Story of Redemption 1 // Mission Accomplished: God Dwells with Man

Intro Activity // 10 Minutes

Venn Diagram: The Garden of Eden in Gen. 2-3 and the New Jerusalem in Rev. 21:1-22:5.

List all similarities and differences you see:

Images, objects, people, themes, symbols, or anything else.

What do we learn about God and His plan for creation as we look at where everything began and where everything will begin again?

As this study title communicates, we are going to do flyover of the story of the Bible over the next 10-12 weeks. As we begin looking at this grand story, I hope this activity has allowed us to see that God intends to end the story much like He began it.

Now we’re going to spend the rest of our time today in the beginning of Genesis, but I want us to keep in mind this idea for the remainder of this study:

Main Idea: God’s mission in the Bible is the same from beginning to end - to fill the earth with His presence and dwell with His people.

So as we look now back to the beginning of all things, I want us to think about these 2 themes:

God’s presence.

God’s dwelling with His people across the earth.

God’s Presence

When I say “the presence of God,” what comes to mind?

Glory, power, holiness, fear (if we are not in right relationship with Him), etc.

What based on Genesis 2, what do you think Adam’s experience of God’s presence was like?

Eden: (likely tied to Heb. homonym meaning “pleasure, delight”)

The presence of God leads to the greatest possible sense of delight, and the ultimate fulfillment of our pleasure.

Let us occupy ourselves entirely in knowing God. The more we know Him, the more we will desire to know Him. As love increases with knowledge, the more we know God, the more we will truly love Him. We will learn to love Him equally in times of distress or in times of great joy.

The Practice of the Presence of God, Brother Lawrence (monk in the 1600s), 55.

Life: One of the most significant themes associated with God’s presence is life. That is to say, where God is, there is life.

What pictures of life do we see in the Garden of Eden? (think about the things tied to life in the verses we read in Revelation too!)

God breathes life into Adam (Gen. 2:7)

The river that flows out of Eden (Gen. 2:10)

A seemingly incidental reference to a river flowing out of Eden also reminds us of the abundant life flowing from the presence of God… This river of life abounding with God’s presence flows from the inmost place of God’s presence outward into the nations.

Beale and Kim, God Dwells Among Us, 20-21.

The tree of life in the middle of the garden (Gen. 2:9)

What do all of these pictures of God giving life tell you about Him? What does it reveal to you about His plan for creation?

*As incredible and significant as it is that God’s very presence brings abundant life, we learn even more about His character when we see who He invites into His presence.

God’s dwelling with His people across the earth.

At the end of Gen. 2, who is in the Garden of Eden?

Adam, Eve, and God.

What has mankind been tasked to do in the Garden? (Gen. 2:15, Gen. 1:28)

WORSHIP

Genesis 2:15 CSB

15 The Lord God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden to work it and watch over it.

How is this worship? In Numbers 3:7-8, the same words “work” and “watch over” describe the tasks of the priests in the tabernacle.

Adam and Eve here are presented as a priestly king and queen tasked with worshipping through service in the presence of their True King.

But this doesn’t stop here. What is the other part of their task?

MULTIPLY WORSHIPERS

Genesis 1:28 CSB

28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.”

As they worship, there is also the call to expand God’s dominion AND to produce more worshippers.

This has been God’s plan: to expand His kingdom over all creation through His people who are actively bringing other people into the presence of God.

So, as we look at God’s intent in creation and the plan that he has put in motion here in the Garden, what’s happening?

What does God receive from mankind?

Worship: He is worshipped by His people, with the expectation that His kingdom paradise will grow through His worshippers who will also create more worshippers.

What does mankind receive from God?

We behold His glory through His presence, and we receive life, satisfaction, and purpose.

So what does this mean for us? How does this fit into the Christian story?

Where did the distance between God and man begin to creep in?

Adam and Eve’s failure to guard the Garden in obedience to God’s Word.

Compared to what God commands in Genesis 2:16-17, Eve’s response to the serpent in Genesis 3:2-3 is revealing of a few things:

God’s character is undermined (referenced as Elohim vs. Yahweh)

God’s permission is minimized (“eat from the trees” vs. “eat from every tree”)

God prohibition is maximized (Eve adds touching the tree as one of God’s commands)

God’s consequences for sin are minimized (“you will die” vs. “you will surely die”)

Adam and Eve sin, and are cast out of God’s presence in the Garden. But, as the rest of the Bible will tell us (and as we saw in Revelation), God’s mission is to restore His Kingdom, save His people, and dwell with His them once again… and He does this through Jesus.

Jesus welcomes us back into God’s presence through the forgiveness of our sin in His perfect life, death, and resurrection.

He sends us out to do what Adam and Eve were tasked with at the very beginning:

Grow the Kingdom, fill the earth with worshippers, and look forward to life with God forever, sharing in His reign over the New Creation.

Application Questions:

How have you experienced the fullness of life that God offers?

How have you found satisfaction in the Lord that the world does not offer?

How has your life in Christ given you an understanding of your purpose?

How does your purpose as an individual fit into God’s purpose to welcome the nations into His presence?