03 - Cmi Student Reading

8/8/2019 03 - Cmi Student Reading

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THE PENTATEUCH, GENESISAND THE CREATIONReadings for Session 3, From Creation to Captivity

After reading this material, you should be able to:• State the different theories regarding the authorship of the Pentateuch

and defend the “Moses and Company” view• Recite the four major events and four major characters of Genesis• Defend the position that creationism and evolutionism are both matters

of faith• Give eight arguments significantly impacting the credibility of evolution• Explain the attractiveness of the young-earth creationist view to a Bible-

believer• Compare and contrast the young-earth, day-age, and ruin-restoration

views

Read the material below and the handout that we will review in class.Memorise Genesis 1:1-3 in NKJV.

THE PENTATEUCH

The first five books of the Bible, primarily books of history, are known as theTorah, The Pentateuch (pentad means “five”), or The Books of the Law. They cover human history from the Creation (before 4,000 B.C.) to the finalpreparations to enter Canaan in about 1405 B.C. – a time span of over 2500years. The time-span includes the worldwide flood, the beginning of ethnicgroups (nations), the start of the nation of Israel, their bondage in Egypt,the Exodus, the giving of the Law, and the wilderness wanderings.Geographically, the books move from Mesopotamia to Ararat to

Mesopotamia to Canaan to Egypt to Sinai to Moab.

The Books of the Torah form the foundation for the rest of the Old Testament, and even the New Testament. No writing that conflicted withthe Torah ever made it into the canon of Scripture. To master these booksof “The Law” is to find success, God’s blessings, and the answers to virtuallyall of life’s issues (Joshua 1:8, Psalm 119).



From Creation To Captivity, Session 3 – CMI Student Reading

English Name Meaning Hebrew Name Meaning Time Covered

Genesis Beginnings or origins Bereshith In the beginning +4000-1804 BC (2196yrs)

Exodus Going out, departure Shemoth Names 1876-1445 BC (431 yrs)Leviticus Book of the Levites Wayyigra And He called 1445 BC (1 month)Numbers Numbering or counting Bemidbar In the wilderness 1445-1405 BC (40 yrs)Deuteronomy Second giving of the Law Devarim Words 1405 BC (2 months)

The years before Christ are designated as either B.C. (Before Christ) or B.C.E. (Before theCommon Era). Remember, in the years B.C., we count the years backward. For instance,

524 B.C. is followed by 523 B.C.

WHO WROTE THE PENTATEUCH?

Moses The first five books of the Bible were written by Moses – that is the shortanswer. Moses was born in about 1525 BC, lived 40 years in Egypt, 40 years

in Midian, and a final 40 years in the Sinai wilderness, dying at 120 years oldin 1405 BC, just as Israel entered Canaan. Strictly speaking, the Torah isanonymous, since it is never stated that Moses was its exclusive author. But Jewish and Christian traditions are unanimous in holding Moses as theauthor. God told Moses to record events (Exodus 17:14), and laws (Exodus24:4), etc. Later writings (Joshua 1:7-8, 2 Chronicles 25:4, and Nehemiah13:1) all refer to the “Books of the Law” as being from Moses. Jesusreferenced Moses when He quoted from the Torah.

Moses & CompanyBut who wrote Deuteronomy 34, which includes events after his death?

Genesis 11:31 uses “Ur of the Chaldeans” and the name “Chaldea” was notused until Solomon’s time, 400 year after Moses. Would Moses call himself the world’s most humble man in Numbers 12:3? For this reason, manyscholars say that the “essential authorship” was Moses’ – that he oversawtheir writing and that some editorial changes were made later.

The JEDP TheoryLiberal theologians embracing higher criticism have theorized that Moseswrote none of the Torah, and that the books were put together during thetime of Solomon using four sources: The Jehovistic source (J) where God’scovenant relationship with man is stressed, the Elohistic source (E) whereGod’s transcendence and morals are stressed, the Deuteronomic source (D)where law and retribution are emphasized, and the Priestly source (P) inwhich rituals, worship, the priesthood and genealogies are stressed.Conservatives reject this theory as being contrary to written Scripture aswell as two millennia of written Jewish and Christian history.

Revelation, Ancient Writings, Oral Tradition, & Journals The content of the Pentateuch that Moses penned under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit was likely based on four different sources.1. For the book of Genesis, Moses had:•

“Hind-sight revelation” from Jehovah was given regarding the earlyearth. Moses spent weeks alone with God on Mt. Sinai.

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• Access to other written “sources” such as the “Book of Adam”(Genesis 5:1), the “Book of the Wars of the Lord” (Numbers 21:14) and the“Book of the Covenant” (Ex. 24:7). These books are lost in antiquity (unlessIndiana Jones can find them). The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of mankind’searliest surviving writings from Babylonia; if you read it, you’ll notice quickly

that it’s the story of Noah and the Flood.• Oral traditions. Much of the story of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph was from oral tradition, but take special note that Hebrew oraltradition is not like modern “family stories” – it was a careful discipline of memorization and recitation used all the way up until Jesus’ time.2. From Exodus to Deuteronomy, Moses’ writings were obviously basedon Moses’ personal experiences.

THE BOOK OF GENESIS

The Structure of GenesisNow, let’s set aside the other books of the Pentateuch and look at Genesisall by itself. The book covers 1/3 of human history! It begins with thecreation in @ +4000 BC and ending with the death of Joseph in Egypt in1804 BC. Genesis is a pie that has been divided up many ways over theyears. The simplest way to understand it may be to divide it into two partsat Genesis 12. To get a good grasp of Genesis, memorize the list under thetwo divisions below.

GENESIS 1-11 GENESIS 12-50

The Beginning of Mankind

Time moving quickly(+2000 yrs)One World

The Primeval Era

The Beginning of Israel

Time moving slowly(300 yrs)

One Family The Patriarchal Era

FOUR KEY EVENTS FOUR KEY PEOPLE Creation

FallFlood

Babel

AbrahamIsaac

Jacob

Joseph

Note: One can argue that Genesis has a third division in that Joseph’s life isgiven extended treatment (Genesis 37, 39-50) as time again slows down. This includes the story of how Israel came to live in Goshen, Egypt and setsthe reader up for Exodus.

It seems that Moses had some divisions in mind when he wrote Genesis. Hewould say that the book is divided into 11 sections based on the “toledoth”divisions. Toledoth is the Hebrew phrase translated, “these are thegenerations of…” The phrase appears 11 times in Genesis and is followedby a person’s name (Adam, Noah, Shem, Terah, Ishmael, Isaac, etc.); thesection ends with the death of that person (see for instance 5:1, 6:9, 10:1,

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11:10, 11:27, etc.). Thus, Genesis would have a prologue (1:1-2:3) followedby ten episodes.

The Date Genesis Was WrittenArchaeology does not provide specific dates for us much earlier than about

1,000 BC, but Israel’s history and genealogies are reliable ladders that wecan climb back into the Patriarchal Era. As we said before, Moses was likelyborn in 1525 BC, and he lived 120 years (Deuteronomy 34:7). His life wasdivided into three sets of 40 years.

It seems likely that Moses compiled the basic knowledge for Genesis duringthe first 40 years of his life (before 1485 BC). It was during this period thathe came to faith in God and desired to deliver His people (Exodus 2:11,Hebrews 11:24). He would have been well educated and could havecarefully studied the history of his people and God’s promises to Abraham.However, in light of his use of “Jehovah” beginning in Genesis 2, a name hedidn’t know until his first meeting with the I AM on Mt. Sinai, he must havepenned the scriptures after age 80, or in about 1445 BC.

The Recipients of GenesisGenesis was an instant treasure to the Hebrew slaves coming out of Egypt.What could be more encouraging than to know that the God of creation hadspecifically chosen your people-group as His own to make them into a greatnation, give them great blessing, and promise them a massive amount of land! This pillar of cloud and fire they were following was the Creator, theonly true God!

BIBLICAL CREATIONISM

A Matter Of Faith The Genesis account of the creation was writtenby Moses based upon God’s revelation to him.Was anyone around to see the creation? No. Therefore, ANY view of the origin of the worldMUST be taken by faith – whether creationist orevolutionist. We must rely upon God’s

revelation to Moses and accept by faith that “theworlds were framed by the word of God”believing that He created matter ex nihilo, out of nothing (Hebrews 11:3).

True Bible teaching and true science does not conflict; biblical theories andscientific theories often do conflict. Many believe that “evolution is science,and creationism is faith.” Not so. ANY belief about the origin of the world isa matter of faith. Why? What are the elements of the scientific method?

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"Now we see how the astronomicalevidence leads to what is essentiallya biblical view of the origin of theworld. The details differ, but the

essential elements in theastronomical and biblical accountsof Genesis are the same: the chainof events leading to mancommenced suddenly and sharplyat a definite moment in time, in aflash of light and energy. This is anexceedingly strange development,unexpected by all but thetheologians. They have alwaysbelieved the Bible. But wescientists did not expect to findevidence for an abrupt beginningbecause we have had until recentlysuch extraordinary success intracing the chain of cause and effectbackward in time.... At this momentit seems as though science willnever be able to raise the curtain onthe mystery of creation. For thescientist who has lived by his faith

"As we look at the main groups of fossil flora, we find that they are allat once and quite suddenly there, infull bloom in all their manifoldforms. Any change is entirelylacking. This all stands as a crasscontradiction to the evolution theory. . . All my investigations have led to

incredible conclusions on account of which the theory of evolution oughtto be entirely abandoned . . . it is a


• Observation and description (no one was there to observe)• Formulation of hypothesis• Prediction verified by repetition (youcan’t repeat the creation)• Verification through experimentation

Most people put their faith in the view forwhich they see the most evidence; whatpeople don’t know is that there is substantialevidence favoring creationism and againstevolution. Since the scientific communityembraced evolution 140 years ago, schoolsin the cultural West slowly accepted “thefaith” of scientists (who must know!) ratherthan the faith of the Judeo-Christiancommunity. Now, evolution is facingsignificant abandonment in the scientificcommunity.

Problems with Faith in Evolution• Evolutionary theory cannot explain theorigin of matter.• Evolutionary theory has come up withno viable scientific basis for the “spontaneous generation” of life.• Evolutionary theory has been undercut by DNA research showing thateven one-celled organisms have more programming than a new computer -overwhelming evidence of intelligent design!•

Science’s Second Law of Thermodynamics holds that all things movefrom order to disorder, from structure to chaos. Evolution says the oppositemust be true billions of time over.• Evolution gives no explanation for why our solar system exists theway it does, and why our planet is unlike allothers.• Evolution gives no explanation for thefact that all laws of nature in the universe(gravity, centrifuge, molecular cohesion,etc.) are in perfect balance for life on earth;any slight shift would end all life.

• Geneticists have established that allof mankind came from one set of parents;in evolutionary theory, there would have tobe thousands of sets.• Although dinosaurs and other animals, plants, and insects are extinct,the fossil record shows that they appeared suddenly and died out suddenly. The fossil record gives no evidence of “missing links” between the variouslife groups.• Real mutations happen too quickly (reptiles changing sex, skin tonesmutating with exposure to sun, etc.).• Evolutionary theory is rigidly uniformitarian, saying that all things

happen at the same rate, without cataclysmic events. Thus, they can’t

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explain a pine tree growing through 2 million years of rock or a frozendinosaur with fresh greens in its mouth.• Science and mathematics have become disciplines that are anti-supernatural. Things like “God” and “miracles” and “angels” can’t be testedrepeatedly and “just mess everything up.” Therefore, they are excluded

from a naturalist system.

THE CREATION – GENESIS 1:1-2:3

In The Beginning – Genesis 1:1 The Bible begins with a pre-existent and personalGod who created all things by speaking them intoexistence. It is interesting that the existence of God is presupposed. This is either because Moseswas writing to people who already believed in God,or because he was appealing to mankind’s“incurable theism” – we intuitively believe in God.

The Hebrew word for God here is “Elohim,”meaning the Strong One. It is not actually a nameof God, but is a descriptive term of deity. Moses uses only Elohim in chapter1; in Genesis 2:4, he introduces the name “Jehovah,” which in the Englishversions is translated as either LORD or GOD in all capital letters.

“Elohim” is actually a plural and in some places, according to the context, istranslated “gods.” Many Christians believe this is the first indication of thetrinity. We know from Psalm 33:6, Colossians 1:16 and Psalm 104:30 that all

three persons of the Godhead were involved in the Creation. However,anyone well versed in Hebrew will tell you that if elohim is used whenreferring to one being, it is meant to be a superlative rather than a plural –“a really, really powerful, totally over-the-top God-type being.”

Genesis 1:1is important because it contradicts six popular philosophies:1. Atheism—God does exist2. Pantheism—God is distinct from His creation3. Polytheism—"Created" is singular in the text.4. Radical materialism (matter is eternal)—Matter had a supernaturalorigin (emphasis on origin).

5. Naturalism (evolutionism)—Creation took place when someone outsidenature intervened (emphasis on process)6. Fatalism—A personal God freely chose to create

The Date of Creation – Genesis 1:2-3Only God knows the date of creation, and He didn’t tell us what that datewas. Coming up with your own personal view is a matter of deciding howliterally you interpret the Scripture; the main motivation for moving awayfrom a literal interpretation is to accommodate the theory of evolution. Inthe last 140 years, the Judeo-Christian community began to split theScripture, trusting it for religious things, but not for science or history.

Archaeology has now overwhelmingly substantiated the accuracy of biblical

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CREATION SCIENCE WEBSITES

Answers In Genesiswww.answersingenesis.org/

Creation Research Societywww.creationresearch.org

Institute for Creation Researchwww.icr.org

- - - -"Evidence from the fossils nowpoints overwhelmingly away fromthe classical Darwinism whichmost Americans learned in highschool. ...The missing link betweenman and the apes...is merely themost glamorous of a wholehierarchy of phantom creatures. Inthe fossil record missing links arethe rule ... The more scientistshave searched for the transitionalforms between species, the morethey have been frustrated."-Newsweek, 3 Nov. ‘96


history, but believers and churches are still drifting toward evolutionarytheory.

While the Bible’s teaching is directly contrary to the evolution of mankind,many Christian scholars differ on the age of the earth, and what happened

before mankind was created.

The “Young Earth” Creationist View:Biblical Evidence For A Young Earth

• Genesis 1 states that God created theheavens and the earth, and took six days to bringform and function to it. This assumes that thegeneral creation and first state of Genesis 1:1-2took place on the first day.• Genesis 1 repeatedly states (in vv. 5, 8,13, etc.) that “mornings and evenings” made upthe days, a phrase only used of 24-hour periods inHebrew writings.• Although the word “day” can be usedof an age (“back in my day”), when a number isplaced in front of “day” in any Hebrew literature(such as 1st day, 2nd day), it means a literal 24-hour period.• If plants were created on the 3rd day,how could they survive “an age” withoutphotosynthesis until the sun was created on the

4th day?• The language used in the passage is literal, not metaphorical orallegorical.• The rivers and lands of the Garden of Eden were known places,not just allegorical.• The Sabbath day of rest is based on a literal 24-hour day(Exodus 20:11).• The people (Adam and Eve) were literal people who, accordingto Jesus’ statement in Mark 10:6, were made in “the beginning” (not after50 billion years).• God created things with “mature age.” Adam and Eve, and the

plants and animals, were created as mature beings with age. Rocks, planetsand stars were likely made in the same aged condition.• Romans 5 states that death came through Adam’s sin. If thedays were ages, and there was no sin or death until Adam, then nodinosaurs would have died natural deaths for millions of years, thus over-populating the earth and destroying all vegetation.• The Bible specifically records the number of years during whichkey people lived, and when their children were born (such as in thegenealogies of Genesis 5 and 10). If we add up all the years of thesegenerations, we come up with Adam being created around 4,000 B.C. Thatsaid, there are gaps in the genealogies and differences in accounting for

time that could easily push the number past 10,000 B.C. (which was a verypoor movie).

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Scientific Evidence For A Young Earth• The biblical account can accommodate prehistoric life(dinosaurs) if one understands cataclysmic events (such as Noah’s Flood),rather than assuming uniformitarian aging.

• Some conservative theologians say man was created between5000 - 8000 B.C. based on stratification geology.• The Carbon 14 dating method is accurate only for materials lessthan 2000 years old, and therefore cannot be relied upon for older dating.Animal bones less than 20 years old, when dried and treated with acidicchemicals, have been carbon dated at over 12,000 years old.• Anthropologists date the oldest civilizations (Sumerian,Egyptian, etc.) from 3000 BC. The primeval or prehistoric earth (from whichno writings survive) therefore existed before 3000 BC. If this date isaccurate, and marks civilization’s development following the Flood, thenBabel could have occurred around 3200 BC, the Flood around 3600 BC andthe Creation around 5500 BC.• Creation scientists cannot prove the age of the earth usingscientific methods; they don’t try. But they can disprove the “billions”theory. There is scientific evidence that the earth is not extremely old:o The cores of the earth & moon would be cold after billionsof years, and they are not.o Salt from land continually pours into the ocean. The

oceans are not salty enough for a billion year age.o Helium from rocks escapes into the atmosphere. Theatmosphere has only 1/2000 of the helium it should for a billion year old

earth.o The moon is moving away from the earth now at ½ inchper year. It would be long gone if the earth were a billion years old.

The “Old Earth” Creationist Views The Ruin-Restoration (Gap) Theory

• The Idea: Some Bible scholars hold to the view (with manyvariations) that there is an indefinite span of time, a silent gap, betweenGenesis 1:1 and 1:2. The gap couldinvolve millions of years andencompass the geologic ages.• The Basis: The verb“was” (1:2) can also be translated“became.” The phrase “withoutform and void” is used only oneother time in the OT of when a cityhad been destroyed and left inrubble. Isaiah 45:18 says that Goddid not create the earth in “vain” (asan empty, chaotic wasteland – sameword as “void” used in Genesis 1:2).• Theory 1: An indefiniteamount of time after the creation,

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the most powerful angel, Lucifer (now Satan) rebelled against God, was castout of the Lord’s presence, and came down with his demons to destroy thefirst earth that had prehistoric plants and animals. God then restored theearth from chaos in six literal days.• Theory 2: The earth was Lucifer’s domain to begin with, and

when he rebelled, he also led a pre-Adamic race in rebellion against God.God destroyed the earth with a worldwide flood followed by an ice age. Thiswould account for “prehistoric man” and fossils left after the cataclysm.God then restored the earth in a literal six- day re-creation in 1:3-31.• History: Professor Thomas Constable writes: This is a very oldtheory that certain early Jewish writers and some church fathers held. Thomas Chalmers propelled it into prominence in 1814. Chalmers' purposewas to harmonize Scripture with Scripture, not Scripture with science(Darwin's Origin of Species first appeared in 1859, but Chalmers publishedhis theory in 1814). Franz Delitzsch supported it in 1899. G. H. Pember'sbook Earth's Ancient Ages (1907) gave further impetus to this view. ManyChristian geologists favored the view because they saw in it "an easyexplanation for the fossil strata." Harry Rimmer supported it, as did ArthurW. Pink. L. S. Chafer held to the theory, but did not emphasize it.

The Day-Age (Progressive Creation) Theory• The Idea: Progressive creationistsbelieve that the creation process took thousands of years. This view gives primacy to the text of Scripture and interprets it more literally than theisticevolution does. Day-Age holds that God created the

universe in several acts of creation separated fromone another by time periods of indefinite duration. The “days” of Genesis 1 were really ages. Theprocess of evolution was at work within these erasand accounts for the development of phyla, species,etc. Obviously, this view arose after Darwin (1860s) to accommodatescientific data. It is an accommodation to science, is not literal enough, andgives us a God who is too small.• The Basis:o The Hebrew word yom can represent an age or period to time– see Genesis 2:4.

o There could be no literal evening and morning without thesun and moon on the fourth day. Thus, a “day” is a period of time.o Since God does not dwell in time, a day is as a thousandyears (Psalm 90:2-4, 3 Peter 3:8).o On the sixth day, God planted the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:8-14), made plants grow in it, created Adam, gave him instructions about thegarden, brought animals to him, Adam named all the animals and birds, feltlonely, was put to sleep and later awoke to find Eve – all in one day?

Theistic Evolution• The Idea: This view attempts to harmonize Scripture withscientific theories of evolution. It is bolstered by the recent publication of

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Intelligent Design books and websites. This view fails to explain specificstatements in the text of Scripture; it ignores and accommodates the text toscientific theory. The major problem with this view is that it is notcompletely true to either science or Scripture but is inconsistent.• Theory: Simply put, God started the creation with the Big Bang,

then ordered and directed the evolutionary process. The text of Genesis 1and 2 is allegorical. God, via Moses, told a simple story to explain thecreation to simple, agriculturally minded Hebrews.

The Six Days – Genesis 1:4-25We believe you should hold to a “young earth” creationist view with nosecret gap of time. The first day of creation includes Genesis 1:1-2, and Godcreated the earth in six literal 24-hour periods. Below is a chart reflectingwhat things were made on what days. Hebrews 11:3 says that God madeeverything ex nihilo, or out of nothing.

Day Item What Was Created?

First Dayvv. 1-5

Heavens, watery earth and light (sothere was light and darkness)

SecondDay vv. 6-8

Sky (firmament or atmosphere) wascreated, separating water vapor abovefrom waters beneath

Third Dayvv. 9-13

Land and seas (waters gathered –includes lakes, seas and oceans);vegetation on land

FourthDayvv. 14-19

Sun, Moon and Stars (to govern dayand night and be markers for signs,seasons, days and years)

Fifth Dayvv. 20-23

Fish and Birds (to fill the waters andsky)

Sixth Day

vv. 24—2:3

Animals (to fill the earth); Man and

Woman (to care for and havedominion over the earth and tocommune with God)

Apparent AgeNote in v. 11 that since God created plants with seeds in them the originalcreation evidently had the appearance of age. He created trees with ringsand Adam an adult. Why did Moses mention only shrubs and trees that bearseeds and fruits? These are the ones that provide food for man. He created

others, of course, but Moses was stressing God's care for man.

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The Sun, Moon and StarsDay four is interesting to note. On days 1-3, Godnames the objects that He creates (vv 5, 8, 10). Inbiblical thought, the act of giving a name meansthe exercise of a sovereign right (see 2 Kings

24:17 and Daniel 1:17). On days 5-6 the creaturesare blessed by sovereign decree (vv 22, 28) butnot named (he leaves that to Adam).

However, there is an exception on Day 4, the onlyday on which no naming or divine blessing isadded. Moses used the terms “greater light” and “lesser lights” to describethe sun and moon. He probably did so because these Hebrew words, whichare very similar in other Semitic languages, were the names of pagan gods.He wanted the Israelites to appreciate the fact that their God had createdthe entities their pagan neighbors worshipped as gods!

Creation of Sea Creatures, Birds & AnimalsGod created “sea monsters” as well as other life in the sea (sea creatureshad become gods in many cultures by 2000 BC). One type of life did notevolve from another type. Moses uses the word “kind” which is not an exactbiological term, but indicates that God did not create merely one bird, onecat, one dog, and so on, from which all others developed; he created manykinds within the species. Natural biologists tell us, based on the fossilrecord, that over 85% of earth’s animals are now extinct. All of our wildlifetoday is only 15% of what Elohim originally created!

Mankind – The Highlight Of God’s Creation The Bible is very clear that Adam and Eve were literal people, not merelydesignations for the first erect progenitors of the human race.• Quoting from Genesis 2, Jesus said that God made man – male andfemale (see Matthew 19:4-6).• In Romans 5:12, 15, 18-19, Paul says that the one man, Adam,brought sin, condemnation and death upon the human race, and thatanother man, Jesus Christ, brought us the gift of forgiveness and life. Infact, Jesus is called “the Last Adam” in 1 Corinthians 15:45 (see also vv. 21-22, 45-49).

• The genealogies start from Adam and move in a continuous history. If he was not an actual person, at what point in the genealogy do we movefrom fact to fiction?

Adam and Eve were created “in the image of God .” What does that mean?1. We are not highly evolved animals;we were created separately andspecially, one at a time.2. Some feel that being made inGod’s image means that man’s threeparts (soul, body and spirit) correspond

with the three persons of the trinity

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(Father-mind, Son-body, and Spirit-spirit). This view has some problems andis not likely what God had in mind.3. Mankind is made in God’s image since, far different from the rest of the mammal kingdom, we are:• Intelligent (calculating sums, distances, speeds, quantities, etc.)

• Rational (reasoning, deducing, theorizing, evaluating, etc.)• Creative (inventive, imaginative, artistic, etc.)• Complexly Communicative (of ideas in movements, languages,codes, nuances, etc.)• Dominant (sovereign over all other creatures)

The First Commands – Multiply & Take DominionFrom the first commands of God given before sin came to the earth, we canstart to understand the purpose of human life. Genesis 1:28 records thatGod commanded mankind to be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth andsubdue it, and take dominion over all other living things. Verse 29 suggeststhat man was originally a vegetarian. After the Flood, God told man that hecould eat animals (9:3). The animals were evidently also herbivorous at first(v. 30).

So, every time humans train a dog, pave a road, build a dock, dig a well, orfly an airplane, we are glorifying God and reflecting His image because weare taking dominion over the earth (even though we are sinful and underthe curse).

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Even God Takes A RestGod never lacks strength, but in Genesis 2:1-3, God finished His creativework and on the seventh day He rested. Why? We can see throughoutScripture that He rested as a pattern for us and for the land – we all needperiodic rest.

Genesis 2:3 states that He sanctified this seventh day. To sanctify means tobe set apart as special, distinctive or different – separated in kind, not inplace. God sanctified the seventh day as a day of rest. The word “Shabbat”or Sabbath means rest. It is a creation principle never retracted by God.

Numerology is an interesting study through the Scripture – how certainnumbers stand for certain things. For instance 4, 40 and 400 are almostalways the number of testing – Israel in captivity in Egypt for 400 years,God’s silence with Israel between the testaments for 400 years, Moses inMidian for 40 years, Jesus in the Wilderness for 40 days.

Three is the number of completeness; seven is the number of God’sperfection, and six is the number of man (the beast false prophet andantichrist are a complete trinity of rebellion (hence 666). Man has six daysin which to labor, and then he is to rest for one day, making a perfect weekin God’s estimation. Some prophecy buffs work long and hard to determinethe date of creation on the understanding that man will have 6,000 togovern himself unsuccessfully followed by a “Sabbath” millennium in whichChrist will reign, making a total of 7,000 years of human history, start tofinish. This is an interesting THEORY.

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