This lecture is an edited version of the lecture given on September 3rd, 2005 in the series entitled "In the Beginning." "God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is He worshiped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things."     (Acts 17:24-25)   **The Events that Took Place in Heaven in the BeginningIn the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day. Then God said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters." Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day. Then God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear"; and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth"; and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. So the evening and the morning were the third day. Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth"; and it was so. Then God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also. God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. So the evening and the morning were the fourth day. (Genesis 1:1-19) As we study this part of Genesis, we might see this as an opportunity to reexamine God's divine nature and power. In Romans chapter 1 it says, "His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse" (Verse 20). From these passages in Genesis, are we simply going to conclude that God is the great Creator who created this world, and that is all there is to it? Through the process of the creation, we can see what kind of plan God had in mind and what He was intending to provide for mankind through this plan. When the Bible talks about God's "eternal power and Godhead, does this power of God have nothing to do with us? And can His Godhead possibly be compared with insignificant human beings such as we are? Or does it include a certain power of creation within this whole ecosystem in which we are living; something that we are aware of and come in contact with every day as we live within this ecosystem? This is a matter that we need to consider. The number 3 is not a number that we should just take lightly and gloss over. What we can learn through the course of events on the third day of the creation? When the Bible says, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth," it does not simply mean that God created the world, or God created this earth on which we live. It says that God created the heavens (plural) and the earth. What does this mean? When we read books like the Psalms, and Ezekiel, and Isaiah, we find that there is a certain fixed place where God dwells. People try to imagine what the kingdom of God must be like, but the Bible presents us with a concrete image of the place in which God dwells and tells us in which direction it lies. Let's take a look at one example of this. In the book of Job it says that God "stretches out the north over empty space; He hangs the earth on nothing" (See Job 26:7) Somewhere up there in the northern skies beyond man's powers of observation, there's a certain place that man cannot reach. Then towards the end of the book of Job, we find that it says, "He comes from the north as golden splendor," as some kind of brilliant light (See Job 37:22). Then if you look in Ezekiel chapter 1, you find that the prophet saw the image of the glory of God as some kind of light proceeding out of the north. Ezekiel described very simply the magnificent scene surrounding the throne of God. This scene is related to Psalm 48. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in His holy mountain. Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.  (Verses 1-2) "The joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion on the sides of the north, the city of the great King." Here the Bible tells us precisely that this place is in the direction of the north and that its name is Mount Zion. "When the Bible talks about Mount Zion doesn't it mean Jerusalem? Jerusalem is located on a hill, and that is what is referred to as Zion. So why is that speaker now claiming that this is not referring to a place on this earth but rather the city of the great king, Mount Zion on the sides of the north?a place that is completely separate from this earth?" Perhaps this is what some of you are wondering. Ezekiel chapter 28 refers to, "Eden, the garden of God" (See verse 13). It says "the garden of God." In Genesis chapter 2, however, it says that God planted a garden east of Eden; it describes a certain region that God created on this earth that was a copy of another creation in heaven (See verse 8).Jesus said, "Do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King" (Matthew 5:34-35). At the time when Jesus said this, there was no Jewish king in Jerusalem. Herod was ruling Israel as a tetrarch, but he was an Edomite, a descendant of Esau, Jacob's elder brother, and the Edomites had become enemies of Israel. So why did Jesus say that they were not to swear by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King? He was not talking about the Jerusalem on this earth; He was talking about a certain kingdom that was related to God. He was telling us about a perfect kingdom, one that could not be conquered in any way by any human power. If we consider this Psalm 48 in the light of passages such as this, we can see that when it says, "Mount Zion on the sides of the north, the city of the great King," it is talking about a certain region that is not part of the world of man. The apostle Paul was talking about this place when he wrote, "I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago ... was caught up to the third heaven ... and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter" (See 2 Corinthians 12:2-4). This is a place that we cannot see and where we cannot go. So through the passage that says, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth," we can see that a different, perfect world existed before this earth on which we now live.Among God's creations at that time there were the angels. One of these angels - one by the name of Lucifer, the son of the morning - became envious of God's throne. This incident is described in Isaiah chapter 14 where Lucifer says, "I will be like the Most High" (See verse 14). Let's take a look at Psalm 11 verse 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. Here it says, "The LORD is in His holy temple." In the book of Acts, however, it says very clearly, "God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands" (Acts 17:24), and yet here it says, "The LORD is in His holy temple." These passages seem to be contradicting one another. Here it says, "The LORD's throne is in heaven." It says that the throne of God definitely exists in heaven. When Lucifer saw this magnificent image, he thought, "I want to be like that." The prophet Ezekiel referred to this in Ezekiel chapter 28 where he wrote, "Iniquity was found in you" (verse 15). This explains to us the seed of sin. Then in Isaiah it says, "How you are cut down to the ground" (14:12). Through this incident in which Lucifer was cast down to the ground, we can see how the universe came into being. The apostle Peter was talking about that time, when he wrote that there are people who deny that the earth came out of water and was standing in water. Such people are condemned for denying the very existence of the God who created the heavens and the earth. (See 2 Peter 3:5) **The First and Second Days of the CreationWe are able to see all of this once more through the process of creation described in Genesis chapter 1. What was the situation on the first day? "The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." It says that the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Under these circumstances, God said, "Let there be light." And God divided the light from the darkness. In the Korean Bible it just says that God divided the light and the darkness, but here in English it says that He divided the light from the darkness. Through the account of the first day, we can see an image of God who is over the face of the waters, and we can see the command of this God who was hovering over the surface of the waters. It says, "Then God said, 'Let there be light'; and there was light." We all know the verse that says, "For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6). So when God said on the first day, "Let there be light," we need to consider whether God was simply telling the light of the sun to shine; or He was commanding some kind of light to shine in the universe; or is this the light that shines on us individually at the moment of salvation when we have been going through a problem deep down in our hearts - one that we simply cannot solve ourselves and that leaves us in a state of emptiness and confusion? Wasn't there a moment for each one of you when, through God's word, you heard the voice of God in your heart, saying, "Let there be light"? One thing that we can be sure of is that at that time the light and the darkness were separated. God completely separated the light from the darkness. This is why the apostle Paul declared, "But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me ... For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members" (Romans 7:17, 22-23). On the first day of the creation, as God was hovering over the face of the waters and the earth was in a state of emptiness and confusion, like a great mud bath suspended in space, God said, "Let there be light." We can see that, as God said this, a tremendous power came into existence. On the second day of the creation, we find the expression, "in the midst of the waters." At first it says clearly "over the face of the waters," and then on the second day of the creation it says, "in the midst of the waters." "Let there be a firmament." In the Korean Bible it says that God divided the waters from the waters, but in the English Bibles it says that God divided the waters which were below from the waters which were above. Here there is also an expression of some kind of tremendous scientific power. In the process of the waters below being separated from the waters that were above, an empty space came into being. That empty space is called the firmament. It is the sky which we see now.In the Psalms it says, "The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders; the LORD is over many waters" (29:3), and in the book of Job it says, "He covers the face of His throne, and spreads His cloud over it. He drew a circular horizon on the face of the waters, At the boundary of light and darkness" (26:9-10). This is all explaining how this earth became divided from the world of God that cannot be invaded. In the course of these events, this earth came into being. I do not know if this is what some scientists are referring to when they talk about the "big bang," but one thing we can be sure of through the Bible is that what we call the earth broke away from somewhere on high. As it says in Second Peter, the earth came forth from water and was established in water (See 3:5). In Ephesians it says that our struggle is "against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" (See 6:12). In the beginning such struggle took place in heaven. As a result of this event the huge open space that we refer to as the universe came into being between the paradise of God and the world on this earth. God put things in order on the second day in order to demonstrate this fact to us. Then as the waters below broke away from the waters above on the second day of the creation, the firmament, which is the sky we see now, came into being between the two; but it does not say that God saw this as good. **The Third Day, on which the Dry Land Appeared and the Seed Was Planted"The earth was without form and void," but then God focused on this earth, and the work that He carried out in order for man to be able to live on this earth was accomplished from the first day to the sixth day of the creation. In certain respects, rather than being a creation, this was actually a re-creation of an earth that had already been created before. We can see this very clearly through the events of the third day. On the third day, God said, "Let the waters ... be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear." This is really strange, isn't it? "Let the waters be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear." Why do waves crash on the shore? Why do waves form? It is because of the moon. This is also to be found in the Bible. The Bible says, "He appointed the moon for seasons" (Psalm 104:19), and "Who gives ... the ordinances of the moon and the stars for light by night, who disturbs the sea, and its waves roar" (Jeremiah 31:35). On the third day, as the waters were gathered together into one place, the dry land appeared. "The earth was without form and void." At first the earth was like a mud bath having no recognizable form. On the second day, this formless earth broke away completely from the waters that were above. Then the account of the third day talks about the waters that were below. The talk of the waters above the firmament is already over, and now it talks about the waters below.So if we read carefully through the first day, the second day, and the third day in order, we can see clearly an image of something beginning above and continually moving downwards. The firmament appears, and then the Bible explains about the waters below the firmament. This shows us briefly the process of the creation of the universe as seen through the eyes of God. In this process, the waters were gathered together into one place and the dry land appeared.I am very interested in this earth. We tend to think of the earth very lightly, since this is what we walk on from the time we get up every morning, and it is what lies before us when we go outside. What is the significance for us of the fact that we live our lives walking around on this earth. Do you ever think about this in the course of your life? If we were to go up into outer space, we would be suspended in the air; and no matter how much you might want to sit down, you would not be able to, and you would fly around without making any effort to do so. But why is it that we live our lives walking on the surface of this earth that God has ordained f

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