At our church we have begun a 42 week series where we will be doing an over-view of all of Scripture from Genesis to Revelation! Throughout these 42 weeks we are encouraging the people at Bethel to follow the Bible reading plan which will bring us all through the whole Bible chronologically over the next 42 weeks! Each week at Bethel the texts that we read during the week is what the sermon will be based on. As a part of this series we are giving people opportunities to ask questions about what they are reading that they would like answered. So every Thursday on this blog myself, alongside the elders, will seek to answer those questions the best we can! So here we go for the questions we received on Genesis 1-11.
Question #1: What does God mean by saying if you do well you will be accepted in Genesis 4:7? (Answered by Cash Ujah: Sunday school teacher and considering becoming an elder at Bethel).
The question is somewhat misleading. As we read the verse, according to ESV, “if you do well, will you not be accepted?” According to NIV, “If you do what is right, will you not be accepted?” According to KJV, If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?” Hence, rather than a statement that hinges on “well” as the operative word, it is more of a question posed by God to Cain regarding his attitude. Therefore, God was not saying doing well (in health, in giving, in lifestyle), rather, doing well in God. The scripture leads us to believe that our worship and not “work-ship” is what God deserves. Thus, what is our attitude towards God? What is our attitude towards prayer? What is our attitude towards living in His word? If you do what is right (well), will you not be accepted? In Philippians 4: 8, it concludes the verse by saying, according to ESV, ‘If there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.’ According to NIV, ‘If anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.’ What could embody truth, nobility, righteousness, pureness, loveliness, and admiration that we should think about other than in Him (our Father)? Philippians 3: 7 – 10 “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,”
God’s question to Cain, is more to Cain’s heart, his attitude, his focus, his resolute in God. Put differently to Cain, If you believe in Me (GOD) and doing what is acceptable and pleasing to Me (GOD), will your offering not be accepted?
2.) Genesis 1:26: "Make man in our image" who is the "our" God referring to? (Answered by Dave Graves: Elder).
“Our” refers to the Trinity. All parts of the Godhead — Father, Son and Holy Spirit — have always existed. Numerous verses teach this. A couple of the more notable: John 1:14 — The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We have seen his glory. The glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. Colossians 1:15-20 — The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Other passages to consider would be Genesis 1:2 and John 1:1-5.
3.) How do I apply and understand the Bible? How can I teach the Bible to my pre-school aged child? (Answered by Josh Robertson).
The very quick answer is that we encourage people to use the COMA method of Bible Study. COMA stands for Context, Observation, Meaning, and Application. So you would read a given text using these four parts of Bible study. Let's very briefly take Genesis chapter 4 as an example of this.
First, you would want to determine the context of Genesis 4. You would ask questions such as where in the Bible is this chapter (first book of the Bible) how does it relate to other parts of the Bible (it tells us the beginning of how things came to be) what happened in the previous couple chapters (Genesis 1-2 tell us the story of creation, Genesis 3 tells us of the fall and immediate before this chapter they are sent out of the garden). So that gives you a bit of an idea what you do with context. You are trying to determine how the section of Scripture you are looking at ties into other sections around it and into the Bible as a whole. In context you are also trying to determine who wrote the book, who was the book written to, what was life like for those receiving the book at that time, etc. Next is observation. This is pretty straightforward and fun part of COMA. You are simply reading the text and writing down (or typing) what you are seeing. So I would begin to note things such as: Cain and Abel were Adam and Eve's kids, God rejected Cain's offering and Cain was upset about that. I would note that God tells Cain that sin is crouching at his door and its desire is to rule over Cain. I would note the consequences given to Cain after he kills his brother. I would notice that Cain had a son named Enoch. I would note in the genealogy that there is an individual born in the line of Cain named Lamech who is rejoicing in killing two men and that his revenge should be greater than Cain's. I would also note that Adam and Eve had another son named Seth. That is just a glimpse of what observation would look like in chapter 4. You are just observing and recording what you are seeing. You are not interpreting things at this point, you are not trying to answer questions, you are simply trying to take in as much information as you can on the text you are studying. Next is meaning. After you have determined the context, made a bunch of observations, you are reading to begin to determine the meaning of the text. What does it mean? We could spend a lot of time on this one but for the sake of space here are at least two things I do in the meaning section. First, I attempt to answer these three questions: What does this passage teach me about God? Second, what does this passage teach me about man and woman (humanity) and as result me. Third, what does this passage teach (or foreshadow) about Jesus? For example I would say that this passage teaches that even outside the garden God still expects us to honor him. What it teaches about humanity is that humanity is deeply sinful outside of the garden and it impacts human relationships and our relationship with God. What it teaches about Jesus- I would say this passage demonstrates the need for Jesus as it becomes clear how quickly sin begins to destroy people, families, and culture outside of the garden. The second thing I do in meaning is I attempt to summarize the chapter in my own words in one sentence. For Genesis 4 I might say, "The killing of Abel by his brother Cain demonstrates the ongoing ramifications of the fall." Last is application: Here is where we ask the so what question. What does this mean for me? Here are a few diagnostic questions you can ask the text that can help you draw out application: Is there something in this text that I need to repent of? Is there something that I need to worship God for? Is there some attitude of mine that needs changing? Do I need to change wrong ways that I had been thinking about God? Does this passage have anything to say about how I ought to be loving God? Loving Others? Does it have implications for my family, friendships, work, parenting, marriage, etc? As you ask those types of questions of the text you will see various aspects of application coming out of the text. So that is a very, very, brief view of how to study the Bible. At Bethel towards the end of our current 10 week Sunday school class we will spend a couple weeks walking through this method together. Also check out the "One to One Bible Reading Plan" by David Helm that builds this out nicely. Another good resource is Dig Deeper by Nigel Beynon
. To answer the second part of the question the best thing to do for kids at a young age is read the Bible with them and talk to them about what you reading. A great option would be using the "Jesus Story Bible" to do this with kids!
As we move through this series please keep the questions coming! You can ask questions on the connect card attached to your bulletin on Sunday's, by emailing me at joshrobetson52@gmail.com
We certainly don't have all the answers and at times will not be sure how to answer but seek the one who grants wisdom to help us understand what we can. At the end of the day it is not about having greater knowledge, or to simply know more stuff, it is to know more by which we can continue together to strive to Exalt God's Name, Equip God's People, and Evangelize God's World in our homes, communities, and world.
