Lesson Aim: To emphasize the uniqueness of man from all other created beings.

Monday: Genesis 1:24-27
Tuesday: Genesis 1:20, Genesis 47:18 & Leviticus 11:29-31
Wednesday: Psalm 8:5-8, Hebrews 2:6-8 & Job 7:17
Thursday: Psalm 2:7, Psalm 45:7, Psalm 110:1, Isaiah 48:16, Matthew 11:25-27 and John 17:24
Friday: Genesis 2 & Genesis 3:19
Saturday: Job 32:8, Proverbs 20:27, Romans 8:16, I Corinthians 2:11, Philemon 25 & I Thessalonians 5:23
Sunday: Genesis 18:1-2, Joshua 5:13-15, Judges 6:11-21, Daniel 3:25, Hebrews 1:3 & Philippians 2:7

LESSON OUTLINE

I. THE CREATION OF LAND ANIMALS (Genesis 1:24-25)

A. Genesis 1:24-25 records the origin of all land animals. (Marine animals and fowls had been created on day five, Genesis 1:20.)

1. "Cattle" appears to be a reference to larger domestic animals.(Genesis 47:18)

2. "The creeping thing" appears to be a reference to smaller animals, both domestic and wild. Even such animals as reptiles and insects are included here.(Leviticus 11:29-31)

3. "The beast of the earth" appears to be a reference to "freely roving wild animals."¹

4. This comprehensive classification is one that relates to man’s interests, not modern taxonomy. ²

B. All three categories of these animals were created simultaneously.³

1. This is evidenced by the inverted order stated in Genesis 1:25.

2. This differs radically with the order espoused by evolutionists. Their order is insects, then amphibians, then land reptiles, then birds and finally all mammals. Of course, the evolutionary position affirms that many millions of years were required for this very slow development.

C. Each land animal was created "after his kind." (Genesis 1:24)

1. This reference to the specific DNA molecule containing its own unique genetic code in each one is God’s statement that no specie would ever be able to evolve or cross to another specie. The DNA molecule allows for extensive lateral variation but no vertical variation.⁴

2. The fossil record records animal species; but no intermediate links between the species. Thus, the fossil record verifies God’s claim as to how land animals came into existence.

D. With the creation of the land animals, the entire creation was finished except for the creation of man.

1. "God saw that it was good." (Genesis 1:25) The variety was astounding. The engineering and design were awesome, far beyond being fully understood even today after centuries of study.

2. Its efficiency way marvelous. All necessary for the well being of each of God’s creatures had been provided. (Only Adam was not yet present and he soon would be created.) All God had created, except the basic Periodic Table elements and life supporting compounds such as water, were biodegradable. There was no pollution problem. Everything was pure and good.

3. Every step so far was in preparation for man. "All of the natural creation, animate and inanimate, was made for him."⁵ (Psalm 8:5-8, Hebrews 2:6-8)

II. THE CREATION OF MAN IN THE IMAGE OF GOD (Genesis 1:26-27)

A. God spoke to Himself. (Genesis 1:26)

1. God referred to Himself in the plural. In Genesis 1:26 He used "us" and "our."

Multitudes of later Bible references speak of (1) God, the Father, (2) God, the Son and (3) God, the Holy Spirit. Genesis 1:26-27 establishes the foundation for the concept of the divine trinity.

2. That God was speaking exclusively to Himself in anticipation of the creation of man is evidenced by the fact that man was created in the image of God; not angels.⁶ (Psalm 2:7, Psalm 45:7, Psalm 110:1, Isaiah 48:16, Matthew 11:25-27, John 17:24)

B. Man is God’s highest and most complex creature.

1. God "spoke" into being all that He had already created. Not so with man. He decreed that He would make man in a special way, then did so by forming dust into the human form after which He breathed life into that form. This work by God is further explained in Genesis 2.

2. God both made ("make" in verse 26) and "created" man. "Make" is asah in the Hebrew, implying formation from pre-existing materials.⁷ "Create in Hebrew is bara. Bara means to bring into existence that which had no existence. ⁸

God "made" or formed man’s body in the same way He "made" the bodies of animals. Both were made from the natural elements and chemicals that make up the earth. ("Dust," Genesis 3:19)

God "created" qualities in man which are not possessed by any animal. Unlike animals, man has (1) moral consciousness, (2) the ability to think abstractly, (3) the ability to understand and appreciate beauty, (4) emotions and (5) the capacity to love and worship God. ⁹

3.Though man is like animals, he is not just a very complex and highly organized animal. He is far above the animals.

C. Unlike any animal, man is in the "image of God."

1. His "spirit" with its attributes which are none existent in the animal world sets man forever apart from the animals. (Job 32:8, Proverbs 20:27, Romans 8:16, I Corinthians 2:11, Philemon 25)

2. Even as God is trichotomous (a three-fold being), likewise man is (1) spirit, (2) soul and (3) body. (I Thessalonians 5:23)

3. Even man’s body represents the image of God. When God has appeared to man, He has usually done so in a human body form. (Genesis 18:1-2, Joshua 5:13-15, Judges 6:11-21, Daniel 3:25)

4. Jesus Christ is the only one who was "the express image" of God.(Hebrews 1:3) In the beginning, God made man in the image of the body He would someday assume. When he entered that body, He was "made in the likeness of men." (Philippians 2:7)

5. It is important to note that man was the last of all creatures to be created. He is indeed God’s greatest creation. Yet, being created last, man could never legitimately suspect that he, in any way, is responsible for the natural world around him.¹⁰

FOOTNOTES

1. Keil, C.F. and Delitzsch, F., Commentary on the Old Testament, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1973, Vol.I, page 61.

2. Morris, Henry, The Genesis Record, Grand Rapids: Baker, 1976, page 71.

3. Ibid., page 71.

4. Ibid., page 63.

5. Entzminger, Louis, Studies in Genesis, Fort Worth: The Manny Co., 1946, page 14.

6. Morris, page 72.

7. Strong, James, Hebrew and Chaldee Dictionary, New York: Abingdon Press, 1958, page 92, reference 6213.

8. Morris, pages 39-40.

9. Morris, page 74.

SUMMARY

The first chapter of Genesis records the origin of land animals. Since God had created marine animals and fowls on day five of the creation week, these land animals were not the first animals.

God categorizes these land animals into three groups which is a comprehensive list of all land animals. God lists the animals in the way by which they naturally relate to man. All large domestic animals are included under the general term "cattle." Smaller animals, both domestic and wild, including insects, are called "creeping things." The large wild animals are called "the beast of the earth."

The land animals were created simultaneously as evidenced by their double listing in inverted order in Genesis 1, verses 24 and 25. The evolutionary concept of origins declares that insects appeared first followed by amphibians, then land reptiles, then birds and finally mammals. Evolution also affirms that the evolutionof these animals occurred very gradually over millions of years. If such a contention were correct, the fossil record would surely contain multiple skeletons of animals which fit somewhere between species. It does not. To the contrary, the fossil evidence records evidence of separate species, but no intermediate ruins.

Genesis 1:24 is careful to record the fact that each animal brought forth "after his kind," which is a reference to the DNA molecule, which contains the particular genetic code of that animal. God thus states what the fossil record confirms. His "after his kind" statement is a clear claim that vertical variation among the species is impossible.

With the creation of land animals, the creation was complete except for man; and God said it was "good." The variation, efficiency and purity of all God had made was astounding. He had indeed created a paradise void of pollution and evil.

God did not speak man into existence. Up to this point in His creative activity, God spoke phenomena into existence. He decreed man’s existence, then personally formed him out of the "dust" of the earth. God used the same raw materials to make man that He had used to make the animals. Thus, in a sense, man is very much like the animals. Yet, man is far more than merely a highly developed and very complex animal. God created a "spirit" in man. Unlike the animals, man has the ability to think abstractly, understand and appreciate beauty and love and worship God. Man has emotions and moral consciousness. No animal has a spirit, nor these abilities. Man is the highest creation of God and is not like any other creature. He occupies a place with God unique to himself.

God is trichotomous (threefold) in His being. Repeatedly the Bible refers to Him as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In the first chapter of the Bible, God announces his plural nature by using the words "us" and "our" to refer to Himself.

God made man, and only man, in "his own image." As God is trichotomous, man is trichotomous. Man is spirit, soul and body. In man’s body, it appears that God made the form most like Himself. God is a spirit, although when He has appeared to man, he has usually done so in a human form. When God became flesh and dwelt among man to perform the work of eternal redemption, He took a human body. When He created man, He made him in the image of the body He would someday use.

QUESTIONS

1. What did God first create on creation day six?

2. Discuss the general term "cattle" as used in Genesis 1.

3. Discuss the "creeping things" created by God on day six.

4. Discuss "the beast of the earth" as mentioned in Genesis 1.

5. Discuss the comprehensive nature of God’s listing of the land animals.

6. Discuss the fact that God made land animals simultaneously.

7. How does God’s accounting of the origin of land animals differ from the accounting of the evolutionary position?

8. Discuss the phrase "after his kind" as it relates to land animals.

9. How does the fossil record refute the claims of evolution?

10. How did God address the problem of pollution?

11. To whom was God speaking as He spoke of creating man?

12. In Genesis 1, how did God reveal His plural nature?

13. Discuss the term "trichotomous."

14. Name specific ways in which man is superior to any animal.

15. Discuss the "spirit" of man.

16. How does the bodily form of man reflect a particular interest of God?

17. How was Jesus Christ uniquely the "express image" of God?

18. Summarize the concept that man is made "in the image of God."

19. How was Jesus Christ "made in the likeness of man"?