Encouragement Prevails

Thinking back on the first 10 chapters of Genesis, where did the division start? Did it begin in Peleg’s time? Was it when Ham shamed Noah, his father? Was it when mankind's every thought was evil and the flood came? Was it when Adam’s son was the first to murder? Was it when Adam and Eve were removed from the Garden of Eden? “The woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit 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 knew that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves….and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden.” Genesis 3:6-8 It’s amazing how one “I want this” decision affected so much. Immediately it affected someone else. Immediately it affected their state of well-being. It didn’t stop there though. In our journey to look back,...

"You are to take seven pairs, a male and its female, of all the clean animals, and two of the animals that are not clean, a male and its female, and seven pairs, male and female, of the birds of the sky – in order to keep offspring alive throughout the earth.” Genesis 7:2 (CSB) Once I was able to get past the initial shock that it wasn’t just 2 of each animal, as I had grown up thinking, I was then curious about why He was so specific and why there needed to be more of the clean animals for them to survive than the unclean. Was it because of the Jewish laws of only being allowed to eat clean animals? “Every creature that lives and moves will be food for you; as I gave the green plants, I have given you everything.” Genesis 9:3 (CSB) No, the Jewish laws weren’t established yet. They were free to eat any animal. “Then Noah built an altar to the LORD. He took some of every kind of clean animal and every kind of clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar.” Genesis 8:20 (C...

How do we rise above sin, the sin of the world, the sin in our own lives, the temptation to sin? The story of the flood gives a beautiful picture of this. “Understand that I am bringing a flood —- flood waters on the earth to destroy every creature under heaven with the breath of lie in it. Everything on earth will perish. But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark with your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives.” Noah was righteous. While others followed their desires, Noah chose to do something quite unusual, because God asked him to. God had Noah fulfill His plan of cleansing the world by building a giant boat in the middle of land. Noah didn’t do it alone. He asked others, his family, to join him. His family believed him and followed his lead. Potentially by helping to build the ark despite persecution and then getting on the ark with countless animals. They did all of this even when there was no water in sight. In the end, none of their actions were...

I once heard someone ask “What are you looking forward to doing with Jesus in heaven?” After reflecting upon that question I realized I just wanted to walk with Jesus. I wanted to be in the midst of His creation, nature, completely free from the worry of coming across anything bad. I can imagine taking in the beauty He created while discussing it and many other things with Him, not second guessing if it was His voice I was hearing, but knowing because He was right beside me. When thinking of this I couldn’t help but be reminded of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Genesis 3:8 states “Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden and the time the evening breeze.” I imagine that this happened daily. That they would walk with God every day. It was a joyful norm for them. Until they had turned from the Tree of Life and instead of joining God in His walk “they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.” Genesis 3:8 continued (CSB) This has ha...

When “the Fall” happened in Genesis 3, life as it was known got flipped on its head. Adam and Eve went from living in the paradise of Eden with God to being removed from Eden living in the chaos they chose. They went from The Tree of Life to the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, chaos of the mind. God didn’t abandon and reject them though. The first thing He did was promise that He would right the wrong that had been done. We are on dot one and Jesus is already brought into the picture! Genesis 3:15 is a prophecy of Jesus. He is the offspring that will strike the serpent's head, while his heel is struck, a deadly blow vs. a temporarily debilitating blow. He then gave them consequences that matched their actions. Eve, Adam’s help mate, did not help produce life but led him towards death. While she still has the privilege to create life from her very body it will now be painful. She longed to call the shots and will continue to, but her husband will ultimately rule as crea...

When looking for Jesus in Genesis 1:26-31 & 2:8-9,15-24, the word fruit stood out to me. I thought of all of the times that Jesus talks of fruit in the New Testament. When looking specifically at the calling that God gave to us: “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it (the earth).” - Genesis 1:28 And connecting it to Jesus’ words: “A good tree doesn’t produce bad fruit; on the other hand, a bad tree doesn’t produce good fruit. For each tree is known by its own fruit. Figs aren’t gathered from thornbushes or grapes picked from a bramble bush. A good person produces good out of the good stored up in his heart. An evil person produces evil out of the evil stored up in his heart, for his mouth speaks from the overflow of his heart. “ Luke 6:43-45 (CSB) It brings a whole new meaning. From this perspective, it’s so much more than having a fruitful womb, multiplying ourselves, and filling the earth with our offspring. Being fruitful means we are to be someone who refle...