L1: He saw that it was good

He Saw that it was Good

Unit 1 / Session 1 HE BROUGHT HIM OUTSIDE AND SAID,“LOOK TOWARD HEAVEN, AND NUMBER THE STARS, IF YOU ARE ABLE TO NUMBER THEM.” THEN HE SAID TO HIM, “SO SHALL YOUR OFFSPRING BE.”GENESIS 15:5

MAIN POINT: Our good Creator wants a relationship with us.

CHRIST CONNECTION

God created the universe by the spoken word, and everything He created reveals His glory. Jesus, the Word of God, is the perfect representation of God’s glory (Heb. 1:3). Jesus came to restore all of creation, including humanity, to God’s original design. Jesus was there with God in the beginning, and in Him all things were created (John 1:1).

“Ex Nihilo” —OUT OF NOTHING

This week, we’re covering the passages and main points below. We encourage you to read all of the content on the timeline as you prepare to teach.

Genesis 1-2:7

EVERYTHING GOD CREATED IS GOOD

Genesis 1:1–5 ESV

1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 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. 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

WE WERE CREATED FOR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AND OTHERS

Genesis 1:26–31 ESV

26 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.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Genesis 2:7 ESV

7 then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.

BEFORE YOU TEACH

MAIN POINT: Our good Creator wants a relationship with us

Leaders: Thank you for preparing to teach God’s Word. As you do, may He teach you new and wonderful truths (Ps. 119:18).

BIBLICAL COMMENTARY

EVERYTHING GOD CREATED IS GOOD

GENESIS 1:3

“This ‘light’ on the first day then is indicative of the presence of God both at creation and among his people Israel, a light that both reveals and conceals the presence of God. The light at creation was the first word, the word that is indistinct from God’s personal presence, and the light among his people is a revelation given by means of another intermediary, namely, Moses. Yet in contrast to the incompleteness of Moses, now the ‘true Light’ has come who is that very same first ‘Word,’ not distinct from God, and who therefore alone can perfectly explain him (John 1:9–18).”1

GENESIS 1:27

“Since God and humans share such likeness, it should not be surprising that a relationship between God and humans is a focus in the rest of Scripture. Mankind possesses a self-conscious life in which he is able to thank and worship the Creator.”2

WE WERE CREATED FOR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AND OTHERS GENESIS 2:7

“Only human life is called God’s image. The term ‘image’ applies equally to male and female, for that is what makes up the human race. It is used figuratively here, and does not refer to physical shape or outer appearance. Being the image of God means that humans share, although imperfectly, in the nature of God—that is, they were given the communicable attributes of intelligence, knowledge, spiritual understanding, creativity, wisdom, love, compassion, holiness, justice, and the like. As the text will explain (2:7), all these capacities were given by the inbreathing of the breath of life. Thus, humans have the capacity to commune with the living God, as well as with one another.”

Context

Background: Moses is the credited author of Genesis. He wrote it after the exodus from Egypt, and it is part of the Torah: the first five books of the Bible.

We start here, at the beginning of recorded time. Humans are fascinated with beginnings and origins. The book of Genesis, which means “origin,” records ours, but it doesn’t record God’s because He is infinite: He has no beginning and no end. He has always existed and will always exist. God created humankind to live in His presence in Eden. Adam and Eve were made to be like God and to be with God, and this is God’s intent for us as well. Genesis highlights God’s goodness, giving us our first glimpse of His character. Our understanding of creation’s origin and the Creator will frame everything else we believe about God, so it’s important for us to start here.

THEOLOGY CONNECTION

Creation out of nothing

The Bible teaches that God created the universe—everything visible and invisible—out of nothing (sometimes expressed in the Latin phrase, ex nihilo). This means that before God created anything, nothing else existed except God Himself. God alone is eternal—every created thing has a beginning. Therefore, the eternal God rules over all of His creation, and He alone is worthy of worship. Denial of this doctrine has implications for God’s sovereignty over and providence in creation. Because God created out of nothing, creation has meaning and purpose and points us to the Creator.

leader’s PRAYer

GOD, HELP US TO CLING TO YOUR GOODNESS.

MAY IT GUIDE HOW WE VIEW EVERYTHING

YOU DO IN OUR LIVES AND IN THE LIVES OF

OUR STUDENTS.

KICK STARTER

Did you know?

The largest Lego build in the world is made of 150 million mini-brick Lego pieces! It’s a scene from the Lord of the Rings, and it took a team of fifty people three years to complete the build.4

instructions

These optional activities are designed to help your students interact. You’ll find a Discussion Activity and a Cultural Connection, which touches on a relevant topic in today’s teen culture. Each group is different, so adapt these activities to fit your group’s needs. The goal is for students to connect more to the lesson as they connect to the topic and to one another.

WORLD WONDERS

SUPPLIES LIST: NONE

Ask the following questions, allowing time for students to share responses:

🏶 WHAT ARE THE SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD?

(CONSIDER SHOWING PICTURES.)

🏶 WHAT IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACE YOU’VE EVER SEEN?

🏶 HOW CAN NATURE HELP US ENCOUNTER GOD? EXPLAIN.

All of creation points to a Creator. Scripture even says the created world is a way for us to know God’s attributes. When we pause to look at creation, we can learn about the good God who created it all.

CULTURAL CONNECTION

How can God really be good when so much is wrong in the world? How can He be good when He lets bad things happen to good people? How can God be good while wars rage on, leaving orphans in their path? It just makes no sense sometimes, right? But God is infinitely good even when things here on earth aren’t. Here’s where we get it wrong: Something horrible happens—maybe a death or a divorce or a betrayal—and we shift our eyes to the God who is supposed to be in control. We wonder where He is. We blame Him for not intervening, and we question His goodness. But God’s character doesn’t change based on our circumstances or the circumstances in the world. He is good despite them.

DISCUSSION MAIN POINT.

Main Point: Our good Creator wants a relationship with us.

EVERYTHING GOD CREATED IS GOOD READ GENESIS 1:1-5

Genesis 1:1–5 ESV

1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 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. 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

HOW IS THE WAY GOD CREATES DIFFERENT FROM THE WAY WE CREATE?

When we create art, we use materials like paint, paintbrushes, and canvas. But when God created the universe, He used only His words. He created everything from nothing—ex nihilo. Only God can do that! The power of His word is enough to create the entire universe. If God can do this with creation, then He is powerful enough to hold our lives in His hands as well. Only God can take what feels like nothing and make something good. He displayed this in creation, and He continues to do this in our lives as well.

SINCE EVERYTHING GOD CREATED IS GOOD, WHAT DOES THIS HELP US KNOW ABOUT HIM?

Everything God created is good because God is good. This key truth helps frame everything else we believe about God. If the Lord is truly good—and He is—then we can trust Him; we can follow Him; we can believe His Word. God doesn’t just do good things; He is goodness. He is the standard to which we compare everything else. While we live in a world that is sometimes not good, we can have hope knowing we serve a good God who will one day make all things right.

WHY SHOULD KNOWING GOD AS THE CREATOR LEAD US TO WORSHIP HIM?

Even earthly kings command respect, right? It shows up in movies all the time: a king’s subject walks into his presence and immediately bows low out of respect. We serve the King of all kings. He commands the universe, and we constantly live in His presence because God is omnipresent, or everywhere. Knowing the King of kings chose to make us sons and daughters should move us to worship Him with grateful hearts. This means we live constantly bowed before God, serving Him and reflecting Him everywhere we go and in everything we do.

WE WERE CREATED FOR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AND OTHERS

READ GENESIS 1:26-31; 2:7

Genesis 1:26–31 ESV

26 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.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Genesis 2:7 ESV

7 then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.

WHY DID GOD CREATE MAN? WHAT WAS DIFFERENT ABOUT HOW GOD CREATED HIM?

Sometimes you may wonder why you’re here. In these verses, it’s clear God created us to have relationship with Him and to bring Him glory. God exists in community with Himself through the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—the Trinity. This concept shows us God values community. When God created Adam, He formed him from the dust of the earth, fashioning him with His hands and sharing His own breath! This is a beautiful reminder that we were created by a loving God, and the breath in our lungs came from Him. You have a good purpose because you were created by a good God.

WHO WAS GOD TALKING TO IN GENESIS 1:26? WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?

When God says “our” in verse 26, we know He was speaking to others present at creation: the Holy Spirit and God’s Son, Jesus. John 1:1 tells us Jesus was not only present with God in the beginning, but that all of creation was also formed through Him—the Word of God.

WHY IS IT BETTER TO SEEK GOD WITH OTHERS? HOW COULD ISOLATION BE HARMFUL?

After God created man, He saw that it wasn’t good for Adam to be alone. He formed woman from man to be his partner. Man and woman worked alongside one another in obedience to God. While this is usually a model for marriage, it’s also a model for any relationship. We were built to walk with one another. We were made to encourage one another as we seek God. When we isolate ourselves, we miss out on godly community and accountability.

WRAP-UP

WHAT WOULD IT LOOK LIKE FOR YOU TO LIVE LIKE YOU’RE MADE IN GOD’S IMAGE THIS WEEK?

God’s Word is one of the main ways we know what God is like. He reveals His character in the way He creates, rules, and interacts with humans. Over and over, we see God exhibit His goodness to His creation. We see God extend kindness, even when His people were undeserving. We also witness God’s forgiveness when they repented of their sins. These are only a few of God’s traits, but they are certainly ones we can imitate. When we seek goodness, we strive to do what is best for God’s kingdom and for others—in other words, we live selflessly. We show kindness to those who may not deserve it because God did so for us. And we forgive others because God has forgiven us of so much. When we live in a way that imitates God, we show the world what God is like.