World view

Let's, pray
The Torah is often translated as "law" because it governs the entire society
of Israel. However, it's much more than just a set of laws. The word "Torah"
also encompasses teachings and instructions.

The first five books of Moses contain more than laws—they include
teachings, prophecies, and instructions.

Worldview and Biblical Theology

We must begin with worldview. In biblical theology, there is a beginning and

an end. The beginning can be called "cosmogenic"—the origination of the
cosmos.

 "Cosmos" means universe.

 "Genic" comes from Genesis, meaning the beginning.

Thus, cosmogenic refers to the beginning of the universe.

Eschatology, a term used by scholars and pastors, is the study of the last
things—the end times. However, it’s not only about the end but also about
salvation and hope.

Between the beginning and the end, we have the process of salvation, or
soteriology. Having the right understanding of the beginning ensures the
right understanding of the end and the path to get there.

Biblical theology is about fixing the problem that started at the beginning.
There was a problem, and the solution—salvation—leads to restoration. If the
beginning is misunderstood, the end and the process leading there will also
be distorted.

This is why starting with Genesis 1 is crucial.

Genesis 1:1 – Understanding "The Heavens and the Earth"

Genesis 1:1 states:

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth."

The Hebrew word for "heavens" is shamayim. The -im suffix makes it plural,
meaning "heavens." In English and Nepali translations, we sometimes see
different words like "heaven," "space," or "sky," but in Hebrew, it is always
shamayim—a singular term covering a broad concept.

The Hebrew word for "earth" is eretz, which can also mean "land."

So, Genesis 1:1 tells us that God created the heavens (everything above)
and the earth (everything below). There is only one heavens. It is both
where God dwells and where the sun, moon, and stars exist. It is also where
birds fly, as we will see later.

Genesis as Instruction, Not Just History

Genesis was given at Sinai to instruct Israel about the origins of the heavens
and the earth. It is not simply a historical record but a teaching with a
purpose—defining Israel’s identity, covenant, and relationship with the
Creator.

Genesis 1:2 – The Beginning State

At Sinai, God tells Israel that, in the beginning, the earth was formless and
empty.

 The earth did not yet exist in its current form.

 There was the deep, meaning waters covered everything.
 Darkness was over the waters.
 The Spirit of God hovered over the surface of the waters.

Genesis 1:3 – The First Act of Creation

God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

 Some see this as God illuminating the darkness.

 The text does not provide many details, only that light was introduced.
 This light existed before the sun, moon, and stars.
God saw that the light was good and separated it from darkness. He called
the light Day and the darkness Night—yet, at this point, the sun, moon, and
stars had not been created.

Genesis 1:5 states: "And there was evening and there was morning—one
day."

This marks the first day of creation.

Genesis 1:6 – The Second Day

"And God said, 'Let there be an expanse in the midst…'"

Second Peter, chapter 3, verse 5—now, the context of this chapter is talking
about the mockers in the last days. They are mocking by saying, "The day of
the Lord is not going to come."

So, in verse 5, Peter says:

"For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God
the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and by
water."

Now, listen carefully: the Earth was formed out of water and by water. Here,
Peter is speaking some 4,000 years later, in accordance with the Torah. It
says that the Earth was formed when God gathered the waters into one
place, and then He caused the dry land to appear. He called the dry land
"Earth."

Okay, that was Day 3.

Now, on Day 4 (Genesis 1:14), it says:

"Then God said, 'Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to
separate the day from the night.'"

Let’s stop there for a second. Had God not already separated day from night?
He had already counted Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3, right? Look at Genesis 1:4-
5:

"God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the
darkness. God called the light 'day,' and the darkness He called 'night.'"
He was already distinguishing between light and darkness.

But on Day 4, He creates two great lights to begin a specific function. What
was He beginning to do? These lights became stewards of time. They were
placed in the expanse of the heavens (shamayim).

So, we have the Earth with its seas, and above it, the shamayim. Genesis
1:14 continues:

"'Let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the
earth'; and it was so. Then God made two great lights: the greater light to
govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the
stars."

These He placed in the shamayim.

Now, let's go back to verse 14. Something interesting happens here. It says:

"'Let there be lights which separate the day from the night,' but it also says,
'Let them be for signs, for seasons, for days, and for years.'"

Now, do you understand what signs means here? It means communication to

the Earth.

Then it says seasons. These are not seasons as we understand them—like

summer, spring, or winter. The Hebrew word used here is moedim. What is
moedim? It means "appointed times."

Do you know what else this word means? It refers to the Feasts of the Lord—
the appointed holidays of God. These were the times when the Israelites had
to gather in Jerusalem for the feasts, bringing their grain or offerings to
celebrate.

This is why they are called seasons—but not just in terms of weather. You
guys understand this in Nepal, right? You also have many festivals, and
sometimes, the word season is used in relation to festivals. There are spring
festivals and fall festivals, but they are not only about weather. They are
linked to religion and harvests.

Now, there were three feasts that Israel was commanded to celebrate by
gathering in Jerusalem:

1. Passover
 2. Feast of Firstfruits
3. Feast of Ingathering

These are the seasons mentioned in Genesis 1:14. But they are also signs.

In the future, we will learn more about the moedim—how the Feasts of the
Lord are appointed times that are prophetic in nature. They proclaim truths
regarding the Gospel itself. Israel was commanded to celebrate these feasts
in connection with the signs in the heavens to understand the Gospel.

Therefore, these are heavenly signs.

Let’s take the example of the Wise Men. They understood the times by
looking at the stars. It was all tied to the feasts, and the feasts were tied to
heavenly signs.

Now, verse 16

Understanding the Creation Days

Now, let’s look at verse 16.

God made two great lights to govern the day and night. It’s interesting that
He used governmental language here, isn't it? It’s a mystery, but we aren’t
given much information. We’ll talk more about it later. For now, this marks
the fourth day—the creation of the heavenly bodies, the hosts in the
heavens.

I like to ask thought-provoking questions to help process these things. For

example, which came first: the earth or the sun?

The answer? The earth.

By how many days? By just one. That’s what the Bible tells us.

Day Five: The Creation of Birds and Sea Creatures

Now, let’s move to verse 20.

"Then God said, ‘Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let
birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.’"
The birds are said to be flying in the shamayim—the same space where the
sun, moon, and stars are placed. They didn’t have a word for "space" back
then, so everything above was simply called shamayim.

In the beginning, there was one great body of water. This was before the
flood.

God first created the sea creatures. Then He created birds to fly above the
shamayim.

In verse 22, God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply.”

That was the fifth day.

Day Six: The Creation of Land Animals

On the sixth day, God created the land animals.

So, we can summarize:

 On day five, God created birds and sea creatures.

 On day six, He created land animals.

Now, let’s examine the categories.

Verse 24:
"Then God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind:
cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind.’ And it
was so."

These are the categories:

1. Beasts of the earth

2. Cattle
3. Creeping things

In verse 25, we see the same classification:

"God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, the cattle after their kind,
and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. And God saw that it
was good."

This is important because, in Genesis 3:1, we learn that the serpent was part
of one of these categories:
"Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord
God had made."

The Creation of Humanity

Now, let’s move to verse 26.

Who did God create next? Human beings.

"Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness,
and let them rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the cattle, all
the earth, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’"

This is a summary of humanity’s creation.

Verse 28 tells us that God blessed them:

"God blessed them and said, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth, subdue
it, and rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every living
thing that moves on the earth.’"

In verse 29, God provides food:

"Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed on the surface of the
earth and every tree with fruit yielding seed. It shall be food for you."

Verse 30 extends this provision to animals:

"To every beast of the earth, every bird of the sky, and everything that
moves on the earth that has life, I have given every green plant for food."
And it was so.

Finally, verse 31 declares the completion of creation:

"God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was
evening, and there was morning—the sixth day."

The Significance of "Good" in Creation

It’s important to note that this was the seventh time God declared His
creation "good."

The word "good" appears in:

 Verse 4
 Verse 10
  Verse 12
 Verse 18
 Verse 21
 Verse 25
 Verse 31

In Hebrew thought, seven represents completion. So, when God saw His
creation as "very good," it meant He had fully completed a perfect work.

Water Above the Heavens?

Did you notice something unusual? There’s mention of water above the
heavens.

That seems strange, right?

Let’s look at Psalm 148 for more insight. This is a Hallelujah song where the
psalmist calls everything in the heavens to worship God.

Verse 1:
"Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise Him in the
heights!"

Verse 2:
"Praise Him, all His angels!"

So, angels are in the heavens.

Verse 3:
"Praise Him, sun and moon! Praise Him, all stars of light!"

Verse 4:
"Praise Him, highest heavens, and the waters that are above the heavens!"

This suggests that, in their worldview, the entire heavens and the earth were
surrounded by water.

Let me draw it for you.

( H )is Throne (This is the Heavenly Tabernacle)

Our God is in the height of the heavens. Let's turn to Psalm 104, which is
often called the Creation Song.

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul!

O Lord my God, You are very great;
You are clothed with splendor and majesty,

2 Covering Yourself with light as with a cloak.

Some scholars suggest that in the beginning, when God said, "Let there be
light," He wrapped Himself in light. So, He is wrapping Himself in light. In the
New Testament, Jesus is referred to as the Light of the world—He is the Light
of men.

"Stretching out heaven like a tent curtain."

So, when creating the expanse, He stretched it out. This language of

stretching out is found throughout Scripture. But He stretched it out like
what? Like a tent, like a curtain. So, we’re going to see that He creates the
heavens like a tent in order to dwell in them.

Verse 3: "He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters."

These beams are like the rafters in a roof. And it says He places them on the
waters because He is at the height of the heavens.

Now, this might seem strange. Let's go to Isaiah 40:21.

21 "Do you not know? Have you not heard?

Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?"

This refers to Genesis.

22 "It is He who sits above the circle of the earth."

The Bible already describes the earth as a circle, and God dwells above it. He
sits on His throne.

"And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers—again—who stretches out the

heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in."
So, He created the heavens as a dwelling place. At that height, He is ruling
over His creation.

Verse 23: "He it is who reduces rulers to nothing, who makes the judges of
the earth meaningless."

He can blow on them, and they are gone. He is sovereign over all His
creation, and He is living within the Shamayim.

Let's turn to Psalm 11:4. Where is God dwelling?

4 "The Lord is in His holy temple;

The Lord’s throne is in heaven;
His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men."

So, the Lord is in His holy temple, and His throne, or His temple, is above in
the heavens. Now, in your Bible, it doesn’t use the word aakash, does it? But
they are all the same word—Shamayim. So, God is dwelling within this
Shamayim.

Is everybody following?

The most important thing to understand is that God is dwelling within His
creation. Both the heavens and the earth were created—not just the earth.

Any questions?

This is the biblical worldview. The main point is that God, His temple, and His
throne all dwell at the height of His creation. He doesn’t dwell outside of
creation—He created Shamayim to dwell in.

Job 26:10

10 "He has inscribed a circle on the surface of the waters,

At the boundary of light and darkness."

Right here, He creates and encircles the waters. So, by this point, the waters
are enclosed. You could think of it as a bowl of water. This is mentioned
many times in the Scriptures.

Now, look at verse 7:

7 "He stretches out the north over empty space
And hangs the earth on nothing."
So, the earth is hanging on nothing, encircled by the Shamayim.

Now, turn to Job 22:12, because this is important. This is what makes the
biblical worldview different from many modern worldviews. The point is not
to understand every single detail but to see how different this is from our
understanding.

The ancient Hebrews believed that God dwelled at the height of the heavens.
When they looked up, they believed God was above them.

Job 22:12
12 "Is not God in the height of heaven?"

This word is not Aakash, it is Shamayim.

"Look also at the distant stars, how high they are!"

If you believe that God is in another dimension, you make no mention of the
sun, the moon, and the stars. But here, the stars are being mentioned
because Job sees how high they are and realizes that God is even higher.

The most important thing to understand is that this is continuous—there is

an easy movement up and down. Birds fly in the Shamayim, the sun, moon,
and stars are placed in the Shamayim, and God dwells at the heights of the
Shamayim.

Think about it—when Jesus rose from the dead and ascended to His Father,
He literally went up. He didn’t just disappear into another dimension. Jesus,
in His physically resurrected body, ascended from the ground all the way to
the Father. It says that Elijah was caught up in the same way.

Many times, angels must come down to observe the activities of men. What
does it say when the angels came to Sodom and Gomorrah? It says they
"came down" to see if the cries of the city were true.

When God met Israel at Mount Sinai, it says that He "came down" on the
mountain. This wasn’t just a vision or a dream—God literally came down, and
the mountain began to shake and burn. Black smoke would have risen all the
way to the heavens, and they heard the sound of angels and trumpets. It
was a terrifying and very real scene. If they had approached the mountain,
they would have died.
This is why they were terrified—because the Holy God, the Creator of the
heavens and the earth, who governs His entire creation from the height of
the heavens, came down to make a covenant with His people.

I want you to see how real these things are. This is why worldview is
important. Many modern worldviews suggest that God exists outside of
creation, as if He is just a vision or a dream. But our God is very real—He is
ruling over His creation, and He is coming back. And when He returns, it will
be a terrifying sight.

The Bible says that just as He shook the mountain, He will shake all things
when He comes again. This is why He is preparing the earth. It makes a big
difference.

You must understand that worldview is also connected to doctrine. The Bible
refers to false worldviews as "strongholds" that keep us from the knowledge
of God. These strongholds in our minds shape our perspective and keep us
from truly responding to the reality of the universe and what God is about to
do.

Here’s an example: Imagine I tell my children that Daddy is just upstairs.

They would act more responsibly, knowing that Daddy could come down at
any time. But if they believed Daddy lived in another country and only
appeared in dreams once in a while, they would act very differently.

I want to tell you—God is not just a dream, and the Gospel is not just a
dream. We don’t believe in fairy tales. Christianity is not some myth about
gods marrying each other and having children. We believe in the God of
Israel, the King of Israel, who rose from the dead.

Right now, in the height of the heavens, there is a man—He is a Jewish man.
If you look at His face, He is Jewish. The Bible says He is the Son of David,
the Son of Abraham, and He is seated at the right hand of His Father. He is
waiting patiently for the nations to repent and for His nation to repent. Then,
He will descend.

The Bible says that just as He ascended, He will descend in the same way.
When He ascended, people watched as He went higher and higher, like a
balloon, until they could see Him no more.
In Acts 1, God sent two angels to the disciples. They said, "Why are you
standing here looking up? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into
heaven, will return in the same way."

Then, they were told to go back to Jerusalem and wait, because they would
receive power. They had to be His witnesses because that day is coming. It
is a real day.

This is why we talk about worldview. Not because I know every detail—I don’t
know why the waters are there. I’ve never been to the third heaven. I have
never seen the waters above. But I know that the Bible says it—not just
once, but again and again. And I know that it makes a big difference.

If you understand where God is, you’ll know that He is coming back from that
place. And He sees all the games that we play. Just because He is not acting
now doesn’t mean He is in another dimension.

The Bible says He is being patient—He is waiting for men to repent and for
nations to repent.

Okay, Amen?

Homework:

I want you to read Genesis 1–6:6.