We read in Genesis 1 about the re-making of the corrupted, spoilt, dark, empty earth. And by the time you come to the end of the chapter, it has become a beautiful earth once again. God Himself could look at it and say, "It is very good."

Genesis 1 has a message for all of us. Satan has come into the human race too and made man exactly as mentioned in v.2 - empty, dark and shapeless. We have lost of God. God did not create Adam like that. Adam was created perfect. But the devil came in and ruined man. And God had to begin to remake man.

God is in the business of remaking ruined humanity today. It doesn't matter how shapeless, dark or empty you are.Genesis 1 teaches that God can remake you. He can make you so perfect that you will finally reflect His likeness perfectly, and God Himself will be able to certify about you,"Very Good". That is the message of the very first chapter of the Bible.

But how did this change take place? If you understand how it happened, the same thing can happen in your life too.

Every day God spoke His Word. He said something the first day. And He said something the second day. Every day He spoke. That's what you need to see in the very first chapter of the Bible - that our God is a living God Who speaks. If you want to be transformed, the most important thing you need is to hear God speaking to you. "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Matt.4:4). That's how God planned for man to live. And so, if we don't listen to His voice daily, we will not be transformed.

We have to develop the habit of listening to God. God speaks every day. But most believers do not listen to Him. Even those who read the Bible every day don't listen to God. Listening to God is not the same as reading the Bible. You can read the Bible like you read a storybook or study it like a chemistry book - and never hear what God is trying to say to your heart.

The other thing we see here (in Gen. 1:2) is that the Spirit of God moved on the face of the waters. After you hear God speak, you must allow the Holy Spirit to move upon you. Only then can you be transformed. We see the Holy Spirit working along with God's Word right from the beginning. Only the Holy Spirit can change man. It was the combined working of God's Word and of the Holy Spirit that brought change and beauty to that chaotic earth.

The great need in Christendom today is for balance. Many believers emphasise the study of the Word of God, but do not emphasise dependence on the Holy Spirit equally. If you study the Word of God without the Holy Spirit's enabling, you will be as dry as a bone and just as dead. Others emphasise the ministry of the Holy Spirit and neglect God's Word and thus get sidetracked into emotionalism, which they mistake for the Spirit's workings. Like steam engines that have gone off the rails (of God's Word), they blow their whistles furiously and make a lot of noise, but they are stuck in the mud and make no progress, because they do not allow the Word of God to guide them.