God of Foresight So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. – Genesis 1:27 Foresight is…
God of Foresight
So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. – Genesis 1:27
Foresight is another attribute of God that we will reflect on today. Upon deciding to create humans in His image and likeness, He also knew that He must factor in the ability to reproduce after their kinds in them; hence, His creating them male and female.
There has been much debate about the origin of humans, where from and how we originated as well as how humans were able to procreate if it was only the family of Adam and Eve that were the first set of humans. This piece is not about to join that debate or attempt to throw any light on it. Our focus today is only on the depth of thinking of God which accounted for how He factored gender into the equation when He was creating humans and other mammals.
With foresight, God knew that even though He was making creatures that would need to reproduce themselves, that would have been impossible if He did not embed a reproductive system in them which would help them to procreate and fulfill His design for them to be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth.
With foresight, God also knew that without this reproductive system in humans and other mammals, He would need to be creating them over and over again in order for them to increase; whereas, with a reproductive system, it would be easy for them to produce on their own with little or no assistance.
Foresight distinguishes the output of those that think before they start something from those who do not. It also plays a large role in determining the quality and sustainability of an entity. You just need to check out the universe and the living creatures that God had made from the beginning to see the important role foresight plays in quality and sustainability. Even with adverse climate, there have been more survivors among the creatures of God than those that went extinct.
If you also consider the physical outlook of the creatures, they keep looking finer and better as against worse with the turn of the ages. That is what working with the future in mind does for you. It helps to prepare for contingencies before they arise and to have plans in place to address them without adversely affecting the operations. Our God is a God of foresight.
Understanding God: He is Inventive God said, “It’s not good for the Man to be alone; I’ll make him a helper, a companion.” So God formed from the dirt of…
Understanding God: He is Inventive
God said, “It’s not good for the Man to be alone; I’ll make him a helper, a companion.” So God formed from the dirt of the ground all the animals of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the Man to see what he would name them. Whatever the Man called each living creature, that was its name. The Man named the cattle, named the birds of the air, named the wild animals; but he didn’t find a suitable companion. God put the Man into a deep sleep. As he slept he removed one of his ribs and replaced it with flesh. God then used the rib that he had taken from the Man to make Woman and presented her to the Man. The Man said, “Finally! Bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh!” – Genesis 2:18-23 (The Message)
In continuation of our meditation on the nature of God, today we will be focusing on His inventive attributes. He is the God of inventions and innovations.
For the benefit of those who may be alarmed at the fact we are using seemingly human attributes to describe God, here is an explanation. All the attributes we have read so far since we started this series and all we will also read in subsequent digest are originally God’s. Not human’s (2 Corinthians 3:5). But because He had created humans just like Him, that is how humans have come by those attributes as well.
Humans through their creative and other genius attributes are only exhibiting the divine nature embedded in their DNA from birth as offspring of God. Therefore, by spotlighting those unique aspects of God that appear to be in the domains of humans, we are only helping the readers to see what they can be if they channel the God in them to work. We hope this offers a context to those concerned.
Back to our focus for today. The passage above helps us to see the inventive nature of God. It so happened that after deploying different methods to make His creatures, God needed to provide a partner for His ultimate creature, man. However, the man for whom the partner was meant seemed not to be impressed by any of the creatures God brought to him to see if he would find one suitable for himself among them.
This led God to try again and channel His creative nous to come up with yet another creature using an entirely different method from the ones He used in the past to create the other creatures. This time, God had to undertake a medical procedure to achieve this. He carried out an anesthesia on Adam by inducing him to sleep and then performed a surgery on Adam, the first of its kind in recorded history, by removing a rib from the side of Adam and replacing the space created with flesh.
In case this does not sink in, let’s go over it again. In order to create the woman, God did three notable things. Firstly, He performed an anesthesia on Adam; secondly, He completed a surgical procedure by cutting open his flesh to remove a rib; and finally, God used the rib He removed to produce a new human creature. This is called reproductive cloning. So God also performed the first cloning known to man.
And guess what? The creature He produced through this whole procedure turned out to be His finest. Woman was God’s last throw of the dice at creation, and she remains the finest of them all. Moreso, she came into being because of the inventive nature of God in trying other means and exploring other solutions when the previous attempts did not work or produce the desired result.
The good news is that we are all created in His likeness. The main question is how inventive are you, and how are you putting your divine DNA to use?
Understanding God: He Consults Now the whole earth had one language and one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain…
Understanding God: He Consults
Now the whole earth had one language and one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there. Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar. And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.” But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. And the Lord said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.” – Genesis 11:1-7
Another interesting lesson we can learn from God’s mode of operation, as seen in this passage and many others like it, is that He regularly consults His council before making a major move or undertaking an important endeavor.
It is instructive that God, who is all-sufficient and all-knowing as we know Him to be, is this way. But there are many traits and attributes of God that seem lost to humanity, even to the most ardent of His worshippers. Yes, we know Him to be the Almighty and all-powerful, but there is certainly more to Him than that, as we have been highlighting through this devotional. God is much more than what we imagine Him to be. He is more than what is preached to us at religious gatherings.
On His penchant for consulting, it is instructive that God, who has the most important decisions to make and the highest responsibility to shoulder, is also the One who arguably consults the most before making His moves. When He was about to make the most important of His creatures, He did not just declare them into being like He did His previous works. Rather, He started by first engaging His council, saying, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth” (Genesis 1:26).
From our main Bible reference today, when He came down to earth and saw the edifice that humanity was building at Babel, He also consulted His council to intimate them on what He would do. The passage reads: ‘And the Lord said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language…’” (Genesis 11:6-7). This indicates that God first came down, saw what was going on and then went back to His hosts in heaven to consult them on what He wanted to do to solve the problem. Then He invited them to come down to earth with Him to execute His plan.
Of course, He could have gone ahead and done what He considered best. After all, He is the Ultimate God, and no one can question Him. But that He did not do so became an important lesson and another of His legacies for us lesser mortals: If God, who could have done without counsel, did not, why should anyone who does not have the benefit of omniscience do so?
Another lesson we can learn from God is His disposition to a balancing act. He is not a God of extremes. Even though some who profess to follow Him go to extremes in His name or make extreme claims on His behalf, extreme is not a label that one can pin on God. He balances the acts.
Understanding God: He is Not Moved by Sentiments
Another lesson we can learn from the personality of God is that sentiments do not move Him. Therefore, He cannot be deceived into making a wrong judgment or call, as humans tend to do.
Understanding God: He is A Creator
He is a Creator. This is not to be interpreted loosely, particularly in the light of our contemporary use of the word. God is the ultimate Creator, as He created all things, even the ends of the earth (Isaiah 40:28).
Understanding God: God of the Beginning
There is no better way to begin this journey of exploring the people and entities in the Bible than to start with God. He is not just the beginning but is the origin of all things.
Women in the Bible: A Paragon of Beauty
What made Sarah’s beauty so compelling that kings and nations took notice? Explore the deeper layers of grace, favour, and mystery surrounding one of Scripture’s most unforgettable women — and discover why her story still provokes wonder today.
Men in the Bible: A Man of Ambition and Adventure
Terah may not have reached Canaan, but his courage to start a life-changing journey laid the foundation for Abraham’s destiny. Discover how ambition and bold steps mark a life of significance.
Men in the Bible: An Impetuous and Impudent Man
A revealing glimpse into a man whose choices exposed deeper issues of character, showing how hastiness and entitlement can quietly shape a destiny, and why his story still speaks to us today.
Men in the Bible: A Man with Little Foresight
Sometimes what looks like a smart choice can hide the seed of a mistake. This reflection from Scripture invites us to think again about how foresight — or the lack of it — shapes a man’s story.
Men in the Bible: The First Man to Tithe
Before laws, temples, or traditions, one man honoured God with his substance. Abraham’s tithe was not commanded, demanded, or enforced. It flowed from reverence.
Fathers in the Bible: A Destiny-Shaping Father
What makes a man a truly aware father? Discover how one man’s prophetic foresight shaped his son’s destiny and changed generations forever.
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