Memory Verse for the week of October 4:
So God created mankind in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
Genesis 1:27 (NIV)
I love the creation story. I find myself pausing often to marvel at the creation in its glory at all seasons of the year. Living in the Pacific Northwest, we have the advantage of seeing the grandeur of the creative artwork of God when Mt. Rainier pops above the crest of the highway, when the Olympics cast their shadow over Puget Sound, when the giant firs tower at attention over the cascading waterfalls that flow cleanly over mossy rocks, and when bright- colored salmon instinctively fight their way back up tiny streams to the place of their hatching each fall. It’s honestly all pretty incredible and overwhelming for me.
Genesis 1 tells the famous creation story in the first chapter of the Bible. In one sweeping motion, written in just 31 short verses, it paints the scene of the intricate way that the Creator God himself personally laid out this amazing creation. When we stop long enough, we get to see the evidence with our own eyes. It’s all unbelievable on its own merit. But when you see beyond the natural world and you glimpse the real plan of the loving, creative, intentional Creator God in all this, you can only be humbled and in awe. HE CREATED US IN HIS IMAGE. Our existence is at the pinnacle of his creative plan. Humanity is the climax of God’s Great Creativity!
What a strange honor. What a noble privilege. He called it all into existence, and then made us the shining moment, the crowning achievement—the created being (us) finding ourselves in unique prominence above all else in creation. We were created with a heart that could love him, ears that could hear him, and a life that could walk relationally with him—the creation (us) living and walking in relationship with the Creator (the almighty, everlasting, HOLY GOD).
Genesis 1:27 is the focus verse and theme for the message this coming Sunday. In order for you to prepare, I am asking you to personally read these chapters in Scripture:
- Genesis 1 & 2
- Psalm 8
- Hebrews 2
- 1 Corinthians 15 (concentrate on vs. 45-49)
There is nobility in being a descendant of Adam and Eve. As you read these foundational passages of Scripture on your own and with your group, consider and apply these core theological and eternal truths to your view of all human life, and your life as well. We are not accidental, no matter who our parents are. We are not a cosmic mistake. We are not evolutionary incidentals that are unplanned. We are absolutely, all of us, part of the lineage of what the Bible calls “the first Adam.”
So where is Jesus in all this?
Our year of learning is centered around what we are calling, “The Book of Jesus.” You may ask, what does the Genesis story and the creation of humanity have to do with Jesus? Jesus is called in Scripture “the second Adam.” Before we can really understand the full implications of who Jesus is as the second Adam, we will need to take this week and grasp the truth of the first Adam. What is humanity and what were we really built for? This question will set up and bring greater weight to what will come next week.
This is extremely important. We will see you Sunday morning as we continue this journey. Come to the Sunday service this weekend through any of our three open doors:
- In a small home group,
- At the church campus, or
- Online wherever you are.
Download the October 4 discussion guide