Genesis (Part 2)
Bible Study Time 6-1-08
(From James Roberts 8-11-96)
Bible Study Time 6-1-08
(From James Roberts 8-11-96)
Last week we began a journey through the scripture. In this journey, we are going to be going through the Bible looking at key events so that we might get to know God better, so that we might get to know God’s word better, and so that we might be able to better understand God’s thoughts toward us, His actions toward us, and His plan and purpose for us.
In the first chapter of Genesis, we saw that in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. We saw in the first chapter of Colossians that Jesus Christ stands at the head of the creation because His is the Creator. This is confirmed by John, who said:
John 1:1-3 NKJV
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.
Jesus Christ created all things by fiat. By the power of His declaration, all things came into being. In days of old, God asked Job:
Job 38:4 NKJV
4 "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? . . .
God created the heavens and the earth in His own way, by His own power, and He stands over and above His creation.
A part of the so called new age movement today is what is called pantheism, which teaches that all of the creation itself is God. It says that when you look at a flower, you see God; when you look at a beautiful sunset, you see God.
Well, the Bible tells us that the creation is not God, but it is simply that which God has created. God transcends His creation. He stands over and above and apart from His creation, but Romans, Chapter 1, tells us that throughout the ages man has worshiped the creation rather than the creator.
We need to recognize that there is a separation between the Creator and His creation. God is the Creator. We see His handy work when we see a beautiful sunset or a beautiful flower, but these things are not God; they are simply the work of God’s creative hand.
We saw last week that most of the first chapter of Genesis is an account of God’s work when He re-created the heavens and the earth. The scriptures indicate that God originally created the heavens and the earth in the beginning as a perfect creation. God created angels and set them over the creation, but He chose one particular angel as the archangel. This archangel was the anointed cherub of God, and his name was Lucifer.
According to Ezekiel, Lucifer was perfect in all of his ways until iniquity was found in him. From the time that Lucifer was created by God, he was perfect. But according to Isaiah, Lucifer sinned because he wanted to be like God. He was not satisfied with the position that God had given him.
So Lucifer rebelled against God, and it would appear that a third of all the angels followed after Satan in this rebellion. As a result, Lucifer and his fellow rebels were cast out from the presence of God. At this point, all of the creation came under the judgment of God so that it became without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep.
When Lucifer sinned, this was the first appearance of sin in the universe. Therefore, the entire universe became with form and void, and in Genesis, Chapter 1, we find the re-creation of all things after this great judgment. The capstone of this re-creation is found in verse 26 where God says:
Genesis 1:26-27 NKJV
26 . . . "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.
In Genesis, Chapter 2, we find the details of the creation of man. There we read that God created man out of the dust of the ground and breathed into His nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. Therefore, with His own hands, God fashioned man out of the dust of the ground. At this point, man was a lifeless statue, but God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man immediately became a living soul.
This Biblical account runs contrary to all teachings regarding evolution. Evolution teaches that there was at some point in antiquity, a little bit of protoplasm that was in a bunch of slime. This protoplasm developed into a one-celled ameba which after millions of years ventured out onto the land and became a flying fish or a lizard. Then at some point these things turned into dinosaurs and then finally these things turned into man after many more millions and billions of years.
Evolution is simply a theory of man, and it goes against the revelation that God has given in His word. The theory of evolution is Satan’s clever way of turning man away from God. Remember that Satan wants to do away with God, and so he makes every attempt to make man believe that man came into existence without God.
However, in the word of God we read that God created man in His own image. God formed man out of the dust of the ground, breathed into man’s nostrils the breath of life, and right there in that moment, man became a living soul. It would appear that this first man came to life as a full-grown adult male. He never had to grow up as you and I have to do after we are born. No, this man became a living, breathing, full-grown adult right from the creative hand of God.
Then God brought all of the animals before Adam, and not one was found that was fit to serve as Adam’s helpmate. So God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and He took a rib from Adam’s side. From that rib, God formed woman, and He gave the woman to Adam to be his wife. Male and female He created them in the image of God. They were not a product of evolution, but they were a product of the creative hand of God.
In this account of man’s creation, we also see something very interesting about God. Notice that God said, “Let Us make man in Our image.” This indicates a plurality of persons. God did not say, “I will make man in My image.”
When God said, “Let Us make man in Our image,” He was foreshadowing the New Testament teaching concerning the triune nature of God, that God is actually three persons in one being. The New Testament declares God to be God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Even in Genesis, Chapter 1, all three persons of the Godhead are seen as they work together to create man. God said, “Let Us make man in Our image.”
At the time of man’s creation, God had already made provision for man. God placed the first man in a beautiful garden which was full of beautiful fruit trees, and He told the man that he could eat of the fruit of every tree in the garden except one. God said:
Genesis 2:17 NKJV
17 . . . of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
Man had wonderful fellowship and communion with God there in the garden. After all, man was made in the image of God. But remember, the enemy of God was already at work in the universe. Satan was the enemy of God, and because God loved man, Satan was also the enemy of man.
Satan had at one point been given authority over the entire universe, but now God had a new creation, and He had given man dominion over all the earth. Satan’s goal was to disrupt God’s plan and purpose for man and for the new creation. So Satan came to the woman and asked, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” But the woman said:
Genesis 3:2-3 NKJV
2 . . . "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden;
3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.'"
If we read this carefully, we see the changes that the woman made in the commandment of God. The changes were subtle, but Satan surely noticed her misuse of the word of God. God had said:
Genesis 2:16-17 NKJV
16 . . . "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;
17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
God did not say anything about touching the forbidden fruit, and He did not say, “Lest you die.” The woman added to the word of God and then softened the word of God. This presented an open door for Satan, so Satan said to the woman:
Genesis 3:4-5 NKJV
4 . . . "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."
In this statement, Satan cast a doubt upon the goodness of God, but also, please notice that Satan used the very same temptation with which he had been tempted. He had wanted to be like God, and this sin had brought him under the judgment of God. So Satan was hoping to seduce the woman with that same temptation that had caused his own downfall.
As we know, the woman ate of the fruit and then her husband ate, and at that moment, they both became sinners. The book of Romans tells us that because of this sin, all people since that time have come into the world as sinners. It says:
Romans 5:12 NKJV
12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin . . .
It was Satan who brought sin into the universe, but it was Adam who brought sin into the human family. All of us, as human beings, are born with a nature that has a proclivity for sin, but God made provision for us to save us from the judgment of sin. He did so by sending His Son to die on the cross for our sins. I trust that you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior.
Well, I see our time is gone for this morning. The Lord willing, we will take up in our journey through the scripture next week. Thank you for studying with me in this another broadcast of Bible Study Time.
Church links:
In the first chapter of Genesis, we saw that in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. We saw in the first chapter of Colossians that Jesus Christ stands at the head of the creation because His is the Creator. This is confirmed by John, who said:
John 1:1-3 NKJV
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.
Jesus Christ created all things by fiat. By the power of His declaration, all things came into being. In days of old, God asked Job:
Job 38:4 NKJV
4 "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? . . .
God created the heavens and the earth in His own way, by His own power, and He stands over and above His creation.
A part of the so called new age movement today is what is called pantheism, which teaches that all of the creation itself is God. It says that when you look at a flower, you see God; when you look at a beautiful sunset, you see God.
Well, the Bible tells us that the creation is not God, but it is simply that which God has created. God transcends His creation. He stands over and above and apart from His creation, but Romans, Chapter 1, tells us that throughout the ages man has worshiped the creation rather than the creator.
We need to recognize that there is a separation between the Creator and His creation. God is the Creator. We see His handy work when we see a beautiful sunset or a beautiful flower, but these things are not God; they are simply the work of God’s creative hand.
We saw last week that most of the first chapter of Genesis is an account of God’s work when He re-created the heavens and the earth. The scriptures indicate that God originally created the heavens and the earth in the beginning as a perfect creation. God created angels and set them over the creation, but He chose one particular angel as the archangel. This archangel was the anointed cherub of God, and his name was Lucifer.
According to Ezekiel, Lucifer was perfect in all of his ways until iniquity was found in him. From the time that Lucifer was created by God, he was perfect. But according to Isaiah, Lucifer sinned because he wanted to be like God. He was not satisfied with the position that God had given him.
So Lucifer rebelled against God, and it would appear that a third of all the angels followed after Satan in this rebellion. As a result, Lucifer and his fellow rebels were cast out from the presence of God. At this point, all of the creation came under the judgment of God so that it became without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep.
When Lucifer sinned, this was the first appearance of sin in the universe. Therefore, the entire universe became with form and void, and in Genesis, Chapter 1, we find the re-creation of all things after this great judgment. The capstone of this re-creation is found in verse 26 where God says:
Genesis 1:26-27 NKJV
26 . . . "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.
In Genesis, Chapter 2, we find the details of the creation of man. There we read that God created man out of the dust of the ground and breathed into His nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. Therefore, with His own hands, God fashioned man out of the dust of the ground. At this point, man was a lifeless statue, but God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man immediately became a living soul.
This Biblical account runs contrary to all teachings regarding evolution. Evolution teaches that there was at some point in antiquity, a little bit of protoplasm that was in a bunch of slime. This protoplasm developed into a one-celled ameba which after millions of years ventured out onto the land and became a flying fish or a lizard. Then at some point these things turned into dinosaurs and then finally these things turned into man after many more millions and billions of years.
Evolution is simply a theory of man, and it goes against the revelation that God has given in His word. The theory of evolution is Satan’s clever way of turning man away from God. Remember that Satan wants to do away with God, and so he makes every attempt to make man believe that man came into existence without God.
However, in the word of God we read that God created man in His own image. God formed man out of the dust of the ground, breathed into man’s nostrils the breath of life, and right there in that moment, man became a living soul. It would appear that this first man came to life as a full-grown adult male. He never had to grow up as you and I have to do after we are born. No, this man became a living, breathing, full-grown adult right from the creative hand of God.
Then God brought all of the animals before Adam, and not one was found that was fit to serve as Adam’s helpmate. So God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and He took a rib from Adam’s side. From that rib, God formed woman, and He gave the woman to Adam to be his wife. Male and female He created them in the image of God. They were not a product of evolution, but they were a product of the creative hand of God.
In this account of man’s creation, we also see something very interesting about God. Notice that God said, “Let Us make man in Our image.” This indicates a plurality of persons. God did not say, “I will make man in My image.”
When God said, “Let Us make man in Our image,” He was foreshadowing the New Testament teaching concerning the triune nature of God, that God is actually three persons in one being. The New Testament declares God to be God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Even in Genesis, Chapter 1, all three persons of the Godhead are seen as they work together to create man. God said, “Let Us make man in Our image.”
At the time of man’s creation, God had already made provision for man. God placed the first man in a beautiful garden which was full of beautiful fruit trees, and He told the man that he could eat of the fruit of every tree in the garden except one. God said:
Genesis 2:17 NKJV
17 . . . of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
Man had wonderful fellowship and communion with God there in the garden. After all, man was made in the image of God. But remember, the enemy of God was already at work in the universe. Satan was the enemy of God, and because God loved man, Satan was also the enemy of man.
Satan had at one point been given authority over the entire universe, but now God had a new creation, and He had given man dominion over all the earth. Satan’s goal was to disrupt God’s plan and purpose for man and for the new creation. So Satan came to the woman and asked, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” But the woman said:
Genesis 3:2-3 NKJV
2 . . . "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden;
3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.'"
If we read this carefully, we see the changes that the woman made in the commandment of God. The changes were subtle, but Satan surely noticed her misuse of the word of God. God had said:
Genesis 2:16-17 NKJV
16 . . . "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;
17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
God did not say anything about touching the forbidden fruit, and He did not say, “Lest you die.” The woman added to the word of God and then softened the word of God. This presented an open door for Satan, so Satan said to the woman:
Genesis 3:4-5 NKJV
4 . . . "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."
In this statement, Satan cast a doubt upon the goodness of God, but also, please notice that Satan used the very same temptation with which he had been tempted. He had wanted to be like God, and this sin had brought him under the judgment of God. So Satan was hoping to seduce the woman with that same temptation that had caused his own downfall.
As we know, the woman ate of the fruit and then her husband ate, and at that moment, they both became sinners. The book of Romans tells us that because of this sin, all people since that time have come into the world as sinners. It says:
Romans 5:12 NKJV
12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin . . .
It was Satan who brought sin into the universe, but it was Adam who brought sin into the human family. All of us, as human beings, are born with a nature that has a proclivity for sin, but God made provision for us to save us from the judgment of sin. He did so by sending His Son to die on the cross for our sins. I trust that you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior.
Well, I see our time is gone for this morning. The Lord willing, we will take up in our journey through the scripture next week. Thank you for studying with me in this another broadcast of Bible Study Time.
Church links:
