The book of Genesis serves as a window, a lens through which we see our world, our place in the world and the rest of the Bible. We look through it, we rarely look at it. By the time Genesis was written, lots of history had taken place. Adam. Eve. Creation. The Fall. Murder. Exile. Construction. Destruction. Famines. Floods. Dysfunctional families. Genesis was not written as it happened, it was written at least two millennia after the first domino was knocked over.
Before Genesis was written down, Father Abraham — we’ll read his story soon — and his frustrating walk of faith had come and gone. Isaac had been rescued. Jacob had been lamed. Joseph had been sold. Patterns had been established. The family had become a nation within a nation. For 400 years, the Israelites languished in slavery under the oppressive hand of their Egyptian taskmasters.
Then, suddenly, into the deafening silence, God spoke to a man, and through that man God spoke (first) to His people, (next) to His people’s keepers and (ultimately) to all of human history.
And still Genesis had not been written.
As far as we know, the plagues were visited upon the Egyptians, the Red Sea was parted, the Law was given, the Golden Calf was crafted and the spies were convinced that invading the land of their destiny would be a mistake, all of that happened before Genesis was written.
Perhaps there is a sense in which it is because of these stories — and others like them — that Genesis (and the other historical-narrative parts of the Bible) was written. Genesis is written to remind us of what has happened, what God has done and how He has interacted with His people through the first eras of human history. This reminder demonstrates two vitally important principles.
Scripture is always a means to a greater end.
Scripture corrects, reveals and instructs.
It is intended to make us more like the God who authors it. God does not merely desire a transfer of information, He desires our complete transformation.
It is for these reasons that Moses finally put down in writing the stories that had been handed down from generation to generation. He was less concerned with telling us how the world was created than He was in telling us that the world was created and by Whom.
And what a world it is! Intricate design (look at a blade of grass under a microscope), balance (four seasons every year), order (the world keeps turning) and controlled mayhem (kick over an anthill sometime). It is a marvellous place of wonder and beauty. If the creation is this amazing, how amazing must the Creator be?
Prayer
What we could not have learned from the glories and marvels of Your world, You have revealed through Your Word. We know from the heavens and the earth that You are all-powerful, utterly wise and everywhere present; Your eternal power and divine nature have clearly been revealed. But it was only through Your special revelation in Scripture that we could know that the One who has dominion over all things is also the Lover of our souls. Your Word is a love letter to the people You created to enjoy forever in loving communion with You. May I be a diligent student of Your Word so that it will renew my mind and give me an eternal perspective as I meditate on your timeless truths.
In Jesus’s name, Amen
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