This world of deep waters and formless masses was not, however, absent of any living force. Though the waters were devoid of fish, and the earth barren of any vegetable or animal life, the silent Spirit of the living God was hovering, brooding, moving upon the face of the waters. These remarkable words are our first introduction to the blessed third Person of the sacred Trinity, and begin the process of teaching us the great truth of multiple persons within the one Godhead.
It also sets the precedent for the things we will learn about the blessed Spirit of God throughout the scripture. He is a life-giving Spirit, Whose presence brings life and order where formerly there was nothing but barrenness and death. He is a Spirit of power, clearly taking an active part in the divine act of creation. We may perhaps agree with Benjamin B. Warfield, who liked to designate the Spirit as “the executive partner of the Godhead,” the one Who executes the purposes of God on earth. We often find Him in the Old Testament empowering God’s people for great feats of strength or courage, and in the New Testament we see Him empowering Christ for His great mission upon earth, and the early church for the fulfillment of the Great Commission. We bless the Lord for this early revelation of the Spirit of God, and rejoice to think that He is still moving with power, still generating life where formerly there was but the nothingness of death, doing it now in the spiritual realm as He once did in the physical.
samuelashwood 