Genesis 1:24-25. 24And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
There used to be this computer game that I loved to play called Zoo Tycoon. The idea of the game was to build your very own zoo. Each game you started with a certain amount of money. First you would buy buildings and sidewalks. Then you would buy plants and animals to fill up your zoo. Lastly, you had to keep your zoo going, fixing all the problems along the way – hungry animals, broken fences, angry customers.
In Genesis 1, God is sort of playing Zoo Tycoon. The Bible says that the world began “without form and void” (Genesis 1:2). That means that the world lacked a shape and there was nothing in it. The rest of Genesis 1 describes God giving the world its shape, its form, and then filling it up with all kinds of living things – plants, sea creatures, land creatures, and finally man.
Notice how verse 25 ends: And God saw that it was good.
Unlike my zoo in Zoo Tycoon, God’s creation was very good. That means that everything did exactly what it was created to do. When God created the animals they all did exactly what God created them to do. The livestock, like cows and sheep, and the beasts, wild animals like lions and tigers and bears, they were all good. Even the creeping things, like bugs, they were good too. All the different animals God created made him very happy.
I’m sure glad God created animals aren’t you? What is your favorite animal? Think about how it does exactly what it is supposed to do, it is good.
Well sort of.
The Bible says that because of sin, everything is broken and corrupted. This includes all the animals on Earth. The animals we love aren’t as good as they were created to be. The Apostle Paul wrote that all creation (including the animals) is groaning in sadness waiting for Jesus to come back and fix everything.
That’s Advent!
Remember, advent means arrival. At Jesus’ first arrival (Christmas) he was surrounded by livestock and creeping things at the manger. Maybe there were even some beasts close by. I wonder if they were wondering if this was when they would finally be fixed. Finally be good again?
That day is coming! At Jesus’ second advent, he will fix everything including all the living creatures. Including your favorite animal. All of creation will perfectly worship God. Including you and me.
Questions: In what ways do you think the animals on Earth are less than perfect right now? How will they be different when Jesus returns? In what way will YOU be perfect when Jesus returns?
TLICfamily 