Monday, June 20, 2011

Genesis 2 Part 1

Sorry I didn’t get these up last week. I’m going to do the best I can to catch up with further explanations on Genesis 2 and 3 this week, so that I can get back on cycle with the sermon preached that Sunday.

Genesis 2:1-3 really concludes the narrative from Genesis 1. Something to keep in mind is that the Bible was not inspired into chapters and verses. While I would argue that the Scripture is inspired in all words, the chapter numbers and verses were added later, so don’t make a major deal about what falls in what chapter. Genesis is a whole unit, the chapters are there to help locate portions of that unit.

Back on task, Genesis 2:1-3 finishes the seven days of Creation. There are whole books dedicated to sorting through how those seven days sort out and line up with what we find throughout general revelation. General revelation? That’s what you can see in nature. It’s a complement to special revelation, which is the Word of God in Scripture.

Day Seven becomes the origin of the Sabbath tradition and rule. Scripture records that God “rested” on that day but we should not construe that to mean God was tired or needed rest. In fact, the Lord Jesus reminds us that the Father continues working (John 5:17). The purpose is found in verse 3: sanctifying the day. God set the precedent that we would dedicate a day to Him.

There are many traditions and forms that play into the idea of a Sabbath. It’s actually something I’m wanting to spend a good deal more time studying and looking into. I think we’ve got some of it out of sync. The idea is a day both of rest and worship, not obligation and duty. Somehow there’s a way in which this reflects in our culture. All day fishin’ or chasing a dollar isn’t right, but neither is a near-legalistic doldrums trip in a church building.

Another part of this I want to touch right now is in Genesis 3:5. Apparently, at this time, rain just doesn’t happen. That’s an important consideration for future consideration. One of the keys to modern science is the principle of uniformity: that the way things work now is how they have always worked. By accepting this principle, you can estimate the past by observing the present. Yet an atmosphere and climate that involves no rain but derives moisture simply from the ground is hard to simulate or observe.

The last observation for this blog post is this: there is obviously something different about the creation of humanity when compared to the creation of everything else. Genesis 1 shows everything else coming into being based on the spoken words of God. Yet Genesis 1 only states that God said “Let us make man” not that He spoke man into existence. Genesis 2 details that there is more effort put forth by the Almighty to make the living soul that is mankind. Mankind is the high point of Creation. This should be both honoring and humbling to us.

Humbling because it is our sins that have corrupted Creation. There are problems faced by the lesser parts that fall solely at our feet for creating them. Humbling because it is because of us that Jesus Christ had to die to atone for our sins.

Honoring because we can make a difference for this world. Honoring because God entrusted us with the care of this world and the right to explore and learn from His creation.

Honoring because it is in us and through us that God works in this world.

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