THE GENESIS OF NATURE, 



45 



expression of a consequence and not an aim. Its presence 

 would need no ex|)lanation except the nature of its Maker. Its 

 supreme object, displayed on every hand, would be its testimony 

 to the creative glory of God. 



(19) As God is lovinrj, as God Himself is love, His creation 

 would be expected to be replete with fruits of love. It would 

 be joyous, exuberant with happiness, sparkling with joy. It 

 would be tender, meeting the needs of all with gentle effluence. 

 It would be, in its fulfilment, the impression of the smile of 

 God upon the universe, the transi'ormation of chaos into glory 

 by the irradiance of love, the filling of the formless void with 

 the splendour of the love of God. 



(20) As God is the living God, His creation would be expected 

 to be everywhere controlled and energized by the impulse of 

 His Life. He would not start it into action and then leave it 

 alone to work out from within itself its successive results ; but 

 His care. His direction. His active control and sustenance would 

 be ceaselessly felt throughout. His vitality would maintain it, 

 His will would rule it. The pauseless power of His endless 

 life would cause it to progress to its full and perfect 

 consummation. 



(21) As God is the life-giving God, His creation would be 

 expected to be replete with life. Whatever be the secret of 

 life, it could never be supposed, that He, the fountain of 

 life, w^ould be satisfied with a lifeless creation. It could only 

 be expected that He would make it instuict with life ; and 

 further that He would not merely use His life-giving power once 

 for all, but would be continually bringing out into it a fuller and 

 yet fuller effluence of life. It might well be imagined, too, that 

 it would be made rich, not only in abundance of life, but in 

 abundance of forms and phases of life ; and that as it advanced 

 to completion those forms and phases of life would be higher 

 and nobler. lUit it may be noted that from this premise no 

 conclusion could be drawn as to what method He would most 

 probably employ in the production of life. The question 

 whether He would be more likely to work by direct creation, 

 or by divine action upon existing life which He had already 

 created, or by both of these methods, is not here affected, and 

 must be judged by other considerations. Divine creation is 

 doubtless the antipodes of spontaneous generation ; but, granted 

 the acts of a life-giving God, the method employed in these 

 acts becomes a matter of detail. 



(22) As God is a Spirit, it would be not unnatural to expect 

 that His creation would culminate with the type or kind of 



