Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP220014S
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00:01 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn,
00:02 we welcome you to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:05 This Quarter we will be studying Genesis... 00:09 a book that has so much to impart to us 00:12 and we're glad that you're joining us. 00:15 If you don't already have your Adult Bible Study Guide, 00:18 please go to 3abnsabbathschoolpanel. com 00:23 There you can download the Guide 00:25 and you can even watch some of the previous Quarters. 00:29 So, we're glad you're here... we do this for you 00:32 let's have a good time in the study of the Word today. 00:36 Music... 01:06 Shelley: Oh, we are all studied up 01:09 and ready to share with you Lesson One 01:12 from our new Quarterly: Genesis. 01:15 This is called: The Creation. 01:17 Let me introduce you to our Panel members. 01:20 To my left, I have Pastor John Lomacang. 01:23 Lomacang: Good to be able to study from the very beginning 01:26 the genesis of the understanding of God's Word. 01:28 Shelley: Amen... Evangelist Ryan Day. 01:31 Ryan: Amen... one of my favorite books... the book of Genesis... 01:33 definitely be studying what it means 01:35 which is the origins... the beginning. 01:37 Shelley: Amen... Pastor Kenny Shelton. 01:39 Kenny: It's always a delight to study the Word of God together. 01:42 I always learn so much from each and every one 01:44 and praise God for the opportunity. 01:46 Shelley: Well, we're glad you're here 01:48 and then Sister Jill Morikone, 01:51 how many takeaways do you have today? 01:52 Jill: Ten takeaways for today. 01:55 I'm excited to open up the Word of God and study. 01:57 Shelley: Oh me too... me too. 01:58 John, would you like to have a prayer please? 02:00 Lomacang: Sure... "Loving Father in heaven, 02:01 as we open Your Word... 02:03 you've said to us, 'In the beginning was the Word' 02:05 then You said, 'Let there be light' 02:07 and Lord, today we ask for the same thing. 02:09 Let the light that you reveal to us 02:11 be revealed through us 02:13 to those who are seeking to walk in the light of Your Word 02:16 and may all the glory go only to You. 02:18 In Jesus' name, amen. 02:20 Panel: Amen, amen. 02:21 Shelley: The beauty of Genesis 02:23 is that it reveals the origin of human kind... 02:27 it reveals the origin of time and Biblical history. 02:31 I want to give you an overview of Genesis. 02:35 That's what I was impressed to do as I was preparing 02:38 because Genesis lays the theological foundation 02:42 for some very important points. 02:46 First, God is Father... Son and Spirit. 02:49 Humankind... sin and death... 02:52 God's covenant promises of redemption... 02:57 of blessings and judgments. 03:00 It introduces God's covenant people 03:03 and God's character. 03:05 We will see that the more sin abounds... 03:07 the more God's grace abounds 03:10 to a people that were willfully disobedient 03:13 but it also lays a foundation of... a theological foundation 03:19 for Satan and angels. 03:21 Our memory text is: "In the beginning... " 03:24 this is Genesis 1:1... 03:26 this is how the Bible starts... 03:27 "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. " 03:31 Now, this word "God" is Elohim. 03:34 The Bible says in the New Testament 03:38 in John 1:1 through 4... 03:41 "In the beginning was the Word, 03:43 the Word was with God, 03:44 and the Word was God... 03:47 and He was in the beginning with God... 03:50 All things were made through Him; 03:52 and without Him nothing was made that was made. 03:55 In Him was life; His life was the light of men. " 03:59 And verse 14 of John chapter 1 says, 04:03 "He became a man... " 04:06 He tabernacled among us 04:09 and so, we know that Jesus Christ is the Creator... 04:15 He was there in the beginning. 04:17 So, really, when we look at Genesis, 04:20 it is about... Jesus is our Creator... 04:23 our Sustainer... 04:25 you know, Hebrews 1:3 says that He upholds everything 04:28 by His mighty word of power and our redeemer. 04:33 Genesis is the beginning of God's progressive unfolding 04:40 of His everlasting covenant 04:42 and it is introduced in Genesis 3:15, 04:46 and you know what? 04:48 The whole story is not completely unfolded 04:51 till we reach Revelation 22:22. 04:55 Genesis was written after the exodus... 04:58 it was written by Moses after the exodus 05:02 but some time before his death 05:04 and God had him write the history of creation... 05:08 the primitive history of mankind 05:11 and the patriarchal history of His chosen people. 05:17 Genesis ends with the death of Joseph... 05:20 about 280 years before Moses was born 05:24 but it's important to note 05:26 both the Old Testament and the New Testament 05:29 refer to Moses as the author. 05:32 It's quoted or alluded to 100s of times in the Old Testament... 05:36 Genesis is... 05:37 but it's quoted over 35 times in the New Testament. 05:41 So, the contents in Genesis are divided into two primary parts. 05:47 There is chapters one through 11 05:50 and then chapters 12 through 50. 05:53 One through 11 condenses... distills 2000 years of history 06:01 into... it's just a sweeping overview of history 06:06 in those 11 chapters 06:08 and what we see there is the creation of a perfect world... 06:13 perfect man... 06:14 we see the fall of man... 06:15 we see the flood 06:17 and we see the dispersion of the nations 06:20 and what we see also 06:23 is that Genesis relates to Revelation. 06:27 In Genesis, there's the paradise lost... 06:32 Revelation... Paradise regained. 06:35 In Genesis, there is the fall of mankind... 06:38 the curse of sin. 06:39 In Revelation 22:3 says, there will no longer be a curse. 06:44 In Genesis, they're banned from the Tree of Life... 06:47 but in Revelation, we find that robe in Christ's righteousness, 06:53 we are once again eating from the Tree of Life. 06:56 So, let's see Genesis 12 through 50. 07:00 This is the patriarchal history. 07:03 The history of and... and this is important because 07:07 you'll see why it's so important to us. 07:09 The history of Abraham... 07:11 God actually introduced... re-affirmed 07:16 and He confirmed His everlasting covenant with Abraham... 07:22 passed on to Jacob... 07:24 Isaac... Jacob and then Joseph. 07:26 So, what we're going to look at in... in Genesis 1 through 11 07:32 is in Mesopotamia... 07:33 Genesis 12 through 50 is in Canaan 07:38 and the Promised Land. 07:40 So, here's the fascinating thing 07:43 and it puts everything into perspective. 07:47 The Bible records 4100 years of history. 07:51 Do you realize, over 2300 years are recorded in Genesis. 07:57 Why is it that important? 07:59 Wow! and in the beginning, the first verse when it says, 08:04 God created... the word there is "Bara" in the Hebrew 08:09 and you know what that means? 08:11 He created something from nothing... 08:14 "Bara" is never used with mankind... 08:18 it is a word that is only assigned to God. 08:23 So... Sunday: The God of Creation... 08:25 oh, I've got to rush. 08:27 Moses... when... when Moses is introducing God, you know what? 08:31 He doesn't even try to defend or explain God's origin 08:36 or His character. 08:38 He just knows... both are by faith 08:41 and he gets with it. 08:42 But there's two different Genesis accounts 08:46 and they spotlight two different ideas of God 08:50 or of His character. 08:52 The first account is found in Genesis 1:1 through 4, 08:56 when it says, "In the beginning God created... " 09:00 it's Elohim created... 09:03 this is the transcendent God whose eternal existence 09:09 is beyond our material universe 09:12 and His name... this name is Majesty and Preeminence. 09:18 But when we get to the second account 09:22 in Genesis 2:4 through 25, 09:24 let's look at Genesis 2:4, 09:27 "This is the history of the heavens and the earth 09:29 when they were created, 09:31 in the day that the LORD God... " 09:34 this is not Elohim... this is God's covenant name, Yahweh. 09:39 "In that day that the LORD God made the heavens and the earth" 09:45 so, this name denotes an imminent God 09:50 in that, that there's two words for Imminent... 09:53 and people sometimes don't realize the second word: 09:56 I M M A N E N T 09:59 is talking about God's Eminence... 10:02 His presence around us that He is up close and personal 10:07 and He creates... I guess you could say, 10:12 it makes us acknowledge our dependence on God. 10:16 So, in this two-fold... 10:18 in these two names we see the majestic powerful God 10:22 and a God who is close and loving 10:25 and wants us in personal relationship. 10:30 Now, when we look at Genesis, where am I? 10:35 When... when we look at Psalm 100 verses 1 through 3, 10:43 when we see there is that... 10:47 it says, "Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all ye lands. 10:54 Serve the LORD with gladness: 10:57 come before His presence with singing. 11:01 Know that the LORD He is God: 11:04 it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; 11:10 we are His sheep... His people... 11:14 and the sheep of His pasture. " 11:16 So, Genesis is going to explain to us where we came from. 11:23 God created us in His image. 11:26 God created us to have that covenant relationship 11:34 with Yahweh... Jehovah God. 11:37 He wants... 11:39 He... He was increasing the size of His family. 11:43 I guess you could say... when He created us. 11:46 But this also shows us why we're here. 11:50 We're here to have that personal close relationship with our Lord 11:58 and, you know, when you look through and you see 12:03 Elohim... the One who existed forever 12:08 and then we see Yahweh. 12:12 That One who existed forever... His personal name, Jehovah, 12:17 that He wants us. 12:19 It's all about grace... 12:21 it's all about grace. 12:23 We're only here because of God's grace, 12:27 He created this beautiful world... 12:30 then he set man in this world 12:32 and then we're going to see as we go through Genesis 12:36 that God is a God of redemption. 12:42 This... it is such an important part 12:45 and this too... redemption is a gift of God's grace. 12:50 So, we pray that as we go through this, 12:53 don't think, "Oh, I've heard this... 12:55 this story before in my Sabbath School... " 12:59 or my Sunday School... 13:00 wherever you go for Bible Studies, 13:03 what we want you to do is listen 13:06 because we're going to bring out 13:09 points that you may never have thought of 13:12 where it's like we're peeling an onion 13:15 and we're getting down... or better say an artichoke... 13:18 we're peeling off the leaves of an artichoke 13:21 till we get to the heart of the matter 13:23 and it is the heart of God. 13:26 Panel: Amen... amen... praise the Lord. 13:29 Lomacang: Well, we have started in the Genesis... of the Genesis 13:34 and mine is: The Creation... Monday. 13:37 Now, creation is something that all Christians, I believe, 13:42 should believe in Creation. 13:44 I've been surprised to find out the different theories 13:48 that are coming out of what people may believe 13:51 and at the very same time saying they believe in Creation. 13:53 Creation is a record that as a matter of fact, 13:57 you can find seven days in no other place in the world... 14:00 you can't find it in the stars... the sun... the moon... 14:04 the cycles of time... it can only be found 14:06 in the story of Creation 14:09 and you find that at the end of the six creation days, 14:12 this phrase: It was good... and God saw that it was good. 14:15 You find that a continual cadence... 14:18 throughout the story of Creation 14:20 in the book of Genesis chapter 1. 14:23 But the tenure goes to another level 14:26 when creation is completed. 14:28 Let's go to Genesis 1 and verse 31, 14:30 God's observation escalates to another level 14:33 when creation is completed. 14:35 Genesis 1 verse 31, 14:37 "Then God saw every thing that He had made, 14:41 and indeed it was... " together... 14:43 All: "very good. 14:44 So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. " 14:48 We find that phrase, "evening and morning" six times. 14:51 We find the word "day" ten times. 14:53 and that is not... there are some that believe that 14:58 the days were a... a thousand years long 15:01 and they try to cite... 15:02 "With the Lord, a day is as a thousand years 15:05 and a thousand years is as a day... " 15:07 and there are some religions that believe 15:09 the day was broken up into 500-year segments. 15:11 Well, you can't even test the theory 15:13 because no plant life could exist 15:16 for 500 years in darkness. 15:18 But the word there makes it very clear: 15:20 evening... morning, evening... morning... 15:22 the cycles of time that God established in creation 15:25 continues to exist today 15:27 even though sin now inhabits our world... 15:30 now, Genesis 2 verses 1 to 3, 15:32 which Ryan is going to be dealing with: the Sabbath... 15:33 I'm just going to mention the text 15:35 but I'm not going to deal with the topic of Sabbath, 15:37 but we find that on the heels of creation, 15:40 the affirmation of God's work is brought about in the verses 15:45 in Genesis chapter 2 verses 1 to 3, 15:47 "Thus the heavens and the earth 15:49 and all the host of them were finished. 15:51 And on the Seventh day God ended His work 15:53 which He had done, 15:55 and He rested on the seventh day from all His work 15:57 which He had done. 15:59 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, 16:02 because in it He rested from all His work 16:05 which God had created and made. " 16:06 And He did that to no other day... 16:08 and I can't wait to hear what you have to say 16:10 about the Sabbath. 16:11 But the question I was asked by the writer of the lesson is, 16:13 "What is implied... what is the implied lesson 16:16 contained in the conclusion of creation?" 16:18 Here are some of the things I came out with. 16:21 What you find is that every step of the creation, 16:24 God evaluates His own work. 16:26 Panel: Hmmm... hmmm... 16:27 Lomacang: Now that's powerful, God evaluates... 16:29 and at the end of the day He said, 16:31 "It was good... " 16:32 He continues to evaluate, 16:34 which is the general understanding 16:36 the Hebrew word there is: tov... "tov" meaning good. 16:40 so at the end of every day 16:41 God said, it was "tov" it was good 16:44 generally understanding that the succession of creation 16:49 was the observation that when the Lord created what He did 16:54 on each day... it was good. 16:55 Then another word there meaning: it worked. 16:59 Panel: Hmmm... Lomacang: It worked. 17:00 So... so when you look at the Hebrew word... 17:04 it doesn't just mean that it's good... 17:05 it means: it worked. 17:06 So, what God did on every day... it's still working today. 17:09 Panel: Amen... amen. Lomacang: And it hasn't changed. 17:11 Now, what's wonderful about that... 17:12 James 1:17 says this to us, 17:14 "Every good and every perfect gift is from above, 17:20 and comes down from the Father of lights, 17:21 with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. " 17:25 So, the very word "good... good... good" 17:27 continually at the end of every creation day 17:30 is re-emphasized by James. 17:32 That's what happens when God is involved... 17:33 everything good comes from Him. 17:36 Genesis 1 verse 4, the Bible starts with the illumination, 17:40 "And God saw the light, that it was good; 17:45 and God divided the light from the darkness. 17:47 And He called the light Day, 17:49 and He called the darkness Night. " 17:51 Now, this is something that 17:52 I'd like to develop at a different time 17:54 because people said, "Wait a minute... 17:56 but the sun and the moon were not yet created... " 17:58 which says to God, 18:00 "You don't need a sun and a moon to have light. " 18:03 God created the existence of light 18:07 and the sun and the moon were to govern the light 18:10 not to produce the light. 18:12 The sun and the moon were there to govern the day... 18:15 govern the night but not to produce it. 18:17 God already produced it. 18:19 We also go to the plant life, Genesis 1 verse 12, 18:22 the plants were yielding fruit... 18:24 "And the earth brought forth grass, 18:26 the herb that yields fruit according to its kind, 18:30 and the trees that yield fruit, 18:32 whose seed is in itself according to its kind. 18:35 And God saw that it was good. " 18:37 Now, when you look at the progression of creation, 18:40 it radically contradicts the theories of evolution 18:43 which dogmatically declares that everything happened eventually. 18:49 The way I wrote it down was, 18:51 evolution talks about a progressive creation... 18:54 a successive creation 18:56 that happened on the heels of an accidental explosion. 18:58 Panel: Hmmm... hmmm... 19:00 Lomacang: how could such order come out of such chaos? 19:04 Now, an Astrophysicist by the name of: Neil deGrasse Tyson... 19:07 I don't agree with much of what he says 19:10 but this phrase... he really pulled it off when he said, 19:13 and I apply this to those who believe in evolution... 19:15 how strange... he's one of the believers... 19:17 but what he says actually denies the very things he espouses. 19:21 He says, "One of the greatest challenges in life 19:23 is knowing enough to think you're right 19:25 but not enough to know you're wrong. " 19:28 Panel: Hmmm... hmmm... 19:29 Lomacang: And that's what's happened to... 19:30 Evolutionists today are saying that the evidences of a God 19:34 who created the world is missing. 19:36 Well, you've got to know what the evidence is that's missing 19:39 to know it's missing. 19:40 But they can't produce... when you ask, "What's missing?" 19:43 they can't tell you what's missing. 19:44 Well, the fact of the matter is, they're trying to find God 19:47 and God cannot be found by humanity. 19:49 Panel: Hmmm... hmmm... 19:50 Lomacang: Good news... humanity can be found by God. 19:53 Panel: Amen... amen. 19:54 Lomacang: The Biblical record points it out very clearly 19:56 and Shelley mentioned this, 19:58 "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. " 19:59 How did He do it? 20:01 Psalm 33 verses 6 and 9, 20:02 "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, 20:08 and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. 20:11 He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; 20:15 He lays up the deep in storehouses. 20:17 Let all the earth fear the Lord; 20:19 Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. 20:23 For He spoke, and it was done; 20:24 He commanded, and it stood fast. " 20:26 Only God can create 20:29 and I... I love the way you use that word 20:31 when talking about Elohim. 20:32 When God created "Bara" meant He created out of nothing. 20:38 Panel: That's right. 20:39 Lomacang: Now, we can't create anything out of nothing. 20:41 Shelley: That's right. Panel: Hmmm... hmmm... 20:42 Lomacang: We could say a lot of nothing 20:44 but we can't create anything out of nothing. 20:45 What you said meant nothing but it came from something. 20:48 It came from a mind devoid of understanding. 20:50 We did not become... 20:52 the other part is... we did not become humans... 20:55 we were created humans. Panel: Amen. 20:58 Lomacang: Humanity did not evolve into human. 21:01 How God made creation in the very beginning, 21:04 is how it continues to this very day. 21:06 Obviously, sin has interrupted the perfection of it, 21:09 but Genesis 1 verse 26 talks about this. 21:12 The perfection of the creation of humankind. 21:15 Verse 26, "Then God said, 'Let us make man in Our image, 21:19 according to Our likeness; 21:21 let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, 21:25 over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, 21:27 over all the earth 21:29 and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. '" 21:32 Verse 27, "So God created man in His own image; 21:37 in the image of God He created him; 21:40 male and female He created them. " 21:43 So, when creation was done, 21:44 male and female were here. 21:47 We did not evolve out of an Amoeba or a Paramecium 21:50 that sprung legs and crawled out of a swampy pond 21:54 then over the course of billions of years 21:56 stood up and became a monkey 21:58 that became an ape... that became a man... 22:00 that became a woman... 22:01 you can't get... I don't want to be... 22:03 I don't want to be cynical here 22:05 but if you've seen how wonderful people look, 22:09 don't contribute the beauty of a human... 22:13 the handsomeness of a man and the beauty of a woman 22:16 to a monkey. 22:17 Panel: Hmmm... that's right. Lomacang: It doesn't match. 22:19 It doesn't even make any sense 22:21 and that will by... by the way, 22:23 that's why people behave the way they do. 22:25 You know, the same is also true about the creation of animals. 22:29 Animals did not evolve into what they are today. 22:33 If that were the case, then how did the monkey stop evolving? 22:36 We have other animals that people have said... 22:39 have come from monkeys or come from apes, 22:42 but apes and monkeys still exist 22:43 so, you see the theory is ridiculous. 22:46 That's why Genesis 1 verse 24... 22:48 the Bible says, "Then God said, 22:49 'Let the earth bring forth the living creatures 22:52 according to its kind: 22:53 cattle and creeping things and beast of the earth, 22:57 each according to its kind'; 22:59 and it was so. " 23:00 It worked... and it's still working today. 23:02 So, we find in the Bible also the six references 23:06 to the evening and the morning 23:07 denotes that there was a cycle of time each day 23:10 had a beginning and an end. 23:13 In Genesis 1 verse 6 23:14 talks about the beginning and the end of those days. 23:16 "Then God made two great lights: 23:18 the greater light to rule the day, 23:20 the lesser light to rule the night. 23:22 He made the stars also. " 23:24 Now, in evolution, the theory is 23:26 the big bang unleashed a creative process 23:30 that took millions of years to get to where we are today. 23:34 But the evidence that there was nothing more to be created 23:38 is the word: finished. 23:40 When God finished it, it was finished. 23:44 There was nothing evolutionary to show up 23:46 after God said, "It was finished... " 23:48 it was so finished... He said it was very good. 23:51 If creation was not finished, the seventh day could not exist. 23:54 Panel: That's right... that's right. 23:56 Lomacang: Chew on that for a moment, 23:57 "If creation was not yet done, 23:59 the seventh day could not continue to exist. " 24:02 The seventh day is the capstone of the creation week 24:06 and in just a moment, 24:07 Ryan's going to take charge of that Sabbath day. 24:09 Shelley: Amen, I just have to add one point, 24:11 you know, there's no way that Geologists can date our earth 24:16 because God created everything with a parent age. 24:18 Adam and Eve weren't little babies... 24:20 they were grown, people. 24:22 Plants... trees were grown, so, oh, God's Word is perfect. 24:28 We'll be back in just 30 seconds stay tuned. 24:31 Music... 24:34 Ever wish you could watch a 3ABN Sabbath School Panel again 24:39 or share it on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter? 24:42 Well, you can by visiting 3abnsabbathschoolpanel. com 24:47 A clean design makes it easy 24:50 to find the Program you're looking for. 24:52 There are also links to the Adult Bible Study Guide 24:55 so you can follow along. 24:57 Sharing is easy. 24:58 Just click "Share" and choose your favorite Social Media. 25:02 Share a Link... Save a Life for Eternity. 25:05 Shelley: Now, we will continue our study for Tuesday 25:08 with Ryan Day. 25:10 Ryan: Amen... praise the Lord, I'm Ryan Day... 25:11 and I have Tuesday's Lesson and it's entitled: The Sabbath 25:14 and I'm so blessed to have this lesson 25:17 because you know, the Sabbath message... 25:19 the truth of the Sabbath... 25:20 the blessing of the Sabbath has just changed my life. 25:23 I wasn't always... and haven't always been a Sabbath Keeper 25:26 according to the Biblical message. 25:28 God showed that to me later in life as an early adult... 25:31 a young adult 25:32 and it has just tremendously changed my life for the better 25:36 and so, I want to... I don't want to take much time, 25:38 I want to jump right into the text 25:40 because actually, Tuesday's lesson dives us right into 25:43 Genesis chapter 2. 25:44 I want to thank Pastor Lomacang and Shelley 25:47 for giving us a great setup for this 25:48 because now we'll get to talk about 25:50 the capstone of creation week... 25:51 of God's beautiful rest day. 25:53 So, Genesis chapter 2, 25:55 we're going to read verses 1 through 3, 25:56 and notice what the Bible says, 25:58 Genesis chapter 2 verses 1 through 3 says, 26:00 "Thus the heavens and the earth, 26:02 and all the host of them, were finished. 26:04 And on the seventh day 26:06 God ended His work which He had done, 26:09 and He rested on the seventh day from all His work 26:12 which He had done. 26:14 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, 26:17 because in it He had rested from all His work 26:20 which He had created and made. " 26:23 And I just have to emphasize this 26:24 because there may be someone watching right now 26:26 that has never heard this truth... 26:27 never heard the truth about the Sabbath. 26:29 The beautiful thing to note here 26:30 which we often like to bring out 26:32 is that when you're studying this beautiful creation week, 26:34 God is doing this like a Painter on a beautiful canvas, 26:37 He's just doing all of this beautiful work 26:39 on each and every creation day... 26:41 just all of this beautiful creation 26:43 on each and individual day 26:44 but by the time He gets to the seventh day, 26:46 He does three things as this text just brought out 26:49 three things on the seventh day 26:51 that He did not do on any of the previous creation days 26:53 and so, now when He gets to the Sabbath, 26:55 He rests... that's the first thing... He rests... 26:58 He... and the word there is Shabbath... 26:59 He rests He is Sabbath... 27:00 that's where we get the word "Sabbath" from. 27:03 He rested... He blessed the seventh day. 27:05 That's not to say that the other days aren't a blessing, 27:08 right? Every day should be a blessing 27:10 but on that particular day, God placed a special blessing 27:13 on this seventh day 27:15 and now, the third thing of course, is 27:17 that He sanctified it... 27:19 He made it holy... He set it apart... 27:21 He sanctified it and that's what "sanctified" means, 27:23 He set it apart for a holy use. 27:25 He set it apart from the other six, 27:27 He said, "Look, these are the days that I worked... 27:29 these are the days that I created... I done my labor, 27:32 but the seventh day is now set apart for a holy use, 27:35 it's declared holy... it's a holy day. 27:37 When God makes something holy, 27:39 how are you going to reverse that? 27:40 Panel: Amen. 27:41 Ryan: You can't reverse that whatsoever, 27:43 so, this is why we should be emphasizing 27:44 and bringing out the blessing and the holiness... 27:46 the sanctity of the Sabbath day 27:48 and we know that this continues on. 27:50 God's commandments including the Sabbath commandment, 27:52 continues on for creation. 27:54 I've even have people say, "You know, Ryan, 27:56 you know, Sabbath doesn't really come along 27:57 until the commandments in Mount Sinai, 27:59 but we know that the commandments pre-date Sinai 28:02 because we see right there in the 26th chapter of Genesis, 28:04 which we'll get to when we talk about Abraham, 28:06 and how Abraham was obedient to all of God's commandments 28:09 and to God's voice. 28:11 Even in the 16th chapter of Exodus, we see the Sabbath... 28:14 God's saying, "How long do you refuse to keep my laws?" 28:17 And this was before He had given the Decalogue 28:19 or the formal Ten Commandments on the tablets of stone 28:22 and so the Sabbath has always been a blessing since creation 28:26 and He wants all of His people to... 28:28 to participate in that blessing. 28:30 Now, let's go read the command itself, 28:32 because as we often call these the Ten Commandments, 28:35 they're really... and we've said this often as well 28:37 and I just want to emphasize it... it's the ten freedoms. 28:40 God is setting His people free from 400 years of bondage 28:43 in Egypt... and He's saying, "Look, 28:45 I want to now give you the freedom 28:46 to rest on My holy day... 28:48 work six days... yes... 28:50 but rest on My holy day... " 28:52 and so, He emphasizes the... the significance of the Sabbath 28:55 in Exodus chapter 20, verses 8 through 11, 28:58 Exodus 20 verses 8 through 11, 29:00 this is the Sabbath commandment... 29:02 God is verbally speaking this and He tells them, 29:04 "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 29:07 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 29:10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. 29:12 In it you shall do no work: 29:15 you, nor your son, nor your daughter, 29:18 nor your male servant, nor your female servant, 29:21 not your cattle, 29:22 nor your stranger who is within your gates... " 29:24 and then He tells us why we keep it holy. 29:26 "For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, 29:29 the sea, and all that in them is, 29:31 and rested the seventh day. 29:33 Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. " 29:37 I love it... the first verse there... verse 8, 29:40 "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy... " 29:41 the general command... God wants us to remember it... 29:44 He wants us to honor it, 29:45 He wants us to keep it holy. 29:47 How do we do that? Verses 9 and 10, 29:49 we rest and allow others to rest 29:52 in our control... within our gates... 29:54 within our property... 29:55 if we have control over that, we should rest. 29:57 We should allow others to receive the blessing of rest 30:00 and then, of course, why do we keep the Sabbath holy? 30:03 Not because God's just trying to put some oppressive... 30:06 like... you can't do this and you can't do that 30:07 and you can't... a lot of people see the Sabbath as a... 30:10 as a curse or as a... as a... as a heavy drudgery 30:13 that they can't do all of these things 30:14 but God says, "No, no, no, no, no, 30:16 it's much more... 30:17 it's farther beyond just the 'rest' aspect... 30:19 it's a memorial of Creation. " 30:22 Lomacang: That's right. 30:23 Ryan: When we... we keep the Sabbath holy, 30:25 we're remembering God's creative work, 30:27 His amazing creative work 30:29 and Him as the Creator of the universe. 30:31 It's all right there even in the general commandment 30:34 and... and, you know, the Sabbath... 30:35 the... the lesson brings this out, 30:36 I'm going to read this portion here 30:38 because this is really, really nice. 30:39 The Sabbath is also a way in which we... 30:41 it's a reminder in which we can take care of our... ourselves... 30:44 our bodies... our lives... 30:45 notice what the Lesson brings here 30:47 and I have to read this, it says, 30:48 "We can rest from our works just as God had rested from His. 30:52 Sabbath-keeping means saying "yes" to God's 30:56 very good creation 30:58 which includes our physical bodies. 30:59 Contrary to some ancient and modern beliefs, 31:02 nothing in Scripture... Old or New Testament 31:05 denigrates the body as evil... " 31:09 and so, it goes on to say that's a pagan concept 31:11 not a Biblical one. 31:12 Instead, Sabbath-keepers are grateful for God's creation 31:15 which includes their own flesh, right 31:18 and that is why they can enjoy the creation 31:21 and what they... and why they care of it. 31:23 We are, we are... we are the... the temple of the Holy Spirit 31:27 and the Bible makes that very clear 31:28 and we need that rest... 31:30 the Sabbath rest is a... is a delight... it should be a joy. 31:33 It's a way for us to... to re-energize 31:36 and to take a pause from our busy life 31:38 and to be able to get that spiritual and physical rest 31:41 that we need each and every... each and every week. 31:44 It's a sign... the Sabbath... 31:46 I love this too... it's beautiful, 31:48 it's a sign of hope for suffering humanity 31:51 and for the groaning of the world. 31:53 Now, this comes obviously Post Fall, right, 31:56 when sin enters the world 31:58 but each and every week 31:59 now that we're living in this sinful world, 32:01 it's a reminder that... that it's a sign of hope 32:04 for suffering humanity. 32:06 We even see this within the context of, you know, 32:08 right there in the beginning of creation 32:10 where it says, "God finished His work. " 32:12 He finished His work 32:13 but then you see the same phrasing... same words 32:16 that are used in Exodus chapter 40 verse 33, 32:18 when Moses... they finished building the sanctuary, 32:22 the tabernacle... 32:23 we see it again within the context of the sanctuary 32:26 in 1st Kings chapter 7 verses 40 and 51, 32:29 during the building of Solomon's Temple 32:31 or we call it Solomon's Temple, it's the Lord's Temple... 32:34 but nonetheless, we see very clearly there 32:36 that in the finishing of that work, 32:38 the blessing of the Sabbath is a reminder... 32:41 it points us to salvation and redemption 32:43 and the fact that when you think of the sanctuary message, 32:46 it's progressive 32:47 and the progressive message the... 32:49 the salvation message and the sanctuary 32:51 is leading us to a time when we will have... 32:53 when we will have eternal spiritual rest in God. 32:56 It's progressively leading us to the very presence of God... 32:59 we can dwell with Him... 33:01 and we no longer have to have these degraded dying bodies 33:04 but when we rest each week on the Sabbath, 33:07 it points forward to the beautiful blessing 33:09 of... of... of the hope that we have 33:11 that God is going to make things new. 33:13 After the fall, the Sabbath at the end of the week 33:15 points to the miracle of salvation as we brought out 33:18 which will take place... notice, 33:20 only through the miracle of a new creation 33:23 which we see in Isaiah 65 verse 17 as well... 33:26 Revelation chapter 21, 33:27 we see the new heaven and the new earth... 33:29 the Sabbath is a sign... it's a symbol of hope, 33:32 we look forward to this... 33:33 when we keep the Sabbath holy, 33:34 and we honor it according to the Bible, 33:36 we're also remembering the fact and honoring the fact 33:39 that the beautiful promise and hope that we have 33:41 that God is going to come back 33:43 and He's going to make all things new 33:45 powerful... powerful truth. 33:46 The Sabbath is a sign at the end of our human week 33:49 that the suffering and trials of this world 33:51 will have an end as well. 33:54 There's so much more... my time is clicking away here, 33:56 there's so much more that we can highlight here, 33:58 I had a whole section that I'm not going to be able to read, 34:01 but you know this... all of this truth 34:02 and I'm going to end on this. 34:04 All of this truth is also emphasized 34:06 and very clearly communicated 34:08 in the fact that Jesus cares for suffering humanity. 34:11 He cares for our groanings. 34:12 In fact, the lesson brings out that Jesus chose the Sabbath 34:16 as the most appropriate day to do all of His healing 34:19 and there's so many different Scriptural examples of this 34:22 but Luke 13 34:23 which I'm not going to have time to read these verses, 34:25 but Luke chapter 13 verses 10 through 17, 34:27 we see very clearly there's a lady with... 34:30 with... with an infirmity there 34:31 and Jesus heals her on the Sabbath. 34:33 One of the Synagogue rulers... it says there in verse 14, 34:36 "But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, 34:39 because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; 34:40 and he said to the crowd, 34:42 'There are six days in which man ought to work; 34:44 therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath'." 34:47 Jesus rebukes these brothers 34:48 and He goes on to say, "You hypocrite! 34:50 Does not each one of you on the Sabbath 34:52 loose his ox or his donkey from the stall, 34:55 and lead it away to water? 34:56 So ought not this woman be of the daughter of Abraham, 34:59 whom Satan had bound... 35:01 think of it... for eighteen years, 35:03 be loosed of this bond on the Sabbath?" 35:06 Jesus said it was better to do good on the Sabbath. 35:09 Why? because He's the Lord of the Sabbath. 35:11 My Friends, the Sabbath is a blessing. 35:13 We should receive it as an exquisite delight 35:15 and I hope that you also in your studies 35:17 learn that it can be a blessing for you. 35:19 Panel: Amen... praise the Lord. 35:21 Kenny: Okay, we're going to go into Wednesday's lesson 35:23 but boy! you guys really set it up. 35:25 We're going to go to Wednesday's lesson, 35:27 it's going to be talking about: The Creation of Humanity. 35:29 To me, it's just... 35:31 to me, it was awesome just to go back and to be refreshed 35:33 and to learn some things about creation. 35:36 If you have your Bibles, be sure and turn with me... 35:38 Genesis chapter 1... 35:39 I think couple of these verses have been read 35:41 but I want to read them again just in case you missed it 35:43 so, we set up a good foundation, Genesis chapter 1:26, 27, and 28. 35:48 These will be very familiar verses 35:50 that most of you probably have memorized. 35:52 The Bible says... I love to say that... 35:53 the Bible says, 35:55 "And God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, 35:57 and in our likeness; 35:58 and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, 36:02 and over the fowl of the air and over the cattle, 36:04 over all the earth 36:06 and over every creeping thing that creepeth on the earth. 36:09 So God created man in His own image; 36:12 in the image of God created He him; 36:15 male and female created He them. " 36:17 Notice verse 28, it says, 36:19 "And God blessed them, and God said unto them, 36:21 'Be fruitful and multiply, 36:23 and replenish the earth, and subdue it: 36:26 and have dominion over the fish of the sea, 36:28 and over the fowl of the air, 36:29 and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. '" 36:33 Well, I like the way it starts out, verse 26, "God said... " 36:37 He said, "Let us make... let us make man in our image" 36:43 and so, you look at that word "image" as... 36:45 it's... it's... it's quite a challenging word 36:48 but yet it has some real depth and meaning to it. 36:50 When you say "image" there it's talking about 36:52 the... the knowledge... God gave man knowledge 36:54 and... you know, where he can reason things out. 36:56 It has to do with righteousness, 36:58 it has to do with true holiness 37:00 and I'd like to add something here to me... it's... 37:03 it's... it's happiness, you know, 37:05 because in the very beginning, before sin... 37:07 we mentioned that before sin, Adam and Eve, you know, 37:11 they were holy beings 37:12 and they were happy beings. 37:14 God said, "Let's make man in Our image. " 37:17 So, man was made... interesting... 37:19 man was made last... right, of all the creatures 37:23 and now... now I know why. 37:25 I finally figured this one out. 37:27 So that we can look at Scriptures like 37:32 Job chapter 38 verse 4, 37:33 I know I'm funning here a little bit 37:35 but notice what it says, what does it say? 37:37 This is going to fit. 37:39 It says, "Where wast thou 37:41 when I lay the foundation of the earth? 37:43 Declare, if thou has understanding. " 37:45 To me that makes sense, right, 37:47 Man can get... when there's a little discussion here 37:49 between Job and God, we realize 37:51 God's going to be pointing to all of us 37:53 and he did to man and said, 37:54 "Now, where were you?" Right? 37:55 "All this stuff was made before you got here. " 37:59 Everything your little heart desires is here for you. 38:03 His ways are past finding out I think in Romans 11:33... 38:07 His ways are past finding out yet men... men try 38:10 but, you know, we can't find out God, 38:12 we can't find out all of these things, 38:14 but praise God He's left enough that we can understand 38:17 and... and certainly, He can find us. 38:19 As soon as man was created, he had everything, 38:23 I notice, everything that He wanted 38:25 because it was pretty much done. 38:27 So now, the... the... 38:29 something else I want to bring out, 38:30 He said, "Let us make man... " 38:32 just a quick points here, "Let us make man. " 38:35 What is He talking about? 38:36 Three persons of the Godhead. 38:38 You know, again a subject a lot of people want to debate, 38:41 three persons of the Godhead... Father, Son, Holy Ghost... 38:44 They counsel together... 38:46 They consulted together... 38:48 They came in agreement together 38:51 and then, man was... man was made... 38:54 he was created 38:55 and he was to be... why? 38:57 because he was to be dedicated 38:59 and he was to be devoted to those Three. 39:02 Panel: Hmmm... 39:03 Kenny: Kind of interesting... 39:05 devoted tendency toward These... 39:07 I thought it was just beautiful thought 39:09 as we think about "God said... " 39:10 you know, story... 39:11 I think about and I just have to bring it up 39:13 and many people have done this I'm sure 39:15 but I think when... Russia... 39:16 when 3ABN was having their meetings there, 39:18 because we talked about creation of man... 39:21 we're talking about, you know, evangelism, 39:23 which is... people talk about evangelism... 39:25 words going out... praise God... 39:27 he was a man that was trying to find God, was he not? 39:29 Do you remember the story? Trying to find God... 39:31 he didn't have a Bible, 39:32 he never read in the Word of God, 39:34 he had no idea but he was there at the meetings 39:36 and a free Bible was passed out to him 39:38 and so, he opened the first page, 39:41 and he read, "In the beginning was God. " 39:45 Tears began to just flow down his cheeks. 39:48 "That's what I've been wanting to know all of my life, 39:52 and now I know... " 39:54 What faith! Panel: Amen, that's right, yes. 39:57 Kenny: If we would just do that 39:58 like this man did... this gentleman. 40:00 Take the Bible... open it up 40:02 and begin to read, "In the beginning, 40:04 God created the heavens and the earth. " 40:06 So... what a thought! God created... 40:08 notice that... it's a thought. 40:09 God created the world first, right, 40:12 and then, He put man in charge of this world. 40:15 After reading these verses, 40:16 I jotted down a few... few questions. 40:18 You know that... why did God create the world, 40:21 why did He do it? 40:22 Well, here are just a few reasons, 40:25 Manuscript 78, this is in 1901 says, 40:27 "Infinite love... how great it is... 40:30 God made the world... " 40:32 I think Shelley might... message might allude to 40:35 "to enlarge... " what? Enlarge heaven. 40:37 We desire a larger family of what? 40:40 Or He desired a larger family of created intelligence. 40:43 Panel: Hmmm... that's right... Amen... 40:45 Kenny: There's a reason why, Number Two: 40:46 God made man for His own glory. 40:49 You know, again, how is your life working out? 40:52 Give glory to God or maybe glory to the world? 40:55 Three: God's purpose was to repopulate in heaven 40:59 with the human family. 41:01 Right, and sin... they fell short... 41:03 God repopulated the earth and they are to... 41:06 and that being after tests and after trial for sure. 41:09 Review and Herald 1902 says this, 41:12 I like this because I sensed as I read, 41:15 a nearness that heaven is to us... 41:17 how near God wants to be to us 41:19 and how important that all the universe... 41:22 they're interested in you and they're interested in me, 41:25 it says, "All of heaven took a deep... " 41:27 I like this, "joyful interest in the creation 41:30 of the world and of man. " 41:32 Human beings, notice this, "were a new and distinct order, 41:37 they were made in the image of God. " 41:40 So, only human beings then were created in the image of God. 41:44 Four words just kind of stuck out to me, 41:46 I'll tell them to you quick as I can: 41:50 image... likeness... formed and breathe. 41:53 Image... Number One is: 41:55 refers to the shape of the physical body. 41:59 "Likeness" refers to the... I want to call it the abstract 42:03 or... this is in a loose way, right, 42:06 this is kind of in a loose way compared to the divine. 42:10 The Biblical text... in the image of God is both 42:13 physically and spiritually as in the book Education 15 says this, 42:18 listen to this quote: 42:20 "When Adam came from the Creator's hand, 42:22 he bore in his physical, mental and spiritual nature 42:28 a likeness to his Maker. " 42:30 How awesome... 42:32 really to think about how awesome that really is 42:34 that God's going to create... He creates man... 42:36 He creates man in... "in Our likeness. " 42:38 Wow! 42:40 Another purpose why God created the earth 42:42 and, of course, man... 42:43 I found this in Adventist Home page 540. 42:46 "God's original purpose in the creation of the earth 42:50 is fulfilled in it that it made the abode of the redeemed. " 42:56 A place for the redeemed this is where it's going to be 42:58 and these redeemed are going to be free from sin and sorrow. 43:02 So... that's One and Two... Number Three: 43:05 He formed and God breathed. 43:07 We know that in Genesis 2, right... 2:7... 43:09 it says... he was formed of the dust of the ground. 43:12 God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; 43:15 and again, spiritual and physical... 43:17 and man became a living soul. 43:19 Book Education, page 20, 43:21 page 20 says... now this is kind of a... a long paragraph 43:24 I'm reading... but I think it deserves to be read... 43:27 we'll go as far as we can within our time. 43:29 But the reading is: created to be... 43:31 you notice, in the image of God. 43:32 In 1st Corinthians 11:7 we read more about that, 43:35 "Adam and Eve had received... " notice this, 43:37 "the endowments not unworthy of their high destiny. 43:41 Graceful and symmetrical in form, 43:43 regular and beautiful in feature, 43:46 their countenances glowing with the tint of health" 43:50 oh, I love that one, don't you? 43:51 "and the light of joy and hope, 43:53 they bore in outward resemblance 43:56 to the likeness of their Maker. 43:58 Nor was this likeness manifested in the physical nature only. 44:03 Every faculty of mind... " notice this... 44:06 "and soul reflected the Creator's glory. " 44:09 Oh my! Man... the way it started out 44:11 that's the way it wants to end, isn't that right? 44:13 Notice, "Endowed with high mental and spiritual gifts, 44:16 Adam and Eve... " notice this 44:18 "were made but little lower than... " what? 44:21 "the angels... " Hebrews 2 verse 7, 44:23 "that they might not only discern the wonders 44:26 of the visible universe, 44:28 but comprehend moral responsibilities 44:33 and obligations. " 44:34 Sometime in this world we forget 44:35 that we have responsibility to God... 44:38 we have moral obligation to God 44:40 and we need to be calling that back... 44:42 when God simply said, "Let Us make man in our image. " 44:48 Can we possibly comprehend those words? 44:52 I know I can't... but we're throwing it out to you today 44:55 by the grace of God that we begin to say, 44:57 "God looks... God saw... God believed 44:59 and He said, 'Here is man... 45:01 I want him to be made in My... in Our image. " 45:04 Now, if we're made in God's image... by the grace of God, 45:06 we need to keep that... isn't that right? 45:08 By the grace of God 45:10 and you notice, God's thoughts toward us... 45:13 they're always good. 45:14 We'll think about that a little bit more as we go, 45:16 our time's up right now... yes. 45:18 Jill: Amen... thank you so much. 45:20 What an incredible lesson! Appreciate all of that, 45:22 I am Jill Morikone and I have Thursday's, Lesson: 45:25 The Duty of Humanity. 45:28 You know, when I think about Genesis... 45:30 you all did such an incredible job of setting the stage... 45:33 who created and how that creation took place 45:36 and the Sabbath is the capstone of Creation 45:39 and man and woman being created... 45:42 "In the beginning, God... " in contrast to Atheism... 45:46 created alone... in contrast to Polytheism. 45:50 He rules over Creation in contrast to Pantheism. 45:55 Matter had a beginning as opposed to Materialism 46:00 and the ultimate reality is God not humanity. 46:05 When we look at Thursday's lesson: 46:08 The Duty of Humanity... 46:10 the Lesson had three duties that were given to Adam and Eve 46:13 in the beginning... in the Garden... 46:16 this is before sin entered the Garden 46:19 but I'm going to give you four 46:20 and within those four, 46:22 we're going to look at the duties 46:24 and each duty is connected with a gift that God gave to them. 46:27 Within that we have, Shelley, the Ten Takeaways. 46:30 So, let's mention the four duties 46:32 and then I'll go back and unpack them. 46:34 Number One is: Care for the Earth. 46:37 Number Two: Keep His Commandments. 46:40 Number Three: Experience Marital Oneness. 46:44 Number Four: Be Fruitful. 46:47 So, let's look at those four duties... 46:49 the first duty given to Adam and Eve 46:51 is: Care for the Earth 46:53 and with that duty came the gift... what was the gift? 46:56 The gift of the earth... 46:58 the gift of the garden where in Genesis chapter 2, 47:02 Genesis chapter 2 verse 15, 47:05 "Then the Lord God took the man 47:06 and put him in the garden of Eden... " 47:09 and what are those two verbs? 47:11 to tend and keep it... 47:15 That word "tend" in Hebrew literally means, 47:18 to work... to serve... 47:19 so, Takeaway Number 1: 47:21 Work is a divine gift... it's not a punishment. 47:25 We often think "work" came as part of the curse 47:29 after sin... as part of the consequences of sin 47:32 and yes, there was a good deal of toil in... 47:35 by the sweat of Adam's brow in the earth... that is true 47:38 but "work" was given to tend the garden... 47:42 that was given before the entrance of sin. 47:45 This duty of humanity... 47:47 you see... it's not enough just to receive a gift. 47:49 We need to work on it and make it fruitful. 47:52 I think about Matthew 25... the parable of the talents. 47:56 We're not called to bury that in the earth, 47:59 we're called to develop... to cultivate... to tend it... 48:03 and it will develop. 48:04 Takeaway Number 2: 48:05 This... develop what you have been given. 48:09 Adam was given a garden to tend. 48:12 Noah... he was given a boat to build 48:14 and his act would save the world. 48:17 Joseph was given a household to manage 48:20 and a prison to run 48:21 and his faithfulness saved a nation and his family. 48:26 Ruth was given some wheat to glean. 48:29 Rahab was given two spies to save 48:32 and they saved her and her family from ruin. 48:35 Mary was given a Son to raise 48:38 and He saved the world. 48:40 Jeremiah 29... I love this reference, 48:43 in Jeremiah 29, he's talking of course 48:46 to the Children of Israel who were in bondage in Babylon. 48:50 They had been taken as captive in Jeremiah 29:5, 48:53 the counsel was given to them... 48:55 build houses... dwell in them... 48:58 plant gardens and eat their fruit. 49:00 To develop even in the land of captivity, 49:04 even where you don't want to be, 49:06 develop what you have been given. 49:08 Panel: That's right. 49:10 Jill: Takeaway Number 3, now, this is interesting... 49:12 we don't have a whole lot of time to develop this, 49:13 but Takeaway Number 3: 49:15 Work is actually connected with worship. 49:17 The same word in Genesis 2:15, they were in the Garden 49:22 to tend and to keep. 49:24 The same word for "Tend" 49:26 is the word used in Exodus 3 verse 12, 49:30 when the Children of Israel were going to go 49:33 and worship God on the mountain. 49:36 It's the same word as "tend. " 49:39 It reminds me of Romans 12 verse 1, 49:41 "I beseech you, therefore, brethren, 49:43 by the mercies of God, 49:45 that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, 49:48 holy, acceptable unto God, 49:50 which is your reasonable service. " 49:51 In Greek, it's the spiritual act of worship... 49:56 that Service... being connected with worship. 50:00 Now, let's look at the other verb, 50:02 we have the verb "tend" 50:03 they were in the Garden to tend... to work... 50:05 but they were also to keep it... what does "keep" mean? 50:09 "Shamar... " it means to keep... to watch... to preserve. 50:13 It showcases the responsibility 50:15 to preserve what has been received. 50:19 Takeaway Number 4: 50:20 Stewardship is Biblical. 50:22 We are called to "keep... " we are called to watch... 50:26 we are called to preserve what we have been given. 50:30 And what have we been given? 50:31 Our health... our bodies... 50:34 our mind... our intellect... 50:36 our morals and values... 50:38 the Word of God. 50:40 We are called to preserve how that is presented 50:43 and handled... the earth and everything in it, 50:46 other people that are entrusted to our care. 50:50 Now, let's go back to Genesis 1 verse 28. 50:54 We're still talking about the first duty of humanity 50:57 which is: care for the earth. 50:58 Genesis 1:28... 51:00 "Then God blessed them, 51:02 and God said to them, 'Be fruitful, and multiply, 51:03 and fill the earth, and subdue it: 51:05 and have... '" what's that word? 51:06 "dominion over the fish of the sea, 51:08 the birds of the air, 51:10 and over every living thing that moves on the earth. " 51:12 That word "dominion" means to take care of... 51:14 to direct... to manage... 51:16 this is stewardship again. 51:18 Takeaway Number 5: 51:20 Stewardship is not exploitation. 51:23 Christian Stewardship 51:25 acknowledges God as the owner of everything. 51:28 Panel: Amen. 51:29 Jill: Psalm 24, "The earth is the Lord's, 51:30 in all its fullness. " 51:32 Christian Stewardship acknowledges God 51:34 as the source of all power. 51:36 Deuteronomy 8... 51:38 God's the one who gives us power to acquire wealth. 51:41 Daniel 2... God's the one who sets up kings and removes kings. 51:44 Christian Stewardship is actuated by service. 51:48 Matthew 20... "Whoever desires to be great, 51:51 let him or her be a servant. " 51:54 Christian Stewardship is built on accountability. 51:58 We see that in Matthew chapter 25. 52:02 Let's go to: Duty of Humanity Number 2, 52:05 Keep His Commandments 52:06 and the gift connected with this duty 52:09 is the gift of food... 52:10 you may say, "What in the world?" 52:12 Panel: Laughter. 52:13 Jill: Okay, so we're going to Genesis 1:29, 52:16 we see grace and obedience connected together 52:20 in the Garden of Eden. 52:21 Grace is the gift of food that God gave to His people. 52:25 Genesis 1:29, 52:26 God said, "I've given you every herb that yields seed 52:30 which is on the face of the earth, 52:31 every tree whose fruit yields seed; 52:33 to you, it shall be for food. " 52:35 Jump over to Genesis 2:16, 52:37 "The Lord God commanded the man, saying, 52:40 'Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat. '" 52:42 So what do we see here? 52:43 Grace is freely bestowed... this is Takeaway Number 6. 52:46 They didn't earn the food... it was given. 52:49 God gave them the food. 52:52 We don't earn salvation... it is freely given. 52:56 But yet that grace is connected with the duty with obedience. 53:00 Let's look at that... the next verse... Genesis 2:17, 53:02 "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil 53:05 you shall not eat, 53:07 for in the day that you eat of it 53:09 you shall... " what Pastor Kenny? 53:11 "surely die. " Panel: Hmmm... 53:13 Jill: The affirmative command of tending and keeping the garden 53:16 is followed by the prohibitive command 53:19 that they should not eat of the fruit 53:21 of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. 53:24 Takeaway Number 7: 53:26 Restrictions are for our Benefit. 53:29 Did you hear that? 53:31 Restrictions are for our benefit. 53:34 Panel: That's right. 53:36 Jill: There is joy and peace in obedience. 53:38 Isaiah 48:18, "Oh, that you had heeded My commandments! 53:42 Then your peace would have been like a river... " 53:45 there is peace in obedience. 53:47 Now, let's look at duty Number 3: 53:49 Experience marital oneness... 53:51 or Genesis 2 verse 24, 53:54 "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother 53:57 and be joined to his wife... " 53:58 Eve's just been created here. 54:00 "and they shall become one flesh. " 54:03 This is not just talking about sexual unity 54:06 although it definitely encompasses that. 54:08 This is physical unity... 54:10 this is emotional unity... 54:12 this is spiritual unity. 54:14 Takeaway Number 8, 54:15 Marital unity is a gift and a duty. 54:20 Tend and keep your unity. 54:23 Work to preserve and guard your unity. 54:27 Keep your marital union. 54:29 Forsake others... this is physical unity. 54:32 Keep eyes only for your spouse. 54:34 Emotional unity... work through your issues. 54:37 Forgive... communicate with each other. 54:41 Spiritual Unity... pray and study together. 54:45 And the final duty is to be fruitful 54:47 and we know this... 54:49 God said, "Be fruitful and multiply... 54:52 fill the earth and subdue it. " 54:54 Takeaway Number 9: 54:55 children are a gift and a blessing from the Lord. 54:59 Panel: That's right. 55:01 Takeaway Number 10: 55:02 the primary focus of that verse is children... yes... 55:04 but I believe, Takeaway Number 10 55:06 and we don't have time to get into it... 55:08 but that we are called to be fruitful 55:11 as in bearing fruit for the glory of God. 55:14 Panel: Yes... that's right. 55:16 Jill: John chapter 15... 55:18 we are called as Christians to prepare fruit for His glory 55:22 so, Takeaway Number 10: 55:24 Christians are called to bear fruit. 55:26 Panel: Ooooooh... amen... amen. 55:28 Shelley: Jill, that was a beautiful lesson, 55:30 everybody's lesson was beautiful. 55:32 We just have a few seconds left 55:34 to give you each a closing thought. 55:36 Lomacang: Creation was complete when God said, 55:39 "It is finished... " Genesis 2:4. 55:41 This is the history of the heavens and the earth 55:43 when they were created in the day that the Lord had made 55:47 the earth and the heavens. 55:48 When He said, "It is done... " it was over. 55:51 Panel: Hmmm... amen. 55:52 Ryan: I talked about the Sabbath on Tuesday's Lesson, 55:54 The Sabbath was meant to be a blessing for everyone my Friends 55:56 Isaiah 56 says, "Blessed is the man who does this, 55:59 and the son of man who lays hold on it; 56:02 who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, 56:03 and keeps his hand from doing any evil. " 56:06 Yes, we should keep the Sabbath 56:07 but first, we should also lead each other 56:10 to the Lord of the Sabbath 56:11 so, Jesus first and then the Sabbath, amen. 56:13 Kenny: Amen, praise the Lord. 56:15 You know, God's thoughts toward us are still the same 56:18 as from the very beginning of time. 56:20 We read that in Jeremiah 29:11, 56:22 it says, "I have thoughts of peace... and not of evil. " 56:26 Panel: That's right. 56:27 Jill: Amen... and duty of humanity 56:29 we see that God gave to Adam and Eve 56:30 in the very beginning duties... 56:33 things that they could do to work to preserve their unity 56:37 and to tend the garden and keep it. 56:40 Shelley: Amen and amen. 56:41 You know, I guess the point that I want to leave 56:44 with each of you is to remember how condensed Genesis is. 56:49 In the first 11 chapters... 56:52 there's 2,000 years of the world's history. 56:55 Sometimes, people say, 56:57 "Oh, God doesn't lay out His commandments in Genesis... " 57:00 all you've got to do look at what goes on 57:04 when we get into the patriarchal history 57:08 and see how Abraham had obedient faith 57:12 and how God renewed the covenant 57:15 with his son, Isaac, 57:17 in... in Genesis... let me see... 57:21 that's 26 and verse 5, 57:23 let me read that to you, Genesis 26 verse 5, 57:26 He's renewing the covenant with Isaac... 57:29 "because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, 57:34 My commandments, My statutes and My laws. " 57:38 So, don't think that Moses laid out all of the details... 57:43 if you put 2,000 years of history in 11 chapters, 57:47 that's pretty significant distillation. 57:50 We hope that you will join us next week 57:53 for Lesson Number 2: The Fall... 57:56 until then may God bless you richly. 57:59 Panel: Amen. |
Revised 2022-06-28