In the infinite eternity, God was alone. God is Spirit, God is light and God is life. In this eternal Spirit-light-fullness, He had not yet manifested Himself. In that stage, no one has ever seen Him. We must begin where God starts acting and manifesting Himself, that is to say at the very beginning of time. In that beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. From the New Testament point of view, we read: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (Jn. 1:1). With this declaration the One Who began to manifest Himself by stepping out of that eternal fullness of light and glory is described. The One Who began to create, God in His Selfmanifestation as Logos came forth — Yahweh — the One Who acted and created then later became flesh and appeared in the form of the Son. Yahweh was shown outside the fullness of light in which Elohim dwelt. Therefore we read, “The same was in the beginning with God.” (Jn. 1:2), not in eternity, because eternity has no beginning. That all men may know Yahweh as Creator the reference here is, as we read in verse 3, to the Logos-Word: “All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.” In this connection, we must also read Col. 1:16:“For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers — all things were created by him, and for him.”

In the record of the creation process we are told, the earth was without form (tohu) and void (bohu). There was no shape yet and no life. Darkness covered the deep. In that moment God began His creative work and the Spirit of God was moving over the waters. The Word — Logos and the Spirit of God were working together in the very beginning and again working harmoniously together in the work of Redemption. The creation came into existence by the spoken word, but life could only come forth by the moving of the Spirit. God spoke and it was there. He spoke, “Let there be light: and there was light.” Whatever God said, happened. There is creative power in His Word.

As already mentioned, in this beginning God came forth out of His eternal fullness and manifested Himself in a visible form of appearance. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him …” (Gen. 1:27). The image of God is the appearance of a man. “…and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness of the appearance of a man above upon it.” (Ez. 1:26; Rev. 4:2).

God is a person. In this form He walked in the Garden of Eden and had fellowship with Adam and Eve. In Gen. 18, His visit to Abraham is recorded, “And the Lord appeared unto him by the oaks of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day; and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him …” (vs. 1-2). There was a conversation between the Lord and Abraham. The two angels who accompanied the Lord went on to Sodom (Gen. 19). The fact that God revealed Himself in this spiritual body is recorded throughout the Old Testament. Jacob wrestled with Him, put his arms around Him and received a knock from the Lord after which he was a lame man (Gen. 32:22-32; Hos. 12:4-6). The Lord God was and is the same for all those on earth to whom He could reveal Himself and they speak of the greatest reality ever in existence.

The second point of importance in this record of the creation work is found in the fact, that angels also have the appearance of a man, as the Holy Scripture testifies. “… then, behold, there stood before me one having the appearance of a man. And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of the Ulai, who called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.” (Dan. 8:15-16). In chapter 9:21, he testifies, “Yea, while I was speaking in prayer, even the man, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision …”

The Lord Himself and the angels have the form of a man. This is of great significance because thereby the infallible answer in God’s Word is given to Gen. 1:26, where God said: “Let us make man in our image …” From the very beginning, God was surrounded by angels who had the same form like Himself. To Job He said: “Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? … Whereupon are its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4-7). Here we have God’s answer by His own Word confirming that the heavenly hosts were present when God created the earth. To them He spoke: “Let us make man …” The interpretation that God spoke to different persons in the Godhead is totally wrong and absurd. No prophet and no apostle has ever interpreted this passage in such a way. When the prophet Isaiah saw the Glory of God, he testifies of having seen the Lord sitting on the throne also surrounded by the heavenly hosts who sang, “Holy, holy, holy …” Then he heard the Voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” (Isa. 6:8).

The prophet Micah had a similar experience. He testifies, “I saw the Lord sitting upon his throne, and all the host of heaven standing on his right hand and on his left.” (2 Chr. 18:18). When the Lord God decided to make an end to the erecting of the tower of Babel He again spoke to those surrounding Him, “Come, let us go down, and there confound their language …” (Gen. 11:7). He always spoke to those angels and heavenly beings around Him. The us and the we were never interpreted by the prophets in the Old Testament or by the apostles in the New Testament in reference to a trinity which for them did not even exist.

This great mystery which cannot by explained exists therein that the Lord God stepped out of His spiritual body into the body of flesh. He relinquished Himself and became man. At first Adam was made in a spiritual body in the likeness of the Lord God Himself (Gen. 1:27). In Gen. 2, Adam was formed from the dust of the earth, and so he became a living soul. When still in the spiritual body Eve was already in him, but only after Adam was placed into a body of flesh, she was taken out of him. In the same way the Church of the living God was already in Him when He existed in the spiritual body, but she was taken out from Him only after He appeared in the body of flesh.

Man was not disobedient while he was in the spiritual body but the fall took place in the body of flesh. From this fallen condition he had to be redeemed and placed back into immortality. Therefore, the Lord had to come into this body of flesh and be like one of us in order to pay the price for our redemption, to die in our stead, to pull out the sting of death and make us sons and daughters of God. A new beginning of the creation of God commenced.

In the infinite eternity, God was alone. God is Spirit, God is light and God is life. In this eternal Spirit-light-fullness, He had not yet manifested Himself. In that stage, no one has ever seen Him. We must begin where God starts acting and manifesting Himself, that is to say at the very beginning of time. In that beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. From the New Testament point of view, we read: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (Jn. 1:1). With this declaration the One Who began to manifest Himself by stepping out of that eternal fullness of light and glory is described. The One Who began to create, God in His Selfmanifestation as Logos came forth — Yahweh — the One Who acted and created then later became flesh and appeared in the form of the Son. Yahweh was shown outside the fullness of light in which Elohim dwelt. Therefore we read, “The same was in the beginning with God.” (Jn. 1:2), not in eternity, because eternity has no beginning. That all men may know Yahweh as Creator the reference here is, as we read in verse 3, to the Logos-Word: “All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.” In this connection, we must also read Col. 1:16:“For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers — all things were created by him, and for him.”

In the record of the creation process we are told, the earth was without form (tohu) and void (bohu). There was no shape yet and no life. Darkness covered the deep. In that moment God began His creative work and the Spirit of God was moving over the waters. The Word — Logos and the Spirit of God were working together in the very beginning and again working harmoniously together in the work of Redemption. The creation came into existence by the spoken word, but life could only come forth by the moving of the Spirit. God spoke and it was there. He spoke, “Let there be light: and there was light.” Whatever God said, happened. There is creative power in His Word.

As already mentioned, in this beginning God came forth out of His eternal fullness and manifested Himself in a visible form of appearance. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him …” (Gen. 1:27). The image of God is the appearance of a man. “…and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness of the appearance of a man above upon it.” (Ez. 1:26; Rev. 4:2).

God is a person. In this form He walked in the Garden of Eden and had fellowship with Adam and Eve. In Gen. 18, His visit to Abraham is recorded, “And the Lord appeared unto him by the oaks of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day; and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him …” (vs. 1-2). There was a conversation between the Lord and Abraham. The two angels who accompanied the Lord went on to Sodom (Gen. 19). The fact that God revealed Himself in this spiritual body is recorded throughout the Old Testament. Jacob wrestled with Him, put his arms around Him and received a knock from the Lord after which he was a lame man (Gen. 32:22-32; Hos. 12:4-6). The Lord God was and is the same for all those on earth to whom He could reveal Himself and they speak of the greatest reality ever in existence.

The second point of importance in this record of the creation work is found in the fact, that angels also have the appearance of a man, as the Holy Scripture testifies. “… then, behold, there stood before me one having the appearance of a man. And I heard a man’s voice between the banks of the Ulai, who called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.” (Dan. 8:15-16). In chapter 9:21, he testifies, “Yea, while I was speaking in prayer, even the man, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision …”

The Lord Himself and the angels have the form of a man. This is of great significance because thereby the infallible answer in God’s Word is given to Gen. 1:26, where God said: “Let us make man in our image …” From the very beginning, God was surrounded by angels who had the same form like Himself. To Job He said: “Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? … Whereupon are its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4-7). Here we have God’s answer by His own Word confirming that the heavenly hosts were present when God created the earth. To them He spoke: “Let us make man …” The interpretation that God spoke to different persons in the Godhead is totally wrong and absurd. No prophet and no apostle has ever interpreted this passage in such a way. When the prophet Isaiah saw the Glory of God, he testifies of having seen the Lord sitting on the throne also surrounded by the heavenly hosts who sang, “Holy, holy, holy …” Then he heard the Voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” (Isa. 6:8).

The prophet Micah had a similar experience. He testifies, “I saw the Lord sitting upon his throne, and all the host of heaven standing on his right hand and on his left.” (2 Chr. 18:18). When the Lord God decided to make an end to the erecting of the tower of Babel He again spoke to those surrounding Him, “Come, let us go down, and there confound their language …” (Gen. 11:7). He always spoke to those angels and heavenly beings around Him. The us and the we were never interpreted by the prophets in the Old Testament or by the apostles in the New Testament in reference to a trinity which for them did not even exist.

This great mystery which cannot by explained exists therein that the Lord God stepped out of His spiritual body into the body of flesh. He relinquished Himself and became man. At first Adam was made in a spiritual body in the likeness of the Lord God Himself (Gen. 1:27). In Gen. 2, Adam was formed from the dust of the earth, and so he became a living soul. When still in the spiritual body Eve was already in him, but only after Adam was placed into a body of flesh, she was taken out of him. In the same way the Church of the living God was already in Him when He existed in the spiritual body, but she was taken out from Him only after He appeared in the body of flesh.

Man was not disobedient while he was in the spiritual body but the fall took place in the body of flesh. From this fallen condition he had to be redeemed and placed back into immortality. Therefore, the Lord had to come into this body of flesh and be like one of us in order to pay the price for our redemption, to die in our stead, to pull out the sting of death and make us sons and daughters of God. A new beginning of the creation of God commenced.