This section is an important pivot point in the Genesis account. So far the narrative has been about God’s dealings with all of mankind. He created man (chapters 1-2), revealed the hope for man after his fall (3.15), punished all men for their wickedness (6.5-7) while saving the righteous (6.8-9). The universal scope continues in... Continue Reading →
Lesson 7: Genesis 7-8
The flood is one of the best known stories in all of Scripture, and perhaps one of the hardest to fathom. We have witnessed the devastating affects of various storms (hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, etc.) and perhaps our knowledge of just how destructive those localized storms are makes it even harder to comprehend a flood which... Continue Reading →
Lesson 6: Genesis 6
Tragic though the events of chapter 3 were, the Lord had provided hope: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:15, ESV) The beginnings of those two lines (the offspring of woman and the... Continue Reading →
Lesson 5: Genesis 4-5
“God gave them up” (Romans 1.24,26,28) are some of the saddest words in all of Scripture. While Paul was speaking of the world’s departure from God in general, his words in Romans 1.21-22 would have application to Adam and Eve: “For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks... Continue Reading →
Lesson 4: Genesis 3
“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—” (Romans 5:12, ESV). There is no tragedy greater than the one recorded in Genesis 3, for this chapter reveals how God’s “very good” creation left the light for darkness. It... Continue Reading →
Lesson 3: Genesis 2
The focus of chapter 1 was the creation of all things, beginning with an earth that was formless, void and dark but ending with a fully formed, filled and enlightened heavens and earth. All that God created was good, but the pinnacle of His creation was man, created in God’s own image. God could look... Continue Reading →
Lesson 2: Genesis 1
The creation account in Genesis 1 has never been compatible with man’s worldview. The cultures of the Ancient Near East believed in creation, but a radically different creation from the one presented in Genesis. The Sumerian account Enuma Elish depicted creation occurring when primordial gods of water gave birth to younger gods, but these gods... Continue Reading →
Lesson 1: Introduction
Genesis is the title given to the first book of the Bible, a latin term meaning origin or beginning. It’s a fitting title for the book which the Jews titled by it’s first Hebrew word bere’shith, “in the beginning,” for the books tells of many beginnings: the world, man, the family, sin, judgment, hope, nations,... Continue Reading →
Lesson 25: Defending The Kingdom, Part 4 (Acts 27-28)
Let’s return to the beginning of Acts for just a moment. Luke was writing to Theophilus (literally “lover of God”) and reminded him of “the first book… (that) dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up…” (Acts 1.1-2). That “first book” referred to what we... Continue Reading →
Lesson 24: Defending The Kingdom, Part 3 (Acts 25-26)
When the Lord instructed Ananias to go to Saul, He revealed that this former persecutor of the church would “carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel” (Acts 9.15). Paul had spent years fulfilling the Lord’s words, until he arrived in Jerusalem and was attacked by a Jewish mob. But... Continue Reading →