Today we begin making our way through the Bible, and so we start "In the beginning..." I just want to take some time to point out some interesting facts and thoughts I have from this passage. As you read, you may have others, and you can feel free to share them. I apologize if this gets lengthy - there is just so much to notice here. I promise that it will not be this lengthy every day.
The opening book of the Bible is called "Genesis," from the Greek word meaning "birth" or "origin." It's Hebrew title Beresheith means literally "In the beginning." Genesis is traditionally thought to have been written by Moses, although many scholars now believe that it is a compilation of many sources brought together, perhaps by Moses. Whatever the case, this book remains important to both Jews and Christians because it depicts the creation of the world, the fall of humanity into sin, and the establishment of God's covenants with His chosen people, Israel. It consists mainly of what we might call "Primeval history" (chs. 1-11), and the stories of the Patriarchs (chs. 12-50).
Today, we begin with the first three chapters of Genesis depict the story of God's creation of the world. There is some debate about how to understand this passage. Traditionally, it has been understood that God created the world in six literal days, and created all that is in the order that it has been stated. However, with the advent of modern science, and the theories regarding the age of the earth, some have tried to understand the Bible in light of modern science. Some point to the fact that the word "day" in Hebrew could also mean "age" or "period of time," which would mean that these things were created over a longer period of time that a 24 hour calendar day. Still others point to the fact that the opening chapters of Genesis are written in poetic form, and that this was meant to be an epic poem describing the creation of the world, rather than a literal "play-by-play" of how God created the world. So what you see here may not have been the literal way God created, but was given poetically so that people could pass the story down from generation to generation.Some might question this last understanding because it would undermine the truth of the Scripture - that is to say, it makes it sound like the opening chapters of Genesis are simply a myth that may or may not have happened. The truth is, however, if we understand this account of Genesis on its own terms, and not on the terms of modern historical books or biographies, we see that the purpose is not necessarily to give a scientific account of creation, but to depict to the reader that God is the one who created the universe, that humanity was created with a purpose and in the image of God, that humanity broke that relationship with God and corrupted His image in us by our sin, and finally how sin and evil entered the world. It is meant to tell the story of God's salvation, not to challenge science or make scientific claims. Whatever conclusion you come to, the point is that we learn certain important facts about who we are as humans, and about our relationship to and with God.
That being said, there are many important points to note:
1) God created all that is. That is to say, God existed before the world was. God has power over all things because He made them. And when God speaks, there is life. When God speaks, things come to be as God has decreed. Compare this to John 1:1-5 and notice some interesting similarities. What does this say about God's purpose in the world? What does this tell you about God's character?
2) God brings order out of chaos. God created light and shattered the darkness. God created land and separated it from the waters. God created the sky (heavens) and separated it from the land. What is God doing here? He is bringing order out of the chaos. Water was a symbol of chaos to the ancient world. It symbolized the unknown, and its constant waves created fear in the minds of the people. How important is order and balance to God? Where does God bring order out of chaos in your life? Where could He do that?
3) Humanity. "Let us make man in our own image." Human beings bear similarities to God. It's hard to say exactly what is meant by this. If God is a spirit, and we are mortal, does that mean we look like God physically? If so, how? We don't know. But for sure, we bear the marks of God's character in many ways. I like how the PCUSA Study Catechism (1998) puts it, "God created us to live together in love and freedom -- with God, with one another, and with the world. Our distinctive capacities -- reason, imagination, volition and so on -- are given primarily for this purpose. We are created to be loving companions of others so that something of God's goodness may be reflected in our lives" (Question 16).
The catechism goes on to state that God created us for the purpose of relationship - with Him and with others. As the catechism states, "Our being created in and for relationship is a reflection of the Holy Trinity. In the mystery of the one God, the three divine persons -- Father, Son and Holy Spirit -- live in, with and for one another eternally in perfect love and freedom." (Question 17). Further, when we show love to God and to others, we reflect the kind of love that God has for us, and has instilled in us. You know, sometimes people ask, "What is the meaning of life?" My answer is that this all tells us that the meaning of life is relationship with God and with others. That's what really matters in life. Is relationship really the meaning of life? Also, what does passage this tell us about human creativity, intelligence and volition (ability to reason, make decisions, etc)?
Notice also in chapter two the nature of humanity's creation. We were made from the dust of the earth and God breathed life into our nostrils - our life is a gift from God. What a cool image!! Notice that woman was created from the rib of Adam - I don't know officially why God did this. One saying that I've heard (and I like) goes like this - God created woman not out of man's head so she could lord over him, nor out of his feet so he could trample over her, but out of his side, so she could be his partner in doing God's will. I don't know if there's merit to it, but I think it reflects how redeemed male-female relationships should look.
Finally, the institution of marriage appears in 2:24 (and quoted by Jesus and Paul later). What a beautiful image - God desires that men and women should not be alone (created for relationship). So God brings the two together and the two become one flesh. They are united in life, in purpose and in intimate love - yes, I believe there is also the precept of sexual monogamy inherently described in this. Selfishness and pride are great threats to the holy covenant and bond of marriage. Two can only truly become one when they make the concerns of the other a greater concern, and when that unity comes by the power of the Holy Spirit of God.
4) Ecological concerns - "To be fruitful and multiply," to "fill and subdue the earth," and to "tend and watch over it" (specifically here, the Garden of Eden). I tend to believe these passages call humans to responsibly to care for the earth, because it is God's handiwork, and he has left us to watch and care for it. In my understanding, to misuse or abuse the earth and its resources is an affront to God and a sign of ingratitude. But maybe that's just me...
5) Human sin - although the problem of sin and its pervasiveness will play out through the rest of Scripture, we see its entrance into the world depicted here. There is a great deal of ink we could spill on just these passages, but let's just notice some things in passing. When Adam and Eve are tempted, the serpent tries to twist around God's words to justify their eating of the fruit.
How often are we tempted to justify what we want to do, even though we know it's not what God desires of us?
What about the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil? What is this tree? I find this fascination, and as I was writing this, I got sidetracked on it. Maybe I'll put something more together later. But for now, it's important to note that this tree would elevate the humans to another level of understanding, and it would put them in a position where they would be "like God." That's a problem, not because God would be threatened by their power, but because humans just can't handle the responsibility and the knowledge. And when we ate of it, that's exactly what happened. It was more than we could handle, and it totally screwed up our ability to make reasonable judgments, it elevated the power of our desires, and it threatened human relationships with others and with God, because our desire became before ourselves instead of for God and others. When this happened, it made us greatly aware that we had these more powerful passions at work in our lives, and they scared us to death. It made us like God - and yet, since we do not have the power, ability and restraint of God, we could not handle these forces in our lives. It's a lot like Dr. Frankenstein's monster - when we ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, we unleashed a powerful beast in our lives that threw everything out of whack. So Adam and Eve hide from God out of fear - fear of these new found desires in their lives, and fear of what God might do. As a result, God tells Adam and Eve the consequences of their disobedience - everything that was created in harmony has been thrown out of whack. I have often heard of these things as "punishments," but if you think about it, these are really the natural consequences of the choice Adam and Eve have made. The chief of these is death. And God casts us out of the Garden into the world outside - which I think stands for the fact that we have been cast out of the perfect world God created, and must live with the reality of evil and sinfulness that our sin introduced, which is now passed down to us even today.
But that's only the beginning. Even at the end of this, God offers humans two gifts that signal what he is about to do: the Tree of Life and clothing.
The tree of life appears later in the Scriptures, especially in God's holy temple at the end of time, whose leaves are for the healing of the nations. As Christians, we believe Jesus Christ is the Tree of Life for us - he is the one whose blood provides the healing we need, who restores our screwed up passions, ability to reason, emotions - even our whole broken lives. Further, by His death and resurrection, He is bringing about the day when all creation will be restored to what it was before humanity sinned and evil entered the world. But it will be awhile before the people realize what God is doing... and even longer before it becomes a reality in our lives (since it hasn't happened yet).
Second, God gives them clothing not because God is hung up about nudity (because, after all, in the perfect order, Adam and Eve were naked before things got messy); instead, God gives them clothing as a symbol that he is preparing them for the world they are to enter. It's a harsh world apart from God's perfect Garden of Eden. Clothes were meant to protect them and enable them to get by. It wasn't what God wanted to do - and it's not God's final answer - but it's only meant to get them by until He is able to redeem the world. As Christians, we believe God provides us what we need to survive in this world and do his will until the day when he can bring us back into the safety of Eden.
So the Bible is the story of how God works to fix us humans and transform us back into the people we are called to be. While this story lays bare for us the problem of human sin, and sets us up to hear how God is going to redeem humanity and repair the problems that human sin has brought into the world. So as we go forth today, the question is this: In what ways are my desires out of whack in my life? What do I need help to transform in my own life? Have I invited God (specifically Jesus) into my life to redeem and heal me? As we read the Bible, I hope that God will reveal to you His own plan to redeem and heal your life, and the peace you can have with Him through that.
If you have any questions, or need any clarification - give me a yell.
Blessings to you in Christ,
Pastor Nathan
P.S. For more info on the sin/evil thing from the Jewish perspective (which is original understanding), check out these articles by Rabbi David Fohrman here, who was a very helpful source when writing this entry. We Christians have a lot to learn about the Old Testament from our Jewish friends - things that can help us put our Christian faith into a deeper and richer perspective. I was reminded of that today!
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