar they made their confessions and prayers to God, and asked God to bless them.
Cain and A'bel were taught to make such offerings to God. They grew into manhood with a sense of their obligations for worship, and were faithful in practicing formal sacrifices on the altar. Each of them brought to the Lord offerings from the fruits of labor, presenting them in formal worship.
Just as there were differences in the offerings presented to God upon the altar of sacrifice, so there were fundamental differences in the meaning of the offerings, and in the spirit in which they were given. Cain brought of the fruits and grains which he had grown, but did not take the time or trouble to select the best. A'bel brought of the firstlings and best of his flock, which he killed and burned on the altar as a blood offering to the Lord. His offering conformed to the religious instructions received from his father, both in regard to the form and substance of the offering, and in the motive and spirit with which it was made. Cain's offering was unacceptable to God, not only because of his failure to provide the right sort of sacrifice and to conform to the manner prescribed by God, but because his heart was not right before the Lord.
God was well pleased with A'bel's offering and gave tokens of its acceptance because it was made in obedience to Divine law, was an offering of faith, and clearly indicated reliance upon Divine grace for the forgiveness of sin. He rejected the offering of Cain, who exhibited the spirit of sin in his heart by becoming angry with God instead of confessing his wrong and asking forgiveness. He therefore stealthily fell upon his brother while he was in the fields caring for his flocks. So Cain slew A'bel, and so the first child born into this world became the first murderer.
Friday, January 29, 2016
Story 2: Sin Enters The Garden Of E'den ll
Soon after they had eaten of the fruit, when its rich and tempting color had faded, and its delightful taste turned into bitterness, A'dam and Eve became painfully aware of their plight. Then came unbearable moments of despair and sad recollections; with the smitten conscience of sin they discovered something shameful about their appearance which they not wish the Lord to see. Covering themselves with fig leaves, they sought to hide from the presence of God in the foliage of the Garden.
Their efforts to cover the shame of wrong doing were without avail; instead of becoming wise and Divine, as promised by sa'tan, they now found themselves foolish and mortal. Their covering for sin was unworthy and futile, and it was impossible for them to escape the all-seeing eye of God. When caused to face God in their unhappy dilemma Eve confessed that she had yielded to the enchanting allurements of sa'tan, and that she and Ad'am had eaten of the fruit of the forbidden tree. They were driven from the Garden, the curse of irksomeness was placed upon the required labor of Ad'am, great pain in child-bearing was pronounced upon Eve, and the blight of mortality was placed upon both of them.
Though the judgments placed upon them by God were grievous and mortal, they were mitigated by the gracious promise that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head. This promise was fulfilled when the Sav'ior, born of woman, came into the world bringing redemption from sin and from the power of sa'tan.
By doing what God had told them not to do, Ad'am and Eve lost their intimate fellowship with God, the happy surroundings of their days of innocence, and many of the good things which God had given them. What is more, they lost these blessings not for themselves alone, but for all their descendants as well. That is what is meant by Adamic, or Original Sin, or Natural Depravity, for the sin which entered human life in the transgression of Ad'am and Eve became the heritage of all people. However, the promise of redemption given in the pronouncement of the curse of God upon them for their sin also embraces the entire human race, and in the realization of the blessings of that promise an even greater Paradise is provided for all mankind.
Thus we have the tragic story of the entrance of sin into the world, and of its blighting curse upon all the world and all humanity. Had Eve never eaten of the forbidden fruit, and Ad'am remained obedient to the Laws of God, the earth would never have been blighted by evil, nor would humanity have known suffering and death. Instead, the Garden of E'den would have been extended until the entire earth had become a Paradise, and God would have continued to dwell with His people in the most intimate and happy relationship.
Over against this tragic story we must always seek a correct view of the new and living way into a Holier Paradise provided in Christ:
"A Friend who will gather the outcasts,
And shelter the homeless poor;
A Friend who will feed the hungry
With bread from the Heavenly store."
Their efforts to cover the shame of wrong doing were without avail; instead of becoming wise and Divine, as promised by sa'tan, they now found themselves foolish and mortal. Their covering for sin was unworthy and futile, and it was impossible for them to escape the all-seeing eye of God. When caused to face God in their unhappy dilemma Eve confessed that she had yielded to the enchanting allurements of sa'tan, and that she and Ad'am had eaten of the fruit of the forbidden tree. They were driven from the Garden, the curse of irksomeness was placed upon the required labor of Ad'am, great pain in child-bearing was pronounced upon Eve, and the blight of mortality was placed upon both of them.
Though the judgments placed upon them by God were grievous and mortal, they were mitigated by the gracious promise that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head. This promise was fulfilled when the Sav'ior, born of woman, came into the world bringing redemption from sin and from the power of sa'tan.
By doing what God had told them not to do, Ad'am and Eve lost their intimate fellowship with God, the happy surroundings of their days of innocence, and many of the good things which God had given them. What is more, they lost these blessings not for themselves alone, but for all their descendants as well. That is what is meant by Adamic, or Original Sin, or Natural Depravity, for the sin which entered human life in the transgression of Ad'am and Eve became the heritage of all people. However, the promise of redemption given in the pronouncement of the curse of God upon them for their sin also embraces the entire human race, and in the realization of the blessings of that promise an even greater Paradise is provided for all mankind.
Thus we have the tragic story of the entrance of sin into the world, and of its blighting curse upon all the world and all humanity. Had Eve never eaten of the forbidden fruit, and Ad'am remained obedient to the Laws of God, the earth would never have been blighted by evil, nor would humanity have known suffering and death. Instead, the Garden of E'den would have been extended until the entire earth had become a Paradise, and God would have continued to dwell with His people in the most intimate and happy relationship.
Over against this tragic story we must always seek a correct view of the new and living way into a Holier Paradise provided in Christ:
"A Friend who will gather the outcasts,
And shelter the homeless poor;
A Friend who will feed the hungry
With bread from the Heavenly store."
Monday, January 25, 2016
Story 2: Sin Enters The Garden Of E'den l
After God created man and gave him dominion over all the earth He placed him in the beautiful Garden known as E'den. Here the Lord provided for all the temporal requirements of man amid the most splendid beauties of nature, In the scenic glory of E'den there flowed a beautiful river with four parting streams, encompassing a tract in which all manner of fruit-bearing trees flourished. Man was ordered to labor, caring for the Garden and developing its vast resources. Work was divinely appointed, given as a token of dignity, prescribed as a means of sustenance, health, and happiness, and established as the proper order of life upon the earth. Certain moral restrictions were placed around man, and there was one particular tree in the midst of the Garden whose fruit was forbidden to eat. This restriction was not unreasonable, and should not have been irksome; its object was to preserve man in his innocence and happiness, and to prevent a break in the delightful relations between him and his Creator.
The location of the Garden of E'den is unknown, and it is utterly impossible to ascertain its site. Every vestige of it was probably swept away by the deluge about which we shall tell you in a later story.
While it was true that all the animals which God had created were placed under the dominion of man, and found that he found delight and joy in many of them, none was found suitable to become a companion in the propagation of the race. God therefore caused a deep sleep to come upon man, whom He called Ad'am, and took from his side a rib from which He made the woman Eve. She was blood of his blood and bone of his bone, and nature fully prepared to become a help-mate, the mother of the race. Between them there was to be happy companionship, moral sympathy, community of earthly enjoyments, and perfect conjugal affection.
It was there in the Garden of E'den, during the period of man's innocence and moral purity, that God established the Holy ordinance of marriage, and gave the command for the propagation of the race. To Ad'am, Eve was given by God as a wife, "The twain to become one flesh." She was to be protected, nourished, loved by Ad'am, and to be his companion in intellectual, moral, economic, and moral progress. She was placed under the same moral restrictions as Ad'am, enjoyed the same spiritual intimacy with God, and was equal in every aspect except physical prowess, and in her subordinate position in the marriage relationship. The same laws of conjugal faithfulness and moral conduct applied to both alike, and any violation of moral uprightness on the part of either was subject to the same punishment.
For a time Ad'am and Eve lived very happily together amid the flowers and fruits and lovely scenery of nature in the Garden prepared for them, having all that was needful for their comfort and happiness in life. There were frequent hours of intimate communion with God, with no taint of impurity upon either the man or his wife.
One day, however, as Eve was enjoying the delights of her surroundings and the fruits of the Garden, temptation came to her. The fallen angel sa'tan, an enemy of God and of all that is right and Holy, approached her in the form of a serpent and questioned her about the restrictions which God had placed upon concerning the fruit of the tree in the midst of the Garden. When Eve told sa'tan that the penalty of death had been placed against eating the fruit of this tree, he naively suggested that God had lied in this matter. He then declared that not only would she not die if she ate the fruit, but she would become as God.
Through craftiness and cunning words sa"tan projected into Eve's heart a spirit of doubt and unbelief, and thus laid the foundation for her disobedience to God which soon followed.
By this subtility and alluring false promises sa"tan engendered in the heart of Eve a feeling of curiosity, a state of dissatisfaction with the purity and happiness which she then enjoyed, and such resentment against the restrictions which God had placed upon her, that she was overcome with an inordinate desire to eat of the forbidden fruit. Led on by unbelief, curiosity, and rebellion against restraint, she ate of the fruit and gave some of it to her husband, who also disobeyed God in eating it.
The location of the Garden of E'den is unknown, and it is utterly impossible to ascertain its site. Every vestige of it was probably swept away by the deluge about which we shall tell you in a later story.
While it was true that all the animals which God had created were placed under the dominion of man, and found that he found delight and joy in many of them, none was found suitable to become a companion in the propagation of the race. God therefore caused a deep sleep to come upon man, whom He called Ad'am, and took from his side a rib from which He made the woman Eve. She was blood of his blood and bone of his bone, and nature fully prepared to become a help-mate, the mother of the race. Between them there was to be happy companionship, moral sympathy, community of earthly enjoyments, and perfect conjugal affection.
It was there in the Garden of E'den, during the period of man's innocence and moral purity, that God established the Holy ordinance of marriage, and gave the command for the propagation of the race. To Ad'am, Eve was given by God as a wife, "The twain to become one flesh." She was to be protected, nourished, loved by Ad'am, and to be his companion in intellectual, moral, economic, and moral progress. She was placed under the same moral restrictions as Ad'am, enjoyed the same spiritual intimacy with God, and was equal in every aspect except physical prowess, and in her subordinate position in the marriage relationship. The same laws of conjugal faithfulness and moral conduct applied to both alike, and any violation of moral uprightness on the part of either was subject to the same punishment.
For a time Ad'am and Eve lived very happily together amid the flowers and fruits and lovely scenery of nature in the Garden prepared for them, having all that was needful for their comfort and happiness in life. There were frequent hours of intimate communion with God, with no taint of impurity upon either the man or his wife.
One day, however, as Eve was enjoying the delights of her surroundings and the fruits of the Garden, temptation came to her. The fallen angel sa'tan, an enemy of God and of all that is right and Holy, approached her in the form of a serpent and questioned her about the restrictions which God had placed upon concerning the fruit of the tree in the midst of the Garden. When Eve told sa'tan that the penalty of death had been placed against eating the fruit of this tree, he naively suggested that God had lied in this matter. He then declared that not only would she not die if she ate the fruit, but she would become as God.
Through craftiness and cunning words sa"tan projected into Eve's heart a spirit of doubt and unbelief, and thus laid the foundation for her disobedience to God which soon followed.
By this subtility and alluring false promises sa"tan engendered in the heart of Eve a feeling of curiosity, a state of dissatisfaction with the purity and happiness which she then enjoyed, and such resentment against the restrictions which God had placed upon her, that she was overcome with an inordinate desire to eat of the forbidden fruit. Led on by unbelief, curiosity, and rebellion against restraint, she ate of the fruit and gave some of it to her husband, who also disobeyed God in eating it.
Saturday, January 23, 2016
Story 1: The Wonderful Story Of Creation ll
Thus began a gradual process for making the world a place where flowers and fruits could grow, where animal life could exist, and where man could live happily. With the coming of light, the first stage of creation ended.
During the second period of creation God caused the waters of the chaotic expanse of the universe to break asunder, thus forming the arch of sky which He called the heaven. Then as the world began to take form, its surface covered with vast waters, He caused the waters to come together in vast oceans, commanded the land to rise up in great continents and islands, and ordered the formation of great lakes and rivers throughout the land. He called the water Sea, and the dry land Earth, and the third creative period ended with the command that the earth produce vegetation, trees, and growths of every kind.
During the fourth period of Creation the Lord ordered the sun and moon and stars to come into being and to assume their proper relation to the earth, and the dark clouds and mist which covered the whole face of the earth were rolled away. The sun began to shine by day, and the moon and stars by night. The countless worlds which revolve through space were thus brought into existence, and assigned to their functions in relation to the earth, by the voice of Omnipotence.
God then commanded the waters of the sea to bring forth fishes, both small and great, and ordered that the air be filled with winged creatures; this was the work of the fifth period of creation. On the sixth day He commanded that the earth be filled with animals and creeping things, The whole land became inhabited with living creatures which roamed in the forests, grazed upon the plains, and moved about everywhere. Every form of animal life was germinated by the power of God.
Now that a state of chaos had given place to order, and the earth had been provided with vegetation and animal life, the world was ready for the creation of man. Then God said: "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."
"So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." This creation was separate and distinct from all previous creations. It took place as the climax and completion of the creative work of God. The physical elements in the creation of man came from the earth, but the life that flowed into Adam's body was the "breath of God." Thus man became the offspring of God in respect to intelligence, moral nature, and immortality. He was endowed with creative genius, and the power of dominion. Invested with God-like attributes he was placed in this beautiful world and given authority over all its creatures and latent powers.
Man was commanded to "multiply and to replenish the earth." He was endued with the power to sing hymns, to offer prayers, and to commune with God. He was gifted with intelligence, the power of thought, and with a benevolent disposition; to these endowments were added the passion of love, the faculties of understanding and reasoning, and the power of choice which is called free-will. He was placed upon the earth as its tenant, and as a steward of the Creator. His chief end was to glorify God and to carry out the Divine will in His creation. He was in a state of innocence, and though occupying a position a little lower than the angels of Heaven, he was permitted to share with them the intimate and perpetual fellowship of God. Man was to declare the glory of God in language more eloquent than the voice of the Heavens, to utter his benevolence in ways more brilliant than the emanations of light, and to magnify His name in powers and deeds far superior to all previous manifestations of the creative energy. Having been endowed with creative genius by which he can induce combinations of material forces and produce new forms of material power, he is to use these for God's glory.
In whatever circumstances man may be placed today, he should always remember that the world and all that it contains, as well as all the hidden potentialities of the universe, were created by God for the welfare and happiness of all mankind. It was for man that:
"God spake, and on the new dressed earth
Soft smiled the glowing sun,
Then full of joy He sprang aloft,
His heanenly course to run."
All nature tells us that God is, that He is supremely great, and that His chief concern is the security and happiness of His greatest creation.
During the second period of creation God caused the waters of the chaotic expanse of the universe to break asunder, thus forming the arch of sky which He called the heaven. Then as the world began to take form, its surface covered with vast waters, He caused the waters to come together in vast oceans, commanded the land to rise up in great continents and islands, and ordered the formation of great lakes and rivers throughout the land. He called the water Sea, and the dry land Earth, and the third creative period ended with the command that the earth produce vegetation, trees, and growths of every kind.
During the fourth period of Creation the Lord ordered the sun and moon and stars to come into being and to assume their proper relation to the earth, and the dark clouds and mist which covered the whole face of the earth were rolled away. The sun began to shine by day, and the moon and stars by night. The countless worlds which revolve through space were thus brought into existence, and assigned to their functions in relation to the earth, by the voice of Omnipotence.
God then commanded the waters of the sea to bring forth fishes, both small and great, and ordered that the air be filled with winged creatures; this was the work of the fifth period of creation. On the sixth day He commanded that the earth be filled with animals and creeping things, The whole land became inhabited with living creatures which roamed in the forests, grazed upon the plains, and moved about everywhere. Every form of animal life was germinated by the power of God.
Now that a state of chaos had given place to order, and the earth had been provided with vegetation and animal life, the world was ready for the creation of man. Then God said: "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."
"So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." This creation was separate and distinct from all previous creations. It took place as the climax and completion of the creative work of God. The physical elements in the creation of man came from the earth, but the life that flowed into Adam's body was the "breath of God." Thus man became the offspring of God in respect to intelligence, moral nature, and immortality. He was endowed with creative genius, and the power of dominion. Invested with God-like attributes he was placed in this beautiful world and given authority over all its creatures and latent powers.
Man was commanded to "multiply and to replenish the earth." He was endued with the power to sing hymns, to offer prayers, and to commune with God. He was gifted with intelligence, the power of thought, and with a benevolent disposition; to these endowments were added the passion of love, the faculties of understanding and reasoning, and the power of choice which is called free-will. He was placed upon the earth as its tenant, and as a steward of the Creator. His chief end was to glorify God and to carry out the Divine will in His creation. He was in a state of innocence, and though occupying a position a little lower than the angels of Heaven, he was permitted to share with them the intimate and perpetual fellowship of God. Man was to declare the glory of God in language more eloquent than the voice of the Heavens, to utter his benevolence in ways more brilliant than the emanations of light, and to magnify His name in powers and deeds far superior to all previous manifestations of the creative energy. Having been endowed with creative genius by which he can induce combinations of material forces and produce new forms of material power, he is to use these for God's glory.
In whatever circumstances man may be placed today, he should always remember that the world and all that it contains, as well as all the hidden potentialities of the universe, were created by God for the welfare and happiness of all mankind. It was for man that:
"God spake, and on the new dressed earth
Soft smiled the glowing sun,
Then full of joy He sprang aloft,
His heanenly course to run."
All nature tells us that God is, that He is supremely great, and that His chief concern is the security and happiness of His greatest creation.
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