Most Christians are familiar with the opening verses of Genesis, which describe God’s creation of all that exists—beginning with the creation of days.

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
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Genesis 1:1-5 KJV

However, as discussions of Genesis 1 have devolved into how these words interact with modern science textbooks, or Ancient Near Eastern literature, Christians have largely lost sight of what the scripture is actually there for: to make us wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy‬ ‭3:15‬ ‭ESV‬‬).

St. Paul was speaking specifically of the Old Testament scriptures—like Genesis—when he wrote those words. Thus, the first and greatest purpose of the creation narrative is to lead us to Christ. And once He has us, to confirm and strengthen our faith in Him.

What are some ways Day One of creation foreshadows the work of redemption?

1. It’s a creation story. How often do we forget that we’re not simply renovation projects to God; in Christ we’re actually created anew? Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:17‬ ‭NKJV‬‬) And again: For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians‬ ‭2:10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬) And understand, God didn’t create you new, and then say to you: Okay, you have a new life, now don’t screw it up! Rather, you can be confident that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ
‭‭(Philippians‬ ‭1:6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬).

2. It’s creatio ex nihilo. That’s a Latin phrase theologians use to describe how God creates from nothing. Scripture teaches this clearly. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. (Hebrews‬ ‭11:3‬ ‭KJV‬‬) By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; And all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. (Psalm‬ ‭33:6‬ ‭KJV‬‬)

God created all things from nothing, through His Word (that is, the Son, the preincarnate Christ, cf. John 1:1-5; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:2), and by His Spirit (Hebrew ruach, breath, wind, Spirit—cf. Psalm 33:6 and Genesis 1:2 above). This is an essential doctrine for two reasons. First, if there were some sort of preexisting matter coeternal with God, where would it come from and who created it? But second—and this is crucial for us—if God had to use existing matter to create the universe, He would be limited by whatever that material was.

As it is, God creates us in Christ ex nihilo, too. He creates us through His Word, by His Spirit. He creates faith in us where there is none, because He is the God who calleth those things which be not as though they were. (Romans‬ ‭4:17‬ ‭KJV‬‬) He brings Christ’s own life to life in us, by the Spirit: But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. (Romans‬ ‭8:11‬ ‭KJV‬‬)

Moreover, we read in Genesis 1:2 that the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. Likewise, God sends His Spirit into the desolate darkness of our hearts, and brings them to life, so that we may turn to Christ in faith, and desire to obey God’s instructions: I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. (Ezekiel‬ ‭36:26-27‬ ‭NKJV‬‬)

It is crucial for believers to understand that God has created us in Christ ex nihilo. We must never for a moment imagine that God used our old sinful lives as raw material, because He saw some good in us He could salvage. No, then salvation would not be of grace, because then we would boast: Aha, Lord! So you did see something in me that was worth saving! Moreover, God would then be limited by the materials we gave Him to work with—and that would be tragic indeed. But the good news is, God doesn’t work with what you give Him. He creates faith and life in you—and works in and through what He has created.

Christian, you are God’s handiwork, created in Christ the same way He created everything else: The Father, through the Son, by the Spirit— the God calleth those things which be not as though they were—created faith in you from nothing.

3. Creation moves from evening to morning, darkness to light. In the medieval church, there was a popular hymn that said: media vita in morte sumus—in the midst of life, we are in death.

Perhaps with those very words echoing in his mind, Martin Luther wrote an Easter hymn called “Christ Jesus Lay in Death’s Strong Bands.” One stanza of the song seems to be a bold counter to the popular sentiment:

It was a strange and dreadful strife
when life and death contended.
The victory remained with life,
the reign of death was ended.

It is almost like Luther was saying: No—now in the midst of death, there is life.

We tend to think of the course of our lives as life, then death, then resurrection. And of course—this is a sort of natural way to describe it. It’s kind of what we experience.

But scripture tells a different story. In God’s sight, we come into this world stillborn, but He has resurrected us with Christ:

And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved).
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Ephesians‬ ‭2:1-5‬ ‭KJV‬‬

The Christian life is a movement out of death, into life.

It is also a movement out of darkness into light. God calls to us—in Christ, by the Spirit, through the preaching of the gospel: Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. (Ephesians‬ ‭5:14‬ ‭KJV‬‬) And again, we are told that Christ hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light (1 Peter‬ ‭2:9‬ ‭KJV‬‬).

It was the same way at creation, don’t you see? Into the desolate darkness, God spoke: Let there be light: and there was light. (Genesis 1:3) And then St. John says: In him—that is the Word, the Son, the Christ—was life; and the life was the light of men. (John‬ ‭1:4‬ ‭KJV‬‬) Christ has pierced our darkness, and His light brings us to life.

And then Genesis 1:5 tells us that the evening and the morning were the first day. Notice, creation moves from evening to morning, from darkness to light. So it is with us. In Christ, God brings us out of death, into life. Out of darkness, into His marvelous light.

One of the rallying cries of the Protestant Reformation was: Post tenebraus lux, which means: after darkness, light. This is the pattern of creation itself.

God has woven the pattern of our new creation in Christ into the creation of the universe. We are the handiwork of the Triune God, who calleth those things which be not as though they were—and then those things which He calls actually are! The Father creates us in the Son, by the Spirit. The light of Christ has pierced our darkness, and the darkness hasn’t overcome the light. Rather, God has called us out of death, into life. And when Christ returns, we shall find that even the darkness of Death itself cannot overcome the light. We will be raised to eternal life with no darkness at all—because in the new heavens and earth, because the glory of God in Christ will be our light, and there will be no night (Revelation 21:23-25).