The Creation Russell M. Nelson Grand as it is, planet Earth is part of something even grander—that great plan of God. Simply summarized, the earth was created that families might be.
We will long remember this inspiring conference in the new Conference Center. Not long ago, there was only a deep hole in the ground where this building now stands. We have watched its construction with interest and awe.
The process of construction is truly inspiring to me. From conception to completion, any major building project reflects upon the work of the Master Creator. In fact, the Creation—of planet Earth and of life upon it—undergirds all other creative capability. Any manmade creation is possible only because of our divine Creator. The people who design and build are given life and capacity by that Creator. And all materials used in the construction of an edifice are ultimately derived from the rich resources of the earth. The Lord declared, “The earth is full, and there is enough and to spare; yea, I prepared all things.”1
It is difficult for mortal minds to comprehend the majesty of the Creation. It is much easier for us to think about good things to eat or fun things to do. But I would like to stretch our minds to think of things beyond our easy grasp. The creation of man and woman was wondrous and great.2 So was the creation of the earth as their mortal dwelling place.
The entire Creation was planned by God. A council in heaven was once convened in which we participated.3 There our Heavenly Father announced His divine plan.4 It is also called the plan of happiness,5 the plan of salvation,6 the plan of redemption,7 the plan of restoration,8 the plan of mercy,9 the plan of deliverance,10 and the everlasting gospel.11 The purpose of the plan is to provide opportunity for the spirit children of God to progress toward an eternal exaltation.
The plan required the Creation, and that in turn required both the Fall and the Atonement. These are the three fundamental components of the plan. The creation of a paradisiacal planet came from God.12 Mortality and death came into the world through the Fall of Adam.13 Immortality and the possibility of eternal life were provided by the Atonement of Jesus Christ.14 The Creation, the Fall, and the Atonement were planned long before the actual work of the Creation began.
While visiting the British Museum in London one day, I read a most unusual book. It is not scripture. It is an English translation of an ancient Egyptian manuscript. From it, I quote a dialogue between the Father and the Son. Referring to His Father, Jehovah—the premortal Lord—says:
“He took the clay from the hand of the angel, and made Adam according to Our image and likeness, and He left him lying for forty days and forty nights without putting breath into him. And He heaved sighs over him daily, saying, ‘If I put breath into this [man], he must suffer many pains.’ And I said unto My Father, ‘Put breath into him; I will be an advocate for him.’ And My Father said unto Me, ‘If I put breath into him, My beloved Son, Thou wilt be obliged to go down into the world, and to suffer many pains for him before Thou shalt have redeemed him, and made him to come back to his primal state.’ And I said unto My Father, ‘Put breath into him; I will be his advocate, and I will go down into the world, and will fulfil Thy command.’”15
Although this text is not scripture, it reaffirms scriptures that teach of the deep and compassionate love of the Father for the Son, and of the Son for us—attesting that Jesus volunteered willingly to be our Savior and Redeemer.16
The Lord God declared, “This is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”17 He who, under direction of the Father, had created the earth, subsequently came into mortality to do the will of His Father18 and to fulfill all prophecies of the Atonement.19 His Atonement would redeem every soul from the penalties of personal transgression, on conditions that He set.20
Each phase of the Creation was well planned before it was accomplished. Scripture tells us that “the Lord God, created all things … spiritually, before they were naturally upon the face of the earth.”21
The physical Creation itself was staged through ordered periods of time. In Genesis22 and Moses,23 those periods are called days. But in the book of Abraham, each period is referred to as a time.24 Whether termed a day, a time, or an age, each phase was a period between two identifiable events—a division of eternity.25
Period one included the creation of atmospheric heavens and physical earth, culminating in the emergence of light from darkness.26
In period two, the waters were divided between the surface of the earth and its atmospheric heavens. Provision was made for clouds and rain to give life to all that would later dwell upon the earth.27
In period three, plant life began. The earth was organized to bring forth grass, herbs, trees, and vegetation—each growing