Alice Cheng
When the Bible talks about creation, it doesn’t focus on “how” but “why” the world was created- the relationship between the Creator and the creation. God the Creator is the Lord over this material world. He has purposely placed man into this wonderful and orderly world of affection to live a life in tune with His Will.
Obey the Order of “Heavenly Mandate”
God has created this material world of order in time and space:
- Day and night for work and rest (Genesis 1:5)
- 6 days in a week for work and 1 day of rest (Genesis 2:2-3)
- Each planet running on track
- Establishing time and calendar based on the “interactions” among the Sun, Moon, and Earth.
Time engraves the trajectory of life and draws the longitude and latitude of human history. God created creatures “after their kinds.” Each species has its uniqueness and function right from the start. God created men and women who are different from each other. Our livelihood and culture, which has been adapted from various norms and routines, must come under the umbrella of the order of “heavenly mandate”.
Therefore, “doing one’s best and obeying the “heavenly mandate” is a kind of wisdom and attitude in life. We need to be responsible and diligent, but at the same time to accept our insignificance and limitations. Also we obey the heavenly mandate out of reverence by following the old Chinese saying: “Those who obey the heaven will prosper, and those who rebel will perish.”
Build Affectionate Relationships
Our Creator not only provides delicious food from nature to meet our physical needs (Genesis 2:9) but also affectionate relationships to meet our psychosocial needs. God the Creator brought animals before Adam to let him name all of them and to live with them in harmony (Genesis 2:9). Eve was also created and brought in front of Adam (Genesis 2:22) to become his helper and companion. As a result, what Adam lacked as one person had been complimented. Since God has given man the ability to love which requires a subject to interact with, man can experience this affectionate relationship with God, other people, and nature. Through this, man finds his identity, knows himself, expresses himself, improves himself, and serves others. Otherwise, man will indulge in self-centeredness and become indifferent.
Trust and Obey God
Who’s the boss? God has absolute sovereignty and the creation has absolute dependence on God. “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth…. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else…For in him we live and move and have our being.”(Acts 17:24a, 25b, 28a) Man was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27) and therefore has the senses of eternity and religion. Man’s spirit can respond to God’s calling and can build an affectionate relationship with God. By obeying and trusting God, man is able to enjoy life and its blessings. Unfortunately, since man rebels against God, this relationship has been broken.
Man is like a prodigal son or a lost sheep but God sent His beloved Son Jesus Christ into the world to become the scapegoat to die on the cross to cleanse us from our sins. Moreover, Christ’s resurrection through the Holy Spirit has made us into new creations! “…to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. (Ephesians 4:23-24)
This author has been a prominent writer, speaker, and life counselor.