Beginnings Genesis 1-2

Ques.ons ?? •  •  •  •  • 

Ques.ons in 21st century Western culture? Your ques.ons? Some big ques.ons? Ques.ons from ancient Israel? Ques.ons that God has for us?

Whose ques.ons? Which ques.ons? Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm. "Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will ques.on you, and you shall answer me. "Where were you when I laid the earth's founda.on? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? •  Job 38:1-5

Genesis = Beginnings 1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7 And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. 8 And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

Genesis 1-2:3 A highly structured account of crea.on

And God said, "Let there be ....'' So God made .... And it was so. God called the .... And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning the ... day.

Highly structured narra.ve

Nature of humanity 26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, aaer our likeness. And let them have dominion …. over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 And God blessed them.

Image bearers and representa.ves •  x

Work and Rest 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in crea.on.

Blessed work and rest The fourth commandment 8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. Exodus 20

Rest is salva.on and salva.on is rest So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Hebrews 4:9-10

Some principles in my approach •  My ques.ons may not be those of the text •  Put chapters 1-3 in the context of the whole of Genesis, the whole OT, and the whole NT •  Focus on a theological reading •  Focus on what is clear not what is uncertain •  Enter the world of the original readers •  Look at the puzzles within the text •  Live with ambiguity and tensions •  Be open to other views and interpreta.ons

Genesis 2:18-25 The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

Are we just animals? Yes. Humans and animals are dust. We are both creatures. We do NOT have complete control. Our earthly life is at the mercy of our bodily func.ons and our environment. •  No. •  Only the man is given the breath of life. •  Only the man is given the freedom to choose whether to obey and to know good and evil. •  •  •  • 

Genesis 2:18-25 The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.

Genesis 3: Paradise lost

Deceived into rebellion •  Naked and ashamed. Cursed. Know good and evil. •  Driven out of the garden and away from the tree of life.

Puzzles in the text? •  Light and days are made before the sun and moon. •  Genesis 1 and 2 present different orders of crea.on of humans and plants. •  Cain builds a city (Genesis 4:17).

Genesis is relevant to science! Professor Peter Harrison, Oxford, University of Queensland

Genesis and the emergence of Science in the 17th century •  Belief in an ordered Crea.on led to the necessary assump.on of scien.fic Laws of Nature. •  Belief in the Fallen nature of humanity led to new methods of scien.fic inves.ga.on (experiment and instruments).

Theological statements of Genesis 1-3 •  God is Creator: sovereign, powerful, sustainer, purposeful •  God’s Word is powerful •  God, humanity, and nature are qualita.vely dis.nct •  I am a creature: limited, finite •  Human freedom is a gia from God •  The crea.on is good and orderly. It is not accidental. •  Humans are made in God’s image •  Rest is blessed by God •  Marriage is sacred. Men and women are equal but different. •  Crea.on is marred by human rebellion •  God will redeem the whole crea.on

Some applica.ons I am not God Respect the dignity of others Enjoy God’s good crea.on Rest Don’t be surprised at how sinful and broken the world is •  Live with the good-bad tension •  Look forward to Redemp.on •  •  •  •  • 

Rest and enjoy the good crea.on

The good-bad tension •  x

Who is the Creator? 15 [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all crea.on. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authori.es—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. …., 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. Colossians 1:15-20

What do we learn from Colossians 1:15-20? •  God made everything through Jesus Christ. •  God sustains everything. •  God is just as involved in natural processes as in supernatural processes. •  The same God is our Creator, Redeemer, and Reconciliator.