Genesis 1:1 (ESV) – In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

I'm going to begin today’s devotional by citing the first line of several famous pieces of literature. See if you can guess the source from just the first line.

• “Call me Ishmael” 
• “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife 
• “Mr. and Mrs. Dursley of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.”
• “Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy.” 
• “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”

The answers are in order: Herman Melville, Moby Dick; Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice; J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter; C.S. Lewis, The Lion, The Witch, & The Wardrobe; Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities. These are just a sampling of the most famous opening lines in literature. They are known because of how popular those works are. In addition to these titles, many stories open with the famous line, "Once upon a time." These opening lines send us into a story. But there are no opening lines in all of literature ever produced that compare with the Bible's opening line: "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." It is the most recognized opening line of any work of literature. It is likely the most known verse of the Bible. It's probably the most memorized verse in Scripture.

It is this first line in the first book of the Bible, that catapults us into a story. And this story is the story. The first line of the story tells us a lot. The Bible’s opening line sets the stage for everything else. This is God’s world. He’s in control.

This opening sentence of the Bible flies in the face of other stories that try to account for the world and our existence in it. This opening line is either true or it is false. If it is false, and there is some other story, then the universe and everything in it is meaningless, including our inconsequential little lives. But if it is true, then not only is the universe charged with meaning and purpose, but so are our lives. No one gets past the first verse of the Bible without being confronted about everything you believe.

Genesis 1:1 (ESV) – In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
The first line of the story tells us a lot. The Bible’s opening line sets the stage for everything else. This is God’s world. He’s in control.

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Reflection & Journal:
- Why is the opening line of the Bible so significant?
- What things do we learn from this first verse alone?
- How does this text inform our daily lives and devotion?

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