Bible in a Year: Genesis
Monday - Genesis Chapters 1-3
Our first step in our journey together! It’s my hope and prayer that as we begin this New Year, that God’s Word will speak to us in new and amazing ways. In Genesis 1-3 we see three distinct creation stories. In Chapter 1 we see where God created the Heavens and the Earth in seven days. In the very first verses we see a concept of the Holy Trinity. In Genesis 1:1-2 we read, “while a wind from God[b] swept over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.”
God the Creator, God the Holy Spirit and God the Word.
I’d like to read to you John 1:1-5 from the New Testament. “1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being 4 in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit have existed before the universe was created. Our God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.
In Chapter 2 of Genesis we see a second creation story. A more detailed creation of humans. It’s interesting to note that the name Adam literally means “from the earth.” Eve means “breath of life.”
In Chapter 3 of Genesis, we get another creation story of sorts. That of how humans became sinful. In this story, we see Satan in the guise of a serpent, tempting Adam and Eve with the forbidden fruit of know what is right and wrong. In this chapter we see a prophecy of Jesus coming into the world to crush sin.
I want to point out a truth that we still hold true. After eating of the forbidden fruit and succumbing to temptation by Satan, God could have just sent Adam and Eve on their way. But instead, God looked at their misery and showed an act of mercy. In Verse 3:21 we read, “21 And the Lord God made garments of skins for the man and for his wife, and clothed them.” Even though Adam and Eve have disobeyed God, God still chooses to care for them. And God has never stopped providing for us since.
As we start this New Year together, remember to count the blessings that God has given to you.
Let’s pray.
Glorious God, we ask that you please make our year a happy one! Not by shielding us from all sorrows and pain, But by strengthening us to bear it, as it comes;
Not by making our paths easy, But by making us sturdy to travel any path; Not by taking hardships from us, But by taking fear from our hearts; Not by granting us unbroken sunshine, But by keeping our faces bright, even in the shadows; and Not by making our lives always pleasant, But by showing us when people and their causes need us most, and by making us anxious to be there to help. Heavenly Father, we pray this day for your love, peace, hope and joy to us all for the year ahead. In Christ’s name we pray. AMEN
Tuesday: Genesis Chapters. 4-11
In these chapters we see the fruit of Adam and Eve’s sin. In Chapter 4 we see where sin takes a bloody turn with the story of Cain and Abel. The most important verse is 4:7. 6 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 is lurking at the door; its desire is for you, but you must master it.”
There’s been a lot of talk about why God didn’t accept Cain’s offering. I’ve heard all kinds of theories from God is not a vegetarian to only a blood sacrifice could atone for sin. In my Bible studies you’ll often hear me say that our number one rule is to not make things up and let the Bible explain the Bible. The Bible tells us why God didn’t accept Cain’s offering. In 1 John 3: 12 We must not be like Cain who was from the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother’s righteous.
God didn’t accept Cain’s offering simply because of what was in Cain’s heart. Jesus often talked about what was in people’s heart as being the most important part of worship. In Matthew 15, Jesus says, 18 But what goes out of the mouth comes from the heart. And that’s what contaminates a person in God’s sight. 19 Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adultery, sexual sins, thefts, false testimonies, and insults. 20 These contaminate a person in God’s sight.
Satan was tempting both Cain and Abel. Cain just gave in.
In Chapters 5-6 we see the first genealogy in the Bible. It’s important to note that in ancient times, many people were defined by their ancestors. In the New Testament Gospels of Matthew and Luke we see where the genealogy of Jesus is given to us to stress that Jesus is the Messiah. We’ll get more into genealogies later and their importance in the Bible’s theology.
Starting in Chapter 6-9 we see where sinfulness has reached its peak. People are doing horrible things and there isn’t any redemption in sight. God found one righteous person, Noah, among the sinfulness. All throughout the narrative of Noah and the Ark, I think the most important thing is that the Bible says over and over that “Noah did everything the Lord commanded.” Bonus point question. Can you figure out how long Noah was on the Ark? We all assume it was 40 days, but look again. The answer is actually about a year. In Chapters 9-11 we again see a genealogy. This genealogy shows how the various nations and languages were formed.
There is a very important theme that we need to understand in this genealogy. In Chapter 9:1 we read, “Then God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.” Because of the righteousness of one man, the whole world became blessed. Noah’s sons and their descendants carried that blessing through inheritance to all of the world.
This same kind of Covenant was made to each of us as well. Because of the righteousness of one man, Jesus, the whole world has been blessed.
Let’s pray
Gracious Lord. As we read about the sinfulness of this world from Cain to all of his descendants, we are reminded that we too have sinful natures. It is only because of the righteousness of Jesus that we are made whole. Jesus was our sacrifice and atonement for sins. And with Jesus you established and blessed the world in eternal ways. We thank you for the covenants you have made with us and we pray that your everlasting lovingkindness will go before us this day. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.
Wednesday Genesis Chapters. 12-25
Genesis chapter 12 starts the first important theological journey in the Bible. This is the story of Abraham. Chapter 12:1-2 begins what is known as the Abrahamic Covenant. 12 The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your land, your family, and your father’s household for the land that I will show you. 2 I will make of you a great nation and will bless you. I will make your name respected, and you will be a blessing.”
We’ll talk a lot about this Covenant as we read the Old Testament. The Covenant is the promise God made to Abraham to be the father of many nations.
Chapters 12-14 talk about Abraham’s journeys into the new land God had promised. In chapter 15 we again get a repeat of the Covenant.
In chapter 16 we see where Abraham gets tired of waiting for the promise of an heir and has a child through a servant Hagar. Hagar had a son named Ishmael and it is through Ishmael that the Islamic prophet Muhammund traces his lineage to.
In verse 18:14 we see how God always keeps promises, even when we doubt. It says, “14 Is anything too difficult for the Lord? When I return to you about this time next year, Sarah will have a son.”
In chapter 19 we see the story of Sodom and Gamorrah and in Chapter 21, God’s promise to Abraham is kept with the birth of Issac. In chapter 25, the narrative starts to shift from Abraham to his son Issac.
I know this was a big section of reading, but it was important to the story of Abraham and his family in one reading. It is with this story that we see the rest of the Bible take shape. This starts what is called the Patrician lineage. It is through the story of Abraham and his sons that the nation of Israel comes into being. And it with the covenant made with Abraham that the Israelites become a chosen nation by God. Just as with Abraham who had a cycle from holiness to sin to holiness, the Israelites continue with that same cycle. It is a recurring theme throughout the Bible. And it reminds us that when left to our own devices we fail at life. But through God, all things are possible.
Let’s pray.
Dear Jesus. As we read the story of Abraham and Lot we come to understand that we can do nothing good on our own. It is only by Your Love that we can truly love others and only by your plan that we can live lives filled with happiness. We pray today that your love will shine through and we will see your plan for us come alive. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.
Thursday Genesis Chapters 26-36
In Chapter 26 we see where God renews his covenant with Issac (vs. 4-5). 4 I will give you as many descendants as the stars in the sky, and I will give your descendants all of these lands. All of the nations of the earth will be blessed because of your descendants. 5 I will do this because Abraham obeyed me and kept my orders, my commandments, my statutes, and my instructions.
All throughout the Old Testament we see where a driving part of the narrative is famine. Abraham experienced a famine as did Issac. In fact there are at least 13 famines that we see in the Old Testament. In many cases, the people of Israel journey to Egypt to escape the famine. Egypt is known for the fertile lands that is fed by the Nile river and a place where refugees often went.
When Jesus was born, there was a spiritual famine that gripped Israel. In order to flee persecution, Joseph, Mary and Jesus also fled to Egypt.
In Chapter 28 we see the narrative again switch from Issac to his sons Jacob and Esau. In Chapter 29 we get a wonderful story of Jacob meeting his wife Rachel. Verse 29:11 shows that there really is love at first sight. 10 When Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his uncle, and the flock of Laban, Jacob came up, rolled the stone from the well’s opening, and watered the flock of his uncle Laban. 11 Jacob kissed Rachel and wept aloud.
Jacob’s love for Rachel continued for years and he would not leave Laban’s household until he could marry her. But, again we see where sin enters in the story and Jacob has a lot of children because Rachel didn’t think God would let her conceive. But then in chapter 30 we see where Rachel has Joseph. Chapters 31-36 continue the story of Jacob and Esau. There is one particular part that I want to talk about. In Chapter 35, we get a story of how God told Jacob to get rid of all the idols that his entourage worshipped and to build an altar. We read, 4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods that were in their possession and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob buried them under the oak near Shechem 5 and they started on their journey.
The Oak at Shechem will play a pivotal role in in the history of the Israelites. At this oak tree, God actually appeared to Abraham. In Genesis 12:6-7 we read, 6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the sacred place at Shechem, at the oak of Moreh. 7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I give this land to your descendants,” so Abram built an altar there to the Lord who appeared to him.
It was at this oak at Shechem that Jacob buried the idols and made a new covenant with God. This oak tree will play an important role in many of our Bible stories. And it reminds us that some of the most important things in life happen in the simplest of places. Like standing under a tree and talking with God.
Let’s pray
Gracious Lord, even though you don’t speak to us in mighty ways like you did with Abraham or Jacob, we still hear you calling to us today. We pray that in our humble trappings, whether it be under a tree or in our living rooms, that as we come to you today in prayer that you will hear our pleas. Forgive us and empower us so that we can help change this world. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.
Friday Genesis Chapters 37-50
In Chapter 37 we see our narrative in Genesis shift for the final time. Now the story focuses on Jacob’s son Joseph. We see how Joseph is rejected by his brothers because of his coat of many colors and then sold into slavery in Egypt. Chapters 37-42 tells us how Joseph remained true to God and was able to rise to a position of power in Egypt despite hardships. In Chapter 42 we see that a famine once again drives Joseph family to Egypt and we learn the power of forgiveness through Joseph in 45:4-8. In Chapter 49 we see Jacob’s final words and in Chapter 50, we leave the brothers of Israel in Egypt and we’re left with the final promise, a reminder of the Abrahamic Covenant in 50:24.
The twelve tribes of Israel were the sons of Jacob. Jacob’s final blessing in chapter 49 lays the foundation for what will happen to the tribes in the future.
49 Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather around. I want to tell you what you can expect in the days to come.”
2 Come together, listen sons of Jacob,
listen to Israel your father.
3-4 Reuben, you’re my firstborn,
my strength, first proof of my manhood,
at the top in honor and at the top in power,
But like a bucket of water spilled,
you’ll be at the top no more,
Because you climbed into your father’s marriage bed,
mounting that couch, and you defiled it.
5-6 Simeon and Levi are two of a kind,
ready to fight at the drop of a hat.
I don’t want anything to do with their vendettas,
want no part in their bitter feuds;
They kill men in fits of temper,
slash oxen on a whim.
7 A curse on their uncontrolled anger,
on their indiscriminate wrath.
I’ll throw them out with the trash;
I’ll shred and scatter them like confetti throughout Israel.
8-12 You, Judah, your brothers will praise you:
Your fingers on your enemies’ throat,
while your brothers honor you.
You’re a lion’s cub, Judah,
home fresh from the kill, my son.
Look at him, crouched like a lion, king of beasts;
who dares mess with him?
The scepter shall not leave Judah;
he’ll keep a firm grip on the command staff
Until the ultimate ruler comes
and the nations obey him.
He’ll tie up his donkey to the grapevine,
his purebred prize to a sturdy branch.
He will wash his shirt in wine
and his cloak in the blood of grapes,
His eyes will be darker than wine,
his teeth whiter than milk.
13 Zebulun settles down on the seashore;
he’s a safe harbor for ships,
right alongside Sidon.
14-15 Issachar is one tough donkey
crouching between the corrals;
When he saw how good the place was,
how pleasant the country,
He gave up his freedom
and went to work as a slave.
16-17 Dan will handle matters of justice for his people;
he will hold his own just fine among the tribes of Israel.
Dan is only a small snake in the grass,
a lethal serpent in ambush by the road
When he strikes a horse in the heel,
and brings its huge rider crashing down.
18 I wait in hope
for your salvation, God.
19 Gad will be attacked by bandits,
but he will trip them up.
20 Asher will become famous for rich foods,
candies and sweets fit for kings.
21-26 Naphtali is a deer running free
that gives birth to lovely fawns.
Joseph is a wild donkey,
a wild donkey by a spring,
spirited donkeys on a hill.
The archers with malice attacked,
shooting their hate-tipped arrows;
But he held steady under fire,
his bow firm, his arms limber,
With the backing of the Champion of Jacob,
the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel.
The God of your father—may he help you!
And may The Strong God—may he give you his blessings,
Blessings tumbling out of the skies,
blessings bursting up from the Earth—
blessings of breasts and womb.
May the blessings of your father
exceed the blessings of the ancient mountains,
surpass the delights of the eternal hills;
May they rest on the head of Joseph,
on the brow of the one consecrated among his brothers.
27 Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;
all morning he gorges on his kill,
at evening divides up what’s left over.
28 All these are the tribes of Israel, the twelve tribes. And this is what their father said to them as he blessed them, blessing each one with his own special farewell blessing.
