Which is more amazing, God’s creation of life or His creation of how to live?
God’s creation of life itself simply leaves one in awe. Who are you? There was a time when a tiny human egg, smaller than the period at the end of this sentence, united with a far tinier sperm cell, and together they contained all the genetic information that produced you, a human being unlike any other that has ever existed.
It’s hard for us today to improve on the way King David expressed it 3,000 years ago, when he pondered the wonders of human reproduction and extolled the God who designed it. “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb,” he wrote in Psalm 139:13-14. “I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
Even atheists marvel at the complexity and design of all forms of life. But believers see much more—creation is a witness to the need for a Creator. In other words, it is one of many proofs of God’s existence. And human life, because we are made in His image, is the pinnacle of His creation!
The instruction manual
Since so many people are amazed at how God created human life, it’s odd, and sad, that so many, even believers, pay little attention to something equally important: the way He created for us to live.
What about living in the image of how God lives? If God designed the physical laws that regulate the complexities of a body’s functioning, isn’t it logical that He also designed the spiritual, mental and emotional laws that govern the complexities of human relationships?
Actually, the Bible is God’s instruction manual, guiding us to understand what governs, and how to productively manage, our relationships with God and with one another.
Undermined and attacked
Since the family structure is the foundation for all human relationships, we often write about strengthening marriage, child development and family bonds in general. But once a year—typically in the July/August issue—we have multiple articles featuring the family.
Why spotlight this subject so regularly? Because the sanctity of life and the family is being undermined, if not directly attacked. Most often it’s undermined by ignorance, but too often now it’s also attacked by the intentional rejection of our Creator. Either way, we’re striving to fill the gaps in knowledge and counter the assaults on family values.
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge,” Solomon wrote, “but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7). One great example of this principle is understanding how God’s Seventh Commandment—don’t commit adultery—is designed to protect the entire family structure. When husbands and wives cherish, love and are faithful to one another, you see ever-increasing loyalty, commitment and stability that extends to their children and grandchildren and into society itself.
The next dimension of reproduction
Even more beautiful and astounding, the more you learn from the Bible about family, the more you see that God has not finished His creation. Marriage and family actually foreshadow the next great miraculous stage in God’s plan. If you wonder at the miracle of physical procreation, wait till you grasp the miracle of spiritual!
The apostle John marveled, “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! … Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:1-2).
So whether it’s physical family or spiritual family, we’re glad you are with us on the quest to always be learning more about God’s amazing creation and the way He wants His creation to live!
