When it (almost) all falls apart.
I. The “Origin STORY” thus FAR… (Gen. 1-2)
A. Good GOD, Good CREATION. (Gen. 1-2)
B. CREATION as His TEMPLE. (Gen.1)
C. Humanity as his PRIESTLY REPRESENTATIVES. (Gen. 1:26-27, 2:15)
We’ve spent 2 weeks on Genesis and so far every thing looks “good”…at least now that we have men and women together reflecting the Image of God. It was important to slowly work through chapters 1 and 2 to lay a solid foundation for what it is that God is doing in the work of creation. From here on out things change quickly and drastically, but we need to keep in mind the “WHY” that underlies it all.
1. Genesis says that God created a good world. What are some things that you love about this created world?
2. What is a new idea or thought that you have taken away from our first two weeks in Genesis? How might that shape you in the future?
II. CORRUPT the Image, DESECRATE the Temple. (Gen. 3)
A. QUESTIONING the GOODNESS of God. (3:1-4)
B. Same DESTINATION, different PATHS. (3:5; Rom 8:29)
C. DEATH enters the TEMPLE. (2:17,25; 3:7,14-24)
D. The NEED for a new WAY. (3:22-24; Jn 6:51)
E. The MULTIPLYING power of EVIL. (Mt. 5:38-41; I Pet. 3:8-9; Gen. 3-11)
By its very existence the temple of God’s perfect creation mocks Satan and his desire to rule. At the centre of this temple is the image of God as created in humanity. That’s the place that Satan chooses to attack. Distort the image and you weaken the temple. The irony is that he tempts Adam and Eve with the same thing that God offers. He just wants them to “short-cut” the wisdom of God by seeking it in their own way and not God’s.
3. As you look back on your own life, what have been the hardest temptations for you to resist? Do those temptations have anything in common with what we see happening in Genesis 3?
4. “Every sin is an attempt to exalt ourselves over God.” Is that true? Why or why not?
5. In what areas of your life do you find yourself trying to take a short-cut to gain what God wants for you? Why is the short-cut tempting for you?
6. When have you seen evil multiply in your own life or in the lives of those around you? How do you stop evil from multiplying?
III. This EXPLAINS a lot of our own EXPERIENCES. (Col. 2:2-3)
A. We live with 2 CHAPTERS in 1 HEART. (Gen. 2-3; Ecc. 3:11)
B. Beauty and BROKENNESS, longing and FRUSTRATION. (Rom 8:22-23)
C. Being RENEWED in the HOPE of a new CREATION. (Gen. 3:15; II Cor. 5:17; Rev. 21:5; Eph 3:10-11)
Genesis 2 and 3 hold a lot of answers for the world as we see it today as well as the way that we feel about it. C.S. Lewis wrote, “If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.” The world we live in is a shadow of what we were created for.
Something inside of us knows that…and only the hope of the Good News of Jesus can ever lead us from where we are to where He is leading.
7. When have you experienced what Jeff called living with two chapters in one heart? Do you resonate with the feelings of beauty AND brokenness, longing AND frustration? What are some examples?
8. What are some practical ways you can nourish the hope of a new creation in your day to day life?