MS Bible Wed

Intro and Review

Yesterday we talked about what the Bible is and why it is important.

Let’s review this together

What kind of book is the Bible?

Is it one book or many books?

Who does the Bible ultimately point to?

Today we are going to begin our journey into the stories of the Old Testament. And we will start at the very beginning.

Before we begin reading, let me ask:

Why do you think most stories start at the beginning?

What do you think a story about creation should explain?

Setting the Stage: Why Creation Matters

The story of creation is not only about how things began, but it actually offers the answer to some important questions:

It answers:

Who made the world?

Why do humans exist?

What makes humans different from everything else?

These are questions that people still find themselves asking today.

Scripture Focus: Creation

Read Genesis 1:1–5 “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.”

and

Genesis 1:26–27 “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”

So what were some things that you noticed about this passage?

We notice that:

God creates intentionally and purposefully

Creation was described as “good”

Humans are made in the image of God (Imago Dei)

So what do you think that being made in the image of God does for humans?

It gives us value

It gives us purpose

It gives us responsibility

Humans are not accidents or mistakes.

Discussion

Let’s think a bit deeper on this

What do you think it means to be made in God’s image?

How do you think it should affect how we treat other people?

If everyone is made in God’s image, what does that say about bullying or disrespect?

The Choice: The Fall

Now we are going to talk about how man treated God and His creation.

See, all the suffering and bad things in the world came from a choice.

More often than not, most things that we get in trouble for, comes from a choice, whether we realize it or not.

Read Genesis 3

God gave humans something called free will, which allowed us to have the ability to choose obedience or disobedience.

Adam and Eve chose to disobey God.

That choice brought:

Sin

Broken relationships

Pain and death into the world

See, the problem was not that they were curious—rather the problem happened when they broke God’s trust.

They chose their own way instead of God’s way.

Activity

Okay, we are going to split in groups. I will remind you that when we do group work, we need to be on topic as to not lose precious class time.

Now that you are in your groups, I will write 3 questions on the board for you to copy down on paper and as a group, answer these questions.

What changed after Adam and Eve disobeyed God?

How did their relationship with God change?

How did their relationship with each other change?

(Discuss answers)

We can see from this that bad choices don’t just affect us, they can affect others too.

God’s Response

Even though humans disobeyed God, He did not abandon them.

Read Genesis 3:15 “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.””

This verse talks about God’s plan to fix what was broken. When it talks about bruising the head and heel, that speaks of Jesus.

From the very beginning, God had a plan to rescue humanity.

He did not just leave us here to figure it out.

It is so important that we understand that God always has a plan.

Reflection

Before you answer these questions I want you to think deeply about them, then answer.

Why do you think God still cared about humans after they disobeyed?

What does this story teach us about God’s character?

What do these stories teach us about human choices?

Realize that the Bible does not cover up or justify human failure, rather it gives us a message of hope and sets the stage for God’s grace to enter the scene.

Connecting the Story Forward

The story of the fall is not an isolated event.

We all struggle with choices.

Everyone struggles with the thoughts of how to balance obeying God with doing whatever we want.

The truth is we can’t.

The things that God commands us to do are usually things that are tough to do apart from Him.

These stories help us to grasp:

Why the world is broken

Why people struggle with sin

Why we need God’s help

Every story we read in the Old Testament will build on that foundation.

Closing Thoughts and Preview

Let’s recap what we have learned.

The Bible begins with:

A good God

A good creation

A broken choice

A promise of restoration

This is just the beginning of a larger story, which we will continue to explore as the semester goes on.

Tomorrow we will look at:

The story of Noah

Why judgement and mercy appear together

How God preserves His promises

PRAY

Father God, I thank you for creating us with purpose and care. Help us to understand the choices we make and how they affect others. Thank you for loving us, even when we fail. Help us to trust You and learn from Your Word. In Jesus name, Amen.