In the beginning God created the heavens and

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. ” Gen 1: 1 Text: Gen 1: 1 – 2: 3 Genesis Week 2 - CREATION

Forming & Filling God Forms Day 1 - Light and Darkness Day 2 – Expanse and Atmosphere Day 3 – Earth & Seas & Plants & Trees God Fills Day 4 – Heavenly Lights/Time Day 5 – Sea and Air Dwellers Day 6 – Land Dwellers & Mankind God Rests Day 7 – God Ceased

Other Creation Stories ¡Hindu – “…a vast dark ocean washed upon the shores of nothingness and licked the edges of night. ” ¡Cherokee – “…the earth was a great island floating in a sea of water, and suspended at each of the four cardinal points by a cord hanging down from the sky vault, which is of solid rock. The the world grows old and worn out, the people will die and the cords will break and let the earth sink down into the ocean and all will be water again…” ¡Egyptian – “At first there was nothing but Nun, the primal ocean of chaos which contained the seeds of everything to come. In this jumble of waters the sun god reposed. Finally, by an exertion of will, he emerged from chaos as Ra and gave birth to Shu and Tefnut by himself. In turn Shu, the god of air, and Tefnut, the goddess of moisture, gave birth to Geb and Nut, the earth god and sky goddess. Thus the physical universe was created…”

Theology GOD ¡Trinity ¡Creation ¡Humanity

Mathematics of Life (The Signature of God) ¡Fibonacci Sequence ¡ 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144… ¡ 0+1=1, 1+1=2, 1+2=3, 2+3=5, 3+5=8 ¡Found throughout nature ¡God’s Signature https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=nt 2 Ol. MAJj 6 o

Repeated Words/Phrases Read Gen 1: 1 – 2: 3 ¡“And there was evening & morning…” ¡Rhythm and balance ¡Orderly ¡Methodical ¡“And God said…” (Isa 55: 10 -11, John 1: 3, Rom 4: 17) ¡God’s word is powerful ¡Scripture is God’s word ¡“God saw that it was good/very good” (Gen 1: 31) ¡Creation is God ¡Was creation evil

Power of God’s Word ¡“And God said…” Gen 1: 3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26, 29 ¡Stressed throughout Scripture ¡Isa 55: 10 -12 – is power…will not return to him empty ¡John 1: 3 – All things came into being by him ¡Rom 4: 17 – calls into being that which does not exist ¡How does the creative power of God’s word strengthen our resolve to meditate on the written word of God in our lives?

God Saw It Was Good ¡Seen in Gen 1: 10, 12, 18, 21, 25 ¡Culminates in 1: 31 – very good ¡Is the creation God? ¡Gnostics saw the material world as evil. ¡What does ch 1 suggest about the PROPER relationship between mankind and the creation?

The Big Picture. The Point – Gen 1: 26 3 Questions 1. Where’d I come from? 2. Why am I here? 3. Where am I going? Creation This is where I come from! EXALTED RELATIONSHIP

Pinnacle of Creation ¡Gen 1: 26 -31 – How is the creation of man different that the earlier creative acts? ¡How is this significant and what implications does it have on all of human history? ¡Does God have a particular purpose for mankind in the creation?

Sabbath & Rest ¡Gen 2: 3 – Why did God culminate his creation with a specified rest? ¡Was this example important for the Israelites? ¡Is it important for us? How? ¡ 7 th Day – There is NO indication in Genesis that the 7 th day was ever kept as a religious observance. That didn’t come along until the Law of Moses and then, only as a sign between God and the Jews.

Thoughts ¡Do you believe this Genesis story would resonate with the Israelites at this particular time? ¡How powerful is God? Rom 4: 17 ¡Young or Old. Would it shake your faith if the earth was really billion’s of years old? Why or why not?

Toward Next Week ¡Reflect & Pray ¡Repeated words and phrases ¡Is Satan a real being or an evil presence? ¡Origin of Sin ¡Week 3 – Humanity’s Purpose & Failure