Week 3 - Day 2
THE STORY
Creation
THE CREATION OF HUMANS
Genesis 1:26-28 (NIV)
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
According to this passage, finish the following sentences:
Humans are a part of creation because …
Humans are a unique part of creation because …
Humans are like God because …
Humans are not like God because …
Genesis 2:4-25 (NIV)
This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.
Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. The LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.
But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
The man said,
“This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.”
That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
What assignment did God give humans in the following two passages?
Genesis 1:28 (NIV)
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Genesis 2:15 (NIV)
The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
How are we doing at fulfilling this assignment?
What would Genesis 1 and 2 say to someone who asserts, “The Bible’s account of the Creation of the world teaches human exceptionalism over animals. This idea that humans are superior to animals because they are created in the image of God while animals are not will lead to the abuse of animals. If humans think they should rule over the animal world, they will take advantage of the animals and the animals will greatly suffer because of it. In actuality, an animal is no different from a child. So we should treat animals in the same way we treat children”?
If a child is the same as an animal, how will children eventually be treated?
Why do you think God gave the following command and possible consequence to Adam?
Genesis 2:16 (NIV)
And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
What does Isaiah 33:22 say about who God is? And how does it apply to God’s command to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?
Isaiah 33:22 (NLT)
For the LORD is our judge, our lawgiver, and our king.
Up until this point, God kept saying that creation was good, even very good. In Genesis 2:18, however, God says something is not good. What is it? Why? What does God do about it?
Genesis 2:18 (NIV)
The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
Genesis 1:27 (NIV)
So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.Genesis 2:24 (NIV)
That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
What does the creation of two separate genders (male and female) say about God’s good intention for human life?
CREATED FOR RELATIONSHIPS
In today’s passages we see that God created us to have a loving relationship with Himself and a caring relationship with the world. Can you imagine how wonderful it must have been when the world was perfect and all we knew was a loving relationship with God and a caring relationship with the rest of the world, including each other? It must have been paradise.
Here’s a graphic of what things looked like in the Beginning.
In light of what you have discovered through the Bible readings and your personal reflections, how will you respond? Finish this sentence: I will …