When we read the Creation story in Genesis, we can sometimes get caught up in the logistics of God’s power or abilities, but there are incredible and valuable doctrines found in the first few chapters of the Old Testament. Here are three of the most important principles we can learn from the Creation story.
The Creation, along with the magnitude and beauty of the earth, testify of a Creator and a higher power
Have you ever looked up at the night sky and been awed by its billions of stars? Or studied the intricate details of a leaf or a flower? Or marveled at the miracle of a tiny newborn? These beautiful and complex creations didn’t come about by chance. They are the creations of God, your Heavenly Father. They can remind you of His existence and of His love for His children.
In Psalms 19:1, it reads, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.”
An ancient prophet declared: “All things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth... and its motion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form do witness that there is a Supreme Creator” (Book of Mormon, Alma 30:44).
We have a right and responsibility to take care of the earth and where we live
Genesis 1:26 says, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”
During the Creation, Heavenly Father gave mankind dominion over the animals and the earth -- meaning we as a society have the responsibility to care for and preserve the natural beauty and resources of our planet.
Everything God did and does today is out of love for us, His children
M. Russell Ballard has said, “When we look to see the evidence of creation all around us, from a grain of sand to the majestic planets, we begin to realize that we are the greatest of all God’s creations; we are created in his image."
Genesis 1:29 says, “And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.”
We are God’s greatest creation. The other pieces of the Creation story -- the heavens, the earth, the plants and animals -- were made for us, His children.