Many
years ago, I shared the teaching responsibility of a men’s Bible
study. The entire church was interrupted by the Pastor, who felt we
needed to walk everyone through Rick Warren’s The Story, a pathetic
overview of the Bible. You would be right if you got the sense that I
was disgusted. Since we each had a copy of this book, I made some
notes that might assist me in teaching and put them on my website.
This was posted in 2014 when I did not use the Grammarly program
to check my grammar. After a recent check of my statistics, I saw
that someone had pulled up this excessive rant, prompting me to fix
it. If you invested the time to read all 18 pages, I am chopping this up and extending it by one chapter.
Because
“The Story” covers many subjects quickly, it is difficult to do a
focused bible study when dealing with many topics over 11 chapters.
That being said, I will attempt to focus on one aspect at a time.
Genesis 1
God creates heaven
and earth
“In
the
beginning God created the heavens and the earth,”
(Genesis 1:1 LSV)
Why
is it important to know how things began?
Perhaps
because it shows original intent, or, once everything goes bad, it
demonstrates that the creator has a plan.
God creates man in
his own image, blesses him
“Then
God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness! Let
them rule over the fish of the sea, over the flying creatures of the
sky, over the livestock, over the whole earth, and over every
crawling creature that crawls on the land.”
(Genesis
1:26
TLV)
Several
things dominate this passage.
Ah,
but to whom?
If we work off the
assumption that God, like Allah, is a standalone entity, then this
makes no sense. The writer has to be referring to God, Jesus, and the
Holy Spirit. Knowing that I am writing these notes to followers of
Christ, then it seems safe to believe that you understand that God
is a triune entity and that Jesus Christ – the Word of God –
has made himself known to us in the body of a man.
In
unity, from the beginning of time, there
have been three.
How
does that affect how I understand creation?
It
does not, unless, as I consider what the image of God was, I began to
understand that this has little to do with a physical body, and is
focused
more on the character and attributes of the creator.
The
Apostle John makes it very clear that Jesus
was right there in the beginning.
“In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God.” John
1:1
Jesus
indicates that the Holy Spirit was there.
“And
the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face
of the deep. And
the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” Genesis 1:2
KJV
And,
“But
when the
Comforter
is come, whom
I will send
unto you
from the Father,
even the Spirit of truth, which proceeds from the Father, he shall
testify of me:”
(John 15:26 KJV)
As
for making “man
in our image, and likeness.”
Paul
wrote, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, about man when he
said,
“…You
were created to be like God,
and so you must please him and be truly holy.” (Ephesians
4:24
CEV)
The
Hebrew word for image
tselem
- conveys multiple possibilities. Tseh’-lem
– From
an unused root meaning to shade;
a phantom,
that is, (figuratively) illusion,
resemblance;
hence a
representative figure,
especially an idol:
If
man was only a shadow, then he is not an exacting duplicate of God
but a mere representation, something that vaguely resembles the
creator. Seeing as man
is made in all three aspects (shade,
resemblance, and representative figure),
how could you pin down one specific thing to define what the man
looked like without
a body.
The
point to this, the
overarching theme I see here, is that
God created someone that was so much like him that it would be
ridiculous to think that this man did not walk in constant
communication with the Father.
I
am stunned by God as he opens my eyes, and I begin to see things I
have never seen before. Examples
of this would be: Jesus, the last Adam, created in the image of God,
and untainted by the sin prevalent in the world, walked this earth,
in full view of the disciples, in perfect communion with the Father.
The other is Enoch. Enoch
learned how to walk in perfect harmony with the Father and walked off
the earth. This
freedom of communication is the atmosphere that Adam was placed in.
Genesis 2
The
book, The Story asks the question:
Why
did God put the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the garden?
One
of the things that run through my mind as I look at the events of
man's creation is: if the human is so closely and intimately made in God’s
image and apparently placed here so that God would have someone to
talk with, what
separates us, and makes us something other than mere slaves?
The
answer to that question has freedom written all over it.
We
are free to choose whom we will love and how we will respond when
love is shown to us. The
other side of this coin is how God will continue to respond to us,
even when we break off communication.
Man
had complete knowledge of good, for that is part of the character
of God, as is love, but he had no knowledge of bad; there was nothing
inhibiting or tainting man’s relationship with the creator.
So man was free to exhibit love toward God or ignore Him. Certainly, the fruit of that tree was a test, but what you don't see or know is how many years were they able to ignore it?
Man is placed in the
garden, and the
fruit of the tree of knowledge
is the only forbidden thing.
“Then
Adonai Elohim took the man and gave him rest in the Garden of Eden in
order to cultivate and watch over it. (16) Then Adonai
Elohim commanded the man saying, “From all the trees of the garden, you are most welcome to eat. (17) But of the Tree of the
Knowledge of Good and Evil you must not eat. For when you eat from
it, you most assuredly will die!” Genesis
2:15-17
TLV
Man
only has one demand placed upon him; do not eat the fruit of that
tree!
Does
it get any better than this?
Well,
yes. Having an intimate union with God is, even in God’s mind, not
enough, and so God made a woman for him.
Genesis 3
The
serpent deceives Eve
“Now
the
serpent was more cunning than any creature of the field
which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, "Is it
true that God has said, 'You shall not eat of any tree of the
garden?' " Genesis
3:1
AFV
My
pastor recently said, “we don't know where Adam was during this
time.” Oh really!
Adam
was standing right there,
watching the entire process, hearing everything the dragon said, and
never said a word in defiance.
“Now
the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a
thing of lust for the eyes, and that the tree was desirable for
imparting wisdom. So she took of its fruit and she ate. She
also gave to her husband who was with her and he ate.
Then the eyes of both of them were opened and they knew that they
were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made for themselves
loin-coverings.” (Genesis
3:6-7
TLV)
Adam
was very clear about what God had told him, and there were NO issues
with his memory, and he is alone with the animals. Adam, in time, of
course, after she was cloned from his rib, told Eve about the only
rule they had, and there is no doubt in my mind she understood what
he said and where that information came from. But keep in mind that
deception
is a twisting of the truth,
and those who are not established in their relationship with the
Father seem to be the quickest to fall.
How
does that explain Adam being sucked into this?
It
does not, but what it does demonstrate is that God
has to be consistent with His actions.
(We
will see God demonstrating His intent and character throughout the
Old Testament. He says to both Noah, and then Abram. God typically
said “as
for me”,
indicating that no matter what happens I will uphold my end of this
contract.)
I
have heard pathetic explanations about the fall of man in the garden,
told in so many perverted ways, and none of them make any sense to
me.
Adam
has, at this point, demonstrated selfishness
and defiance
for the first time and he did what he wanted. In contrast, Jesus
told us that He only did what the Father told him.
Think about the alternatives. Adam heard those words from God and
knows full well that Eve will die, and he watched her bite
wholeheartedly into that fruit without wincing.
Could
God make another Eve, as He had made the first one?
Well
certainly, but
there is a huge issue with the man trusting what the Father had said,
and he had just demonstrated that he didn't trust God anymore.
Here
is a tainted human piece of logic. God, on the other hand, can use any
or all methods of death to fulfill His promise; and lacking specific
information, we do not know if Adam fully understood what those words
concerning death meant.
Also
think about how it appears that nothing had ever been killed before
God did it, and it might be an entirely new concept to them. For all
Adam knows she could merely drop dead in the next few seconds. Oh,
they died, as both, immediately in their spirits, as the lights of
this open communication with the Father went out, and they began to
deteriorate immediately in ways they slowly began to perceive.
“The
LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed
them.” (Genesis
3:21
NASB)
Some,
you would think, prefer an angry, vengeful God, and this would have
been a good time for it, if
that was his character,
but he does not pour out His hot anger on them. What we do see is
that God is entirely consistent with His nature and character, and
this is something that we need to perceive as we read about the
events of creation and the beginnings of man.
At
this point, (I
may have seen this in “The Story” but I indicated that it was a
caption from the NIV. I have four versions of the NIV and none of
them say this.)
the
next segment shows God arraigning them as though they had been
convicted in a criminal court.
Watch
what happens,
and I will show you differently.
“Then
the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was
walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the
LORD God among the trees of the garden. But
the LORD God called to the man,
"Where
are you?"
He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid
because I was naked, so I hid.”
(Genesis
3:8-10
TNIV)
God
is not arraigning anyone. In fact, He is acting completely within his
unchangeable character; He is acting in love toward that, which is a
replica of him, and showing them respect; but there is one huge
change, and the
only ones demonstrating the effects of the change that sin brought,
is His creation
as
suddenly
the man, who had been naked and not ashamed, is now hiding, not only
from God but from each other as well.
“And
he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from
the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" (Genesis
3:11
TNIV)
I
fully expect Adam to understand what is being said because God spoke
directly to the man. But it is a peculiar statement, at best, if God
did not expect Eve to know the rules. You see, the problem is that
He did expect her to know, not like an angry father, who expected you
to somehow absorb his thought processes. God told Adam, who had
dominion over the earth and was, therefore, God's representative
here on earth, and Adam conveyed this information to Eve. As far as
God was concerned, she had been told and there could be no excuses.
Well, that sounds harsh, and if it was like that then a full and
brutal punishment would be in order; but that IS NOT what God did. He
showed mercy, grace, and punishment by upholding His word.
I
suppose many generations of misunderstanding and tradition have
taught us that God is always ready to strike us down, but what
if what we see here is God merely asking questions and reasonable
questions at that. (Try
to maintain one clear thing here, you are not getting anything past
God, and He already knows the answer before He asks, so lying is not
an appropriate response.)
Did
Eve just stand there dumbfounded as she listened to God's word to
them?
We
do not know, but the hesitation allowed for the newly found damage to
manifest in Adam when He said:
“The
man answered, “That
woman, the one you gave me, gave me some fruit from the tree, and I
ate it.”
(Genesis
3:12
GW)
Well, that was pathetic. Now we see something close to what I deem anger.
One
of the things you cannot deny is that
God can and does get angry, but at whom?
The serpent is
cursed
“So
the LORD God said to the snake, “Because
you have done this,
You are cursed more than all the wild or domestic animals. You will
crawl on your belly. You will be the lowest of animals as long as you
live.” (Genesis
3:14
GW)
There
is good news and bad news.
The
promised seed
“And
I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your
offspring and her Offspring; He will bruise and tread your head
underfoot, and you will lie in wait and bruise His heel.”
[Gal.
4:4.]
(Genesis
3:15 AMP)
Enmity?
Webster's dictionary tells us that it is “The
quality of being an
enemy;
the opposite of friendship; ill will; hatred;
unfriendly dispositions; malevolence.”
In short, Satan hates us.
“But
when the time arrived that was set by God the Father, God sent his
Son, born among us of a woman, born under the conditions of the law
so that he might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the
law.”
(Galatians
4:4
MSG)
None
of this caught God by surprise.
How
would you have played a game of chess, over a period of years, with
such vast dimensions, all the way out to the last winning move,
without putting tremendous thought into it?
(It
is possible that God had this all mapped out in his head in seconds.)
Giving
His “representative
figure”
the
freedom to make choices almost makes you think that there had to have
been an alternate plan, or was
this the plan from the very beginning.
Apparently, God
did not intend to let such a destructive force run havoc, not against
Him and His creation for all eternity;
that would have been contrary to the original design and out of
character.
While
there may be a good chewing out going on here, there is also the God
I have come to understand, giving Eve the hope
that her
seed will be the one that brings the enemy his defeat.
The
new way of life Adam and Eve brought upon themselves will soon be
filled with pain, murder, jealousy, and the promise of hope, much
like the covenant God made with Abraham.
Expelled
from paradise, the repercussions of man’s selfishness permeated
everything, and the death clock immediately began counting down; under
the limitations of that clock and now recorded time, two sons are
born.
There
are many horrid aspects to consider.
The
outcome of their sin, that God
continues to discuss:
such as pain in childbirth, and Adam now having to toil to get the
land to produce. But I refuse to believe that they did not have an
understanding of what God was talking about when he speaks of
crushing and bruising, or as He kills the animals necessary to make
the clothing they needed. God
made clothing for them.
He did it in such a manner that they, too, would know-how and understand
the implications behind what He did. This is not made explicit in
scripture, but enough clues are given that allow us to ascertain what
God did, for in a short time, we will see both Cain and Abel making
sacrifices. One son does it right and is accepted, and the other turns
his jealousy inward, with a devastating result.
