Chapter 2

Dimensions of Creation and the Spiritual Universe

There has been a question that has been overlooked, brushed aside, and willfully ignored for a long time. It is a question that has empowered skeptics and presented a real problem for apologists. It is a question that many lay evangelists have groaned over. It may be a question you have personally wrestled with. This question is properly stated as follows: In the creation week, how is it possible that God spoke light into creation on day one, and then created the sun, moon, and stars on day four? If the sun, moon, and stars did not exist on day one, where was the light coming from? Furthermore, how was there day and night?

"And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day" (Genesis 1:3-5).

"And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day" (Genesis 1:14-19).

What is Going On?

We are taught that day and night exist on the physical earth due to its revolution around the sun. Although I acknowledge that there are pockets of people who are now arguing a "flat earth" perspective (which is an entirely separate conversation), the majority of people today hold to a cosmology that portrays a spherical earth rotating around a physical sun. This is known as the heliocentric model. Hundreds of years ago it replaced geocentrism, which is the view that places earth at the actual "center" of the universe, about which every other celestial body rotates.

Interestingly enough, my next question applies to both the heliocentric model and geocentrism equally. The question is, how could there be light on day one if the sun, moon, and stars did not exist until day four? While some would like to say the stars (including the sun) were "actually" created on day one, and that they became visible to earth on day four, this is simply unacceptable. It is a feeble attempt to argue away the obvious. This is not what the text says, and skeptics that point out the lunacy of this rebuttal are justified in doing so. I believe there is a better and more accurate explanation. It simply requires that we bring a dimensional element to the discussion.

A Better Explanation

So what is this better explanation? Plainly stated, I believe that while there are many higher dimensions, the three-dimensional world in which we live is actually set atop a spiritual template. Think about setting out to build a tower. First the support beams must be set in place, then the rest of the tower can be built on top of it. In like manner, I believe that God created our universe in the spirit first. He used the first two days to put the proverbial support beams in place. On subsequent days of the creation week, he put the physical creation on top of it. The question is, what would lead me to suggest such a thing?

As I attempted to address the issue created by the first and fourth days of creation, I began a word study that transformed everything. It utterly revolutionized my understanding of Scripture. It led me to conclude that in the original language and word use, there is not a single element of the creation account, prior to the third day of creation, requiring a "physical" interpretation. Instead, I found that the language (prior to the third day) was actually describing a spiritual creation. The third day was the transition point where the language began to demand a physical interpretation.

As I demonstrate this, it will essentially prove that there is, in fact, a spiritual template underneath the physical creation. This will show that creation is layered, and ultimately intertwines with other dimensions of existence. It will also point to the idea that it was "designed" this way. This may seem slightly far-fetched, but I believe that if you track with me, everything will make sense. It will also serve as a foundation for understanding other elements of this book.

In the Beginning

Beginning in Genesis 1:1, we find that the Bible explains how creation came into existence. God created the heavens, and he created the earth. I believe this means he created all of the dimensions of existence in addition to a spiritual earth. I further believe that in doing this he also tied all of creation to the earth. Therefore, the heavens and earth are present at the outset of creation week.

"In the beginning God (prepared, formed, fashioned, and) created the heavens and the earth" (Genesis 1:1 AMPC).

Moving into the second verse of Genesis, we find that God is preparing to format the earth for the present creation. In this assessment, I am ignoring all arguments relating to the debate of young earth versus old earth. All I am concerned with is explaining the nature of what happened. I am setting out to show that creation was first spiritual and secondarily physical. Therefore, can every element of Genesis 1:2 be interpreted as being entirely spiritual?

"And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters" (Genesis 1:2).

The key Hebrew words in this passage are as follows. The word earth is translated from the Hebrew word erets. This word straightforwardly means "earth." However, since I am arguing that this was a spiritual earth, the proof isn't going to come from the name of the planet, but from the other elements in this passage. The next import phrase is without form, which is translated from the Hebrew word tohu. This word means "formless, confusion, unreality, emptiness, and chaos." Consider just how clear this is. Here we find that earth was in a state of unreality. It was defined as emptiness. In my opinion, this is because it was a spiritual template.

The next important word is void, which is translated from the Hebrew word bohu. This word means "emptiness, void or waste." Again, I believe the clear intent is to show just how empty the unreality of earth was. This takes us to the word translated darkness, which is the Hebrew word chosek. This word means "darkness," "obscurity," or "secret place." The most interesting thing about the word darkness is its application in other passages. It is repeatedly used in reference to spiritual (and not literal) darkness. I believe this is because it was a spiritual component of the spiritual template that pre-existed the physical creation.

"For thou art my lamp, O Lord: and the Lord will lighten my darkness [chosek]" (2 Samuel 22:29).

"If I wait, the grave is mine house: I have made my bed in the darkness [chosek]" (Job 17:13).

"He brought them out of darkness [chosek] and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder" (Psalm 107:14).

The list of Scriptures that apply darkness, or chosek, to spiritual realities is extensive. This was a spiritual darkness that was present. The next key word that we find is the word deep, which is translated from the Hebrew word tehowm. This word means "deep" or "abyss." Other definitions include "primeval ocean" and "grave." How fascinating! This becomes a highly interesting word study as we work our way through Scripture. Tehowm is referred to as a person with a voice and hands. It is also the force by which God destroyed the earth in the days of Noah. The deep is first spiritual, although it has power in the physical realm.

"The mountains saw thee, and they trembled: the overflowing of the water passed by: the deep [tehowm] uttered his voice, and lifted up his hands on high" (Habakkuk 3:10).

"In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep [tehowm] broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened" (Genesis 7:11).

Next, we see the Spirit of the Lord hovering over the waters. The word translated water is mayim. This word straightforwardly means "water." Is this water physical or spiritual? From many Scriptures we learn that water is found in the spirit realm as well as in the natural realm. Therefore, we still have no conflict. These waters were spiritual. Remember, I am attempting to prove that every element of creation prior to the third day of creation occurred in the spirit. Where do we see that water can exist in the spirit? One example is that Jesus Christ is the Source of Living Water. This is spiritual water.

"For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water" (Jeremiah 2:13).

"For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed...