The San Diego Zoo is one of my favorite spots in Southern California. Renowned as a world class zoo for good reason, the exhibits display a plethora of different, and in some cases, rare and nearly extinct animals. While all of the zoo is magnificent, my favorite section is the amphibian display. Showing hundreds of different kinds of frogs and reptiles, all unique in their own way and design, it truly is a moving example of God’s abundant wisdom and creativity in his creation (Ps. 104:24). Joining his wisdom, that God created all things from nothing reveals his great power (Heb. 11:3). And God didn’t create the world out of necessity or because of a lack in himself, which shows his goodness in the act of creation as well (Ps. 33:5). And, of course, we know that Scripture confirms that creation reveals God’s existence (Ps. 19:1–4, Rom. 1:19–20). But did you know that it also confirms our God’s triune work in creation?
The Father’s Powerful Word
Like many acts of the Trinity, the Father is the main agent in creation (Isa. 44:24; 1 Cor. 8:6). In the beginning, the Father created the world out of nothing by the power of his word (Gen. 1:1, Heb. 11:3). The very first verse of the Bible declares the Father to be the sovereign Lord and Creator over all things. Old Testament scholar Meredith G. Kline writes, “Genesis 1:1 sets the Creator at the beginning in holy majesty above and apart from all creation visible and invisible as the One eternally before all things.”
While acknowledging the Father’s work in creation, it is important that it does not detract from the Son and the Spirit’s work in creation. Dutch theologian Louis Berkhof writes, “The work was not divided among the three persons, but the whole work, though from different aspects, is ascribed to each one of the persons. All things are at once out of the Father, through the Son, and in the Holy Spirit.” Understanding both the Father's role and the joint work of the Trinity in creation sets before us a key piece of the picture for a well rounded biblical doctrine of creation.
Creation Through the Son
In many religions outside of Christianity, there is a claim that the Son himself is a part of creation rather than the Creator. In contrast to this, Scripture shows us that Jesus is the eternal Creator of all things, actually testifying to his divinity.
In showing that Jesus is indeed God, the Gospel of John’s opening chapter declares, “All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). If Jesus created all things, and from all eternity was with God and is God (John 1:1), it becomes plain that Jesus himself was not created. Several other New Testament authors also identify Jesus as the Creator of the world (Col. 1:16–17, Heb. 1:2–3). Far from denying his divinity, because Jesus is the Creator, this knowledge gives us another occasion to ascribe glory and praise to him (Rev. 4:11).
The Life-Giving Spirit in Creation
While the Spirit is sometimes called the forgotten member of the Trinity, recognizing the Spirit’s work in the creation event helps us avoid delaying the presence of the Spirit until later in Scripture’s story. Genesis 1:2 states, “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” This beautiful imagery illustrates that the Spirit gives life and production to creation, bringing order out of chaos. Furthermore, in addition to his power, there is a beautiful joy in the work of the Spirit here. Michael Horton writes, “The Spirit was hovering over the waters, both to organize and fertilize it but also to cherish it.”
The Spirit not only gives life in the very beginning, but also to Adam, by breathing the breath of life in his nostrils (Gen. 2:7). In both of these cases, the early chapters of Genesis draw our attention to an important feature of the Holy Spirit, namely, that he is the one who gives life. Furthermore, the Spirit is not only active in the work of creation, but also the preservation of the world, too (Ps. 104:30). Outside of creation, that the Spirit gives life where things are barren (Gen. 1:2) is rich with significance for the virgin birth of Christ (Luke 1:35). In our own lives and salvation, the rest of Scripture teaches that the Spirit is the one who gives new birth to God’s people (John 3:3–8, Titus 3:5), taking away our hearts of stone and giving us hearts remade (Ezekiel 36:26–27).
Salvation and Creation
Understanding that the Trinity created the world helps us better understand the doctrine of creation and our own salvation. The fact that God created the world out of nothing shows that God brings that which did not exist into being. So it is with our salvation. God calls us from death to life, bringing about a new reality. Romans 4:17 says that God “gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.” Because of our God’s great power, we can trust that he is the God who is powerful enough to save us from our sin and ourselves through the salvation he provides in his Son. In contemplating God’s power in both creation and our salvation, may we declare the Psalmist’s words for ourselves, “O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures” (Ps. 104:24).
Footnotes
Meredith G. Kline, Kingdom Prologue: Genesis Foundations For A Covenantal Worldview (Eugene: Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2006), 25.
Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology, 4th ed. (Grand Rapids: WM. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1982), 129.
Michael Horton, Rediscovering The Holy Spirit: God’s Perfecting Presence in Creation, Redemption, and Everyday Life (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2017), 51.
