Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
The word Heaven is plural. There are three heavens mentioned in the bible.
First Heaven - home of the birds and clouds.
“Its leaves were lovely, Its fruit abundant, And in it was food for all. The beasts of the field found shade under it, The birds of the heavens dwelt in its branches, And all flesh was fed from it.” Daniel 4:12 [NKJV]
Second Heaven – home of the sun moon and stars.
“The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork.” Psalm 19:1 [NKJV]
Third Heaven – home of angels and departed saints.
“I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago--whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows--such a one was caught up to the third heaven.” 2 Cor. 12:2 [NKJV]
Creation:
1. Light 5. Fish, birds
2. Heavens 6. Land Animals, man
3. Earth & Vegetation 7. Sabbath
4. Luminaries (sun, moon, and stars)
Day one (1) -The creation of light Genesis 1:2
“The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” Genesis 1:2 [NKJV]
“Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. [4] And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. [5] God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day.” Genesis 1:3-5 [NKJV] Note* the sun wasn’t created until the fourth day yet there was light!
The Holy Spirit moved (vibrated) upon the earth. He released an energy source, heat, sound, and magnetism. The earth began to rotate. This was the beginning of Energy, mass, and time. Gravitational – Force between two objects. Electro-magnetic – Force between the electrons and nucleus of an Atom. Nuclear – the Force between the proton and the neutron within the atom.
Day Two (2) – Separating of the waters. Genesis. 1:6-8
“Then God said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters." [7] Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. [8] And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day.” Genesis 1:6-8 [NKJV]
Water existed in two forms.
- Regular land based water in shallow oceans, river and lakebeds.
- Atmospheric water invisible translucent vapor.
Day three (3) – creation of plant life. Genesis. 1:9-13
“Then God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear"; and it was so. [10] And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good. [11] Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth"; and it was so. [12] And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [13] So the evening and the morning were the third day.” Genesis 1:9-13 [NKJV]
Lush green vegetation and exotic flowers began to cover the newly formed dry ground.
Note: evolution say a glob of slime floating on some distant ocean produced something or other.
Day four (4) – The creation of the sun moon and stars.
“Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; [15] and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth"; and it was so. [16] Then God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also. [17] God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth, [18] and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. [19] So the evening and the morning were the fourth day. Genesis 1:14-19 [NKJV]
Now God created physical light. These heavenly bodies function in a threefold manner.
- As a sign – the teach and remind men of God’s creative works Ps 8:3, Romans 1:19,20.
- As to Seasons – a calendar, of seasons days year allow man to plan his work.
- As lights
Day five (5) – creation of the fish and foul 1:20-23
“Then God said, "Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the heavens." [21] So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [22] And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." [23] So the evening and the morning were the fifth day.” Genesis 1:20-23 [NKJV]
consider the humming bird vs the blue sperm whale that grow to 110 ft long and weights up to 150 tons. Longer and heavier that a Boeing 737 jet liner.
Day Six (6) – Creation of Land creatures and Man. 1:24-31
“Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind"; and it was so. [25] And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [26] Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, 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] Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth." [29] And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. [30] Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food"; and it was so. [31] Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Genesis 1:24-31 [NKJV]
a. Man became the high light of that day.
b. First Evidence of the trinity.
“Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." “Genesis 1:26 [NKJV]
“Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech." Genesis 11:7 [NKJV]
"I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. Psalm 2:7 [NKJV]
You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions. Psalm 45:7 [NKJV]
The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool." Psalm 110:1 [NKJV]
"Come near to Me, hear this: I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; From the time that it was, I was there. And now the Lord God and His Spirit Have sent Me." Isaiah 48:16 [NKJV]
Man was made in the image of God.
He possessed the highest kind of life.
i). Plant life possessed unconscious life.
ii). Animal life possessed conscious life.
iii). Man along possessed self-conscious life.
He was to subdue the earth and full it
He was to enjoy the Tree of Life and all the other trees of creation except one.
He was forbidden to partake of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
He was to name all the animals
He was given a wife. Here is the first of three great institutions given by God to man. That of marriage, human government and the church.
This records the second of four methods used by God to bring human beings into this world.
i). A man with mother or father (Adam)
ii). A woman without a mother (Eve)
iii). A man without a father (Christ)
iv). Individuals having both mothers and father (all other human beings.)
Day seven (7) God rested. 2:1-3
“Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. [2] And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. [3] Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.” Genesis 2:1-3 [NKJV]
This is the only place where God is described as resting.
We know that God isn’t man and isn’t physically tired.
The Sabbath is symbolic as a finished creation.
Sin soon would enter the picture and the trinity will become involved in redemption.
The creations of angels are not mentioned in the original week. Job gives us an account for consideration. Job 38: 4 & 7
How vast is our universe?
a beam of light (which travels some 700 million miles per hour) over 100,000 years just to cover distance length of our galaxy called the Milky Way.
But our galaxy is only one among many billions in the known universe. To illustrate the size of our universe, consider the following examples:
Paper stack model.
Let us say the thickness of a sheet of paper represents the distance from the earth to the sun (some ninety-three millions miles).
71 feet of paper to reach the nearest star.
310 mile high to cover diameter of Milky way.
31 million miles high to reach the edge of the known universe.
Hollow sun illustration
A hollow sun could hold 1,300,000 earths
Antares a star could hold sixty-four million suns.
Constellation of Hercules there is a star could contain 100 million of Antares.
Epsilon, largest star known, holds several million stars the size Hercules star.
The relative speed illustration.
Our earth spins at 1000 m.p.h.
It moves around the sun at 67,000 m.p.h.
Travels with the sun across our galaxy at a speed of 64,000 m.p.h.
Every twenty-four hours we cover 57,360,000 miles.
Our universe contains as many stars as there are grains of sand on all the seashores of the world. God has them numbered.
Psalms 147:4 He counts the number of the stars; He gives names to all of them.
Isaiah 40:26 Lift up your eyes on high And see who has created these stars, The One who leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name; Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power Not one of them is missing.
Psalm 147:5 Great is our Lord, and abundant in strength; His understanding is infinite.
How minute is our universe?
All material in the universe consists of atoms.
Atoms have a center or nucleus made up of protons and neutrons and electrons (which circle the nucleus as our earth does the sun.
Size of atoms amount that fit on the tip of a ballpoint pen: an army, marching four abreast, each man carries an atom it would take over 20,000 years for a march past. It would take 25 trillion protons laid side by side to span a linear inch.
a cubic inch of copper contains as many protons as there are drops of water in the oceans of the world, or grains of sand on the seashores of our earth.
The size of an electron is to a dust speck as the dust speck is to the entire earth.
Do you think, Genesis 2:4-25 is another creation Story?
Contradiction #1: Order of creation??
1st Vegetation, 2nd Birds, 3rd Fish, 4th Animals, 5th Man & Woman.
1st Man, 2nd Vegetation, 3rd Animals, 4th Woman.
Contradiction #2 Method of creation
1st God creates by speaking “Let there be light” etc.
2nd God became a potter and “formed man out of dust,”
Genesis 2:19 19 And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name.
My position is: the creation presented in #2 situation is a continuation and not a break of the original story. In my opinion this is a “Close up” after the “Panorama” in Genesis 1.
In Genesis we learn some very important things about God.
God’s Oneness
Not a host of deities like the pagans.
God needs nothing or on one outside of himself to fulfill him.
A definite distinction between God the creator and man the created.
When tracing Mesopotamian chronologies back you find a list of kings that began with deities.
God is multiple in His nature.
Genesis 1:26 “let us make man…”
A plural of Majesty’s’ or God is speaking of himself (genesis 11:7 “come let us go down.”
Self deliberation - “what should I do?”
A plural within the Godhead.
God is moral and holy.
God says to Adam and Eve. You may/may not eat of certain trees.
God’s Sovereignty and Majesty
Effortlessly he speaks and creation exists.
What the Theme teaches about man.
Man is unique
Man is created in God’s image and likeness.
Man is set apart from the rest of creation.
Created to have dominion and subdue the creation.
There is a separate story for the Woman.
Calls her “them” or “mankind”.
God calls mankind male and female.
Both are made in the image of God.
Sex as far a identification is irrelevant
Both are to rule and have dominion
Both made out of raw material. (rib and dirt)
The woman is a helper for Adam.
(What Eve is the animals are not)?
Adam saw here he said, “this at last is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh.” vs. 23.
Subordination of the woman to the man. Not in context of creation but in context to the fall.
Man is not autonomous.
He lives under divine laws.
He was placed in the garden.
The Location of the Garden.
In the east (genesis 2:8).
In the presence of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
In the garden, man had responsibilities and limitations.
Till the Soil (2:15)
Limits were placed on man’s freedom
Abstain from eating of the tree of the “knowledge of good and evil”.
Discuss the Gap theory if appropriate
The Gap Theory is listed as (The Pentateuch lesson 1a) if you want to study it!
The Gap Theory is listed as (The Pentateuch lesson 1a) if you want to study it!
God and said everything was good, in fact very good. The corruption of man and the earth came later.
The cunningness of Satan.
- He speaks through the serpent.
- Eve is tempted to disobey God by the devil.
- Adam and Eve could apparently communicate with the animal kingdom prior to the fall.
- Before losing is position in
God Kingdom
- From later accounts we find that he didn’t have to crawl on his belly. (3:14)
- From this point on, the serpent becomes the symbol of treachery and sin. The devil began to be called the serpent. Psalms 58:4; Matt. 23:33; Rev. 12:9, 20:2.
Man’s corruption began when he doubted God’s Word
3:1 "Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?" [NKJV]
Eve foolishly tries to reason with Him.
No where are we told to match wits with him.
We are to consider him a liar,
We are to consider ourselves greater than he is because of the Christ that is in us.
Through the use of Jesus’ name he must obey us.
If we resist him and his co-harts they will flee.
He ends by denying God’s Word
Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. [5] For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." Genesis 3:4-5 [NKJV]
Centuries later the apostle John warns us to beware of three things.
(1) The lust of the flesh, (2) the lust of the eyes, and (3) the pride of life. (1 John 2: 15-17)
The woman saw the tree was good for food (The lust of the flesh)
And that it was pleasant to the eye (the lust of the eyes)
And a tree to make one wise. (the pride of life)
Same manner Jesus was tempted in the wilderness.
i. (1) The lust of the flesh, Make these stones into bread.
(2) the lust of the eyes Look at all the kingdoms of the world.
(3) the pride of life. Cast thyself down from this pinnacle of the temple and the angels will catch you.
The Sin of Adam
He attempts to hide his nakedness before God
He attempts to hide himself from God.
The redemption of God.
The judgment of God pronounced upon Man.
Upon Man: Genesis 3:17
"Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. Genesis 3:17
God is careful never to put a curse on Adam. He curses the serpent, the soil, but not mankind because he had plans to redeem him.
Upon the Woman Genesis 3:16
To the woman He said "I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you." Genesis 3:16
The suffering of childbirth is not so much a judgment from God, but rather the direct result of sin. Sin always causes suffering, sickness, separation and sorrow.
Upon all Nature
Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field. Genesis 3:18 [NKJV]
From this time forward man’s paradise becomes a wilderness.
The roses now have thorns.
The tiger now began to be hungry for meat
Useful plants must now compete with other plants that aren’t so useful.
For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. [20] For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; Romans 8:19-20 [NKJV]
Upon the serpent (3:14)
“And . . .God said unto the serpent . . . upon thy belly shalt thou go.” Genesis. 3:14
The serpent is now allowed a chance to explain. For lending its body to Satan, it is cursed to crawl in the dust from that point on.
Upon on the Devil (3:15)
And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel." Genesis 3:15 [NKJV]
I will make you and the woman hostile toward each other. I will make your descendants and her descendant hostile toward each other. He will crush your head, and you will bruise his heel." Genesis 3:15 [GW]
Instead of Satan gaining a subject, he gained an adversary which will some day overthrow him.
Look at the grace of God as he deals with those who are fallen!!
- God seeks Adam out. (3:9)
Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, "Where are you?" Genesis 3:9 [NKJV]
"Come now, and let us reason together," Says the Lord, "Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, shall be as wool. Isaiah 1:18 [NKJV]
"Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters; And you who have no money, Come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk Without money and without price. [2] Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance. [3] Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting covenant with you--The sure mercies of David. Isaiah 55:1-3 [NKJV]
for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." Luke 19:10 [NKJV]
On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. [38] He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." John 7:37-38 [NKJV]
And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. Rev. 22:17 [NKJV]
- He promises them a Saviour. (3:15)
And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel." Genesis 3:15 [NKJV]
- He clothed them. (3:21) (covered them)
Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. Genesis 3:21 [NKJV]
- He removed them from the garden. (3:24) Why is that a blessing?
Then the Lord God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"-- [23] therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. [24] So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the Garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life. Genesis 3:22-24 [NKJV]
5. This was an act of mercy. What happens when sin goes unchecked?
One becomes a monster. Example of Adolph Hitler: slaughtered millions of human beings by shootings bombing, hangings, burning, gassing, and other forms of torture, and death too horrible to mention. Killed himself just after reaching his 57 birthday.
Now discuss the following questions!!!!
Questions
How does Eve converse with an Animal?
Are animals accountable for their actions? (What happened to the serpent)?
Does God man covenants with Animals? Genesis 9:5,9
5 Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man's brother I will require the life of man. Genesis 9:5 (NKJV)
9 "And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, Genesis 9:9 (NKJV)
God’s will was:
Permission to eat of every Tree in the garden except:
Prohibited from eating from one specific tree.
A penalty for disobedience.
How does the serpent attempt to undercut all of this?
Raise questions in Eve’s mind about the integrity of God.
Her mental image of God is attacked.
God is portrayed more as a fiend than a friend.
Exaggerate the prohibition: What? You can’t do that?
How cruel and vicious of God to require that!!!
You can look but not touch? What nerve!!
The temptation encourages Eve to declare Autonomy or self-reliant.
You don’t need God to guide you; you can do it yourself.
When you eat you will be like God.
You will know what God knows.
You must lookout for yourself. You owe it to yourself.
What happened when they disobeyed and fell?
Shame vs. 7
Guilt vs. 8-11
Pain in pregnancy
Disruption in the family
Minimal returns from manual labor.
We must not look at this picture as God is teaching these guys a lesson. We must look at God as a surgeon; he cuts only what he may heal.
He rushed to cover their shame.
He covers their nakedness and by doing so:
He initiates a plan and a means of redemption
He places at the respective point of highest self-fulfillment in the lives of each:
It is Gifts of love to bring mankind back to himself.
a) Suffering b) Misery c) Frustrations.
Note: Genesis 3:15 First words of promise and provisions of a covering are immediate atonement.
How did God pronouncement of curse cause redemption?
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