In The Beginning God…

Scripture Text: Gen 1:1-5 KJV

Today, I trust that God will open our eyes to the beauty and magnificence of the Scripture. There are jewels (precious stones) to be discovered, gems to uncover, if we will but dig a little deeper into His Word!

Are you afraid of Scripture, or do you delight to hear God as He speaks.

People believe the Bible until they find out what’s in it.

Today, let’s take a fresh look at the opening passage of the Bible to see if God will allow us to uncover some of those precious stones.

Gen 1:1-5 KJV 1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the eveninga and the morning were the first day.

1) Introduction

a) The opening verses of Scripture deal with a work of creation performed by God (and God alone). Note: all miracles in the Scripture were performed by God alone.

b) This represents the first miracle performed by God.

(cf. John 2:1-11 KJV records the first miracle performed by Jesus. This miracle was also a work of creation. Is it not amazing that the first recorded work of God in the Old Testament and the first recorded work of Jesus in the New Testament were both works of creation.

i) Verse 1 “third day” – the miracle took place on the third day. So what is so significant about the third day? I think that this adds distinction between the miracle of Jesus and the Creation work of God, because the work of God in Creation was initiated on the first day. Jesus work was on the third day! So what do you think of when you think of the “third day”. The third day is resurrection day (which represents new life).

ii) Verse 1 “marriage” – the miracle took place at a wedding (which represents a union; taking a bride).

iii) Verse 2 “Jesus was called” – the miracle took place after inviting Jesus to participate in the wedding union. He “was called to the marriage”.

iv) Verse 3 “no wine” – the miracle took place after a need was revealed. There was no wine for the celebration (wine is a type in Scripture which represents the Holy Spirit of God). Note: when mans efforts are exhausted, the wine (Holy Spirit) is brought to the marriage by the workings of Jesus.

v) Verse 6 “six waterpots” – the creation work of God took six days. Is it a coincidence that the first recorded creation work of Jesus would be to make six waterpots of wine. I think that Jesus was speaking volumes by his actions, saying “look at me; look at the similarities of the Creation work of God”. I think that he was announcing to the world that He was God come in the flesh. By creating six waterpots of wine, this tied Jesus to the Creation work of God himself.

vi) Verse 7 “fill the waterpots…to the brim” – Jesus made sure that they were filled to capacity…to the brim. (i.e. they were not under filled nor were they over filled). They were perfectly and completely filled. Just like you and I were perfectly and completely filled when Jesus arrived where we were, and performed a great miracle of salvation (a work of creation) in our lives. It was the third day for us…resurrection day…the day that Jesus raised us from the dead and created a NEW LIFE in us.

(Eph 2:1-10) KJV

1And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desiresa of the flesh and of the mind; and (we) were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordainedb that we should walk in them.

(II Cor 5:17) KJV 17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

(II Cor 5:17) THE MES 17 Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it!

2) Overview of Passage

a) Back in Gen 1, let’s look at what this passage is NOT!

i) It is not a fairy-tale story

(1) It defies and refutes evolution science. When God made man, He made him as a mature human being.

(Gen 1:27) KJV 27 So God created man in his own image.

(Gen 2:7) KJV 7 And the LORD God {“Yaweh”-covenant name of God} formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

(a) Illustration: Sixty (60) seconds after God created Adam, a mature, fully grown man that had the appearance of say…30 years old….how old was Adam? He was 60 seconds old; but, he looked like he was 30 years old. In other words, God created Adam as a fully mature creation. Instantly after Adam was created, he had the appearance of a man that was much older that he was in reality.

(b) Illustration: Adam walks over to a tree that God had created 10 minutes ago, and he decides to cut it down. He counts the rings and finds that the tree is 87 years old, but in reality it is only 10 minutes old.

(c) Is it beyond God to create something mature, and give it the appearance that it has been here for years? I think not!

ii) It is not a story that was cleverly devised from the imaginations of men.

(1) Illustration of probabilities (in general):

Trying to predect the score of a foofball game (let’s say, between the Houston Texans vs. the Dallas Cowboys), would be fairly easy to guess (or predict) a winner. The chances are 1 in 2. But if I ask you, “what will the final score be?”, then the prediction becomes much more complicated. Assume that football scores are not greater that 50 points. If you predict that the Cowboys will have a score of 42, then you have a 1 in 50 chance of predicting the correct outcome. BUT, to predict BOTH scores accurately, the mathematical probility becomes virtually impossible.

Probability to win 1 in 2 2

Probability of correct Dallas score 1 in 50 x50

Probability of correct Houston score 1 in 50 x50

Probability factor 1 in 5,000 5,000

(2) Illustration of probabilities that Jesus, the Messiah :

(a) would be from the tribe of Judah (1 in 12 tribes)

(b) would be born in Bethlehem (1 in 200 villages)

(c) preceded by a messenger (1 in 20)

(d) would enter Jerusalem on a colt (1 in 50)

(e) would be betrayed by a friend (1 in 10)

(f) would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (1 in 100)

(g) that the silver would be thrown into the temple (1 in 200)

(h) would be silent before his accusors (1 in 100)

(i) would be spit upon and beaten (1 in 10)

(j) would be wounded and whipped by his enemies (1 in 25)

(k) would be pierced in his hands and feet (1 in 100)

(l) would be stripped of his raiment (1 in 10)

(m) would be crucified among thieves (1 in 100)

(3) Using just these few of the hundreds of prophesies concerning Jesus, the probability is 1019 (ten to the nineteenth power) or 10 followed by 19 zeros; i.e. 10 Billion Billion.

(4) These prophesies were given 500 years before crucifixion was even invented.

(5) No, it is not a story that was cleverly devised from the imaginations of men, it is the infallible Word of God.

iii) It is not solely a story of creation.

If God in His infinite wisdom chose to open the Bible with the most important subject that exists, what would that be? [audience participation] What is the most important subject of the Bible? Salvation! The salvation of man!

The opening passage of the Bible in Gen 1 is not solely a story of God’s creation of the universe and our world (although it is an actual account of the physical creation of the world), it is more than that…much, much more! As I commented in my opening remarks, today, I trust that God will open our eyes to the beauty of the Scripture. There are jewels to be discovered, gems to uncover, if we will but dig a little deeper into His Word!

b) We have looked at what this passage is NOT…now let’s look at what it IS!

i) It is the infallible Word of God. Every word is true and can be trusted!

ii) It is God speaking to men.

iii) It is a revelation of Jesus, God’s sacrificial gift to men.

iv) It is a revelation of God’s forethought and love for men.

v) It is an allegory of salvation, i.e. of what God has done for man (from God’s perspective)!

3) Exegesis

a) Gen 1:1 KJV – “In the beginning God”

This is the foundational truth for all real theology….”In the beginning God”. God originates and initiates all things. The Scripture tells us that “ALL things were created by Him and for Him, and by Him all things consist”. ( ).

We do not know when the beginning was; but we do know that God was there. Literal Hebrew translation of “beginning”: before time; at the commencement of time, before anything else was.

7225 רֵאשִׁית [re’shiyth /ray·sheeth/] n f. From the same as 7218; TWOT 2097e; GK 8040; 51 occurrences; AV translates as “beginning” 18 times, “firstfruits” 11 times, “first” nine times, “chief” eight times, and translated miscellaneously five times. 1 first, beginning, best, chief. 1a beginning. 1b first. 1c chief. 1d choice part.[1]

Interestingly, the root word for rayseeth is raysh. The primary meaning of this root is “head.” It appears in its root forms and derivatives nearly 750 times. It is used for the “head” as part of the body (Gen 3:15) and by extension for the notion of “chief” of a family (Ex 6:14), as “chief officer” of the divisions of Israel (Ex 18:25) and the like. The unique Hebraic character of this usage is clear in the ot as the root is rarely applied to chiefs of Gentile nations. It is used also for the top or summit of a geographical feature such as a mountain or hill (Ex 17:9) and the upper part of a building or architectural feature (Gen 11:4; II Chr 3:15) and as a personification for such features (Ps 24:7, 9). The root was utilized in many colloquial expressions for plant names (Job 10:4) parts or portions of things (Gen 2:10) and terms for artifacts. In this last category is the usage of the root for both “head stone” (Zech 4:7) and “chief corner stone” (Ps 118:22). This passage and usage are carried over into the nt and quoted by Jesus concerning his being rejected by the Jews (Mt 21:42; Lk 20:17; Eph 2:20; I Pet 2:7). The root is widely used in the ot with other terms in the sense of the superlative, since Hebrew does not have any simple form to express the third degree. There are many examples of this usage (Ex 30:23) where the meaning is “best,” “foremost,” the uniquely finest, which alone was fit for the service of God. This theological meaning is carried over to the officers of the temple (II Kgs 25:18) and the best musicians (Neh 11:17). In most of the versions there are divergencies in the translation of rō˒š when it is used in the sense of “chief” as for example (Num 31:26) and many similar passages KJV reads “chief,” NIV and RSV read “head” but none are completely consistent. The root appears in many passages in the sense of “sum” or “total” (Prov 8:26) ASV “first” with a footnote which cities the difficulty of the Hebrew. The KJV consistently reads “total,” “sum” in passages dealing with the census of Israel (Ex 30:12; Num 1:2 etc.) and the Aramaic form appears in the unusual sense of the “sum” or “substance” of a dream (Dan 7:1). Although many of the usages of the root can be traced back to Akkadian and ultimately to Sumerian, the reliance on the nation’s “head” as a high officer or chosen personage is developed in Hebrew to much greater degree than the other languages. The theological use of the root to designate divinely appointed offices in the ot is carried over into the nt in such terms as “head of the church” (Eph 5:23), a title ascribed to Christ.[2]

And it can also mean “the mind, the facility of thought, contemplation, and perception” [3]

“IN THE BEGINNING GOD” – at the first God was, at the beginning God was, He was the firstfruits, the chief, the best, the choice part of, He was the summit, the total; He was before time; at the commencement of time; He was before everything else was; He was the sum and substance of all things. “IN THE BEGINNING GOD”; and this is the foundational truth that ”In the beginning God originated and initiated all things. “ALL things were created by Him and for Him and by Him all things consist”. ( ).

i) Cf John 1:1-3KJV 1In the beginning was {always was} the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehendeda it not. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. 8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. 9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

ii) Cf Rev 1:11 KJV , 11 I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last…. There is nothing that takes God by surprise. He is in total control, and as God, He was not surprised by the Fall of man. Sometimes we find Scripture that seems hard to understand, such as:

(1) Rev. 13:8 KJV 8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

(2) I Pet 1:18-20 KJV 18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

(3) Matt 25:31-34 KJV 31When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: 32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: 33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

(4) Eph 1:3-4 KJV {reiterated from earlier in the message} 3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:…

(5) Acts 2:23 KJV 22Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: 23 Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: 24 Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.

The cross was by devine design and appointment.

God originates and initiates. Before anything else was, God was; before anything else could be, God must ordain it to be….just like He ordained Calvary’s cross, in His own mind, for the Lamb to be slain before the foundation of the world. Nothing took God by suprize….long before man ever sinned, God made the provision of his Son dying for our sins on the cross (Rev 13:8). The Fall was evidence that man cannot meet the demands of God in his own strength, “For by grace are you saved through faith, and that {faith} not of yourselves, it is a gift of God” (Eph 2:8 KJV).

Eph 2:8 AMPLIFIED BIBLE 5 Even when we were dead [slain] by [our own]shortcomings and resepasses, He made us alive together in fellowship and in union with Christ.--- He gave us the very life of Christ Himelf, the same new life with which He quickened Him. [For] it is by grace – by His favor and mercy which you did not deserve- that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation). 6 And He raised us up together with Him and made us sit down together – giving us joint seating with Him – in the heavenly sphere [by virtue of our being] in Christ Jesus, the Messiah, the Anointed One. 7 He did this that He might clearly demonstrate through the ages to come the immeasurable (limitless, surpassing) riches of His free grace (His unmerited favor) in kindness and goodness of heart toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by free grace (God’s unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves- of your own doing, it came not through your own striving- but it is the gift of God. 9 Not because of works [not the fillment of the Law’s demands], lest any man should boast. – It is not the result of what any one can possibly do, so no one can pride himself in it or take glory to himself. 10 For we ar God’s [own] handiwork (his workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us, (taking paths which He prepared ahead of time) that we should walk in them- living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live.

God originates and initiates. Without Him was not anything made that was made. (John 1:2b)

b) Gen 1:1 “God” – Elohim (plural) means “strong ones” “almighty ones” “devine ones” and by virtue of the plurality of the name of God represents the Godhead, The Trinity (God the Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit)

i) Cf: Gen 1:26 KJV “let US make man in OUR image”

ii) Cf. Acts 2:23 KJV “the determinate counsel of God”

iii) Cf. John 1:1 KJV “In the beginning was the Word (the Son); Jesus was there “in the beginning”.

iv) Cf Gen 1:2 KJV “the Spirit of God moved”; The Holy Spirit was there “in the beginning”.

c) Gen 1:1 “created” – Hebrew literally “bara” means to make from nothing; It is used an exclusive attribute to God and God alone. i.e. something only God could accomplish.

i) Cf. Heb 11:3 KJV 3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

ii) “God created” - not God with man’s help, but God alone; solely a soverign act of God’s will and purpose with no one else to counsel with God.

d) Gen 2 “earth WAS” – literally, “earth had become” [Isa 45:18]

e) Gen 2 “without form and void”

i) Hebrew literally, “tohu vahbohu”; a total run or vacancy; empty, wasted, lifeless, desolate.

ii) Represents mans state apart from God; man in his depraved condition:

(1) No life (lifeless)

(2) Empty

(3) Wasted without hope and without purpose

(4) A total ruin

iii) Cf John 10:10 KJV 10The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it [life]more abundantly.

iv) Cf. John 10:28-29 KJV 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.

{represents NOT ONLY eternal life, but a quality of life}

f) Gen 1: 2 “and DARKNESS was upon…” i.e. absent of any understanding; no vision; no light.

i) TESTIMONY OF TWM

ii) That man that shakes his fist in the face of God and says “I’ll have none of you”.

g) Gen 1:2 “and the Spirit of God MOVED”;

i) literally, to brood over, to move or to shake to the foundations.

ii) Representative: in our lost condition (total ruin, empty, without hope and purpose, in total darkness with no light) the Spirit of God moves in our life; i.e. He broods over us in an attitude of love and He shakes us to the very foundations of our being. It is God that initiates this MOVE of the Spirit of God upon us.

iii) Cf. Matt 18:11-13 KJV {Illustration of the one lost sheep.} .11 For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost. 12 How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? 13 And if so be that he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep, than of the ninety and nine which went not astray.

h) Gen 1:3 “and God Said” i.e. God SPOKE

i) After the Spirit of God moves upon us, God SPEAKS to us; ; i.e. The WORD of God to us.

ii) we hear him as he convinces us of our sin and the consequences of our sin;

iii) we hear him as he reveals his righteousness to us in the person of his Son, Jesus.

i) Gen 1:3 “And God said “let there be light”; GOD SPOKE.

i) After the Spirit of God moves in our lives and after God speaks to our hearts, then LIGHT comes. WHAT WAS THAT LIGHT?

COMPARE GEN 1: 14-19 [4th day creation vs. 1st day creation of LIGHT]

(1) then LIGHT comes; i.e. that essence of God himself that

(a) imparts life to men;

(b) that translation from death to life,

(c) from darkness to light,

(d) from lost to found

(2) This was a COMMAND “let there be light”!; it was not a mere request or admonition, but am imperative. The Word of God demanded that light come into existence. There was no alternative, no elective, other than obedience to the command of God and to His authority as the Almight One, the sovereign creator.

(3) The fastest thing known to man, LIGHT, at 86,000 miles per second….light came running, because God said “come”.

(4) As God speaks to lost men, LIGHT comes and the devine nature of God is imparted.

(a) The ULTIMATE CREATION WORK of God, i.e. that God would make something within the heart of man, from something that does not exist within man

(i) John 6:28-29 KJV 28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

(ii) The ultimate creation work…the creation of a Bride, the Church for which Christ died…which is alive and beautiful and vibrant.

(b) As God speaks to lost men, LIGHT comes:

(i) Cf John 1:4 KJV 4In him was life; and the life was the LIGHT of men

(ii) Cf John 8:12 KJV 4 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

(iii) Cf II Cor 4:3-6 KJV 3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. 5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

(iv) Cf Eph 5:13-14 KJV 13 But all things that are reprovedb are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. 14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

(v) Cf I Pet 2:9 KJV 9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiarb people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

(vi) Cf I John 1:5 KJV 5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

(vii) Cf Rev 21:23 KJV 23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.

(c) Gen 1:3 “and there was light”

(i) Total obedience to the voice of God.

(ii) God said…and there was….light!

(d) Gen 1:4 “and God SAW the light”

(i) A revelation occurs; God sees what is good and right for us, and he imparts this tous.

(e) Gen 1:4 “and God divided the light form the darkness”

(i) Literal – to separate

(ii) Representative: separation of spiritual vs. non-spiritual; Devine nature vs. depraved nature; walking with God vs. following Satan.

(iii) Webster’s definition of light: “that which pierces the darkness”. Where light is, darkness cannot exist…it has to flee.

1. Eph 5:8 KJV 8For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:

4) APPLICATION

APPLICATION

a) Salvation is initiated by God himself apart from mens desires

i) No man desires to know God

(1) Rom 3:10-12 KJV 10 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 11There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

(2) [Rom 3:10-12 NIV 10 As it is written: “There is none righteous, no one righteous, not even one; 11 there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. 12 All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”]

ii) God creates the desire in man to come to Jesus; He seeks man and finds him; he changes mans will and makes men willing; emabling men to believe is the work of God; He purposes to save his sheep; He chooses us. He seeks; he saves. And it is all of grace.

(1) John 6:28-29 KJV 28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

(2) John 6:37 KJV 37All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. 38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. 39 And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing,† but should raise it up again at the last day. 40 And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

(3) John 6:44-47 KJV 44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard{from God}, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me. 46 Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father. 47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.

(4) Paul preaching the message of salvation to the Gentiles in Antioch in Acts 13:48 KJV 48And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained {appointed NIV}to eternal life believed.

(5) I Thes 5:9 KJV 9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain {receive NIV} salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,

(6) II Thes 2:13-14 KJV 13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: 14 Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining {literal: acquiring} of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

(7) James 1:17 18 KJV 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. 18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth {He chose to give us birth through the word of truth NIV}, that we should be a kind of firstfruits {literal Greek: a certain firstfruit} of his creatures.

(8) Rom 10:20 KJV 20 But Esaias {Isaiah} is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me.

(9) Eph 1:4-6 KJV 4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

(10) Eph 2:8-10 KJV 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained {prepared in advance NIV}b that we should walk in them.

Illus. Johnny/Sister…blood transfusing “when do I die”.

I Cor 1:18 KJV 18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

----

a And the evening...: Heb. And the evening was, and the morning was

a desires: Gr. wills

b ordained: or, prepared

n n: noun

f f: feminine

TWOT Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament

GK Goodrick-Kohlenberger

AV Authorized Version

[1]Strong, J. (1996). The exhaustive concordance of the Bible : Showing every word of the test of the common English version of the canonical books, and every occurence of each word in regular order. (electronic ed.) (H7224). Ontario: Woodside Bible Fellowship.

KJV King James Version of the Bible

NIV New International Version of the Bible

RSV Revised Standard Version of the Bible

ASV American Standard Version of the Bible

[2]Harris, R. L., Harris, R. L., Archer, G. L., & Waltke, B. K. (1999, c1980). Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed.) (Page 825). Chicago: Moody Press.

[3]Swanson, J. (1997). Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains : Aramaic (Old Testament) (electronic ed.) (HGK10646). Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

a comprehended: or, did not admit, or, receive

b reproved: or, discovered

b peculiar: or, purchased

† A Greek word occurs that is not directly translated in the King James Version.
Greek Strongs: 846