Let's Talk About Genesis 1

The biblical book of Genesis has become a battleground, specifically the first chapter.  Duking it out are Young Earth Creationists (Literal interpretation, 6 days of Creation, 24 hours/day, ~6000 year old universe), Old Earth Creationists/Theistic Evolutionists (1 Day=Eons, simple to complex, 14 Billion year old universe), and Atheists/Agnostics (Genesis is all bullshit).  There might be others, but I think those are the top three.

All of them work on one basic assumption-- The Genesis 1 account is about material origins.

Question: What if the Genesis 1 account is not about material origins?

I think that question is worth exploring.  It might produce a gold mine of insights.  Or it might lead to more questions.  But first let me pose a couple of questions that might move the discussion along a bit.

Q1) How would our reading of Genesis 1 change if we defined the words "create" and "make" as bringing order out of chaos?

Q2) How would that interpretation of Genesis 1 fit within the overall narrative of Scripture?

Here's my two cents.

If I understand things correctly the order/chaos dichotomy was a powerful dynamic in Ancient Near Eastern religion.  Ancient temples gave concrete pictorial representation to this dynamic.  Temples represented order, where the god(s) came to rest; the outside world represented chaos.  The function of temple priesthoods was to take the order of the temple and bring it to the outside world.

In Genesis 1, the material universe is the temple after God brings it to order and rests within it.  Something must represent God upon the earth as priest of this temple and to bring order to the chaotic world.  People loved stone buildings in which to carry out this duty.  God didn't seem to be all that crazy about stone buildings.  God fills heaven and earth.  God does not live in houses made by human hands.  Perhaps God's temple representation on earth was the people themselves!  A kingdom of priests and a holy nation (ala Genesis 19).  It was unprecedented thinking.  Genesis 1 is truly unique in that aspect.

As Christians we understand that Jesus is portrayed by the New Testament as God's temple.  Flesh and blood, bone and sinew, order to chaos.  Death to life!  Those who are in Christ are living stones, members of Christ's body.  We are living embodiments, along with Jesus, of the order that God gives to creation.

That's my thinking in a nutshell.  What are some of your thoughts?