Genesis Title: Genesis - Introduction: Creation Text: Genesis 1:1-2:3 Genesis 1:1 (NIV84) 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. By: Pastor Micah Adamson September 23, 2018 Title

Introduction: The creation of the heavens and the earth happens in 7 days in a 10-part outline in Genesis 1:1-2:3. We should be looking for what a passage teaches us about Jesus, and how it leads to Jesus to have life (John 5:39-40). In context, Moses in Genesis is challenging the Israelites how they will respond to God’s offer to be His people.

Science: In modern times, when we read the creation story, we want to understand how it relates to science. Scientific theories have changed a lot since Moses. Whole models of the universe have changed. Genesis 1 appears to contain a three-part universe consisting of: The Heavens, the earth, and the seas. We need to listen to God describe the creation in a way that the Israelites could understand it.

Literature: People who say Genesis 1 is figurative, argue it’s poetry. People who say Genesis 1 is literal argue it’s a narrative. The Bible contains historical poems (in the Psalms) and allegorical parables (in the Gospels). Poems can be literal (like “Paul Revere’s Ride”) Narratives can be figurative (like “Aesop’s Fables”). Hebrew poetry consists of rhyming and repeating ideas in parallel, instead of rhyming words. Genesis 1 is not a Psalm/Poem, but it contains complex repetition and parallels.

Repetitions to listen for each day: Synonyms for God talking: God said, “Let there be X/Let the X do Y/Let us create X…” (Days 1-6) It was so/and there was/So… (Days 1-6) God made/created… (Days 1, 4-6) God separated… (Days 1-4) God saw that it was good/very good… (Days 1, 3-6) God called [named] … (Days 1-3) God blessed… (Days 5-7) God gave assignments (Days 4-6) According to their kinds… (Days 3, 5-6) There was evening and morning – the X day (Days 1-6)

Parallels to watch for between the days: Genesis 1:1-2:3 Genesis 1:1-2 – Day 1a [Day 0? Days 1-7?]: Introduction (Heavens/Earth/Waters) [7] Genesis 1:3-5 - Day 1b: Light (Day/Night) [4]   Genesis 1:6-8 – Day 2: Sky (Clouds/Seas) [4-5] Genesis 1:9-10 – Day 3a: Water (Land/Seas) [5] Genesis 1:11-13 – Day 3b: Land Vegetation (Plants/Trees) [6] Genesis 1:14-19 – Day 4: Lights in the Sky (Day/Night, Sun/Moon/Stars) [1-2] Genesis 1:20-23 – Day 5: Water/Sky creatures (Fish/Birds) [2-3] Genesis 1:24-25 – Day 6a: Land Creatures (Tame/Ground Moving/Wild Animals) [3] Genesis 1:26-31 – Day 6b: Mankind (Over creation: Fish/Birds/Animals in the Sea/Sky/Land) [1-6] Genesis 2:1-3 – Day 7: Rest (From creating Heavens/Earth) [1]

Days with Parallel/Repeated wording: Day 1a = Day 7 Genesis 1:1-2 (NIV84) 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 2:1 (NIV84) 1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. Day 1b/Day 2 = Day 4 Genesis 1:3 (NIV84) 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. Genesis 1:6a (NIV84) 6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse…” Genesis 1:14a (NIV84) 14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse…” Day 3a = Day 5 Genesis 1:9a (NIV84) 9 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered…” Genesis 1:20a (NIV84) 20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures…” Day 3b = Day 6 Genesis 1:11a (NIV84) 11 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation…” Genesis 1:24a (NIV84) 24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures…”

In the Beginning: Day 0, Day 1-7, or Day 1: Day 0 = Before the 7 days of creation – Historical Creationism Day 1-7 = Summarizing the 7 days of creation – Old Earth Creationism Day 1a = On day 1 of creation – Young Earth Creationism

1. Day 1a: (Heavens/Earth/Waters) [see Day 7] Genesis 1:1-2 (NIV84) 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

2. Day 1b: Light/Darkness (Day/Night) [see Day 4] Genesis 1:3-5 (NIV84) 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he 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.

John 1:1-5 (NIV84) 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

3. Day 2: Sky (Clouds/Sea) [see Day 4-5] Genesis 1:6-8 (NIV84) 6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water.” 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day.

4. Day 3a: Water (Land/Seas) [see Day 5] Genesis 1:9-10 (NIV84) 9 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.

5. Day 3b: Land Vegetation (Plants/Trees) [see Day 6] Genesis 1:11-13 (NIV84) 11 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.

6. Day 4: Lights in the Expanse/Sky for Day/Night (Sun/Moon/Stars) [see Day 1-2] Genesis 1:14-19 (NIV84) 14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.

7. Day 5: Water Creatures/Sky Creatures (Fish/Birds) [see Day 2-3] Genesis 1:20-23 (NIV84) 20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” 23 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day.

8. Day 6a: Land Creatures (Tame/Ground Moving/Wild Animals) [see Day 3] Genesis 1:24-25 (NIV84) 24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

9. Day 6b: Mankind (over: Fish/Birds/Animals in Sea/Sky/Land) [see Day 1-6] Genesis 1:26-31 (NIV84) 26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” 29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

10. Day 7: Rest (from creating Heavens/Earth) [see Day 1] Genesis 2:1-3 (NIV84) 1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Mark 2:27 (NIV84) 27 Then [Jesus] said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.”

Conclusion: God exists, He is alive, and He speaks/relates to mankind. God created, filled, and rules the whole universe: The Heavens, the earth, and the seas. Genesis 1 is describing the earth as the kingdom of God and mankind as His subject and vice-regents.

Psalm 24:1-5, 10 (NIV84) 1 The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 2 for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters. 3 Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. 5 He will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his Savior… 10 Who is he, this King of glory? The Lord Almighty— he is the King of glory.

Psalm 8:1, 3-9 (NIV84) (1 of 2) 1 O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens… 3 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 4 what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?

Psalm 8:1, 3-9 (NIV84) (2 of 2) 5 You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. 6 You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: 7 all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, 8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. 9 O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!