Often as Christians, we look at the world around us marveling at the beauty created by God. We look at the rivers, mountains, meadows, and the rest of the amazing design aspects of our world trying to imagine what it must have been like during the days of creation. But what many of us often fail to understand is that what we see isn’t God’s original creation. Even in the most untouched and undeveloped parts of the word. In reality, everything we see is the aftermath of a worldwide flood that completely reshaped the entire look of our world. Illustrating that even in the midst of punishment and destruction our God can’t help but create beauty.
The flood was the most devastating natural event our world has ever seen. God intended it to completely destroy His creation. Which is exactly what it did. Only sparing those who were safely tucked inside the ark. The violent eruption of water that flowed quickly throughout the whole earth altered all of God’s original creation. Altering the perfect landscape God created in the first seven days of the world. Leaving behind the canyons, rivers, mountains, vistas, and rock formations we find beautiful today. What we see and find breathtaking today is not what God created originally. But in fact what He altered through the flood that was meant to destroy all He created. Even when God set out to destroy He formed beauty.
Genesis 6:17 (ESV)
17 For behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Everything that is on the earth shall die.
Genesis 6:11–12 (ESV)
11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.
Now think about the implications this truth has on your life. Regardless of what you may think about yourself, God created you to be beautiful. In God’s eyes, you’re perfect. You see God takes care of each person He creates. Giving everyone their own uniqueness that makes them beautiful. Often we look for beauty in the natural world and easily find it. But then looking in the mirror we struggle to find any beauty in ourselves. But all the nature that surrounds us was created when God simply spoke a few words. Geographic features, plants, and animals were all created quickly. Requiring very little care and effort from God.
Genesis 1:9–12 (ESV)
9 And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.
11 And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
Genesis 1:14–18 (ESV)
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.
Genesis 1:20–22 (ESV)
20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” 21 So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
But man is different, very different in fact. As God took time when creating man. He didn’t simply speak a few words as He did with the rest of creation. Instead, God paused to form man from the dust. Carefully carving out every detail step by step purposefully. The Bible even makes it clear that unlike the animal kingdom man has been created in the image of God. Meaning that the human race mirrors the beauty of the Lord.
Genesis 2:7 (ESV)
7 then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.
Genesis 1:27 (ESV)
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
Of course one could argue that the beauty placed into man came before the fall. But scripture goes on to tell of the care God still takes when forming each individual person. Even in the womb, God knows us. Scripture even says He knits us together in the womb. We can all make the same proclamation David did that we are fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God. Still reflecting the beauty of God to this very day.
Jeremiah 1:5 (ESV)
5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
Psalm 139:16 (ESV)
16 Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
Psalm 139:13–14 (ESV)
13 For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
Jesus taught about how God provides for the birds and the flowers. Teaching that we can know based on how well He provides for them we can trust that God will provide even better for us. Due to the much greater love God has for the human race than the rest of creation. This same truth can also be applied to our individual beauty. We can trust that each of the beauty we possess far outshines that of the flowers and animals we so often view as beautiful. All because we know how much more care God has given to creating us.
Matthew 6:26 (ESV)
26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
Matthew 6:28–30 (ESV)
28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Don’t fall into the trap of not seeing the beauty God has given you. Know and trust in what is taught through the pages of the Bible. That God doesn’t make mistakes and He can’t help but create beautiful things. He created the beauty of our world that inspires awe in all who look upon it through a few simple words and reshaped it in the miss of destruction. Just think about how much beauty you possess because of the care God took when creating you. You are beautiful because God made you just as you are. Never let anyone or anything tell you anything different.
Visit Justin’s personal website Here. Or see articles from other writers we feature Here. Also, be sure to stop by our prayer wall.