Bible Study Part 1

Okay, today we start a new endeavor.  In addition to our routine postings, I hope to offer an opportunity for Bible study in this blog.  Please feel free to interact by posting comments.  I'll try to review them quickly as others may have similar thoughts or comments.  We may spend six or seven weeks on this so I hope you find it useful.  We begin with considering man's relationship with God.  Let's look at Genesis 1 - 3 using the New International Version (NIV) translation.

If you have had an opportunity to read Genesis before, you know this first chapter provides an overview of God creating the earth generally.  After a few days of his work, God decides to make man.  Notice His words in 1:26:  Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

As you read this verse, does anything strike you about it?

Do you find it odd that it reads "God said, Let us...in our..."?  What does this suggest?

Does it imply that somehow there is a plurality to the identity of God?  Notice that God is stating to whomever He makes this statement that they collectively have similar traits as He says, "our likeness".  There was some trait that was identifiably unique about God but it was shared.  Adam, this man, would be made in this image or likeness.

What is missing from this statement?  We don't see for sure who God is talking to, and we don't have it articulated exactly in what way man is created in God's likeness.  But we can know that there seems to be a kind of plurality to God and a unique position of man in the created order of earth.

A little bit later in the text (Genesis 2:4) we see a shift from the focus of the general description of the creation of earth to a more precise discussion of God creating mankind:

Genesis 2:7-11
 ...the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. And the Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground — trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters.

Genesis 2:15-17
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."

As we read these two sections, a couple of questions come to mind.  First, how would you describe the quality or character of the created man?  What is said in these verses about the man being created with evil intent or having a bad nature?  What is in these verses which suggest that man had an ability to make decisions? 

Hopefully, as you read these verses, you'll notice that nothing is said about the man having an evil intent or a bad nature.  He was, however, created with the ability to make a choice.  He could choose to obey God and not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, or he could choose to go ahead and eat the fruit.  Notice also that this was an informed choice in the sense God warned him of a consequence: death would come.

A second question we might ask is how would you describe the environment or context in which man first lived?  Does it seem to be a harsh place or a good place?  It's interesting that our English word "paradise" comes from the Persian paradizo which means garden.  In other words, Adam first lived in a real paradise.  It would have been a wonderful place to live.  There is one other aspect of man's early days to consider.

Notice 3:8-10:

"Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.  But the Lord God called to the man, "Where are you?" He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."

By way of background, as we read these verses Adam and his wife, Eve, have made the choice to eat the fruit of the tree in middle of the garden.  So the context places them in the garden.  But is there anything interesting here in this conversation they have with God?

What sound do they hear in the garden?  Does the text say they heard a strange noise?  Does it suggest they heard something unfamiliar?  No, it says they heard the "sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden..."  In fact, notice Adam's answer "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked..."  Adam hid because he recognized the sound of God walking in the garden.  He knew the sound he heard was God walking in the garden.  How did he know what that sound was?  Could it be he had heard it enough times before this point that he instantly identified it?

Isn't also interesting that Adam carries on this conversation with God in familiar manner?  He's done this before!  We know of a few times from the context.  But what does this all imply about Adam's relationship with God?  Doesn't it suggest that Adam and Eve had a very real and close relationship with God in which they walked and talked in the garden?  It was not a far off, abstract, or hands-off relationship.  It was concrete and intimate.

Now if we back up a moment we see what happened to make man want to hide from God - Genesis 3:1-7:

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'" "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."  When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Does this passage depict Adam or Eve as being inherently evil?  Or, does it show them as caving into the serpent's ploy to play on Eve's desires in a way that is contrary to God's directions? Eve is not going to be punished for having these desires - but for eating the fruit.  The serpent seems to strike her with her pride when he says, "you will be like God, knowing good and evil."  Both Eve and Adam chose to eat the fruit. 

This was a free choice by two free wills.  God did not interfere with their choice by preventing them to choose.  And, the serpent, while enticing them, did not force their decision.  The consequence came for all three.  We return to God's conversation there in the garden with Adam and Eve, Genesis 3:9-19.

But the Lord God called to the man, "Where are you?" He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid." And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" The man said, "The woman you put here with me — she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it." Then the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?"  The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." So the Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,'  "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."

As we read these verses we notice some consequences.  First, for Adam life is no longer going to be a walk in the park if you will.  Now the ground will produce weeds, making his work harder.  He's going to have to work hard to provide for is family.  Next, the woman too will have more pain in child-bearing.  Finally, the serpent will have to crawl on its belly. 

Now in which verse does the passage say the descendants of Adam will bear the guilt or punishment for Adam's sin?  Which sentence says this in verses 14-15, or in verse 16; does it say it in verses 17-19?  In reality, no where in this context does the passage say Adam's children, grandchildren, or descendants will be guilty of Adam's sin.  This passage also does not say that because of Adam's sin his descendants will be so corrupt that they cannot consider God or goodness.  In fact, it suggests the opposite, notice verses 22-24:

And the Lord God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life."

What ability or quality does God say that man now has?  He now is "...knowing good and evil."  God specifically says that man does know good.  To prevent man from being able to eat of the tree of life, God banishes Adam and Eve from the garden.  In this sense, God fulfills the consequence he warned Adam about.  Adam is now subject to death, and he will die.  But what about us, does that mean that we will all die, too?  Notice a passage in the New Testament which is addresses this,  Romans 5:12. Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned—

What is the reason this verse says death comes to all men?  Is it because Adam sinned or "because all sinned"?  When Adam willfully ate the fruit he brought sin into the world and the consequence of that for Adam was that he would die.  And the consequence for my choosing to sin is to die.  Do you believe you have sin in your life?  If you do, what does this passage say is the consequence of that sin?

As we come back to back to Genesis 3, we notice that nothing is said to Adam about his descendants bearing the guilt or being punished for his sin.  However, we see in this story what the consequences are for people generally when we sin.  Just as Adam and Eve no longer walked and talked with God in the garden we too are separated from God by our sin.  We break our relationship with God, and we face death. But there is also hope in this passage.

Notice again the curse God gives the serpent (Genesis 3:15): And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."  What is going to happen between the offspring of the serpent and Eve's?  Is it possible to survive a snake bite?  Is it possible for a snake to survive its head being crushed?  What does the verse suggest about this conflict between one of her descendants and the serpent?  Does it not suggest that the serpent will somehow hurt a descendant or seed of the woman, but that that seed will destroy or kill the serpent?  By this great exchange and the death of the serpent, will not the enmity between the woman and the serpent end?

Does this passage say when this will happen?  Does it say who will be the seed of the woman who does this?  Does it say how the seed of Eve will do this?  All of these things are left open.  In the next few weeks as we study together, I am confident we will find the answers to these questions and more.  Check back next week as we read further in the book of Genesis.

www.benbrookchurchofchrist.com

Why Would the Apostles Lie?

Why would the Apostles lie?  Many skeptics of Christianity contend the early church embellished legends of Jesus.  Jesus' resurrection, they argue, was a farce.  Ben Witherington III made some interesting observations in the current issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.  He points to two factors which make a fraudulent tale unlikely.

First is cultural perception.  The Middle East region then was a “shame and honor” culture he contends.  Crucifixion was the most shameful form of death.  While we view it as a heroic act, that culture viewed the manner of death as the ultimate statement of a man’s character.  Most would have viewed a crucified person as a “scoundrel”.  No one making up a story would likely have started with a crucified man.

Second, that culture was highly patriarchal.  Machismo was highly valued. That Jesus’ key disciples had fled and hid (John 20:19) would be a hindrance to gaining a following, Witherington contends. And, the first key witnesses of Jesus resurrection were not men but women who did not have standing in court.  Their credibility as witnesses was non-existent.

It is highly unlikely the Apostles would have concocted this tale.  It would have been counter to every sense of credibility.  While no one in his right mind would have started a fraud in this way, Christianity excelled.  What propelled such an unbelievable story to the foremost of history?  Could it be His first followers were telling the truth?

www.benbrookchurchofchrist.com