“God is the One who made all things, and all things are for his glory. He wanted to have many children share his glory.” Hebrews 2:10 (NCV)

The Bible starts with four words: “In the beginning God . . .” (Genesis 1:1 NIV). If you can’t accept those four words, then life really has no meaning, no purpose, no significance. Our significance comes from God, who existed before everything else. God existed long before the universe, long before planet earth, and certainly long before the human race.

Genesis 1:1 goes on to say, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (NIV). And then the rest of the chapter tells how God spoke the whole universe into existence. Over and over Genesis 1 repeats, “God said . . .,” “God said . . .,” “God said . . .”

The Bible doesn’t spend a lot of time talking about the other details of how God created the universe. Instead, it spends a lot of time talking about why.

Why did God create the earth? “He did not create [the earth] to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited” (Isaiah 45:18 NIV). God made the earth so it could sustain life. He put it at just the right distance from the sun and on just the right axis so that as it rotated, it didn’t get too hot or too cold. He created it just right to support life.

I love how the Message paraphrase says it: “He didn’t go to all the trouble to just leave it empty, nothing in it. He made it to be lived in” (Isaiah 45:18).  

But why did God create the earth to sustain life? The Bible answers that question in Hebrews 2:10, saying, “God is the One who made all things, and all things are for his glory. He wanted to have many children share his glory” (NCV).

God created the earth to bring glory to himself—and to have children who would share in that glory. Who are those children? They’re you and me!

If you want to know why you’re sitting here right now—why you’re taking your next breath, why your heart keeps beating another beat—I can tell you why. God made you to love you, and he wants you in his family.

Psalm 8:5 says, “You made us a little lower than you yourself, and you have crowned us with glory and honor” (CEV). 

The next time you wonder “why”—Why did God create the earth? Why did God create me?—remember this: God created the whole universe so he could make you and me, children in his image who could be part of his forever family.