In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Now the earth was without shape and empty, and darkness was over the surface of the watery deep, but the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the water. 3 God said, “Let there be light.” And there was light!
Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, after our likeness, so they may rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move on the earth.”
God created humankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them,
male and female he created them.
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply! Fill the earth and subdue it! Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every creature that moves on the ground.”
—Genesis 1:1–3, 26–28 (NET)
The very first words of the Bible tell us something supremely important: “In the beginning God . . .” (Genesis 1:1) Those four words set up the rest of Scripture’s story. While there will be heroes and villains, leaders and followers, the faithful and the faithless, the Bible is really about God. He is central to every passage and every paragraph. Without Him, there is little else to talk about.
Everything that ever was or ever will be was created by Him and for Him (Colossians 1:16; John 1:3). However, lest we should imagine God created us out of some need for love—some hole in His soul, some lack on His part—we have a reminder in the first few verses of the chapter that, by His very nature, God is never without love. He is never alone. He exists in perfect community. First, of course, there’s God the Father: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). Then there’s God the Holy Spirit: “The Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the water” (v. 2). And finally, God the Son: “God said . . .” (v. 3; emphasis added). After all, Christ is the Word (John 1:1-3). In the Trinity, there has always been love and community.
So then, why did God make us? Love. He didn’t need Adam and Eve or you or me, but He wanted us. Think about it this way: God, as infinitely powerful Creator, could have made anyone or anything He wanted. And He chose to make you, just the way you are. Then, because He wants you to live with Him forever, He sent Jesus to die for you. He loves you that much.
“God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.”
—St. Augustine—
Pages of Joy 