Genesis 1:1
In The Beginning
One day, students in one of the late Nuclear Physicist Albert Einstein's classes were saying they had decided there was no God. Einstein asked them how much of all the knowledge in the world they had among themselves collectively, as a class. The students discussed it for a while and decided they had 5% of all human knowledge among themselves. Einstein thought their estimate was a little generous, but he replied: "Is it possible God exists in the 95% you don't know?"
We who are mortal and finite human beings try to comprehend the infinite and immortal God Almighty should be considered as a very lousy joke. But we human beings sure try and even challenge Him who has all the authority of the universe.
A. THE WORD OF GOD
Before we start to study the fifty chapters of the Book of Genesis throughout this year, we must understand a few things about God and His Word, the Bible.
The Bible does not make elaborate arguments for the existence of God. However, it does tell us how we can get to know Him through Jesus Christ, His Son. It also tells us that we can know His existence from what we see in His creation.
Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.
Please don't ever think that God is doing His best to let people know that He exists and it is Him who created all the stuff in heaven and earth. Whether people believe 'the fact of Creation' or not, it is true and God rules. He is not the one who is fighting and arguing to make His point, but the puny humans are.
Many people argue that there are too many different versions of the Bible and they don't know which one to believe. Obviously, those people have not read the Bible all the way through and don't understand the meaning of the different versions of the Bible. Even though we have many different versions of the Holy Bible, they all have the same meaning.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
We come to the Bible knowing the copies we have in our hands are reliable duplicates - though not perfect duplicates - of the exact writings, which God perfectly inspired. We can know this about the Old Testament by seeing the incredible care and reliability of the ancient Jewish scribes, demonstrated by the Dead Sea Scroll discoveries.
We also can know this about the New Testament by knowing that because of earlier manuscripts, and a greater number of ancient manuscripts, the New Testament is by far the most reliable and exhaustively cross-checked ancient document we possess. Really, no more than one one-thousandth of the New Testament text is in question.
B. WHY IS GENESIS IMPORTANT?
The Bible would be incomplete and perhaps incomprehensible without the Book of Genesis. It sets the stage for the entire drama of redemption, which unfolds in the rest of the book. The book title 'Genesis' which means 'origin' fits its assignment.
Almost all important doctrines and teachings have their foundation in the Book of Genesis: the doctrines of sin, redemption, justification, Jesus Christ, the personality and personhood of God, the kingdom of God, the fall, Israel, the promise of the Messiah, and more.
Genesis shows us the origins of the universe, order and complexity, the solar system, the atmosphere and hydrosphere, the origin of life, man, marriage, evil, language, government, culture, nations, religion.
Genesis is important to the New Testament, too. There are at least 165 passages in Genesis either directly quoted or clearly referred to in the New Testament.
The only proper way to interpret Genesis 1 is not to 'interpret' it at all. That is, we accept the fact that it was meant to say exactly what it says.
The only way we can ever really find out who we are is from God. The best place to find out begins in the Book of Genesis.
C. WHO DID CREATE THE UNIVERSE?
We know the Bible is not a book of science. Yet where it touches science, it speaks the truth. Many archeologists in the Middle East simply discover what the Bible already stated long ago.
If everything around us, including ourselves, is the result of random, meaningless occurrences apart from the work of a creating God, then there is no greater law in the universe than survival of the fittest.
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
If you don't accept this first verse of the Bible, you cannot accept and believe the rest of the Bible. Everything that is mentioned in the Bible is hinged on this very verse that states everything in heaven and earth are created by God, not by chance or anything else for that matter.
The word 'God' is an important part for us understand before we go any further.
God - This is the ancient Hebrew word 'Elohim'. Grammatically this Hebrew word is a plural word used as if it were singular. The verbs and pronouns used with 'Elohim' should be in the plural, but when 'Elohim' refers to the Lord God the verbs and pronouns are in the singular. This is the reason why many Bible students point out that it is the base of our belief of Trinity - God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
The simple fact of God's creation is even more amazing when we consider the greatness of God's universe. A typical galaxy contains billions of individual stars. Our galaxy alone, the Milky Way, contains 200 billion stars. Our galaxy is shaped like a giant spiral, rotating in space, with arms reaching out like a pinwheel, and our sun is one star on one arm of the pinwheel. It would take 250 million years for the pinwheel to make one full rotation. But this is only our galaxy. There are many other galaxies with many other shapes. The average distance between one galaxy and another is about 20 million trillion miles. Our closest galaxy is the Andromeda Galaxy, about 12 million trillion miles away.
Isaiah 48:13 Indeed My hand has laid the foundation of the earth, and My right hand has stretched out the heavens; When I call to them, They stand up together.
D. EVOLUTION vs. CREATION
If God created the heavens and the earth, then we must forever put away the idea that anything happens by chance. "Chance" merely describes the statistical probability of something happening. Chance itself can "do" nothing.
Because chance has no power. For example, when a coin is flipped, the chance it will land "heads" is 50%. However, "chance" does not make it land heads. Whether or not it lands heads or tails is due to the strength with which the coin is flipped, the strength of air currents and air pressure as it flies through the air, where it is caught, and if it is flipped over once it is caught. Chance doesn't "do" anything but describe a probability.
So, when someone says the universe or anything else came about by chance, they are either extremely ignorant, superstitious, or just repeating a line they have heard before and have unthinkingly accepted.
Let's see what the renowned evolutionists talk about their own evolution theory and the creation facts:
"The pathetic thing is that we have scientists who are trying to prove evolution, which no scientist can ever prove." -Dr. Robert Millikan, Nobel Prize winner and eminent evolutionist
"Lynn Margolis is a distinguished University Professor of Biology at the University of Massachusetts. At one of her many public speakings she asks the molecular biologists in the audience to name a single, unambiguous example of the formation of a new species by the accumulation of mutations. Her challenge goes unmet." -M.J. Behe, Darwin's Black Box, 1996 p. 26
"It is possible (and, given the Flood, probable) that materials which give radiocarbon dates of tens of thousands of radiocarbon years could have true ages of many fewer calendar years." -Gerald Aardsman, Ph.D., physicist and C-14 dating specialist
"We have to admit that there is nothing in the geological records that runs contrary to the views of conservative creationists." -Evolutionist Edmund Ambrose
"No matter how numerous they may be, mutations do not produce any kind of evolution." -Pierre-Paul Grasse, Evolutionist
Do you know what the main reason is why all these intelligent people knowingly go against the fact that God created heaven and earth? The reason is that once they admit that it is God who created everything, then they have to be submissive to Him. Guess what gets in the way between them and God? Their pride. So to keep their pride, they would choose the road to hell.
James 4:17 Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.
To make my point, here is a great comment from a well-known evolutionist Novel Prize winner in Biology, Dr. George Wall:
"There are only two possibilities as to how life arose. One is spontaneous generation arising to evolution; the other is a supernatural creative act of God. There is no third possibility. Spontaneous generation, that life arose from non-living matter was scientifically disproved 120 years ago by Louis Pasture and others. That leaves us with the only possible conclusion that life arose as a supernatural creative act of God." He then went on to say that "I will not accept that philosophically because I do not want to believe in God therefore, I choose to believe in that which I know is scientifically impossible; spontaneous generation arising to evolution." -Dr. George Wall professor emeritus of biology at Harvard University. From an article in Scientific America.
Last, but not least, let's hear from the founder of the evolution theory:
"Not one change of species into another is on record ... we cannot prove that a single species has been changed." -Charles Darwin, My Life & Letters
In our day a group of theologians who, not wanting to be called intellectual ignorants by the world, have adopted what is known as "Theistic Evolution." Theistic Evolution is probably the most unrealistic of all theories. It is almost an unreasonable opinion and an illogical position. These theologians would like to rub their elbows with the unbelieving intellects, but they also like to carry a Bible under their arm and want to be called 'reverends'. It is impossible to do both. Either you completely believe that God created everything or stand against it.
E. CREATING EVERYTHING FROM NOTHING
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
The ancient Hebrew word 'bara' (created) is specific. It means to create out of nothing, showing that God created the world out of nothing, not out of Himself. God is separate from His creation. Unlike Eastern and pantheistic perceptions of god, the Bible teaches the universe could perish yet He would remain.
Contrary to God, men cannot 'create' in the sense the term is used in Genesis 1:1. We can only 'fashion' or 'imitate' or 'form' things out of existing material.
F. BEFORE THE BEGINNING
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
From what we just read, it sounds like God was there before the time of 'beginning'. How can there be 'before' the beginning? That means that 'beginning' is not really 'beginning' to God and He is not limited by the timeline we use.
Some would ask the questions, such as, "Where did God come from?" and "Who created God?" The answer is found in the definition of God - that God is the uncreated Being, eternal, and without beginning or end.
Psalms 90:1-2 Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever You had formed the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
God is the only infinite, eternal, and unchangeable Spirit, the perfect Being in whom all things begin, and continue, and end.
Before the beginning, God had a specific plan to fulfill this eternal purpose, with many different aspects revealed to us:
. The mission of Jesus was foreordained before the foundation of the world. -1 Peter 1:20
. The mystery of the Gospel of Jesus was foreordained before the ages. -1 Corinthians 2:7
. The grace given unto us was given before the world began. -2 Timothy 1:9
. Believers in Jesus Christ were chosen in Him before the foundation of the world. - Ephesians 1:4
At some time before the beginning, God created the angels, because they witnessed the creation of the heavens and the earth.
Job 38:7 When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
G. APPLICATION
1) We must accept 'Creation by God' in faith.
Even science cannot tell us how something can be made out of nothing. God apparently did it just that way. And man today cannot tell when this was created.
Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.
2) We must reject evolution theory because it rejects God and it rejects the whole course of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It denies the fall of man and the fact of sin, and it opposes the virgin birth of Christ. I do not believe that it is the answer to the origin of this universe. It is straight from the pit of hell to undermine what God did and is doing and is going to do in our lives.
Genesis 1:2-1:31 -
The History of Creation
A doctor, an engineer, and a politician were arguing as to which of their professions was older. "Well," argued the doctor, "without a physician, mankind could not have survived, so I am sure that mine is the oldest profession." "No," said the engineer, "before life began, there was complete chaos. And it took an engineer to create some order from this chaos. So engineering is older." "But," chirped the triumphant politician, "who created the chaos? That would be the ancestors of my profession."
As we are going to study the history of creation by God this morning, we must note one very important thing. You will notice that there are three words repeated for eight times throughout this chapter. They are "Then God said."
The king of inventors, Thomas Edison, who invented the light bulb had to go through 10,000 times of trials and tests to achieve his goal. But for God, He simply commanded light into reality.
A. DAY ONE - LIGHT
Genesis 1:2-5 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then 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 God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day.
Some translate the idea in this v2 as the earth became without form and void. That really doesn't make sense.
What is the best way to understand the Bible? Using the Bible as a cross reference.
Isaiah 45:18 For thus says the Lord, Who created the heavens, Who is God, Who formed the earth and made it, Who has established it, Who did not create it in vain, Who formed it to be inhabited: "I am the Lord, and there is no other."
He did not create the world in vain which is used as 'void' in Hebrew in this verse.
Based on the idea of "without form, and void", some came up with what has been called the 'Gap Theory' within some Christian groups. They claim that there was a long and indefinite chronological time gap between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2. Most 'Gap Theory' use the theory to explain the fossil record, assigning old and extinct fossils to this indefinite gap.
But the Bible says plainly death came by Adam according to Romans 5:12, and since fossils are the result of death, they could not have happened before Adam's time.
Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned--
By the way, this is the first mention of the Holy Spirit in the Bible.
The first step from chaos to order is to bring light. This is also the way God works in our life. God brought the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ into our chaotic past lives.
When we step into a dark room, we don't pick up a baseball bat and start to swing it to overcome the darkness. But we simply turn on the light. When we face the darkness in our lives, instead of fighting with our own strength, we must let the light of God take its presence.
Many people wonder if this was a literal 24 hour day or if it was a geological age. Some say that God created the world in six days, and others say He created it in six vast geological ages. The most plain and simple meaning of the text is that He created in six literal days.
B. DAY TWO - AIR SPACES
Genesis 1:6-8 Then God said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters." 7 Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day.
The idea of a firmament is of an 'expanse' in NIV & NASB or 'space' in NLT. The waters of the land are separated from the water vapor in the sky.
Here, the Bible recognizes the existence of water vapor in the sky. The waters above the firmament thus probably constituted a vast blanket of water vapor. Such a vapor blanket would greatly change the ecology of the earth.
. It would serve as a global greenhouse, maintaining an essentially uniformly pleasant temperature all over the world.
. Without great temperature variations, there would be no significant winds, and the water-rain cycle could not form. There would be no rain as we know it today.
. There would be lush, tropical-like vegetation, all over the world, fed not by rain, but by a rich evaporation and condensation cycle, resulting in heavy dew or ground-fog.
. The vapor blanket would filter out ultraviolet radiation, cosmic rays, and other destructive energies bombarding the planet. These are known to be the cause of mutations, which decrease human longevity. Human and animal life spans would be greatly increased.
. A vapor blanket would provide the necessary reservoir for a potential worldwide flood.
C. DAY THREE - DRY LAND AND PLANT LIFE
Genesis 1:9-13 Then God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear"; and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth"; and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 So the evening and the morning were the third day.
If we were witnessing God's creation on the third day, we could see all the plants, trees coming out of the earth and growing fast. I bet that was quite a sight to behold. I'd say that is real 'Miracle Grow'.
All this happened before the creation of the sun, because sun was not available until next day. This means the plants must have had sufficient nourishment because of the light God had created before the sun and the moon. Revelation 21:23 tells us of a coming day when we won't need the sun, moon, and stars any longer. There's no reason why God couldn't have started creation in the same way He will end it.
D. DAY FOUR - SUN, MOON, AND STARS
Genesis 1:14-19 Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; 15 and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth"; and it was so. 16 Then God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also. 17 God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 So the evening and the morning were the fourth day.
God knew exactly how far to set the sun from the earth. A few million miles more or less and life as we know it would be impossible.
Some have mistakenly viewed these words "signs and seasons" as a biblical basis for astrology. They call these signs 'zodiac'. It is plain wrong to get into astrology.
In astrology, unbelievers use stars and planets for guidance. But the Bible says they merely display the handiwork of God. What folly to follow astrological charts, such as Gemini, Leo, Virgo, etc., of the Babylonians or worship the sun god in Egypt. Rather, one should trust the One who made these objects in the heavens. However, many humans repeatedly reject the Creator to worship the creatures.
Ps 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork.
Romans 1:25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever, amen.
Ancient Chinese people came up with the same concept. Chinese Zodiac has 12 categories like ancient Babylonian's. Out of that, you would see 12 animals, such as dragon, stork, tiger, dog, chicken, monkey and snake, etc., represent each type of person. So if you were born in 1956, you would be in 'the year of monkey'. Occultic people claim that they can use these zodiac signs to foretell individual's future. If that is the case, anyone who was born 1956, 1968, 1980 and every 12 years should have the same fate and the same future. But they don't. How bogus and stupid this is! So, don't mess with fortune telling or horoscope. They are nothing more than demonic.
Have you ever wonder if there is life on other planets? Obviously the U.S. government has. So, our government has been spending $100 million a year looking for extraterrestrial intelligence in the space. In my opinion, it might be wiser to spend the money cultivating intelligent life in Washington D.C.
I like the way v16 says about the stars almost like an after thought, "Oh yeah, He made the stars also." Oh yeah, just trillion stars.
E. DAY FIVE - SEA CREATURES AND BIRDS IN THE AIR
Genesis 1:20-23 Then God said, "Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the heavens." 21 So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." 23 So the evening and the morning were the fifth day.
I asked you to underline "according to its kind". This phrase appears ten times in Genesis chapter 1. It means God allows variation within a kind, but something of one kind will never develop into something of another kind.
The evolutionists love to talk about 'Microevolution' that they consider as a stepping stone to 'Macroevolution'.
For example, structure among dogs is diverse. The teacup poodle is very different from the Great Dane, but they are both dogs. However, they won't become mice, no matter how much breeding is done.
Evolutionists often give convincing examples of Microevolution, the variation of a kind within its kind, adapting to the environment. For example, the ratio of black to white peppered moths may increase when pollution makes it easier for dark moths to escape detection. Or finches may develop different beaks in response to their distinctive environment. But the moths are still moths, and the finches are still finches. There has been no change outside of the kind. Microevolution does not prove Macroevolution.
F. DAY SIX - ANIMALS ON THE EARTH AND CREATION OF MANKIND
Genesis 1:24-25 Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind"; and it was so. 25 And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
Most people are unaware that Darwin's strongest opponents were not Christians, but fossil experts. Darwin admitted the state of the fossil evidence was "the most obvious and gravest objection which can be argued against my theory."
The fossil record is marked by two great principles:
1) Stasis - It means most species are unchanged in all their documented history.
The way they look when they first appear in the fossil record is the way they look when last appearing in the fossil record. They have not changed.
2) Sudden appearance - It explains in any local area, a species does not arise gradually, but appears all at once and "fully formed."
If evolution means the gradual change of one kind of organism into another kind, the outstanding characteristic of the fossil record is the absence of evidence for evolution.
By the way, if you've ever wondered which of the egg or chicken was first, it was the chicken.
Genesis 1:26-28 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
The use of the plural pronoun, such as, 'our' and 'us', is consistent with the idea that there is One God in three Persons, what we know as the Trinity.
Mankind was created in God's image. This bring a few points we must understand:
1) This means there is an unbridgeable gap between human life and animal life.
Though we are biologically similar to certain animals, we are distinct in our moral, intellectual, and spiritual capabilities.
2) This means the incarnation was truly possible.
Jesus, God in the Second Person of the Trinity could really become man, because although deity and humanity are not the same, they are compatible.
3) This means humans possess spirituality.
Man is made for communion with God. It is on the level of spirit we communicate with God. No animals, no trees, no other created beings has this privilege and spirit.
The theory 'Nebraska Man' was constructed on the basis of a pig's tooth. The theory of 'Piltdown Man' was also built around a modern ape's jaw.
For a long time the evolutionists were beaming over the discover of the 'Neanderthal Man'. They thought that this primitive man was the missing link between modern man and ape-like creatures. Because this primitive man was a little slouch in form. He had brow ridges, bulbous forehead, sloping shoulders, bowed-legs and other so-called 'primitive' features.
But the other scientists like Dr. Francis Ivanhoe found out that the Neanderthal Man's primitive features were due to softening of his bones and other pathological conditions caused by his severe Vitamin D deficiency. Cripple him further with arthritis. If the Neanderthal Man could speak from his grave, he would say, "I was not a caveman. I was just hurting."
Genesis 1:29-31 And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. 30 Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food"; and it was so. 31 Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
God gave man dominion over the whole earth, but only vegetation is specifically mentioned as being for food. Seemingly, before the flood, the human race was vegetarian, but after the flood, man was given permission to eat the flesh of animals according to Genesis 9:3. From what we have learned in the Book of Revelation, we are going to go back to a vegetarian diet in heaven. So chow down that 16 oz. T-bone steak while you can.
G. APPLICATION
1) In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
Whether you believe it or not, that is truth.
Genesis 2
The First Man and Woman
Last week we went over the history of creation by God. In a typical Hebrew writing style, the author Moses of the Book of Genesis is going back over the history of creation in details.
We'll get to know more about how our God created the earth, the Garden of Eden, especially about the first marriage of the mankind from today's study.
A. THE DAY GOD RESTED
Genesis 2:1-3 Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. 2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.
God did not need rest on the seventh day because He was tired. He rested to show His creating work was done and to show us an example of resting.
Some of you who know me are thinking, "Yeah, why don't you listen to your own teaching, bro?" Because they know that I have three jobs and am very busy, as the pastor of Calvary Chapel of Sahuarita, as an assistant pastor and graphic designer for Calvary Chapel of Tucson and as a web and graphic designer for my own side business. I have not had a full day off since our previous vacation in last August. You might say, "Didn't you have a vacation while you were in Israel?" I don't think that you can categorize it as a vacation. Because we were in training from early in the morning until late night.
So, I must admit that I am a bad example in taking time off to rest. However, after the Pastors Conference that I organize and execute, and our Resurrection Celebration next month, I will take some time off. I promise.
God sanctified the seventh day because it was a gift to man for rest and replenishment.
The Seventh Day Adventists condemn Christians for not worshiping the Lord on Saturdays. Because according to the Old Testament law, they believe that we all must worship the Lord on Sabbath which is Saturday.
Christians are not under obligation to observe the Sabbath today, because Jesus fulfilled the purpose and plan of the Sabbath for us and in us. Every day is a day of rest in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Every day is specially set apart to God.
Colossians 2:16-17 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.
B. THE HISTORY OF THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH
Genesis 2:4-7 This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, 5 before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground; 6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground. 7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
Physically, man was taken out of the ground. It is quite interesting that our bodies are made up of about fifteen or sixteen chemical elements. Those same chemical elements are in the ground. The physical part of man was taken out of the dust of the ground. If we were to be boiled down into the separate chemical elements of which we are made, we would be worth very little in terms of money. Some say $2.98, but the inflation factor has increased that figure a little more, maybe $6 to $7. Yes, we humans are made out of dirt which is literally 'dirt cheap'. But the same time, we are made in the image of God which cannot be counted in monetary measurement.
We are created for His pleasure and we are created because our God loves us so much. Our God wants to have a close relationship with us. That is why we are made in His image.
C. ADAM IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN
Genesis 2:8-9 The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed. 9 And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Some consider the fact of the Garden of Eden as a fairy tale. It is not. It was a very real paradise where God designated for the first man and woman to be in.
The tree of life was to grant eternal life to mankind. That means that if we had a fruit of the Tree of Life, we would be forever young. That would put the majority of plastic surgeons out of business.
People around the world spend about 10 billion dollars per year to keep themselves looking young with just about any kinds of procedures including 'Nip and Tuck' and dangerous 'Botox Cosmetic' method. I am beginning to have a lot of white hairs on my head. Actually, I like them. Who knows, people might think that I am wise now since I have white hairs.
The tree of the knowledge of good and evil was the 'test tree of human's obedience to God'. I don't believe that it was any special fruit tree. It was a matter of obedience to God's command.
'The knowledge of good' would bring the conscience that accepts and obeys the Holy Spirit's commands. 'The knowledge of evil' would awaken our disobedience in sinful nature as a free will agent.
Genesis 2:10-15 Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads. 11 The name of the first is Pishon; it is the one which skirts the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 And the gold of that land is good. Bdellium and the onyx stone are there. 13 The name of the second river is Gihon; it is the one which goes around the whole land of Cush. 14 The name of the third river is Hiddekel; it is the one which goes toward the east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates. 15 Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.
Nobody knows the exact location of the Garden of Eden. But many scholars believe that it is somewhere in the Tigris-Euphrates valley.
Genesis 2:16-17 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
God put Adam into the most spectacular paradise the world has seen, but God put Adam there to do work.
God not only made His command clear to Adam, but He also clearly explained the consequences for disobedience.
D. THE FIRST WEDDING IN THE PARADISE
Genesis 2:18-20 And the Lord God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him." 19 Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him.
Hundreds and thousands of animals received their names from Adam. None of them got duplicated names. Adam must have been a brilliant man.
God knew what Adam was lacking before he even realized: His helper, his soul mate, his the-other-half, his woman.
I wouldn't be surprised if Adam came to God and asked Him to give him a woman. He probably said, "I'd like to start a family, too, God. I will call it "Adam's Family".
Genesis 2:21-22 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we are witnessing the first wedding of mankind. God walked Eve down to Adam and presented her to be his wife. I am sure that it was a pleasant surprise for Adam to see his beautiful wife Eve after he woke up from his deep sleep.
The woman is taken from the side of Adam. God didn't take her from his head to be his superior, nor from his foot to be his inferior. But God took her from Adam's side to be equal with him, under his arm so that he can protect her, close to his heart so that he can love her.
If you are single person and waiting for that perfect one for yourself, please do not be in a hurry. While you wait upon the Lord as Adam did, He will bring the right person to you.
As God brought Adam's bride Eve from the side of the first Adam, our Father in heaven brought the bride of Christ, the church, from the wounded side of the Second Adam, Jesus.
Many people think that the spouse whom they are going to marry or they have, should fulfill their lives. Obviously, they cannot and will not. There is only one who can fulfill anyone's life. It is Jesus. It is no wonder why a person feels empty deep down in his heart, because that person does not have Jesus as his Savior and Lord.
According to MODERN BRIDE magazine, the average bride-to-be spends 150 hours planning her wedding. The average groom-to-be spends 150 hours saying, "Yeah. sounds good." If both sides spend even 15 hours of their time in studying God's plan for marriage and obey it, I am sure that we wouldn't have this high rate of divorce in this country.
Probably you are thinking, "Pastor, why were you reading MODERN BRIDE magazine?" I am just quoting from someone who has read it. So don't give me that look.
By the way, the whole event of the creation of the animals and birds, naming them, and creating Adam and Eve were done on the sixth day. Not later.
One day, Adam came to God and asked Him, "How come you made Eve so beautiful and soft, Lord?" God answered with a gentle smile, "So you can love her." A little later, Adam had this puzzled look on his face and asked, "Then how come you made her stupid?" God looked at him squarely in his eyes and answered, "So she can love you."
E. GOD'S PRINCIPLES OF MARRIAGES
1 Peter 3:7 Husbands, likewise, dwell with them [your wives] with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.
Everything in the marriage relationship is intertwined. If your marriage isn't healthy, then your relationship with God will suffer and vice versa. The Apostle Peter tells husbands to dwell with their wives with understanding. To "dwell with understanding" means that husbands are to be aligned to their wives and be united with them in thoughts, goals, plans, and efforts. In essence, Peter tells husbands that if they don't treat their wives with understanding, their prayers will be hindered.
Your relationship with God and with your spouse will thrive - not just survive - if you bury the hatchet and don't let the sun go down while you are still angry with one another.
Husbands, if you really love your wife as Christ loved the church, your wife will follow God's will. She will submit to you. It will not happen because you demand. It will come to reality, because you love her very much and sacrifice for her. True headship comes from sacrifice and love on your part. It thrives when a husband says in action: "I love you. I want to help you." Your wife will respect you for that.
Wives, if you truly submit to your husband as unto the Lord, your husband will love you to the point that he will sacrifice his desires for yours. He will exalt you, putting you and your needs before his own. You will have a husband who loves you as his own body.
If we want our marriages not only to survive but thrive, we must get back to God's original design. We must read and obey the Word of God and leave the rest to Him.
If you'd like to learn more about the God's principles of marriage, we have a marriage class going on Sunday evenings by Merrill and Cindy Simon at the River of Life Church. I highly recommend it.
Some husbands and wives think that because they have bad marriages or don't love their spouses, they think that they can bail out to look for somebody else. They think that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. Oh yeah, it is greener around the septic tank.
The likelihood of married adults getting divorced is identical among born-again Christians and those who are not born-again, according to a new study released by the Barna Group. The study also found that most Americans reject the notion that divorce is a sin. Whether you consider divorce as a sin or not, God does. So if you are considering a divorce to look for a new love in all the wrong places, remember this preacher's warning: "Repent, you are sinning. God will judge you for your sin of divorce."
Mal 2:16 "For the Lord God of Israel says that He hates divorce, for it covers one's garment with violence," Says the Lord of hosts. "Therefore take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously."
Genesis 2:23-25 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." 24 Therefore (1) a man shall leave his father and mother and (2) be joined to his wife, and (3) they shall become one flesh. 25 And (4) they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
I find four simple, yet profound principles of marriage:
1) SEVERANCE: "a man shall leave his father and mother"
2) PERMANENCE: "be joined to his wife"
3) UNITY: "they shall become one flesh"
4) INTIMACY: "they were both naked, the man and his wife,
and were not ashamed"
Don't expect that these principles are going to work in your marriage automatically just because you said, "I do." You have to work hard at it. Do you know how to ruin your marriage? Don't do anything. It dissolves itself in no time.
F. APPLICATIONS
1) Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her. Eph 5:25
2) Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. Eph 5:22
3) So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate. Mt 19:6
Genesis 3
Curse and Cure
In my opinion, this chapter is the most important chapter of the entire Bible. Without understanding why and how Adam and Eve fell into their sins, the Atoning Sacrifice of Jesus Christ become a mute point.
With these in mind, we are going to study the curse that came from the fall of man and the cure that came from the love of God.
A. PUTTING DOUBT IN OUR HEARTS
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, "Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?"
Apparently, before the curse pronounced in Genesis 3:14-15, the serpent was different than what we know today as a serpent. It became one.
One interesting thing, from what we have learned in the first two chapters when God spoke, He brought life and order, when satan spoke he brought chaos and death.
Satan brought his temptation against woman because he knew that she was more vulnerable to attack since she didn't hear God's command first hand. He also knew that woman has more tendencies to long for spiritual things than man in general. In fact, that is why many of the founders of cults and isms have been women.
Satan's first attack was against the Word of God. From the beginning, satan has tried to deceive God's people by undermining God's Word. He can undermine just as effectively by getting us to neglect God's Word as by getting us to doubt it.
B. THE CONVERSATION THAT SHOULD NOT BEEN TAKEN
Genesis 3:2-3 And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.'"
Eve's first mistake was in even carrying on a conversation with the satan. The devil is the father of all lies as Jesus said. There is nothing worth conversing with him.
Eve misquoted God's command to Adam. To make matters worse, she added to the command and put words in God's mouth when she said, "nor shall you touch it." God never has said that. She could hang upside down from a branch if she wanted or they could have built a tree house on that tree. God's command to them was "not to eat it."
When we start to exchange God's Word with men's, that is when we really are digging ourselves into massive trouble.
C. MIXING TRUTH WITH LIES
Genesis 3:4-5 Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die (False). 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened (True), and you will be like God (False), knowing good and evil (True)."
Satan effectively laid the groundwork. He drew Eve into a conversation with him and planted the seed of doubt about God's Word, and he exposed Eve's incomplete understanding of God's Word. Now he moves in for the kill, with an outright contradiction of what God said.
Satan first wanted Eve to forget all about what God said about the consequences of sin, which is death. When we know and remember the consequences of sin, we are more likely to give up the passing pleasures of sin.
Satan tried to portray God as a conniving jealous mean master who doesn't want to share good things, such as the fruits from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, with Adam and Eve.
Then, here comes the ultimate bait for the mankind: "You will be like God." This old lie has been repackaged in many different wrapping materials. Mormonism claims that we are little gods. New Age movements cry out that there are gods within all of us. All we have to do is enlighten ourselves to achieve that divine stage.
Even within the rank of Christianity some false teachers teach their congregation with this garbage. Kenneth Copeland said, "Cow begets cow, dog begets dog. Since we are children of God, we are little gods." That is an utter heresy and it is damnable. Yes, those who are born-again are children of God, but we are not gods.
Before you get all upset with me and storm out of church because I talked against Kenneth Copeland, I want you to borrow this CD 'Defending the Faith' by Pastor Paul Scozzafava who is a renown apologist of the Word of God and listen to the recording of Kenneth Copeland's own voice. As long as you don't worship the ground he walks on, his comment will send a chill down your back.
The liberal and the atheist take from the Word of God to dilute it, and God has warned against that. The cults and false teachers add to the Word of God to suit their needs, and God warns against that.
Please note that satan does not come up with pure lies which are rarely effective. He mixes lies with the truth and gives some credit to his lies.
D. THE FALL OF MAN
Genesis 3:6 So when (1) the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that (2) it was pleasant to the eyes, and (3) a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
Eve surrendered to this temptation exactly the way John describes in 1 John 2:16.
1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world--the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life--is not of the Father but is of the world.
First, she gave in to the lust of the flesh - "saw that it was good for food", then she gave in to the lust of the eyes - "pleasant to the eyes", then she gave in to the pride of life "desirable to make one wise".
Jesus was tempted in the same three-fold way in Matthew 4:1-11: an appeal to the physical appetites, an appeal to covetous and emotional desires, and an appeal to pride. Yet, He didn't fall for satan's temptations. How did He fight back? Each time He was tempted, He fought back with the Word of God. In Eve's case, she already distorted the words from God, so she was going south.
I do not think that the devil has changed his tactics today. He uses the same tactics with you and me, and the reason that he still uses them is that they work. He hasn't needed to change his tactics, because we all seem to fall for the same line.
Even though Eve was tempted by satan, satan couldn't cram the fruit down her throat. Eve was completely responsible for her own action. She couldn't rightly say, "the devil made me do it."
Not only did Eve sin, but she became the agent of temptation for Adam. But when Adam ate, he was not deceived as Eve was. Adam sinned with his eyes wide open, in open rebellion against God.
E. EXCUSE, EXCUSE
Genesis 3:7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.
"Then the eyes of both of them were opened" - this refers to their conscience. Before the fall, man did not have a conscience. He was innocent. Innocence is ignorance of evil. Adam and Eve did not confess their sin. They just attempted to cover it up. They were not ready to admit their lost condition.
I was told that fig leaves are a prickly quality, which would make for very itchy coverings. Every attempt to cover up our own sins before God is just as foolish. We need to let Jesus cover us with His blood.
Adam's attempt to covering his own sin is like religion. Religion is man's efforts to reach God which is nothing more than a futile effort on man's part.
Genesis 3:8-10 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, "Where are you?" 10 So he said, "I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself."
Folks, this is what we do when we are sinning against God knowingly. This is what backsliders do. Some try to hide away from the voice of God while God is actively asking them to return to Him. Where can we go from His presence? Where can we run from His Omni-Presence? You can run, but you cannot hide from God.
This shows that Adam and Eve knew that their attempt to cover themselves failed. They didn't proudly show off their fig-leaf outfits to God. They knew their own covering were completely inadequate, and they were embarrassed before God. There is a theological term for Adam's fig-leaf outfits - 'Adam's Fall Fashion Line'.
V9 is the heartfelt cry of an anguished father. God obviously knew where they were but He also knew a gulf just had been made between Himself and man by the first Adam.
Genesis 3:11-13 And He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?" 12 Then the man said, "The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate." 13 And the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."
Sin made Adam be afraid of God's presence and His voice. But God wanted Adam to confess his sins. Ever since Adam, men run from God's presence and don't want to listen to His Word.
We all sin. But when we sin, we can still give glory to God by openly confessing without shifting the blame to others. There is nothing you can do about yesterday's sin. Yet you can do what is right before God right now by confessing and repenting.
Adam's attempt to blame Eve is completely consistent with human nature. Few of us are willing to simply say as David did, "I have sinned against the Lord" in 2 Samuel 12:13 .
By saying "the woman whom You gave to be with me," Adam essentially blames God for the sin.
F. THE FIRST GOSPEL
Genesis 3:14-15 So the Lord God said to the serpent: "Because you have done this, You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust All the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel."
Note that satan in a serpent form was still hanging around with Adam and Eve. I believe that he was condemning them for their disobedience to God. That is how satan operates. First, he tempts us. Once we fall for it, he condemns us. We don't have to listen to his temptation only, but also his condemnation because both are from the pit of hell.
Adam and Eve must have been terrified as this once-beautiful creature called a serpent was transformed into the creeping, slithering, hissing snake we know today. They must have thought, "Uh oh, it's our turn next!"
In this, God prophesies the doom of satan, showing that the real battle is between satan and the Seed of the Woman. There is no doubt this is a prophecy of Jesus' ultimate defeat of satan. God announced that satan would injure the Messiah, but the Messiah would crush satan with a mortal wound. Jesus did that through His own death and resurrection. Some people call this chapter the first Gospel in the Bible.
God's plan wasn't "set back" when Adam and Eve sinned. Because God's plan was to bring forth something greater than men in the innocence of Eden . God wanted more than innocent men. His plan is to bring forth REDEEMED MAN.
G. CURSES FOR MANKIND
Genesis 3:16 To the woman He said: "I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; (1) In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you."
I don't think I have to explain about the pain in child baring and all the other things you ladies go through. When you get to heaven, have a long talk with Eve, ladies.
The principle of Adam's headship as a husband was established before the fall. Now the curse on Eve makes it much harder for her to submit and flow with God's institution of male headship in the home. As a result of the fall, marriage has constant power struggles between husband and wife.
Genesis 3:17-19 Then to Adam He said, "Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, 'You shall not eat of it': "Cursed is the ground for your sake; (2) In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. 18 Both (3) thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field. 19 (4) In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread (5) till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And (6) to dust you shall return."
Because of Adam, there is a curse upon all creation. Before the curse on man, the ground only produced good. After the curse, it will still produce good, but thorns and thistles will come faster and easier than good fruit.
This is the judgment upon man. Death now comes to man. But Adam did not die physically the day that he ate. He did not die until more than nine hundred years later. He died spiritually the moment he disobeyed. He was separated from God.
1) Sin brought pain to childbirth, and no one knew more pain than Jesus did when He, through His suffering, brought many sons to glory.
2) Sin brought toil, and Jesus endured great toil to bring our salvation.
3) Thorns came with sin and the fall, and Jesus endured a crown of thorns to bring our salvation.
4) Sin brought sweat, and Jesus sweat, as it were, great drops of blood to win our salvation.
5) Sin brought sorrow, and Jesus became a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief, to save us.
6) Sin brought death, and Jesus tasted death for everyone that we might be saved.
H. THE REDEMPTION CURE THROUGH SACRIFICE
Genesis 3:20-24 And Adam called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. 21 Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. 22 Then the Lord God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"-- 23 therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. 24 So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
In order for Adam and Eve to be clothed, a sacrifice had to be made. An animal had to die. Without the shedding of blood there is no remission.
Adam and Eve were clothed in a garment that was purchased with the life of another, which only covered their sins temporarily. But we are clothed with a garment of righteousness that was purchased with the life of Jesus Christ and with that righteous garment our sins were forgiven and washed away.
With disobedience of the first Adam, mankind was separated from God. But because God loved us so much that He sent the second Adam, Jesus Christ to bridge that gap.
Romans 8:38-39 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
I. APPLICATIONS
1) We will fall straight into temptations when we neglect God's Word and prayers to Him.
2) What we fleshly desire is contrary to what the Holy Spirit wants in our lives. Let's ask ourselves if the consequences of what we want is worth it.
3) There is often nothing you can do about yesterday's sin. Yet you can do what is right before God right now by confessing and repenting.
Genesis 4
The Dawn of the Sinful World
Many people who are in humanism believe that mankind is basically good and a few rotten people cause problems against the mankind. If you believe that, you have more faith than I do for mankind. I have only one kind of faith for mankind - without Jesus, every single person will end up in hell.
Throughout the history of humanity, we don't see anything but hostility to one another and ultimately against God. From the dawn of this sinful world, we find a murder, not taking responsibility for their actions, spiritual pride and rejecting the Creator.
Many of us remember the news story about the slain Tucson Police Department Officer Patrick Hardesty. John Cruz, who killed Officer Hardesty denied his killing throughout the trial. When the sentence was handed down, he finally admitted that he killed the officer. Yet, he and his family don't think that he should be executed for killing the officer. Their mindset is that it is OK for him to take away a police officer's life, but it is not OK for the government to punish him with an execution. What a typical twisted human logic!
In Genesis 3 we have the root of sin and in Genesis 4 we find the fruit of sin.
A. THE BIRTH OF CAIN AND ABEL
Genesis 4:1-2 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, and said, "I have acquired a man from the Lord." 2 Then she bore again, this time his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
I am sure that Eve remembered what God told them:
Genesis 3:15 between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.
She was hoping and expecting that the child she just bore would be the one who would bruise Satan's head and take the curse back. Little she knew that he would become the first murderer of mankind.
Genesis 4:3-5 And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord. 4 Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord respected Abel and his offering, 5 but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell.
Let's not think that God didn't care to have fruit from the ground. Nothing wrong with the fruits. It was not the choice of fruits or animal in this case. It was a matter of obedience to God's instruction.
Hebrews 11:4 By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.
Cain's offering was the effort of dead human religion and simply discharging a duty, while Abel's offering was made in faith, in a desire to worship God in spirit and in truth.
We are not born as children of God. We have to be born-again to be children of God. Man is separated from God from birth. Cain refused to recognize that, and multitudes today refuse to do so.
You may say, "Maybe Cain didn't know what to bring." I don't think so. I am sure that his mom and dad told him what happened in the Garden of Eden. I am also sure that God gave them instructions for the sacrifice. Cain simply ignored what God said and he did whatever he wanted. We can see his attitude from his reaction to God.
Sacrifice requires life to cover the sins of a person. Cain ignored it just like many people today, including some Christians who think lightly of the Atoning Sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.
Cain's lack of faith shows up in his response to God's rejection of his offering of fruit. Rather than repenting for his wrong doing and pleasing God, he was very angry.
Cain's anger was undoubtedly rooted in spiritual pride and jealousy. He couldn't bear that his brother was accepted before God and he was not.
B. GOD'S ADVICE TO MAKE IT RIGHT
Genesis 4:6-7 So the Lord said to Cain, "Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it."
In His grace and love, God reached out to Cain to teach to be godly instead of being sinful. He made it clear that he would be accepted if he did well.
Of course, God knew the outcomes of these questions, but He wanted Cain to know and stop what was happening inside himself. God warned Cain about the destructive power of sin. Cain can resist sin and find blessing, or he can give in to sin and be devoured.
We can prevent sin from ruling over us by allowing God to master us first. Without God as our master, we will be slaves to sin without exception.
"Sin lies at the door" is such a great description of our spiritual dilemma. We all are born with a sinful nature. If that is not bad enough, the enemy of God, Satan, entices our sinful nature day and night to ignore the Holy Spirit's warnings and convictions. The devil also encourages us to conveniently forget about any possibilities of consequences of our sins. Indeed, sin lies at the door to pounce on us at any given opportunity. More often than not, we walk right into his booby trap knowingly and unknowingly. How stupid can we get? When God warns us, we must take heed His voice.
Prov 7:21-22 With her enticing speech she caused him to yield, with her flattering lips she seduced him. 22 Immediately he went after her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks.
C. THE FIRST MURDER
Genesis 4:8-9 Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. 9 Then the Lord said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" He said, "I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper?"
This shows that Cain committed premeditated murder, and therefore clearly ignored God's way of escape.
Now Adam and Eve's hopeful redeemer is a murderer, and their second son is the victim of murder.
God knew the answer of His question. He asked Cain because He wanted to give him the opportunity to confess his sin and start to do right after doing wrong.
How useless it was for Cain to lie to God! It was madness for him to think God didn't know where Abel was, or that he could actually hide his sin from God.
This reply of Cain, "Am I my brother's keeper?" is well known. The fact of the matter is that he was supposed to be his brother's keeper, but he became the murderer of his brother. He murdered him for the lowest of reasons. Cain's murderous rage was inspired purely by a spiritual jealousy.
Jude 1:11 Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.
Jude 11 warns of the way of Cain, which is unbelief, empty religion leading to jealousy, persecution of those truly godly, and murderous anger.
There is no greater curse on the earth than empty and vain religion, those who have a form of godliness, but deny the power of God. Many are deathly afraid of "secular humanism" or atheism, but dead religion sends more people to hell than anything else.
Cain had a chance to turn from his sins of anger, jealousy and pride to God. He could come clean by being obedient to Him. But Cain would rather kill his own brother.
I've seen the same kind of behaviors from many brothers and sisters in the Lord. When I see their sins, I talk with them and remind them as the Holy spirit leads me that there are Satan's traps waiting ahead of them if they continue. More often than not, they ignore my warnings and go straight into the traps. Then they wonder how they end up there.
You might be in that situation. You might be at the brink of decision to commit sin against God. I plea with you, please turn away from your sin. Your heart might justify whatever you are planning to do with all the garbage excuses, but God is not going to let you get by. Don't ignore God's warning to you, the consequences of your actions will not ignore you for sure.
D. FACING THE CONSEQUENCES
Genesis 4:10-12 And He said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground. 11 So now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. 12 When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth."
The curse upon Cain was that Adam's curse would be amplified in regard to him. If bringing forth food from the ground would be hard for Adam, it would be impossible for Cain who was a farmer. If Adam were driven from the Garden of Eden, Cain would find no resting place on all the earth and he would be a fugitive and homeless person.
Genesis 4:13-15 And Cain said to the Lord, "My punishment is greater than I can bear! 14 Surely You have driven me out this day from the face of the ground; I shall be hidden from Your face; I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth, and it will happen that anyone who finds me will kill me." 15 And the Lord said to him, "Therefore, whoever kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold." And the Lord set a mark on Cain, lest anyone finding him should kill him.
Just like John Cruz who killed Police Officer Patrick Hardesty didn't want to be executed, Cain didn't want his punishment. Cain didn't feel bad about his sin, but only about his punishment. What about you? If you don't mind committing sin against God, you shouldn't mind getting consequences, either. Because they always go together.
One of the side effects of sin is that it makes the sinner pity himself instead of causing him to turn to God. One of the first signs of new life is that the individual takes sides with God against himself or herself.
In His great mercy, God set an identifying and protective mark upon Cain. Despite a lot of speculations, nobody really knows what this mark upon Cain was.
E. GODLESS CIVILIZATION
Genesis 4:16-18 Then Cain went out from the presence of the Lord and dwelt in the land of Nod on the east of Eden. 17 And Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. And he built a city, and called the name of the city after the name of his son--Enoch. 18 To Enoch was born Irad; and Irad begot Mehujael, and Mehujael begot Methushael, and Methushael begot Lamech.
Here is a Bible question: Where did Cain get his wife? We don't know where. Genesis 5:4 says Adam had several sons and daughters. Cain obviously married his sister. You might say, "Does it mean God is OK with incest?"
Though marrying a sister was against the law of God according to Leviticus 18:9, 18:11, 20:17, and Deuteronomy 27:22, which even prohibits the marrying of a half-sister, this was long before God spoke that law to Moses and the world.
Here, necessity of populating the earth demanded that Adam's sons marry their sisters. And at this point, the "gene pool" of humanity was pure enough to allow close marriage without harm of inbreeding. But as a stream can get more polluted the further it gets from the source, there came a time when God decreed there no longer be marriage between close relatives because of the danger of inbreeding.
Even Abraham married his half-sister Sarah in Genesis 20:12. God did not prohibit such marriages until the time of Moses in Leviticus 18:9. Marrying a brother or sister was not forbidden until God forbade it. So, God's answer for incest is 'ABSOLUTELY NOT'.
Here we see the beginning of industry and of urbanization. It is strongly man-centered and ungodly, not God-centered. The fall of the human race continues to pick up speed.
Genesis 4:19-22 Then Lamech took for himself two wives: the name of one was Adah, and the name of the second was Zillah. 20 And Adah bore Jabal. He was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. 21 His brother's name was Jubal. He was the father of all those who play the harp and flute. 22 And as for Zillah, she also bore Tubal-Cain, an instructor of every craftsman in bronze and iron. And the sister of Tubal-Cain was Naamah.
The name Lamech may mean, "conqueror." He was the seventh from Adam on Cain's side. Lamech's arrogance is a contrast to Enoch, who was the seventh from Adam on Seth's line and walked with God.
Lamech was the first bigamist in history, going against God's original plan for one man and one woman to become one flesh. Lamech now does that which is contrary to what God intends, contrary to what God has for man. You will never find anywhere in the Scriptures that God approves of polygamy. Yes, some of the godly characters had multiple wives. But that doesn't mean that God approved it.
Here are the descendants of Lamech - having livestock, making musical instruments, and working with bronze and iron. It sounds like they have honky tonk country music and blacksmith business.
Genesis 4:23-24 Then Lamech said to his wives: "Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; Wives of Lamech, listen to my speech! For I have killed a man for wounding me, even a young man for hurting me. 24 If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, then Lamech seventy-seven fold."
In this ungodly boasting, Lamech was challenging God with his own power. However, I am sure that he doesn't feel so invincible now in Hades while he is waiting for God's judgement for the last 6000 years.
Genesis 4:25-26 And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and named him Seth, "For God has appointed another seed for me instead of Abel, whom Cain killed." 26 And as for Seth, to him also a son was born; and he named him Enosh. Then men began to call on the name of the Lord.
In strong contrast with this ungodly society was the righteous. In the line from Seth there was faith. Seth himself was a provision from God, according to Eve's statement of faith. In the days of Enosh, Seth's son, men began to call on the name of the LORD 'Yahweh'.
F. APPLICATIONS
1) We must not think that we can escape the consequences of our sins. Our sins will find us out.
2) Just because God does not punish us the moment we sin against Him, it doesn't mean that He winks at our sins. He is giving us time to repent.
Genesis 5-6
Human Depravity at its Worst
The majority of people in America don't understand the corruption and depravity of mankind very well. Those who are involved in the law enforcement field see the portion of its ugly truth day in and day out. It is no wonder why some police officers shut off their feelings to victims' and their families' emotions. They don't mean anything bad, but it is their survival mechanism that they choose to use to go on in their daily work.
As long as there are criminals, police officers and correctional officers in prisons will never have to face a lay-off situation. We all know that there is no end of the supply of criminals. As a matter of fact, it is getting worse each and every day. What we see and what we hear from news media does not even cover the tip of the iceberg for what one human can do to another.
This morning we are going to see when even our merciful God says, "Enough is enough," and He is about to pull the plug on human depravity. But in the midst of this horrible and unending human wickedness, a couple of men find grace in the Lord. Let's learn from these two people.
A. THE GENEALOGY FROM ADAM TO NOAH
Genesis 5:1-6 This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. 2 He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created. 3 And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. 4 After he begot Seth, the days of Adam were eight hundred years; and he had sons and daughters. 5 So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died.
'930 years', can you imagine his birthday cake with 930 candles? To blow out those candles, Adam would need a hurricane, huh?
The Bible critics surely have a major problem with the extremely long life spans here. In this chapter, no one lived less than 365 years - and this is Enoch, who was a special case, and Methuselah lived 969 years. How is this possible?
Some have thought this is speaking figuratively or counting months as years. But if that is the case, Enoch fathered Methuselah when he was five and a half years old.
It is more likely that people did live much, much longer before the flood. This is because the environment in the pre-flood world was so different, with the UV protective blanket of water vapors surrounding the earth. In the post-flood world, life spans quickly shortened to the life-spans we are familiar with today.
When Eve gave birth, it was in Adam's likeness, not God's. Why? Because depravity had flooded humanity and polluted their innocence. Sin entered into the human lives.
Genesis 5:6-24 Seth lived one hundred and five years, and begot Enosh. 7 After he begot Enosh, Seth lived eight hundred and seven years, and had sons and daughters. 8 So all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years; and he died. 9 Enosh lived ninety years, and begot Cainan. 10 After he begot Cainan, Enosh lived eight hundred and fifteen years, and had sons and daughters. 11 So all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years; and he died. 12 Cainan lived seventy years, and begot Mahalalel. 13 After he begot Mahalalel, Cainan lived eight hundred and forty years, and had sons and daughters. 14 So all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years; and he died. 15 Mahalalel lived sixty-five years, and begot Jared. 16 After he begot Jared, Mahalalel lived eight hundred and thirty years, and had sons and daughters. 17 So all the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred and ninety-five years; and he died. 18 Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years, and begot Enoch. 19 After he begot Enoch, Jared lived eight hundred years, and had sons and daughters. 20 So all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years; and he died. 21 Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah. 22 After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters. 23 So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24 And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.
Don't you feel like we are walking through a graveyard and reading a bunch of tombstones? In the midst of many deaths, we find a bright spot in Enoch.
This is one of the most remarkable things; that in the midst of death one man was removed from this earth. It is said of Enoch that he "walked with God."
We are told that he did not die but that God took him. That means that he was translated. What do we mean by translation? Translation is the taking of a word from one language and putting it into another language without changing its meaning. Enoch was translated from this earth to heaven.
Enoch had a very close relationship with God. It is like this: God enjoyed time with Enoch so much and they walked around all over. As they walked toward heaven, God said to Enoch, "It is late, why don't you stay with me at my home in heaven?"
Walking with God means walking by faith according to 2 Cor 5:7, walking in the light according to 1 John 1:5-7, and walking in agreement with God according to Amos 3:3.
How about us? We cannot walk in faith, in light and in agreement with Him, unless we spend time with Him in reading His Word and in prayers. Our God loves to spend time with us. Do we want to spend time with Him, too? I am not talking about praying before meals and before we go to sleep. Do we spend time alone with God in our devotion? Don't tell me you don't have time. We do have time. It is a matter of priority for us to put God in the first place of our lives.
Genesis 5:25-32 Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven years, and begot Lamech. 26 After he begot Lamech, Methuselah lived seven hundred and eighty-two years, and had sons and daughters. 27 So all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years; and he died. 28 Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and had a son. 29 And he called his name Noah, saying, "This one will comfort us concerning our work and the toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord has cursed." 30 After he begot Noah, Lamech lived five hundred and ninety-five years, and had sons and daughters. 31 So all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years; and he died. 32 And Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah begot Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
At the birth of Methuselah, Enoch had a special awareness from God that judgment was coming, and this was one of the things that got him closer in his walk with God.
Methuselah's long life was no accident. It was because of the grace of God. When Methuselah died, the flood came. God kept him alive longer than anybody to give people as long as possible to repent.
God is doing the same thing right now. If God sent back His Son Jesus to take all the believers home in rapture twenty years ago, how many of us would make to heaven? Not many. I wouldn't be able to, either.
In His grace and mercy, God is extending the time of rapture, so that the last one who should get saved can come to know Him. Then, it would be the time. No one knows that time. It can be today, or tomorrow. It is better to be ready than being too late.
Before we go on to chapter 6, we find a very interesting thing about these ten people's names:
Adam Man
Seth Appointed
Enosh Subjected to death
Cainan Sorrowful
Mahalalel From the presence of God
Jared One comes down
Enoch Dedicated
Methuselah When he is dead, it shall come
Lamech To the poor and needy
Noah Bringing the rest
If we link all the definitions of the names: "Man, appointed, subjected to death, from the presence of God, one comes down, dedicated. When he is dead, it shall come, to the poor and needy, bringing the rest." Who would that be? Jesus who is in the line of Adam.
B. THE WICKEDNESS OF MAN IN THE DAYS OF NOAH
Genesis 6:1-2 Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 2 that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose.
During these days of rapid population expansion, especially because of long life spans in the pre-flood world, there was a problem with ungodly intermarriage between the sons of God and the daughters of men.
Now we could go on with the argument for identity of 'Sons of God". It is useless to speculate on the nature of this union. Whether it was brought about by something like demon possession, or whether angels have power permanently to assume the form of men is not revealed. But we should understand the occult is filled with the idea of perverted sexual associations.
The one important thing is that if demons who are the fallen angels had sexual unions with female humans and they got pregnant, that would be incarnation. That means that Jesus was not the only incarnation in the history. I don't believe that God would have allowed that. Only our God can create incarnation between the Holy Spirit and a human.
Genesis 6:3-4 And the Lord said, "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years." There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.
God did not allow the human race to stay in this rebellious place forever. This means there is a "point of no return" in our rejection of God.
We are approaching to that "point of no return" fast again, ladies and gentlemen. We don't have to look hard to find out how wicked the world has become.
Genesis 6:5-7 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 So the Lord said, "I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them."
V5 says a lot. It means there was no aspect of man's nature not corrupted by sin.
Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?
Jesus said, "as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be" in Matthew 24:37. In other words, the conditions of the world before the coming of Jesus will be like the conditions of the world before the flood:
. Exploding world population in Genesis 6:1
. Sexual perversion in Genesis 6:2
. Demonic activities in Genesis 6:2
. Constant evil in the heart of man in Genesis 6:5
. Widespread corruption and violence in Genesis 6:11
Doesn't that sound like the current headlines from Fox News and CNN reports?
God's sorrow for mankind and the grief in His heart, are striking. God knew all along that this was how things would turn out, but our text tells us loud and clear that as God sees His plan for the ages unfold, it hurts His heart. He was sorrowful because of human sin and rebellion.
Genesis 6:8-10 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. 9 This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect in his generation. Noah walked with God. 10 And Noah begot three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
While God saw the wickedness all over the world, He found one man with whom to begin again. Noah didn't earn grace. He found it. No one earns grace, but we can all find it in God.
It was true then, and it is true today. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more according to Romans 5:20.
C. THE GRACE OF GOD IN THE MIDDLE OF CORRUPTION
Genesis 6:11-12 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. 13 And God said to Noah, "The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
Some wonder if this is too harsh a judgment. However, since the fall in Genesis 3, every human being has a death sentence. The timing and method of that death is completely in the hands of God.
Genesis 6:14-16 "Make yourself an ark of gopher wood; make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and outside with pitch. 15 And this is how you shall make it: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. 16 You shall make a window for the ark, and you shall finish it to a cubit from above; and set the door of the ark in its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third decks.
In the midst of such corruption and judgment, there is also grace. Instead of wiping out the entire race, God preserved a remnant.
Then God gave Noah a "Noah-Do-List" that would last 120 years. The ark was as long as a 30-story building is high - about 450 feet, and it was about 75 feet wide and 45 feet high which is about the size of the Titanic. What is described is not really a ship, but a well-ventilated barge, meant only to float and not to sail anywhere. After all, an ark is a chest, not a ship.
The total available floor space on the ark would have been over 100,000 sq. ft., which would be more floor space than in 20 standard-sized basketball courts. Noah's Ark would have had a cubic volume equal to 569 modern railroad stock cars.
God had not yet told Noah why he must build an ark. At this point, all Noah knew was that God will judge the earth, and he was supposed to build a big barge. Since it had not rained yet on the earth, it is reasonable to suppose Noah didn't know what God meant yet.
The pitch worked to waterproof the wood. Because of this mention of pitch which is a petroleum product in what most people think is the Middle East , an Oil Tycoon John D. Rockefeller found oil in that region based on this verse.
D. THE JUDGEMENT IS COMING
Genesis 6:17-22 And behold, I Myself am bringing floodwaters on the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything that is on the earth shall die. 18 But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall go into the ark--you, your sons, your wife, and your sons' wives with you. 19 And of every living thing of all flesh you shall bring two of every sort into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female. 20 Of the birds after their kind, of animals after their kind, and of every creeping thing of the earth after its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive. 21 And you shall take for yourself of all food that is eaten, and you shall gather it to yourself; and it shall be food for you and for them." 22 Thus Noah did; according to all that God commanded him, so he did.
Why would God bring such a Flood? There are a couple of reasons:
1) The Flood was the most effective way of purging the world.
It would wash it clean so that not a trace of the wicked could be found.
2) The Flood was used by God to start a new creation.
The first Creation with Adam is paralleled here by the second with Noah. Much as the dry land appeared from the receding waters in 1:9, so here the waters receded until the ark came to rest on Ararat in 8:4. When Noah was finished with the ark God commissioned him to be fruitful and multiply and to have dominion over the earth in chapter 9, just as He had told Adam.
We can only wonder what Noah felt when he heard this remarkable announcement from God. God called Noah to an essential role in the greatest judgment - and greatest salvation - the world had seen.
Despite the dramatic judgment coming, God will make a covenant with Noah, and he and his family will be saved. God will also use Noah to save a remnant of each animal so the earth could be populated with people and animals after the flood.
When given this staggering job to do, Noah did it. We don't hear of him complaining or rebelling. He simply obeyed. It took 120 years to finish the ark. Can you imagine the mockeries he had to endure while he was building the ark in his driveway? At that time, they didn't have rain, if I may remind you.
The Bible presents Noah as a great hero of God. He was an outstanding example of righteousness according to Ezekiel 14:14, a preacher of righteousness according to 2 Peter 2:5, and Noah condemned the world by offering salvation in the ark that the whole world rejected according to Hebrews 11:7.
E. APPLICATIONS
1) Walking with God means walking by faith in God, walking in the light of God, and walking in agreement with God.
2) When God tells us to do something that doesn't make sense, we need to follow Him without complaining and rebelling.
Our Father knows best.
Genesis 7-8
God's Judgement & Deliverance
There are some Bible stories we are so familiar with that we no longer get excited, nor do we see any important point in them. Noah's Ark and the Great Flood are the case in point. Many of us have heard and know the story of this floating zoo.
But we must ask ourselves a couple of questions:
. What do Noah's Ark and the Great Flood have to do with me?
. What does God want me to learn from it?
The story of Noah's Ark and the Great Flood is more than a Sunday School story. It is about God's judgement against the wicked mankind and His deliverance of the righteous.
Let's see what the Lord speaks to us about this.
A. THE GREAT FLOOD
Genesis 7:1-4 Then the Lord said to Noah, "Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation. 2 You shall take with you seven each of every clean animal, a male and his female; two each of animals that are unclean, a male and his female; 3 also seven each of birds of the air, male and female, to keep the species alive on the face of all the earth. 4 For after seven more days I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and I will destroy from the face of the earth all living things that I have made."
Note that God told Noah to 'come into the ark' instead of 'go into the ark'. In other words, He was telling Noah to come into His presence, because God was already in the ark.
For seven days the world could have walked right into the ark and God would have saved them. All they had to do was believe God.
Guess how many people came through that door? None. I am sure that there were plenty of people who mocked at the obedience of Noah and his family to God.
Genesis 7:5-12 And Noah did according to all that the Lord commanded him. 6 Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters were on the earth. 7 So Noah, with his sons, his wife, and his sons' wives, went into the ark because of the waters of the flood. 8 Of clean animals, of animals that are unclean, of birds, and of everything that creeps on the earth, 9 two by two they went into the ark to Noah, male and female, as God had commanded Noah. 10 And it came to pass after seven days that the waters of the flood were on the earth. 11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. 12 And the rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights.
What is the scientific, historical evidence of the Flood? I cannot tell you on this subject better than one particular book I highly recommend. It is 'The Genesis Flood' by Henry M. Morris and John C. Whitcomb. Both of these men are thoroughly qualified to write on this subject. John Whitcomb, Th.D., professor of Old Testament at Grace Theological Seminary, and Henry M. Morris, Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota, professor of hydraulic engineering and chairman of the Department of Civil Engineering in the Virginia Polytechnic Institute, joined together and have written a book on 'The Genesis Flood'. They show that the Flood was universal, it was a great catastrophe, and there is historical evidence for it.
God never has a problem getting the animals to do what He wants. Only man is more stupid than the animals to ignore God's commands.
Isaiah 1:3 The ox knows its owner And the donkey its master's crib; But Israel does not know, My people do not consider.
By nature, I do not like rain. Actually, I despise it. I am so glad that we don't live in Washington State or Oregon State. They have rain all the time. I'd rather have any sun shiny day over any rainy day. I know many of you think rain is soothing. Not me. If I can have my way, I'd love to see that God makes gigantic water pipes coming down from heaven to irrigate the world, not with rain. But He doesn't take my suggestion.
We don't get to have a whole lot of rain in Southern Arizona. Can you imagine having rain for 40 days and nights straight? This is when the great waters which were above the firmament broke up that was mentioned in Genesis 1:7. These waters formed the huge "blanket" of water in the upper part of the earth's atmosphere since creation.
Waters came up from under the earth also, no doubt accompanied by a great geological catastrophe like an earthquake. You may say, "What water from under the earth?" In case you have not noticed, there are vast amounts of water tables underneath of the earth that we pump out for residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural usage.
Gigantic tidal waves followed these eruptions that would make the last year's Indonesia's Tsunami look like child's play.
The number '40' becomes associated with testing and purification, especially before coming into something new and significant.
Genesis 7:13 On the very same day Noah and Noah's sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and Noah's wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark-- 14 they and every beast after its kind, all cattle after their kind, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort. 15 And they went into the ark to Noah, two by two, of all flesh in which is the breath of life. 16 So those that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him; and the Lord shut him in.
Noah did not have to shut the door on anyone's salvation. God did it. Just like that, it is never our job to disqualify people from salvation. It is God's job.
God kept the door open until the last possible minute, but there came a time when the door had to shut. It is my earnest prayer that if you don't know Jesus as the Savior and Lord, you may not be shut out because of your stubbornness.
The ark was salvation for Noah, but condemnation for the world. There were no second chances for those left out.
Genesis 7:17-24 Now the flood was on the earth forty days. The waters increased and lifted up the ark, and it rose high above the earth. 18 The waters prevailed and greatly increased on the earth, and the ark moved about on the surface of the waters. 19 And the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth, and all the high hills under the whole heaven were covered. 20 The waters prevailed fifteen cubits upward, and the mountains were covered. 21 And all flesh died that moved on the earth: birds and cattle and beasts and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man. 22 All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, all that was on the dry land, died. 23 So He destroyed all living things which were on the face of the ground: both man and cattle, creeping thing and bird of the air. They were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark remained alive. 24 And the waters prevailed on the earth one hundred and fifty days.
Literally hundreds of people groups around the world have their own accounts of the flood. Since all mankind came from Noah's sons, all mankind remembers the flood.
From Samo-Kubo tribe of New Guinea, the Athapascan Indians of America, the Papago Indians of Arizona, Brazilian tribes, Peruvian Indians, African Hottentots, natives of Greenland, native Hawaiian islanders, Hindus, Chinese, Egyptians, Greeks, Persians, Australian natives, the Welsh, Celts, Druids, Siberians, and Lithuanians they have their own account of the flood, and the following aspects of the story are common:
. 95% say the sole cause of the catastrophe is a flood
. 70% attribute survival to a boat
. 66% say that the disaster is due to man's wickedness
Before we get into chapter 8, we need go over several things about the Great Flood.
B. PURPOSE OF THE FLOOD
As it was stated in Gen. 6:5-13, because people had become corrupt and wicked, and the earth was filled with violence, God sent the flood in order to destroy humankind. There must always be judgment and death before there can be a new beginning.
C. THE TYPOLOGY OF NOAH'S ARK AND JESUS
. The ark is an illuminating picture of our salvation in Christ according to 1 Pet 3:18-22. The salvation and the ark were planned by God, not invented by humans.
. There is only one way of salvation and there was only one door in the ark.
. The ark was made of wood, speaking of the humanity of Christ. He had to be born as man in order to save us.
. The word for "pitch" in Gen. 6:14 is the same as the word "atonement" used later in the OT. As the pitch around the boat sealed the water coming into the boat, the atonement of Jesus sealed us from condemnation.
. God invited Noah and his family into the ark as God opens His arms to invite us in.
. The ark saved not only humankind, but also the creatures within it, just as Christ's death will one day deliver creation from the bondage of sin according to Rom. 8:18-23.
. The ark saved Noah and his family from judgment because they believed God's promise - Heb. 11:7.
. As the waters buried the old world, but raised Noah to a new life, 1 Peter 3:18-22 connects the ark with the resurrection of Christ.
. As Noah went out of the ark as the head of a new creation with his family, Christ came out of the tomb as the Head of the new creation.
. Just as Enoch was raptured before the judgment came, the church will be raptured before the wrath of God is poured out upon the world.
D. THE PROPHETIC SIDE OF THE GREAT FLOOD
Christ teaches that the days before the rapture and the Tribulation will be like the days of Noah. We are living in the "days of Noah" now.
But keep in mind that "the days of Noah" were also days of witness. In fact, God had told Enoch that judgment was coming, and he warned the people. And for the last 120 years of that period, Noah was preaching and preparing the ark. Today, God warns that judgment is coming, but few listen, and even fewer believe.
E. WHO'LL STOP THE RAIN?
Genesis 8:1-5 Then God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the animals that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters subsided. 2 The fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were also stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained. 3 And the waters receded continually from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters decreased. 4 Then the ark rested in the seventh month, the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat. 5 And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month. In the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen.
It is not that God forgot Noah and left on His heavenly faucet. I've done that a few times and flooded my backyard and street. But He doesn't have GVM syndrome. GVM stands for 'Green Valley Moment'. God never forgot Noah. So who'll stop the rain? God!
God brought His big blow dryer and dries up the waters from the earth.
F. THE RAVEN AND THE DOVE
Genesis 8:6-12 So it came to pass, at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made. 7 Then he sent out a raven, which kept going to and fro until the waters had dried up from the earth. 8 He also sent out from himself a dove, to see if the waters had receded from the face of the ground. 9 But the dove found no resting place for the sole of her foot, and she returned into the ark to him, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand and took her, and drew her into the ark to himself. 10 And he waited yet another seven days, and again he sent the dove out from the ark. 11 Then the dove came to him in the evening, and behold, a freshly plucked olive leaf was in her mouth; and Noah knew that the waters had receded from the earth. 12 So he waited yet another seven days and sent out the dove, which did not return again to him anymore.
What do you know? Noah found his new hobby - bird watching.
Why didn't the raven come back? The raven was classified as an unclean bird according to the law of God in the OT.
The raven went out into a judged world, but he found a feast in the dead carcass because that is the thing he lived on. The bloated carcass of an elephant would have made him a banquet. That is the picture of the old nature of man. The old nature loves the things of the world and feasts on them. But the problem is that what we sow into flesh, we shall reap from flesh.
The dove is a clean bird in Scripture. The dove went out into a judged world, but she found no rest, no satisfaction, and she returned to the ark. The dove represents the believer in the world.
1 John 2:15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
Let me ask you this very personal question: What kind of bird are you? Are you a raven or a dove? If you are a child of God, you have both natures - but which one are you living in today? Do you love the things of God, or the world?
G. OUTSIDE, EVERYONE
Genesis 8:13-19 And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and indeed the surface of the ground was dry. 14 And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dried. 15 Then God spoke to Noah, saying, 16 "Go out of the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons' wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you: birds and cattle and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, so that they may abound on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth." 18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him. 19 Every animal, every creeping thing, every bird, and whatever creeps on the earth, according to their families, went out of the ark.
Just a side note: The Titanic was built by professionals, but Noah's ark was built by amateurs. Guess which ship sunk.
Genesis 8:20-22 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in His heart, "I will never again curse the ground for man's sake, although the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done. 22 "While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease."
Noah's first act after leaving the ark was not kissing the ground, but worshiping God through sacrifices. His gratitude and admiration of God's greatness and deliverance lead him to worship God.
I think God loves a barbecue. More pleasing to God than the smell of the sacrifice was the obedient heart of Noah in his sacrifice.
H. APPLICATIONS
1) We must remember that God gives plenty of warnings, but eventually His patience ends and judgment comes.
2) True faith in God leads to obedience to Him.
3)