biblical theology

Why Creation Matters, Part 22: Psalms 6

May 14, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

Psalm 104 is the lengthiest discussion of Creation outside Genesis. But while the Genesis account is historical narrative, the Psalm is a poetic celebration.

The Psalmist begins with his application: we should bless the Lord. (Starting a speech with your conclusion, before presenting any argument or development, is called “inductive” speaking. It can make for a very powerful presentation.) He’ll support his contention throughout the psalm, but he puts the conclusion right up front. Worship, glorification, is serious business.

And why should we bless the Lord?

Because he is great. And not just great, but “very” great. Exceedingly. Mightily. Great with muchness.

This is not your ordinary, run-of-the-mill greatness. This is greatness that makes all the other greatnesses of time and space look relatively insignificant; specifically, he is “clothed with honor and majesty.”

Clothed. And for God, these are not dress-up clothes, dressed to impress at some social event by appearing more together than he actually is. Glory and honor are his everyday clothes; they are a natural expression of who he is and what he’s about.

And how do we know that? Well, we look at what he has done. And so follows a poetic celebration of the creation of the cosmos.

He manipulates light (Ps 104.2). We’re just surrounded by light, and we do the best we can to minimize its effects, when we need to, with parasols and SPF. But He spoke it into existence, and it does his bidding.
He has created the atmospheric forces (Ps 104.3)—and while he’s at it, the other “winds”—spirits—as well (Ps 104.4). (You may recall that “wind,” “breath” and “spirit” are all the same word in Hebrew.) They all do his bidding, even though to us they’re invisible.
He has created the solid ground (Ps 104.5)—which is so solid that Jesus later compared “impossible” prayer requests to moving mountains (Mt 21.21).
He has created the seas and told them where they may go (Ps 104.6-9; cf Job 38.8-11).
Speaking of water, he has created springs, which refresh animals (Ps 104.10-12) and rain, which nourishes the plants (Ps 104.13-16).
He provides shelter for wild animals (Ps 104.17-18).
He has created heavenly lights that guide creatures as to both time and place (Ps 104.19-23).

And here the Psalmist pauses for an outburst of praise (Ps 104.24). The variety of works that he has just enumerated demonstrate that God is not only very great; they show as well that he is both wise and generous. He’s good and kind.

And then he returns to his list for one more observation.

God has created sea creatures (Ps 104.25-30) and graciously provides for their sustenance—and determines when they die.

Wow.

What is the appropriate response to all this?

Creation declares the glory, power, and wisdom of the Creator (Ps 104.31-32).

And so, I will praise him while I have breath (Ps 104.33). And that meditation on his works and praise for them will bring joy and gladness to my heart (Ps 104.34).

Why? Because that’s what I was made to do (1Co 10.31).

You can choose a different path, if you want. But if you ignore your source and purpose, you will not prosper (Ps 104.35)—just as you can’t expect to ignore the oil warning light in your car and then gripe when the engine freezes up on you.

The Psalmist concludes with his opening—“bless the Lord”—making the psalm an extended inclusio (Ps 104.35).

Hallelujah! (Ps 104.35).

Do you see how much we miss when we dismiss the biblical narrative of Creation, either by denying it or by failing to meditate on it?

We miss the aesthetic; we miss the joy; and consequently, we miss our very purpose for living.

Next time we’ll consider what the book of Proverbs contributes to Creation Theology, and then one more post, Lord willing, will tie it all up.

Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash

Why Creation Matters, Part 21: Psalms 5

May 11, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

Psalm 148 begins with a command to praise the Lord (Heb haleluyah; Ps 148.1a) and where to do it (Ps 148.1b). Then begins a list of persons and things that the Psalmist intends to include in the command: namely, who and what should praise the Lord. The list is impressive:

angels and hosts (Ps 148.2)

sun, moon, and stars (Ps 148.3)

heavens and atmospheric waters (Ps 148.4)

Now, what do all these things have in common? The Psalmist tells us:

For he commanded, and they were created. ⁶He hath also stablished them for ever and ever: He hath made a decree which shall not pass (Ps 148.5-6).

People and things that God has created should praise him.

But this list is not exhaustive, is it? There are no humans on it, or animals of any kind.

Why not them?

Oh, give him time; he’s just getting started.

Now comes another list, what we might call Part 2 of the inventory. It includes

sea creatures (Ps 148.7)

atmospheric phenomena (Ps 148.8)

topography (Ps 148.9a)

trees (Ps 148.9b)

land animals, both wild and domesticated (Ps 148.10a)

reptiles and birds (Ps 148.10b)

humans of every political class (Ps 148.11)

… and of every age and sex (Ps 148.12)

That last verse appears in the hymn “Praise Ye the Triune God”: “Young men and maidens, ye old men and children.”

Those lists include just about everybody and everything, don’t they? At least from an earthly perspective, without the help of Voyager probes and hifalutin space telescopes.

He ends the Psalm with a justification: why should all creation praise the Lord?

¹³Let them praise the name of the Lord: For his name alone is excellent; His glory is above the earth and heaven. ¹⁴He also exalteth the horn of his people, The praise of all his saints; Even of the children of Israel, a people near unto him.

He’s not focusing on just one reason here; he has a litany.

Creation demonstrates the Creator’s uniqueness (Ps 148.13a). The word excellent speaks of altitude—the Creator is “very high,” at the very top of the list. There is no one who holds a close second place.

He is glorious (Ps 148.13b). This is a different Hebrew word from what we saw in the previous post, but it means the same thing: weight, heft, value.

He gives power to his people (Ps 148.14a). The word horn here refers to an animal horn, not so much the musical instrument—though of course ancient peoples did make musical instruments out of animal horns. The animal’s horn speaks of his power in combat.

He holds his people in relationship; they are “near unto him” (Ps 148.14b). He is a God of immanence as well as transcendence. And given the vastness of his Creation, that should strike us as surprising. “What is man, that thou are mindful of him?” (Ps 8.4).

Praise is the least we can render to such a Creator.

There’s a reason why a walk in the woods is good for the soul.

Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash

Why Creation Matters, Part 20: Psalms 4

May 7, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

One Psalm derives from Creation that God is wise:

⁵To him that by wisdom made the heavens: For his mercy endureth for ever. ⁶To him that stretched out the earth above the waters: For his mercy endureth for ever. ⁷To him that made great lights: For his mercy endureth for ever: ⁸The sun to rule by day: For his mercy endureth for ever: ⁹The moon and stars to rule by night: For his mercy endureth for ever (Ps 136).

This Psalm is an antiphonal hymn, with each verse including the refrain “For his mercy endureth for ever.” To our Western tastes this seems boring and distracting, but that’s because we don’t understand what’s going on here. Musicians will understand what “antiphonal” means: the leader reads or sings the first statement in the verse, and the chorus or audience repeats the refrain each time. This does two things: it cements the refrain in the minds of all who hear, and it allows them to hear plainly the “verses,” which specify the multiple ways the refrain is demonstrated. Thus it feels choppy to us, occasionally dividing sentences right the middle. It’s not intended to flow smoothly, like a Byron poem; it’s intended to challenge and convince the mind.

Let me take a moment, then, to develop the main idea in the Psalm before I develop the main idea of this post.

I’ve written before on the Hebrew word hesed, which is the “mercy” repeated in the refrain. It’s best captured, I think, as “steadfast loving loyalty.” The Big Idea, then, is that God has a loving relationship with his people and he will be unfailingly loyal to it. Every one of the 26 verses in this Psalm gives evidence of that fact.

It is a pleasure and a privilege to know and walk daily with such a person.

But we’ve come to this Psalm because of specific point the psalmist makes in verses 5-9. He cites God’s creative work—heaven, earth, the sun, the moon—as being products and therefore evidences of his wisdom.

What’s wisdom? It’s not simply intelligence, although it does include that. In Hebrew the word emphasizes the practical: wisdom is the ability to get things done. It’s close to what we call “common sense,” though it isn’t all that common.

The idea here is that God executed his purposes perfectly, flawlessly. The heavens and the earth and the sun and the moon are, and function, precisely as he intended them to, and thus as they should.

We sometimes come across people who seem to do everything right: perhaps an extremely well-disciplined musician or athlete. They execute well because they are diligent to practice and practice and practice and practice. And there’s always the possibility that they might miss a note, or a line drive.

God’s not like that. He executes perfectly because that’s who he is. He knows how to get things done, and right, every time. The cosmos is evidence of that.

And in the context of this Psalm, it’s evidence as well of his unfailing loyalty to his commitments.

I’ll note that the theme of wisdom is developed deftly, and much more thoroughly, in the book of Proverbs. We’ll get there in a bit.

But first, we need to look at one more theme, and then one more Psalm, one that’s completely given to a consideration of creation.

Two more posts on the Psalms, then one on Proverbs, and then we’re done.

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Why Creation Matters, Part 19: Psalms 3

May 4, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

Two Psalms, both well known, speak of Creation as revealing the glory of God.

Psalm 8 

Psalm 8 begins and ends with a refrain: “O LORD our Lord, how excellent [majestic, glorious] is thy name in all the earth!” The first refrain adds, “Who hast set thy glory above the heavens.” In comparison with those heavens, “What is man, that thou art mindful of him?” (Ps 8.4).

There’s a lot more going on in this Psalm than just this; it repeats the Dominion Mandate from Genesis 1.26-28, and it has Messianic implications as well. But for our purposes, we’ll focus on Creation’s role as a display of the glory of God: his power, his dominion, his greatness.

Those who suppress their recognition of the Creator (Ro 1.18-20) are denied this avenue of worship.

Does the suppression empower the denial, or does the denial empower the suppression?

Good question.

Psalm 19.1-6

¹The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament sheweth his handywork. ²Day unto day uttereth speech, And night unto night sheweth knowledge.

These two verses demonstrate the theme, but of course the thought continues for 4 more verses, which emphasize the global reach of this display of glory, with a special emphasis on the dominant feature of the heavens, the sun, which appears, as David’s simile so artfully paints it, “as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber” (Ps 19.5).

We now know that David’s perspective, 10 centuries before Christ, was but a drop in the cosmic bucket. In the daytime, he had no idea how far the sun was radiating its heat, so far away that the light he was seeing was 8 minutes in the past. He didn’t know how large or hot it was. He was blind to the frequent solar prominences that briefly exceed the size of the earth. At night, even with the advantage of deliverance from light pollution, he could see perhaps a thousand stars, and all of them confined to a single galaxy.

Galaxy? What’s that? He didn’t know that we’re part of a galaxy, the Milky Way. (The Greek word galaxias means “milky.”) He certainly didn’t know that there are more galaxies, millions of them, gathered in clusters, for as far as the very best of our telescopes can see, 50 billion light years in every direction—and that’s not the end of it. He didn’t know about the planets, or their rings, or the asteroid belt, or the heliosphere, or the Oort cloud, or the boundary out there where the molecules are unbelievably hot but feel cold because they’re so far apart.

He didn’t know any of that.

But he was still awed simply by what he could see with his unaided eyes. The Psalm makes it clear that just the sun and visible stars were enough to bring him to his knees.

The Psalm considers the heavens for just 6 verses. The 8 remaining verses turn our attention to a more reliable revelation of God’s glory, the Scripture. The words David uses for it (law, testimony, statutes, commandment, judgments) make it clear that he has in mind the Torah, the 5 books of Moses; that and Joshua may have been all he had access to, besides the songs he was writing.

It speaks volumes that he turns with such focus, respect, and delight to some 500-year-old writings after being so deeply moved by what he has seen in the heavens. We realize that that’s what the heavens should do; they should turn us to the words of the One who made them.

There’s more in the Psalms. Next time.

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Why Creation Matters, Part 18: Psalms 2

April 30, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

Psalm 90.2

Another theme developed in the Psalms, based on Creation, is the concept of eternality. In the only Psalm designated as written by Moses, he writes,

²Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God (Ps 90).

The logic is simple. If the cosmos is created, then the Creator must have existed before his act of creation. It’s not a great leap of logic from there to eternity past; anyone who could create such a cosmos was likely not new at it.

Those who deny theistic creation have wrestled with the question of precedence. A century ago a scientist proposed an “oscillating universe” theory, which would have the universe expanding and collapsing in a possibly infinite series of cycles, but mainstream cosmology rejected it for the currently popular “Big Bang” model (though I’ve seen some indications lately that the cyclic model might be making a comeback).

So what was there before the Big Bang? In his work A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes, Stephen Hawking argued that at the moment of singularity, all laws of physics were rendered inoperative, with the result that we have no tools with which to investigate what preceded. So we don’t know, and we can’t know.

In the biblical narrative, we can know, and we do know, though the details are limited. God did exist before the creation of the world, and he was doing things: specifically, the Father and the Son were in a loving relationship (Jn 17.24); the Father was foreordaining the Son to redeem humans with his own blood (1P 1.20)—which necessitates the foreordination of the incarnation; and God engaged in the work of election (Ep 1.4). Undoubtedly there’s more—a lot more—but it remains a mystery to us, at least for now.

Psalm 102.25-27

The Mosaic passage does not confine God’s existence to eternity past; he specifies God’s eternal future as well: “from everlasting to everlasting.” An anonymous Psalmist adds to that testimony:

²⁵Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: And the heavens are the work of thy hands. ²⁶They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: Yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; As a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed: ²⁷But thou art the same, And thy years shall have no end (Ps 102).

Here the writer contrasts God’s eternality to the mortality of creation: “They shall perish, but thou shalt endure.” We are foolish to place our hope or our confidence in material things—including other humans—because they are all temporary. Gold, silver, real estate, political leaders (especially political leaders!), friends, lovers—they will all pass away.

But the Creator will not. As we’ve noted earlier, the author of Hebrews cites this passage and applies it specifically to the Son, demonstrating that he is infinitely superior to the angels (He 1.10-12). I also note that here in the Psalms, the author makes an application that the author of Hebrews chooses not to:

²⁸The children of thy servants shall continue, And their seed shall be established before thee.

The fact that God is eternal has personal ramifications for us. For as long as the present earth endures, God’s people will reproduce, their heritage will continue, and their God will know them.

God’s eternality enables his faithfulness.

Those who deny creation have no such assurance, no such hope.

Creation indeed matters.

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Why Creation Matters, Part 17: Psalms 1

April 27, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

This post isn’t about Psalm 1; if it were, “Psalms 1” would be a barbarism. Rather it is one of several posts on the Psalms—”Psalms, Episode 1,” if you will.

The book of Psalms contains the largest collection of creation theology in the Scripture, even more that we should expect proportionally from the longest book in the Bible. By my count, there are 16 references, appearing in all but one of the collection’s 5 “books,” with Book 5, Psalms 107-150, being the most densely populated.

As we might expect from the relatively high numbers, these references develop several applicational themes. I’d like to take a few posts to cover them.

Deliverance

The most obvious deduction about the Creator, I think, is his power, evident from the vastness of the heavens and the evident power of earthly forces. It would make sense for God’s people, then, to call on his power for their protection and deliverance:

¹⁶The day is thine, the night also is thine: Thou hast prepared the light and the sun. ¹⁷Thou hast set all the borders of the earth: Thou hast made summer and winter. … ¹⁹O deliver not the soul of thy turtledove unto the multitude of the wicked: Forget not the congregation of thy poor for ever (Ps 74).

¹¹The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: As for the world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them. ¹²The north and the south thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon [significant mountains] shall rejoice in thy name. ¹³Thou hast a mighty arm: Strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand. ¹⁴Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: Mercy and truth shall go before thy face. ¹⁵Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: They shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance (Ps 89).

²My help cometh from the Lord, Which made heaven and earth (Ps 121).

⁵Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, Whose hope is in the Lord his God: ⁶Which made heaven, and earth, The sea, and all that therein is: Which keepeth truth for ever: ⁷Which executeth judgment for the oppressed: Which giveth food to the hungry. The Lord looseth the prisoners: ⁸The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind: The Lord raiseth them that are bowed down: The Lord loveth the righteous: (Ps 146).

Blessing

A second, related theme is that of blessing, which I suppose we could consider the positive side of deliverance, or perhaps an extension of it:

¹²The Lord hath been mindful of us: he will bless us; He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless the house of Aaron. ¹³He will bless them that fear the Lord, Both small and great. ¹⁴The Lord shall increase you more and more, You and your children. ¹⁵Ye are blessed of the Lord Which made heaven and earth (Ps 115).

¹Behold, bless ye the Lord, all ye servants of the Lord, Which by night stand in the house of the Lord. ²Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, And bless the Lord.³The Lord that made heaven and earth Bless thee out of Zion (Ps 134).

I note that this last passage speaks of reciprocity: we bless him, and he blesses us. This is not to say that we bless him in order to evoke his blessing, or that he blesses us because we bless him; this isn’t about back-scratching. But it does demonstrate that the Creator and his people are in relationship; they love and communicate with and respond to one another.

Our consideration of the creation should affect us in these ways as well. We should be convinced of his power to deliver and to bless, and we should seek and respond to him in appropriate ways.

Next time: Psalms 2, which will not be about Psalm 2.

Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash

Why Creation Matters, Part 16: Job

April 23, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

I’ve saved the Wisdom Literature for last in this series; ending with this biblical genre, I think, forms a nice climax to this material.

Job may well be the oldest book in the Bible. Genesis records earlier events, of course, since it begins with creation, but Job, the man, sounds as though he’s earlier than Moses, possibly by quite a bit.

We all know the story. Satan, the Accuser, accuses Job of taking the easy path in life, and God, knowing otherwise, puts Job to the test. Job and his three friends, plus a latecomer named Elihu, discuss all this at some length, and in poetry. I’ve addressed some of these matters before.

Jumping to the end of the story, we find God addressing Job’s questions not by answering them, but by noting, in so many words, that Job is not in a position to understand the answer if he were to give it (Job 38.1-3). In essence God says, “You’re just going to have to trust me on this.”

He begins that response with Creation (Job 38.4-7) and then proceeds to Providence (Job 38.8ff).

⁴Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?
Declare, if thou hast understanding.
⁵Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest?
Or who hath stretched the line upon it?
⁶Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened?
Or who laid the corner stone thereof;
⁷When the morning stars sang together,
And all the sons of God shouted for joy?

Here God speaks to the very beginnings of philosophy. Those who search for meaning have to start somewhere, and God asserts that they simply don’t have the data they need to do that.

When God began drawing the blueprints for the cosmos, he made decisions about measurements—scale, metrics, and so on (Job 38.5). We’re not equipped even to probe that question; as far as we can tell, the cosmos is infinite. Scientists give it a radius of about 50 billion light years—oh, within a gigaparsec or so—but that’s not a radius; it’s just how far we can see (the “observable universe”). They’re pretty sure that’s not where “the edge” is—and how would we recognize “the edge” if we could see it?

So maybe it’s infinite.

But how can it be infinite?

We have no idea what we’re even talking about.

God’s response to Job continues.

With the blueprints in place, he began pouring the footers, so to speak.

Into what did he pour them (Job 38.6)?

And where did he place the cornerstone?

We know that in the early days of civilization, humans mastered construction techniques that still puzzle us today.

How did they build the pyramids?

How did the Rapa Nui create those massive human moai on Easter Island?

How did the Incas perfect dry-fit ashlar masonry?

But for all we humans could do, even early in our history, we can’t begin to fathom how to position a cosmos in empty space—or how to create the empty space to begin with.

When God did that, the angels of heaven were astonished and overjoyed to the point of exultation (Job 38.7).

God is infinitely beyond us. He is knowable, but he is not comprehensible. And creation demonstrates that, from the very beginning.

Sometimes the only appropriate response is just to sit quietly, to see, and to wonder.

To wonder at the glory of it all, and to wonder that this Creator offers us a relationship with him.

Those who will not see have no idea what they’re missing.

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Why Creation Matters, Part 13: Hebrews

April 13, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

The book of Hebrews is in a class by itself, for several reasons. First, it’s not a “normal” epistle, since it doesn’t begin as most epistles do; it’s really more of a sermon, a “word of exhortation” (He 13.22)—though in the same verse the author says he has “written a letter” (epistello, the verb from which our word epistle comes). Second, “the author,” as I’ve just called him (or her) is anonymous—and anybody who thinks he knows who the author is has jumped to a conclusion. I’m fairly sure Paul didn’t write it, but beyond that, only God knows (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, 6.25.14). Third, it’s not really a “general epistle,” so it fits only awkwardly in that group, and as I’ve just said, it’s not a Pauline epistle either, so it’s just sort of out there alone among the NT epistles. And fourth, in my opinion it presents a picture of the person and work of Christ that is unrivaled for breadth, depth, and expression anywhere else outside the Gospels.

And here this author points three times to the centrality of Creation in his theology.

Hebrews 1.2

In his opening paean to the Son, the second thing the author says about him is that the Father used him as his agent to create the worlds (He 1.2); more precisely, “by whom also he made the worlds.” This statement parallels two others that we’ve already covered: John 1.3 and Colossians 1.16. Three different authors begin their biblical document by establishing that the Son is the Elohim of Genesis 1, from “Let there be light” to his resting on the seventh day.

But the author of Hebrews takes it further than John or Paul. He makes it the basis of a lengthy argument that Jesus is superior to the angels of heaven, for the Hebrew Scriptures use expressions of him that far exceed anything they say about angels (He 1.4-14)—and this at a time when Jewish writings were completely fascinated with angels and had been for a couple of centuries. I’d suggest that there are Christological implications of tinkering with the Genesis account in ways that de-emphasize the role of the Creator in favor of the mechanism.

Hebrews 1.10-12

As part of his contrasting the Son with angels, the author quotes from Psalm 102.25-27:

Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: ¹¹They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; ¹²And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.

This reference to Creation is different from the others we’ve seen. Most of the earlier ones emphasize the power demonstrated in Creation and thus implied in the Creator. This one, though, emphasizes the temporality of it all; it will pass away. But the Son is not like his creation: he is forever.

This statement, of course, speaks to the deity of Christ—not because he is powerful enough to create the cosmos, but because he is unchanging enough to outlast it. By a mile.

Hebrews 11.3

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.

This brief verse begins the author’s discussion of that all-important virtue, faith. He will eventually list numerous people from the biblical history who exemplified faith in their earthly dealings.

But he begins with Creation, and he tells us two important things about it.

First, we understand it through faith. Not blind faith—we always have to say that, and I’ve discussed that before—but openness to hear and believe God’s story, because we know that he tells the truth. Thus those who reject the doctrine have not an intellectual problem, but a volitional one; they have chosen not to believe what God has said.

And second, God created everything—matter, energy, and anything else that might be out there—from nothing. He created substance from non-substance.

We humans have never done that. Even the artist, who envisions a concept and paints it, uses canvas and brushes and paints that he or someone else has manufactured. The author, who thinks of things and publishes them, uses paper and ink, or electrons that excite LCDs, or something to place his ideas into communicable form.

But everything from nothing?

You can have faith in someone who can do that—and did.

Creation matters.

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Why Creation Matters, Part 12: Pauline Epistles 2

April 9, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

Paul cites Creation theology in three more passages, two of them on the same subject.

1 Corinthians 11.9; 1 Timothy 2.13

In two passages Paul cites Creation as the basis for worship protocols.

⁸For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man. ⁹Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man (1Co 11.8-9).

¹³For Adam was first formed, then Eve (1Ti 2.13).

Both of these passages have long and complex interpretational histories, and it’s not my purpose to develop that in a brief blog post. Both passages are addressing proper protocol in a worship service—the first specifically headwear, and the second leadership in the church. In a feminist age, both of these passages are highly controversial.

But the point I’m focusing on here is not at all controversial—or it shouldn’t be. I note, first, that Paul views the creation account as history, as non-fiction; he accepts its historicity outright. And second, Paul determines the appropriate protocols for corporate worship, a contemporary morality, if you will, from that ancient historical account.

It matters.

2 Corinthians 4.6

⁶For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Paul’s citation of Creation in this context feels almost off-handed. In this chapter Paul is contrasting the permanent, eternal value of spiritual life with the transitory treasures of life in the world. He will eventually write,

our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; ¹⁸While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal (2Co 4.17-18).

In making this contrast between the seen and the unseen, Paul uses the most logical metaphor, that of light; in his ministry practice he rejects “the hidden things of dishonesty” but manifests the truth (2Co 4.2). A hidden gospel reflects the “blinded” minds of the lost, who cannot see “the light of the glorious gospel of Christ” (2Co 4.4).

The greatest need of a blind world, then, is the ability to see the light that is all around them. The fact that God originally spoke light into existence gives us assurance that he can speak a deeper light, a more powerful light, into existence in our inner beings so that we can recognize the light that shines inherently from Jesus Christ, the true light.

Christians argue over how this works. Arminians emphasize the centrality of human responsibility in believing, while Calvinists focus on the moving of God in sovereign grace. The Bible is clear that both factors are important. We will not believe unless God does a work of grace in us, and we must believe; our choice matters.

This passage emphasizes the divine work of turning on the switch. The light is there to be seen; but blind eyes must be given the capacity to see.

How do we know that God can do this?

He’s spoken the original light into existence, and he’s created eyes in Adam and Eve to see it. As we’ve already noted, Jesus replicated that act during his earthly ministry by creating, from clay, functioning eyes for a man who had never had them. He can certainly do it again, creating spiritual eyes to see spiritual light.

Creation matters.

Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash

Why Creation Matters, Part 11: Pauline Epistles 1

April 6, 2026 by Dan Olinger Leave a Comment

In Acts, of all the preachers cited, only Paul bases a sermonic point on God’s work of Creation. It should be no surprise, then, that his epistles touch on the doctrine repeatedly. And he applies it more broadly than one might expect.

Romans 1.20

Early in his epistolary writing he lays down an application that apparently underlies all the others:

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse (Ro 1.20 NASB).

This is Paul’s clear response to the “What about those who have never heard?” question. He says, “They are without excuse.”

I should note that he clearly identifies the “they” here in the previous verses; they are “men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Ro 1.18). God, he says, has made that truth evident to such rejecters (Ro 1.19) through the things that he has made. I’ve written on this principle at greater length earlier in this blog, so suffice it to say here that anybody ought to be able to recognize all kinds of attributes of the Creator by just looking at what he has created—whether or not the observer has modern observational tools.

To deny that the cosmos evidences the power or wisdom or skill or goodness of a Creator is simply to suppress what is obvious. The assumed atheism of much of modern “science” reminds me of the Iraqi Information Minister, Muhammad Saeed Al Sahhaf, who during the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 went on television to deny that American troops had reached Baghdad, when plentiful videos showed American tanks and armored personnel carriers rolling through the streets. For his gaslighting Saeed earned the moniker “Baghdad Bob.”

The atheist scientist knows. He does. But he will not see, because either his own will or that of his colleagues simply will not allow him to. It’s not just teens who are susceptible to peer pressure.

Colossians 1.16

Paul develops this principle in more detail in a later epistle, written during his house arrest in Rome while waiting for Caesar (Nero) to hear his appeal. Here he asserts that Jesus, the Son, is Lord over all the cosmos (Co 1.15) for the simple reason that he has created it:

For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him (Co 1.16 NASB).

Note how the claim ends; his right to reign is absolute not only because he created the cosmos, but because he is the person for whom it was created.

Again, I’ve written on this passage in (much) more detail earlier, demonstrating the falsehood of the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ allegation that Colossians 1.15 shows that Jesus was created and thus cannot be God. We won’t rehash that material here. Instead we’ll focus on the actual point of the passage: Jesus is Lord—of all that is, ever has been, or ever will be. A key basis for that is his role in Creation.

And on this day after Easter, it is appropriate as a significant aside to assert as well that another evidence of his lordship is his emergence from the tomb, triumphant over death and leading a long line of followers who are thus triumphant over death as well.

When I was a boy I assumed that I’d be alive when Jesus returned for his church. Though I still hold open that hope, I realize that at age 71 the odds are increasing that I’m going to die just like all those folks from history.

That’s OK. Death has died in the resurrection of the Son, the Creator, the Lord.

Creation matters.

Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash