(Trial Version) Lesson 1 – Tracing the Origin of Life: Creation
Purpose of this lesson
From the process of creation of the world, we can see the attributes of God, understand the relationship between God and man, and even see the goal of our own life clearly.
Background introduction
Human beings have always been eager to find the origin of life. Where do people come from? Did it evolve or was it created by God?
The first book of the Bible is Genesis, and Genesis Chapters 1 and 2 record the process of God’s creation of the world.
Some people mistakenly believe that the Genesis account in the Christian Bible was written in response to the theory of evolution. In fact, the hypothesis of human evolution regarding "natural selection and survival of the fittest" (note that the theory of evolution is just a theory derived from a hypothesis) ), only existed in the 19th century. Therefore, the Genesis account is not intended to answer the theory of evolution.
Genesis is the first part of the Pentateuch. The book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible is named after the first word of the book (pronounced be-re-sit), which means "in the beginning". The English name Genesis is based on the Greek Septuagint, which means "source" and "beginning." From an application perspective, the beginning not only refers to the “beginning of the universe,” but also to the “beginning of salvation,” “the beginning of the history of God’s people,” and even more to the “beginning of man’s knowledge of God.”
1-5. Scripture Study/Questions for Discussion
Read the passage "Genesis 2:4-25" and then discuss the following questions together.
1. What do you think are the necessities in a person's life?
Answer: (This is a sharing question, there is no specified answer.)
2. What did God prepare for Adam in the Garden of Eden?
A: A habitable environment (flowers, trees, rivers), fruits and vegetables for food, work in the garden, and a mate for him. (Please refer to reference "II".)
3. What aspects of God's character are reflected in what God prepared for Adam?
Answer: (1) God is a God of grace and He prepares the necessities of life for man.
(2) God is a God of power. He arranged the place of all things in the universe with His words alone; and He shared this authority with man by setting up man to repair and watch over the garden and name the birds and animals.
(3) God is a rich and perfect God. His creation is not only marvellous and precise, but also has the power to reproduce continuously.
(4) God is a God of order; His creation is structured and hierarchical.
4. How does this passage address God differently from Genesis 1:1 to 2:3? What is the purpose?
Answer: At the beginning of this paragraph, the name of God is changed from "God" to "Yahweh Elohim" (Jehovah God), emphasising the special and close relationship between God and mankind. This is the same name that God used later when He made a covenant with the people of Israel. Another way of saying this is that "God" represents the attribute of "righteousness" and "Yahweh" represents the attribute of "mercy. attribute of "mercy". (Please refer to reference "III".)
5. What restrictions did Adam have in the Garden of Eden? Do you think such restrictions were too harsh?
A: (Let the participants share their feelings first.)
In fact, verses 16 and 17 can be divided into two parts, firstly, God's grant (to eat from every tree in the garden as you wish), and then God's prohibition (not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil). The fact that God does not explain the reason for His grant shows that the emphasis is not on the "why", but rather on the fact that man should understand God's sovereignty and submit to His commands because He is the Creator of all things in the universe (Elohim). Furthermore, God allowed him to eat from every tree in the garden as he pleased, but not from the tree of the separation of good and evil, "for in the day that he eats of it he will surely die"; this shows that the motivation is out of love, and we should not only look at the appearance of restriction. For example, parents who place many restrictions on their young children do so out of love and protection. (If time permits, we can cover the part of Ref. 2:2.)
6. What are God's provisions, commissions, or limitations in your life? How have you responded?
A: (This entry is a sharing question with no assigned answer; the point is to help participants think about how God walks with us in our lives.)
7. Try to share from personal experience what God has provided for you and how that event has increased your knowledge of God.
Answer: (This is a sharing question, there is no specified answer.)