Earth's Creation Was Really About Organization, Ordering, and Obeying

Abraham chapter 4 in the Pearl of Great Price gives great insights into how the creation of the earth

came about.  According to Abraham, the earth was not creating out of nothing, but out of existing matter. Abraham 4 uses 3 very interesting "O" words--organization, order, and obedience.

Everything was organized and given order, but it's interesting about how the concept of obeience was different for the different entities that were "created".
When the Gods (Abraham brings back and ancient idea that there was a divine council of Gods) came together to create the earth, you might say they did so in 3 phases.

1. The earth, the expanse of waters above it, and the waters (oceans, etc.) upon it, as well as the vegetation thereon.
2. The animals
3. Humanity 

It will become clear below why I find these three distinctions useful.

The Earth and The Waters.

Abraham describes how, when the earth, the waters, and the lights in the heavens were organized they were watched until they obeyed. These entities immediately--and consistently forever after--followed eternal laws that governed their actions

7 ...the Gods ordered the expanse, so that it divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so, even as they ordered.
8 ...the Gods ordered, saying: Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the earth come up dry; and it was so as they ordered;
10 ...the Gods pronounced the dry land, Earth; and the gathering together of the waters, pronounced they, Great Waters; and the Gods saw that they were obeyed.
12 ...the Gods organized the earth to bring forth grass from its own seed, and the herb to bring forth herb from its own seed, yielding seed after his kind; and the earth to bring forth the tree from its own seed, yielding fruit, whose seed could only bring forth the same in itself, after his kind; and the Gods saw that they were obeyed.
16 ... the Gods organized the two great lights, the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night; with the lesser light they set the stars also;
17 And the Gods set them in the expanse of the heavens, to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to cause to divide the light from the darkness.
18 And the Gods watched those things which they had ordered until they obeyed.

The Animals.
With the animals the process was a bit different. It wasn't that God immediately placed animals on the earth.  What is described, rather is a preparation of the necessary precursors--water, vegetation--etc. in anticipation of the animals coming.  This description leaves, in my mind, room for a long process of evolution of the animals, long before the advent of Adam and Eve being placed in the Garden of Eden.  Abraham describes it thus:

11 And the Gods said: Let us prepare the earth to bring forth grass; the herb yielding seed; the fruit tree yielding fruit, after his kind, whose seed in itself yieldeth its own likeness upon the earth; and it was so, even as they ordered.

20 And the Gods said: Let us prepare the waters to bring forth abundantly the moving creatures that have life; and the fowl, that they may fly above the earth in the open expanse of heaven.

 21 And the Gods prepared the waters that they might bring forth great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters were to bring forth abundantly after their kind; and every winged fowl after their kind. And the Gods saw that they would be obeyed, and that their plan was good.

24 And the Gods prepared the earth to bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kind; and it was so, as they had said.

Interestingly as well, it doesn't say that the animals immediately obeyed, but rather that they "would obey".  

21 ...And the Gods saw that they would be obeyed...

25 And the Gods organized the earth to bring forth the beasts after their kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after its kind; and the Gods saw they would obey.