Christ in Genesis

Through the entire Bible, through all 66 books contained in it, we are pointed to Jesus Christ, God’s Son, The Sacrificial Lamb of God.  We even see Jesus in the very first verse of the very first book in the Bible, Genesis 1:1 (New Living Translation), “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”  The word translated here as “God” is plural in the original language, indicating that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit together created all that was created.  We are told again in John 1:1-5 (New Living Translation), “In the beginning the Word (Jesus) already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through Him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” 

From the beginning of time, God has given us “pictures” of Himself, ways to teach us about Him in terms that we are able to understand.  Isaiah 55:9 (King James Version) tells us, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”  It is impossible for us to completely comprehend all that God is, how deeply He loves us, and how much we need Him, but He has given us examples in order for us to try to begin to know Him.

There are several of these examples, or “types,” of Christ in the book of Genesis.  The first “type,” or “picture,” of Christ that we see is Adam.  Consider the story of the creation of Eve, Genesis 2:20-24 (King James Version):

And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

Adam pre-existed Eve, just as Christ pre-existed creation.  Eve is a picture of the church, all those who trust Christ as their Savior and who follow Him.  While Adam slept, God pierced his side, just as Christ’s side was pierced as He hung on the cross.  God created for Adam a wife, who was a part of him, and for whom he shed his own blood.  God brought Eve to Adam, just as the Holy Spirit brings us to Christ. The creation of Eve was completed by God, and she did not participate in her own creation.  Our sins are forgiven by the shed blood of Christ alone, by the grace of God, not by any good works that we can do.  Eve was the first wife, and all wives who came after her were told that they must leave their fathers and mothers and join with and be loyal to (cleave to) their husbands.  In just the same way, Christians are told that we must leave our former, sinful lives behind and cleave only unto Christ.  The church is called “The Bride of Christ,” and we are to be one with Him.  Marriage was created by God to be a permanent and monogamous relationship.  Our relationship with Christ is also permanent and leaves no room for other “gods.”

Adam is only one of many pictures of Christ in the book of Genesis.  As you read Genesis, look for Christ in the lives of Cain and Abel, Abraham and Isaac, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Esau, Jacob and Leah and Rachel, Joseph and his brothers…  There are many, many pictures of Christ in Genesis.  The history of the nation of Israel is very rich in and of itself, but when you begin to look for pictures of Christ woven into that history, you can see that it is a history that can only have been written by Almighty God.

As you look back on your own life, can you see ways that God has woven Himself into your story?  There are a lot of things that happen to us that we don’t understand at the time, but with 20/20 hindsight, we are able to see that God has had a plan for us all along, just as He did with the birth of the nation of Israel.  And the exciting thing is, He also has a plan for us today and tomorrow, and the next day, and the next!

I hope you will join me in praising God in prayer this week, as the Psalmist did in Psalm 139:14 (King James Version):  “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”

What Do You Know About the Bible?

My last 26 blog entries followed an alphabetical pattern, each blog title focused on one letter of the alphabet beginning with “Anxiety” on July 22, 2013 and ending with “Zebras” on January 13, 2014.  Some of the letters were a tad bit difficult to use, especially “X,” which I fudged on, using “X-ercise” in place of a word that ACTUALLY begins with the letter X.

So now that I have finished my alphabetical series, I was faced with the dilemma of what to write about next, and next, and next. . .  Thanks to my husband and one of his favorite songs, I think I have the answer -- I want to introduce a series of 66 entries that will talk about Jesus as the thread that runs through each and every book of the Bible, beginning in Genesis and ending in Revelation.  This is a huge commitment of time and energy, so I hope you will pray for me:  that I will be faithful to my promise to complete this series; that I will be faithful to God and accurate in my presentation of His word; and that my words will be accurately read and received by my readers.

Today I want to introduce you to the Bible as a whole, and next week I plan to begin my series with Jesus in Genesis.

Some people think that the Bible is full of contradictions, and that it could not possibly be the infallible, inerrant Word of God.  They may believe parts of the Bible, but not all of it, and some people fail to see how it all fits together to tell one cohesive story of God’s love for each and every one of us.  The question that always comes to my mind when someone expresses an opinion like that is, “What part of the Bible is true, and what part is not?  And who gets to decide?”  I hope that over the next 66 weeks you will come to agree with me that those doubts about the Bible are invalid.

The Bible contains a total of 66 individual books -- 39 in the first portion of the Bible called the Old Testament, and 27 in the second portion called the New Testament.  The Old Testament was written entirely before the birth of Jesus Christ, and the New Testament after He came.  The Bible was written by about 40 writers in 3 languages over a span of 1500 years.  Though it is mostly narrative, it also contains poetry, parables, hyperbole, allegories, metaphors, and other figures of speech.  A good example of this is when Jesus said in Matthew 26:6 and Mark 14:22, “Take, eat; this is My body,” He was not saying that the unleavened bread was actually His flesh.  He was using a metaphor.  Some of the books of the Old Testament are classified as law, some history, some poetry and wisdom, some prophecy.  Some are a combination.  The New Testament contains four books classified as gospel, one history, several letters, and finally, Revelation is prophecy.

The vast amount of research over the years has proven that the Bible, in its original manuscripts, is true in its entirety, and every word contained in it should be considered to be true.  However, it is important to understand that language evolves.  The Bible has been translated from its original manuscripts many, many times.  Some of the older translations contain words that are hard for us to understand and that might even have different meanings today than they did when that translation was made.  Some of those translations are more accurate than others.  There are even versions of the Bible that are merely translations of earlier translations and some that are paraphrases, not translations.  So it is important to compare one version of the Bible with other versions to be sure you are reading what the writer actually wrote.  For the same reason, it is of utmost importance to compare one passage from the Bible with other passages from the Bible.  The Bible NEVER contradicts itself, so it is important to know that any passage will be supported by other passages within the Bible without changing its true meaning.

As with any other piece of literature, it is important to consider the obvious meaning of the text, the context of the particular passage (including when it was written and to whom it was written), the meaning that the writer intended, and the way the original readers would have interpreted and understood it.  In other words, although the Bible was written FOR us, it was not written TO us, in our language, or with our current knowledge.  For this reason, it is often helpful to read more than one translation of the Bible, along with several Bible commentaries.  Commentaries can help us understand the customs and environment of both the writer and the original readers of any given passage.  They can also help us cross-reference other scripture that will help clarify the writer’s meaning and intent.

I hope that you will read God’s Word with an open mind, giving it the benefit of the doubt until you can prove its error.  If you read a passage that contradicts your own views or beliefs, don’t ignore it.  Ask yourself why it says what it does or why you believe the way you do.  If you need clarification about the meaning of a passage, look for other Bible passages on the same subject, look to commentaries, ask God in prayer to explain Himself, ask your pastor or another student of the Bible.  God gave us His word as one way to reveal Himself to us.  As He reveals Himself to you through reading the Bible, don’t be afraid to allow God to change your mind about what you believe about Him!

If you don’t have a Bible of your own, you might consider going to BibleGateway.com.  There you will find several different versions of the Bible.  You can look up specific verses or do a subject or word search. You can find commentaries, reading plans, and daily devotionals.

Another site you might consider is FaithFacts.org.  It further explains everything I have given you here, but in much more detail, with lots of documentation.  It will answer a lot of questions that you may have about the Bible, Christianity in general, and why we believe what we believe.

If you are new to reading the Bible, I would suggest that you begin reading in Psalms or Proverbs, perhaps one chapter per day.  You might even re-read one chapter every day for a week until you feel like you understand it.  You might add one chapter in one of the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John) each day.  The gospels are history books, each written by a different author, but about the same subject, the life of Jesus Christ.  Each is written from a different point of view, and each contains some of the same subjects, but not every subject is contained in each book.
 
Consider the following verses (New King James Version):

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths...Happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding; For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, and her gain than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies, and all the things you may desire cannot compare with her. Length of days is in her right hand, in her left hand riches and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, and happy are all who retain her." (Proverbs 3:5-6, 13-18)

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness." (II Timothy 3:16)

I hope you will join me in this prayer this week, trusting God to bless your study of His word.  It is taken from Joshua 1:8 (New King James Version):  "This Book. . .shall not depart from (my) mouth, but (I) shall meditate in it day and night, that (I) may observe to do according to all that is written in it.  For then (I) will make (my) way prosperous, and then (I) will have good success."

 

 

Zebras -- No Two Have the Same Stripes!

Did you know that there are three species of zebras, and many more sub-species?  And in all those different types of zebras, no two have the exact same pattern of stripes, even within the same species.  No two zebras look exactly alike.  It's kind of like us.  No two of us look alike.  Even identical twins, sharing the same DNA, have slight differences in appearance.
 

What an unlimited imagination, our creator God has!  We are all born pretty much the same, with two eyes, two ears, a nose, a mouth, teeth, hair, and yet in all the people who ever lived or ever will live, no two of us are exactly the same.  Not only is our appearance unique, so is our DNA and our fingerprints.

But God tells us in His word that there are some things that are exactly the same, no matter who we are or where we live.  Consider the following:

·         God created us:
“Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.” (Psalm 100:2-4)

 “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” (John 1:3)

·         God desires a relationship with us:“God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:9)

“That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.  And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.” (1 John 1:3-4)

·         Each of us has sinned, and that sin prevents us from having a relationship with God:“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23)

“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8)

·         Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sin so that our relationship with Him can be restored:“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”  Ephesians 2:8:9

·         If we will accept His sacrifice for our sin and make Him Lord of our lives, we will spend eternity with Him in Heaven.  If we will not, we will spend eternity separated from Him in hell:“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:16-18)

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.’” (John 11:25-26)

“The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.  And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:10, 15)

So we learn, no matter our “stripes,” no matter who we are, no matter what wonderfully good works we’ve done in this life, no matter how bad our sins are, we will be judged only on our relationship with Jesus Christ – whether we have accepted his payment for our sin, whether we have lived life on our own terms or according to His lordship.  The choice is ours to make.  I hope you have chosen to follow Him.

My prayer this week, for myself and for you, is from Psalm 25:5:  “Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day.”

Yesterday: Helpful or Not So Much?

How are you doing with those resolutions you made last year, or last week? The beginning of a new year is a good time to re-evaluate -- your health, your habits, your finances, your relationships... If you made a resolution last year to, for instance, get more exercise and lose some weight, now is a good time to take a fresh look at that. Did you just make that resolution last week? So how are you doing? Are you walking more, spending more time at the gym, or at least doing some isometrics at your desk at work? Are you eating healthier? Have you lost any weight since 1/1/2013, or since 1/1/2014?

Looking back at yesterday can be helpful. It helps us gauge our success or failure with plans we have made. If we have been successful, we need to commemorate those successes. We need to do something tangible to remind ourselves that we have accomplished a very big task. Perhaps before and after photos placed either on the fridge or just above the bathroom scales might be an appropriate trophy of a year of healthier living. Perhaps a simple note in your wallet, showing the amount of your credit card debt at the beginning of 2013 compared with your debt at the beginning of 2014 would commemorate your getting your finances under control. Perhaps a recent photo on your desk of someone with whom you have reconciled during the year would remind you of how far you have come in your relationship with that person.

In the 7th chapter of 1st Samuel, we are told the story of how the children of Israel had turned their backs on God. They served foreign gods, and they worshipped idols. They were fearful of the Philistines who were nearing them to do battle with them. They knew that Samuel was a prophet sent from God, so they went to him and asked him to plead to God on their behalf to save them from the Philistines. Samuel told the people that if they would turn back to God with all their hearts, do away with their idols, prepare their hearts for God, and serve Him only, that God would protect them from their enemy. So the people gathered in an area called Mizpah, fasted, offered sacrifices to God, and confessed their sins to Him. When the Philistines heard that the children of Israel had gathered in one place, they thought that would be a good time to attack. As they were preparing to attack, the Israelites again became afraid, so they went to Samuel again, asking him to continue to cry out in prayer to God for their protection. So Samuel again offered a sacrifice, crying out to God for protection, as the Philistines drew nearer and nearer. But God sent a very loud clap of thunder that so confounded the Philistines that the men of Israel pursued them and easily drove them back. As a symbol of remembrance, Samuel erected a stone monument that he called Ebenezer, which means, "Thus far, the Lord has helped us." (See 1 Samuel 7:12.)

We need to erect similar monuments that will remind us, our children, and our friends when God has helped us through a crisis or when He has helped us accomplish something that we could not have done otherwise. When we find ourselves in other terrifying situations or facing other seemingly impossible obstacles, we can look back on those monuments and remember how God was faithful to us then, knowing that He will continue to be faithful to us today, tomorrow, and for the rest of our lives.

However, looking back can also be destructive. If you see nothing but regret, disappointment, or guilt when you look back at yesterday, remember that those are tools of Satan, not of God. You can use those emotions to show you that a change needs to be made, propelling you to do better today and tomorrow, but if you find yourself dwelling on the negatives of yesterday, you will find yourself stuck living in the past. Instead, ponder the following verses:

Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. (Psalm 32:1)

Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him; And to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. (Isaiah 55:7)

For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.  He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. (John 3:17-18)

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.  (Hebrews 8:12)

Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.  (Hebrews 10:22)

I hope that you will trust God today with all your tomorrows. Yesterday is gone with its successes and with its failures. We can learn from those successes and failures, but we should not dwell on them. We can thank God for them, whether they taught us a positive lesson or a negative one. But they are in the past, and we cannot do a thing to change them. We CAN change how they affect us today and tomorrow by learning from them and by using them as a beginning point for positive change.

My prayer for myself and for you this week is similar to the prayer Samuel prayed for the children of Israel. It is taken from James 4:7-8,10:

Therefore (help us to) submit to God. (Help us to) resist the devil and he will flee from (us). (Help us to) draw near to God and He will draw near to (us). Cleanse (our) hands, you sinners; and purify (our) hearts, you double-minded. Humble (us) in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift (us) up.