God created the universe with a spoken word.
"And God said..." seven times in Genesis one and the earth was formed.
Then God brings all the beasts of the field and birds of the air to "see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name (2:20)
Man was given the responsibility to create an identity with a spoken word, label and give meaning. Man assisted in creation with a spoken word.
Then...
The fall
Curses
and the promise that the seed of woman will crush the head of Satan
But everything seems ruined by sin. Paradise is lost. But directly after the curses were pronounced Adam names the woman, after all of this! Instead of blaming her for the whole incident, naming her
bringer of death
bringer of death
failure
deceived
He calls her name Eve, which means giver of life!
After the curses, enmity is introduced between man and woman, but Adam speaks meaning, worth into the woman and gives hope. God doesn't take back the responsibility of man to speak identity, we see Adam's first response after the fall is to speak hope. You will be called Eve because from you will come life not death! This is coupled with the gift of God covering their nakedness with animal skins, man and God together speaking hope into the darkness, order into the chaos of life.
In creation we see the role of the husband and father and that responsibility still exists. The role of the husband was to label, identify and give meaning through a word. That is my role as a man, a husband and father. Through my words to offer hope, give meaning and identity to my wife and children.
What words will you choose to speak today?
