Jul 11

Genesis 3:1-24
Memorise Genesis 3:15
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.”

The name ‘genesis’ literally means the beginning or origin of anything, and that is basically what this book is all about. This is the first book of the Bible, and teaches us about the beginning of beginnings. It spans a period of about two thousand years, highly significant in the history not just the nation Israel, but of man’s existence. It recounts the majestic creation of the universe; the introduction of man onto this Earth; and the wonderful relationship that God had with Adam and Eve in the beautiful Garden of Eden. But then it also narrates the fall of Man, where sin entered into the world through Adam and Eve’s rebellion and succumbing to the deceit of Satan (Genesis 3). It tracks how generations of patriarchs lived and died (Genesis 4), until a point where the wickedness of man was so great in the earth, and their thoughts were evil continually (Genesis 6:5). As a result, God had to judge the whole world through a global flood that destroyed every living substance upon the face of the ground (Genesis 7:23).

Yet amidst all this death and destruction, God gave a message of hope. Just as Genesis gave us the origin of sin, it also revealed to us the plan of Salvation. As God delivered the verdict of His judgment upon the sin of Adam and Eve, He also gave them the first gospel in Genesis 3:15, that the seed of the woman would bruise the head of the serpent. This described how a descendant of Eve, a second Adam, would come to overcome the Devil, to destroy sin and the curse of sin, and grant life and salvation to mankind. Do you realize the phrase “seed of a woman” points to the Virgin Birth? This would be the first of many revelations that God would give His people in the Old Testament, to slowly reveal to them what His divine plan of salvation is to be. Do study this unfolding revelation of redemption!

Through the rest of the book of Genesis, God focuses His attention on tracing the lineage of this seed from Adam, through Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Judah. God directs history, guiding these patriarchs and teaching them faith, setting in motion processes that would culminate in the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ thousands of years later.

Thought: Genesis is the book of beginnings.
Prayer: Lord, help me to understand and learn the many truths found in the book of Genesis.