The greatest story you will ever know is the story of God’s love. Genesis reveals that since the beginning of the world, God created you for love. And we need to be intentional about pursuing God’s love in our lives. Why? Romans 8:39 says that nothing in the sky above or the earth below can separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus.
You and I were designed not just to be filled up with God’s love, but to overflow with it. We pursue God’s love not only, so we’ll love God more, but so that we’ll love others more, too.
Why pursue God’s love? Because it invites us to shift our focus, the way we see ourselves, others, the situations we face, and God. I think one of the most significant examples of this is found in the first few chapters of Genesis.
Entering God’s Story
Genesis begins, “In the beginning, God.” And I always pause there, because the first few words of Genesis inform us that we are entering into God’s story. God is the hero. This is not our story. Yes, we are invited to be part of it. But this is primarily the story of God.
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” As this chapter unfolds, we get a glimpse of God in creation, hanging the stars in the sky and hovering over the sea. As a holy and divine artist, God paints our world beautiful with the most loving attention to detail. God’s love is displayed throughout creation.
Some people try to read Genesis 1 as if it’s a scientific or a historical document. And while it contains scientific and historic truths, we must never forget that the first chapter of Genesis is primarily a theological document. The author designed it to tell the story of who God is. And we discover that all of creation is dependent on a loving God for both its existence and its subsistence. We learn that God is all-powerful and sovereign, and his work is marked by precision and intimate involvement.