The book of Genesis describes how God created the the Universe. It is the book of the beginning and sets the scene for the battle of the hearts and minds of mankind. It begins by telling how God made the inanimate elements of the universe and then began his work on the categories of life. He called all things into being by his voice and it took six days to complete. God was pleased with creation and he rested on the seventh day.
When the creation was finished God focused on man and had him name all of the different species. Man was given dominion over all of the new creation. God saw that man was alone and made him a companion woman because he did not want man to be alone. Man and Woman lived in a garden that God had made for them called the Garden of Eden. They had everything they needed. Trees and fruit of all kinds to eat and lived in constant communion with God. Life was idyllic.
Then suddenly an antagonist entered the Garden of Eden. Called the Serpent and almost certainly the incarnation of Satan. The enemy unfurled his intrigue on Eve by asking her about God’s instructions regarding eating the fruit of the trees of the garden. Eve relayed that they could eat freely of the fruits of the garden save the tree at the centre which they were not to eat or they would surely die. He then proceeded to paint God as villain saying that “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3 verses 4 - 5
This was an absolute distortion of the facts because God knew that if Adam and Eve ate of the fruit of the tree of Knowledge that in disobeying God the spiritual connection with him would be severed and they would be eternally separated from God. Physical death would not be immediate but eventually they would die physically as well.
And so sin had entered into the creation and the battle for the hearts and minds of mankind had begun in earnest. Those who followed God walked in righteousness and sought the path that would bring them back to God. Those who listened instead to the subtle lies of the evil one were tempted into self interest, self gratification and the worship of self. This according to those who walk in darkness was the sacred wisdom on the path to so called enlightenment. Known generally as enslavement to wickedness and the path to unrighteousness. The failure to understand what Adam and Eve had lost at the fall of man that sorry day in the garden.
The next major event highlighted the divide between those who follow righteousness and those who turned away from God. When giving sacrifice to God Abel brought the best of his flock as an offering and Cain brought his crops as an offering and God accepted Abel’s offering but rejected Cain’s offering. In the resulting dispute Cain killed Abel and God banished him. This marked the division between the Sons of God and the Son’s of Men. From this point forward the descendants of Seth, Abel’s younger brother, followed God and the descendants of Cain followed Satan and worshiped other Gods.
Then there came intermarriage between the two lines and eventually after several hundred years the only family still walking in righteousness was the family of Noah. God instructed Noah to build an Ark and prepare for judgment upon the Earth. This was because every intent of the hearts of men was only evil continually and God wished he had never made them. However, he prepared a path of salvation through Noah and the Ark.
After the Great Flood gave mankind a second chance promising never to bring a flood upon the Earth again. God made a covenant with Noah that he would never flood the Earth again and the sign of the covenant is the rainbow seen in the clouds. The fear of man was put into all of the animals and every moving thing and green herb was to be food for man. They were not to eat the blood as life is in the blood and they were not to kill their fellow man. This was a period of human government and Noah and his family were instructed to go forth and multiply upon the Earth.
It didn’t take long for man to go back to the old evil ways and soon the enemy had him building a tower to reach the heavens called the Tower of Babel. A united secular government was the aim and God would not tolerate it so he confused the language and caused the people to move away to form their own tribes and nations.
Then we enter into the time of the Patriarchs and God called Abram out of the city of Ur of the Chaldees to move to the land of Canaan. Abram brought with him Sarai his wife and Lot his nephew and all of his household. God made a covenant with Abram renaming him Abraham and promising to make him into a great nation with descendants as numerous as the sands in the desert.
There was a question of faith as Sarai (renamed Sarah), was very old and felt she couldn’t conceive. Her handmaiden Hagar came into the scenario and brought forth a son called Ishmael. She was cast out but God founded a great nation on Ishmael. Sarah then conceived and brought forth a son called Isaac whom God blessed and with Rebekah his wife brought forth Jacob after whose sons the twelve tribes of Israel are named. God renamed Jacob as Israel and thus the nation of Israel was begun.
Genesis ends with Jacob’s son Joseph being sold into slavery by his brothers and ending up in Egypt where he eventually became a leader of the nation of Egypt. He was a prophet and God warns him to use seven good years to store food for seven years of famine. His brothers come to Egypt to get food and were reunited with Joseph. Jacob and the entire household relocate to Egypt and we leave them there in apparent contentment.
The journey of God’s people continues in the book of Exodus and is revealed in the sixty six books that make up the Holy Bible. There you will learn that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, that whosoever believes on him shall not perish but inherit eternal life. You need to understand that you are not alone in needing his forgiveness. Roman’s 3:10 “There is none righteous, not even one.” Roman’s 3:23 “For all have sinned and all fall short of the glory of God.” Roman’s 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” So won’t you believe on him that your sins may be forgiven and that you may receive the free gift of God which is eternal life Christ Jesus our Lord? Important information that can secure your eternal destiny.
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