The Emergence of Day and Night

It is stated quite explicitly in scriptures that, ‘…Since the creation of the world, God’s invisible nature, namely, his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they (mankind) are without excuse’ (Romans 1:20).
Therefore, can day and night, light and darkness, reveal something about God’s eternal power and Godhead, that we naturally would not understand? Where is the source of day and night, light and darkness; how did they emerge? Did they emanate from the same source?

It is evident that from the beginning of creation, God separated the light from the darkness, and called the light day, and the darkness he called night. These two entities which are diametrically in contrast, and are at variance with each other, from all evidences, emerged on planet earth by two separate ways, and evidently from two separate sources. For to the prophet Isaiah the Lord said; ‘I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, have created it“ (Isaiah 45:7).

Although there is not much of a difference in terms of definition, between the word form, and create, nevertheless, I believe that the Holy Spirit inspired the usage of two different words, with almost similar meaning, to convey an important lesson, and to differentiate the process by which both entities emerged.

I will first begin by asking the question, Why was the earth without form and void, and darkness over the face of the deep, when God created the heavens and the earth? Where did the darkness come from, and what caused the earth to be without form and empty? Did God find an existing earth which was covered in darkness! where did it come from? Or did God create an earth without form and empty, with darkness over the face of the deep?

Secondly, is the emergence of darkness upon the earth a secret, or has it been revealed? If it is a secret, it makes no sense trying to find it out because, ‘The secret things belong to the Lord our God,’ but if it has been revealed, ‘it belongs to us and to our children for ever, that we may follow all the words of the law of God. And it is certain that, the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plans to his servants the prophets’ (Deuteronomy 29:29; Amos 3:7).

We can be assured, that there are revelations regarding the creation of the earth, because God in his dialogue with Job asked him the following questions; ‘Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? On what were its footing set, or who laid its cornerstone…while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for Joy?’

The dialogue continues; ‘Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this. What is the way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside? Can you take them to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings? Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years! (Job 38:18-21).

The fact that God asked Job, ‘Can you take them (light and darkness) to their places? Do you know the paths to their dwellings?’ Signifies that they emanate from two different sources. And since it is stated that, the morning stars sang together, and the sons of God shouted for joy when God created the earth, is a clear indication that when God created the earth, it was not formless, empty, and darkness covering the face of the deep. Furthermore, this is what the Lord says; ‘He who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, he formed it to be inhabited…he says; ‘I am the Lord, and there is no other’ (Isaiah 45:18).

Therefore, the account of creation found in the first chapter of Genesis, beginning with verse two (2) onwards, does not relate to the original creation of the earth, but refers to the renewal of the face of the earth, after the original earth was destroyed, and lay in waste and emptiness, due to Lucifer’s rebellion. God then renewed the earth, making it conducive for man’s existence. And so it is written; ‘When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the earth’ (Psalms 104:30).

Day and night were not part of the original creation of the earth, They emerged as the result of
Lucifer’s rebellion. Prophecy reveals that, ‘…When the Lord will come, and all the holy ones with him, on that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime…a day known to the Lord. When evening comes, there will be light.’ (Zechariah 14: 5-7).
This is typical of the earth which existed from the foundation of the earth, before Lucifer rebelled, and brought darkness into existence.

Day and night, light and darkness, are not just natural phenomena with no apparent significance. There is an important reason why God, from creation, separated them from each other, as he also set apart the seventh day, and distinguished it from the rest of the other six days of the week, by omitting the evening and the morning as being the seventh day. The scripture simply says; ‘Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work which he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all his work which he had done in creation“ (Genesis 2:1-3).

The seventh day with the omission of evening and morning, depicts a unique day unto the Lord, a day without daytime or nighttime, a day known to the Lord. When evening comes, there will be light. Typical to the one at creation.

Therefore, just as the seventh day Sabbath has both a physical and spiritual application, for it is written; ‘For if Joshua had given them rest (which he did physically), God would not speak later of another day. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God; for whoever enters God’s (spiritual) rest also ceases from his (physical) labors as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, that no one fall by the same sort of disobedience“ (Hebrews 4:8-11).

Similarly, day and night, light and darkness, have both literal, and spiritual implications. Day is indicative to the kingdom of light, and light is indicative to Jesus Christ, the Ruler of the kingdom of light. Whilst night is indicative to the kingdom of darkness, and darkness is indicative to Satan, the ruler of the kingdom of darkness.

The light which God formed, is Jesus Christ, the only Begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, and proceeded from the Father. And therefore, everything that is good, everything that is true, is associated with light who is Jesus Christ. And so it is written; ‘ In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.“ He is the true light that gives light to every man who comes into the world.“ And Jesus himself said; ‘ I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life“ (John 1:4-5, 9; John 8:12)

This is the same light that will govern the earth, when the kingdom of God is established on earth. For the prophet Zechariah wrote; ‘…Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him. On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. It will be a unique day, without daytime or night time… a day known to the Lord. When evening comes, there will be light. On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea and half to the western sea, in summer and in winter. The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only one“ [There will be no existence of the kingdom of darkness, and no Satan to assume the title lord] (Zechariah 14:5-9).

The apostle John echoed similar sentiments in the book of Revelation, concerning the New Jerusalem. He wrote; ‘I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its light. (Revelation 21:22-25).

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Have you ever observed what happens when you are in a dark place and the light suddenly comes up? There is a psychological response we have inside us which suggests clarity, peace, understanding and a strange sense of security. This is because in darkness, we don’t see what goes on around us, neither do we know how safe we are depending on where we are. We are usually clueless as to what to do in darkness, little wonder it is synonymous with lack of clarity or understanding of a situation which invariably implies a lack of solution to the situation.

As explained in my previous post, Jesus was the word which was the power responsible for creation. Let me explain this further:
The word in this case which the book of john reveals was in the begining, and was also God (in the first five verses of the book of john), is the third form of the trinity along with God the father, and God the holy spirit. If you remember, john said in 1jn 5:7 that there are three that bear record in heaven. The father, the Word, and the Holy ghost. Hence the one, among these three which was needed at the time of creation was the WORD.

You may ask “how exactly was the word used in creation?”. Well, i’ll take you back to the begining of the world, in Genesis when the earth was without form, and void, and God’s spirit moved over the earth. If you observed the activities from Gen. 1:3 you would observe that after God’s analysis of the situation (darkness and lack of clarity), he concluded, he needed only one word so as to be able to begin the creation process which could not be done in darkness, and what was the word that needed to be spoken?

“Let there be light”

This is the Word that was needed for creation to begin, and later verses show exactly how creation was achieved as soon as light was introduced to the prevailing darkness at the time.
This suggests that the word needed to overcome any dark situation, in whichever way it may manifest itself, is “Let there be light” which happens to describe the person of Jesus in four words. Yes! Jesus is the light of the world, and he has said it countless times. It was He, the light, the Word that brought clarity in creation, and will bring about clarity and light in any situation he is summoned to. Think of it this way; Any unpalatable situation or uncomfortable situation in ones life represents darkness over the surface of the earth, and Jesus (God’s Word), represents light to bring about a positive change in the situation.

How then can we get this light?
The first step to getting the light is getting Jesus into your life. Thereafter, you get more of him (God’s Word) which comes in the form of the bible, and generally any writing, or speech that is inspired of God. With this, you observe that rather than look at situations as a problem, you see the need to exercise your creative power as a child of God, the master Creator. This is called divine insight, and can only be gotten by introducing Jesus (the light) to any problem (darkness).

In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There came a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him.
-John 1:4-7

In Christ was life. He is the source and giver of all life. Nothing that is in existence would be in existence without Him, for all things were created through Him. Christ did not receive or inherit life, but has always had life and is the provider and possessor of all life. Regarding “and the life was the Light of men,” John Gill writes:

“…all his elect are dead in trespasses and sins, and cannot quicken themselves. Christ has procured life for them, and gives it to them, and implants it in them; a life of sanctification is from him; and a life of justification is upon him, and of faith is by him; all the comforts of a spiritual life, and all things appertaining to it, are from him, and he maintains, and preserves it.”
-John Gill

The light shines in the darkness. The better translation would be “the darkness did not overcomethe” Light. In this context, darkness represents anything that sets itself against the One who gives all life. Darkness is the opposite of light. But just as when a candle is set ablaze in a pitch black cave, so the Light, the Christ, cannot be overcome by darkness.

A man was sent from God, John the baptist. God fulfilled His purposes through this man. He was saved through God’s grace and filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb (Luke 1:15). It is said that he came to testify about the Light, so that all men might might see the life that the Light brings into a world infested with darkness.

Christ is the one who overcomes the darkness. Thus as Christians we are called to be as John, testifiers of the Light. The Gospel is the Light that overcomes the darkness. As Christians filled with the Spirit we possess the only message that brings life and extinguishes the darkness. How ignorant we are when we put a lampshade over the Light and ashamedly mumble the one message that brings hope and light to the world.