Bible Survey part one and two

Slide 1 : 1 Old Testament Flight Welcome aboard…

Why this Flight? : 2 Why this Flight? "The church can't live without the Bible, but doesn't have much of an idea on how to live with it." (N.T. Wright) How do we use the Bible??? I'd like to suggest an alternate and better way of reading Scripture that can not only change the way that you see the Bible, but that will change how you see your life.

The Bible as Story : 3 The Bible as Story The Bible tells a story to challenge and subvert all other grand stories. It is not a collection of stories. It is a single, comprehensive story. "The whole point of Christianity is that it offers a story which is the story of the whole world." (N.T. Wright) This story changes how we live our lives.

Slide 4 : 4 "I can only answer the question "What am I to do?" if I can answer the prior question "Of what story do I find myself a part?" (Alasdair MacIntyre) "The way we understand human life depends on what conception we have of the human story. What is the real story of which my life story is a part?" (Lesslie Newbigin) We do not try to make the Story relevant to our lives. We make our lives relevant to the Story. (Example: scenes cut from a movie. The little stories have to be relevant if they are going to fit in.)

Slide 5 : 5

Competing Stories…. : 6 Competing Stories…. Science: claims to understand- does not answer the big questions. Technology: power to master. Convenience and efficiency promised. Speaks of ownership, not stewardship, rights, not responsibilities. Capitalism: reduces people to economic beings. Who are we if we have no wealth? These stories are not big enough to provide answers to our questions of identity and purpose

Begin with God’s Story : 7 Begin with God’s Story This is found in the Bible- it reveals the Christian story. It is the story of what God wants and is doing. It puts our stories into perspective, giving us a sense of direction and purpose

A Story of 6 Scenes or Acts : 8 A Story of 6 Scenes or Acts Act One: God Creates His Kingdom Act Two: Rebellion in God’s Kingdom Act Three: Promise of Restoration of Kingdom: Israel’s Mission Act Four: Kingdom Restored: Jesus’ Mission Act Five: Kingdom Tasted and Displayed: Church’s Mission Scene 1: Church Begins Its Mission to the Nations Scene 2: Our Place in the Story: Church Continues Its Mission to the Nations Act Six: Consummation of God’s Kingdom

Slide 9 : 9 In a nutshell, it is the story of creation and redemption by the God of Israel and Father of the risen Christ working through the Holy Spirit. God’s story tells us how things started, lost there way, can be redirected, and how the human story comes out in the end.

The storyteller : 10 The storyteller Who is God? God is three in one, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Being must not be separated from doing. A better question to ask is Who is God and what is God doing? Knowing who God is does not help answer the difficult questions. Knowing what God is doing does…

Slide 11 : 11

Slide 12 : 12 God is King For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods. Psalm 95:3 The LORD reigns…Your throne was established long ago; you are from all eternity. Psalm 93:1-2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. Psalm 90:2 In the beginning God… Genesis 1:1

Slide 13 : 13

Slide 14 : 14 God is Creator “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” Revelation 4:11 Word

Act One: God Establishes His Kingdom – Creation : 15 Act One: God Establishes His Kingdom – Creation

1. Creation : 16 1. Creation God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1 and 2

Slide 17 : 17 God’s Kingdom The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. Genesis 2:15 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.’ Genesis 2:16-17 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.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them… Genesis 1:26-28

Slide 18 : 18 God’s Kingdom God’s people living in God’s place under God’s rule and blessing

Introductory Remarks… : 19 Introductory Remarks… Genesis 1 is not first concerned about how God made the world Genesis 1 shows us God’s original intention for creation Genesis 1 must be understood in original cultural context

In the Beginningby David Goodrich : 20 In the Beginningby David Goodrich In the beginning God… Who is this God?

Yahweh Elohim (Gen. 2:4) : 21 Yahweh Elohim (Gen. 2:4) Significance of names Yahweh: Israel’s Redeemer Elohim: World’s Creator

Creation Stories in Ancient Near East : 22 Creation Stories in Ancient Near East Truth about world expressed in stories Similarity and difference between Genesis 1 and other stories Negatively: challenge pagan stories Positively: teaching about creation

Slide 23 : 23 Moses’ concerns were exclusively religious. His intent was to proclaim knowledge of the true God as he manifested himself in his creative works, to proclaim a right understanding of humankind, the world, and history that knowledge of the true God entails—and to proclaim the truth concerning these matters in the face of the false religious notions dominant throughout the world of his day. -John Stek

Genesis One’s Teaching: God : 24 Genesis One’s Teaching: God Eternal One Distinct from creation Sovereign King over creation Powerful Personal

Genesis One’s Teaching: Humankind : 25 Genesis One’s Teaching: Humankind Creature Relationship with God Image Similar to God Different from God Male and female Rule over/ care for creation

Important relationships : 26 Important relationships The Lord God The World - work - politics- care of the environment, and so on Self Fellow humans

Humanity : 27 Humanity Are to be Stewards: relationships, productivity, identity, systems… Ethically there is to be: Shared resources: Land and natural resources are gifts for all humankind. Responsibility to work: Productivity, responsibility, enabling others to work too. Expectation of growth: Be fruitful and increase… Shared produce: responsible for what we do with what we produce

Genesis One’s Teaching: World : 28 Genesis One’s Teaching: World Good (variety, harmony) Ordered by God’s word Historical Kingdom

Slide 29 : 29 How does the creation story impact us today? End of act one

Act Two: Rebellion in the Kingdom: Fall : 30 Act Two: Rebellion in the Kingdom: Fall

2. Fall : 31 2. Fall The serpent deceived Eve, and Adam disobeyed. Genesis 3

Slide 32 : 32 A catastrophe has occurred.We are no longer in continuity withour good beginning. We have been separated from it by a disaster.We are also, of course, separated from our good end. We are, in other words,in the middle of a mess. -Eugene Peterson

Eden is a place of: : 33 Eden is a place of: Harmony with God Harmony with each other Harmony with creation

Genesis 3:1-6 : 34 Genesis 3:1-6 Satanic temptation Freedom to choose Tree of Knowledge ofGood and Evil choose to live byGod’s word or choose to live by Satan’s word 4th c. mosaic from Caesarea

Slide 35 : 35 God’s Kingdom Ruined 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 realised they were naked, so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Genesis 3:6-7 So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden… Genesis 3:23

Nature of Sin : 36 Nature of Sin Autonomy: making oneself source of right/wrong, good/bad, true/false Covenant rebellion: refusing allegiance to rightful king

Genesis 3:1-6 : 37 Genesis 3:1-6 Doubt (v.1-3) Divine Source Fairness Unbelief (v.4-5) Imagining life in disobedience toGod’s word (v.6) Wilful disobedience (v.6)

Consequences of Sin : 38 Consequences of Sin Alienated from God (3:8,23) Damaged relations with each other (v.12,16) Death (v.19) Non-human creation cursed (v.17) Creational task burdened (v.16-19)

Slide 39 : 39 How much has sin affected things?

Slide 40 : 40 Promise 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 heal. Genesis 3:15 God’s Promise of War

Slide 41 : 41 Perfect Community After the Fall Trust _________________ Obedience _________________ Openness _________________ Ownership _________________ Blessing _________________ Fellowship _________________ Work _________________ Life _________________

Is the Story Over? : 42 Is the Story Over? No! Clothes Adam and Eve Gives promise (Gen 3:15)

Slide 43 : 43 In The Story We Find Ourselves In, Brian McClaren writes: We find in our souls and in the story a resonant need for connection with God, with creation, and in particular, with the rest of humanity. We have this God-given sexual identity that is good and very good. We feel an inescapable responsibility to be stewards of the rest of creation. We aren’t an accident. We aren’t orphans. We aren’t on our own. We aren’t in charge. It’s not our world to do whatever we want. We may be at the top of the food chain in many places—but we aren’t at the top of the chain of Being. We have a place, and we have a mission as gardeners and as namers and as companions to God and one another. We are here to be God’s junior partners in creation. 43

Slide 44 : 44 [Q] How does the story of Christianity begin here at creation?

Slide 45 : 45 End of Act Two