IN thought we enter the dread silence of eternity past; and as the voices of earth are hushed, we have in that silence ,one consciousness- God is love. Every movement of creation began there.

"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth."

The phrase the beginning "carries us behind all dates. The first certainty is that God created-when, no man can tell: how far back, is beyond all computation. Behind the beginning of material things- God. Those who would put science and revelation in opposition say to us, "You tell us that the world is six thousand years old; but here is a piece of rock which must be thousands of years older." We reply that we do not count our six thousand years from the creation of matter, but from that of man. Your rock may be as old as you please. Our claim is that, beyond your longest stretch of years, is God-creating. Yet another change-" The earth was waste and void; darkness was upon the face of the waters."

It may be well to tabulate the statements of Genesis i. 1, 2:

1. "In the beginning God."

The only satisfactory statement possible concerning the countless ages of the past. The light of the New Testament enables us to make a further assertion concerning that past eternity, viz, God is love."

2. " God created the heaven and the earth."

That declares the origin of all of which we know anything beside God Himself. No date is fixed, nor can be.

3. "The earth was waste and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep."

Between this and the former, some unchronicled event has transpired; for “waste and void " are words which cannot describe the first conditions of any creation of God.

4. "The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."

The chaotic earth was not God-forsaken, but watched by the unwearying vigilance of the Eternal Spirit. How long this lasted none can tell.

We come now to a point with which we are more immediately concerned, "And God said." Here we have for the first time Divine thought expressed in speech. The Word of God, the Logos. In John's Gospel is an important statement bearing on this fact--John i. 1:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

By the Logos God brings order out of disorder, and beauty out of the darkness. The Word of God sounded over the chaotic earth; and, in response to that Word, there arose order, beauty, everything that we see today, only in its perfection. Read in this connection, Prov. viii, where the Word of God is spoken of as Wisdom. Observe the declarations of that wonderful passage, that in all God's creative acts, "I (Wisdom) was daily His delight." Thus we have creation by God, through Christ, the Wisdom or the Word of God; the earth thoroughly furnished, and man placed thereon. So time begins.

Accepting absolutely the Bible story, which fits in with reason, experience, and hope, we find man created in the image of God and placed amid perfect environment. He lives in the Divine favor, holding unbroken communion with God, and dwelling in the realm of loyalty to Him. Some say that man was a non-moral being until he fell; but we contend that the moment he stood in the garden of Eden, with its testing point for character in the forbidden tree, and the Divine denial of its fruit upon his soul, he knew that the realms of right and of wrong were bounded by obedience and disobedience. He was a moral being the moment he took up his position there. God did not tempt, but tested, man-an absolute necessity in the nature of the case, for man is a being with a will. Man's will is paralyzed, robbed of its glory and magnificence, save as he has opportunity to use it.

Tennyson says

"Our wills are ours, we know not how;
Our wills are ours to make them Thine."

But man chose to make his will his own, in contradiction to the Divine will; becoming, by that action, immoral. He fell, was driven forth; and, from that moment, the reign of conscience set in. Man took his place outside the garden of Eden, to face the future with its conflict and need. His position was that of a sinner; and the Divine dealing was no longer with one innocent, but with a law-breaker. Straightway the blood line was over the earth, pointing to the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, and to be slain in the fullness of time. God brought to the man and woman in the garden coats of skins; and there could have been no such clothing save as there had first been the sacrifice of life and the shedding of blood. The sacrifices, which ever pointed on to Christ's Cross, began here with man's sin. Man went out from the garden, with his hope set on the future, comforted by the announcement that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head. God sent into life new ministries of sorrow and toil, that man might, by the consciousness of loss, be drawn back to the Divine heart.

The story of the earth from Eden to the Flood, covering about 1665 years, is known to us all. During that period two races of men were developed. First, we have the line from Adam through Cain, tending to corruption and degradation. There is also the line through Seth, which culminates in Enoch, at the seventh generation, who "walked with God, and was not, for God took him."

From Enoch the line of demarcation became less and less distinct until in the days of Noah humanity had reached an awful depth of degradation. Gen. vi. 11, 5:

"And the earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence." "And the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually."

God now destroyed the whole race by the Flood, with the exception of an elect company, by whom the continuity of the race was preserved, and on whom a new era had dawned.

Hitherto man's conscience had been under blood. Blood and sacrifice still held their place, but God imposed upon man the duty of mutual self-government. Let us turn to one passage only, in Gen. ix. 5, 6:

"Surely your blood, the blood of your lives, will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it: end at the hand of man, even at the hand of every man’s brother, will I require the life of man. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shell his blood be shed: for in the image of God made He man."

That is a new arrangement. Men are now to be governed mutually. Every man is to exercise care for his brother: and if man slay his brother-man, other men are to see that he pays the penalty with his life. Thus God safeguards the life of each by making all responsible for the lives of individuals. It is a new commencement, with corruption and evil put away by the Flood.

Soon after the Deluge, the tower of Babel rose. Some assert that its object was security against the effects of any future flood. Gen. xi. 4 shows, however, the thought in the minds of the builders.

"Go to, let us build us a city, and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven, and let us make us a name; Lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth."

It was not that they hoped to escape another judgment which might be coming upon them; but they desired solidarity. Today we hear a great deal about the "solidarity of humanity" ; and the endeavor to secure it by putting God out of His own world is a very old piece of history. Apart from Him, the only really cohesive force for humanity is absent, and confusion must be the result. These men were scattered throughout the whole earth, and their tongues were confounded. Some of our friends are seeing very serious difficulties today as regards that confusion of tongues. Personally, I see no more objection to this record than to the account of the Pentecostal gift of tongues; and if men are prepared to question one, why not the other?

Here there came into human history the element of nationality. We talk proudly today about our patriotism. Patriotism is after all one of the greatest curses the world has ever seen, and is but another name for selfishness. What is the Divine ideal? ''He hath made of one blood all the nations of the earth." All nationality and patriotic pride have sprung from Babel, and the attempt to do without God. Supposing all nationality were swept from the world today, what would follow? Disarmament, and peace. Then there would be real unity; and until that is realized, "brotherhood" outside the Christian Church is an anomaly and foolishness. God scattered these Babel builders in their attempt to secure solidarity without Him.

From Babel to Abraham there was a development of national pride, self-interest, and consequent animosities. In the call of Abraham, we find God taking one man upon the principle of faith. Faith is the confidence of man in God, which results in his submission and obedience. The world had lost this principle, and, as we have seen, the latest unfolding of unbelief was the attempt to secure unity apart from the Divine. As a result the solidarity of the race was lost, and a company of nations, with prejudices, and pride, began to conflict with each other. God's purpose in calling Abraham was that of creating a new nation, held together by this unifying principle of faith, that through them the nations of the earth might learn the blessedness and peace of the Divine Kingship.

That is the true story of the calling of Abraham and the creation of Israel as a nation. I solemnly protest against the common mistake concerning the calling of Israel to God's service, that God abandoned the world, and took but a few people for Himself. God called Abraham and said, "I will bless thee and make thee a blessing; and in thee shall all the nations of the earth be blessed." As at the first God's Spirit brooded over chaos before order was evolved therefrom, so His unwearied love never ceases toward man. Israel was created to influence other nations for God, itself being within His kingdom. Israel, however, rebelled against God's rule; and ended in Egypt and in slavery. Through unbelief and sin, the whole nation went down into bondage.

After four hundred years, God wrought deliverance for them; and then the period of Law set in, and the nation wae brought under the direct Kingship of God. Thus was instituted the most marvellous government the world has ever seen. Very wonderful was that period in the wilderness, when a great and mighty people were trained as God's children, and were prepared for all that lay before them. Their law was given them by God, and they lived within its sphere.

They came into the promised land, and then degeneracy set in. They grew tired of theocracy, and demanded a monarchy. We have a King, said they, but He is in the heavens; these nations have kings who are with them in courts, robes, and palaces. Give us such an one! They had their desire, and passed through earthly kingship into the realm of corruption, and ultimately into renewed captivity. At last God's kingly rule passed from them altogether; and the times of the Gentiles set in, with Media, Persia, Greece, and Rome, in the amendant.

Still the line of witnesses for God ran on, in a few souls true to Him, such as Anna, Simeon, the shepherds, and others who looked for the day of the Messiah.

Now came the last message, that of John, followed by the King Himself with the same words, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand." He declared its laws, and gave evidences of its benefactions, as He healed men, drove out devils, and applied heaven's solace to earth's sorrows and travail for His brief ministry of three and a half years. How did it end? "He came unto His own, and they that were His own received Him not," but gave Him the death of the Cross.

The evident lessons of our study are two first, human failure; second, Divine progress. Look where you will in human history, you find failure. The Fall and the Flood, Corruption and the Cross. Every time humanity is put upon a new footing it fails. Has God failed? Not once; everything has been preparatory and progressive. Let us retrace our steps. The Cross and all that it means was prepared for throughout Judaic history. This one nation of Israel learned, through battle and smoke, murmuring and forgiveness, captivity and deliverance, the great truth that there is but one God. Monotheism is the lesson which humanity has learned through Israelitish history. From the time when Israel came back out of Babylon, she never again set up idols. When that truth was enshrined for the world in the chosen nation, then the one God became flesh. God was preparing through the wonderful history of their times for the Incarnation. What of the failure that preceded the Flood? Sin worked itself out to the utmost head of corruption. God allowed it to have its own free working, and then He swept it away, and started man upon the next stage of history, having behind him that terrific example of what sin is when it is left to its own course. I am bold to say that human corruption, so far as its actual effects upon men's lives are concerned, has never reached the awful depths of degradation which prevailed before the flood, when the sons of men were holding intercourse with evil spirits.

Thus we have sin manifested and the one God seen ; while the Incarnate Word takes that sin upon Himself, that the world may ever know, from that point onward, the meaning of sin as well as the meaning of God and His Divine government.