01/01/2018 Genesis 1, Genesis 2:1-17 – Matthew 1:1-25 – Psalm 1:1-6

Hi – and Happy New Year! It’s 2018 and we are starting our year through the Bible. Most (but not every) days Pastor Luke is going to share a few of his thoughts as he’s reading through the Bible with you. Some of these will be written but there should be some videos too as we go.

This isn’t intended to be the definitive word or an extensive commentary on each section – but just some thoughts that occur to Pastor Luke as he reads. It may be good for you, too to write down things that God is saying to you – maybe to share with your life group or to keep for yourself.

It’s going to be a great journey together this year!

Genesis 1:14-15

And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years,  and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so.

God said. Not did. He said and it was so.

It’s that amazing? God just needs to speak. – He’s so big, that His very words are enough for things to happen.

What God says – happens.

What has God said over you? If He’s said it – then we need to accept that is how it is.  Over the next year we will read what God has said as we are reading the very Word of God. What he’s said about you – and the rest of the world – it’s all in the bible. There’s no ifs or buts here. If he has said it. That’s how it is.  This chapter is tricky – because it deals with creation. And we don’t know how that works – because it’s only happened once. It’s not something we get to see again – even with a large hadron collider.

The trouble with the story of creation is we want to know the mechanics of it. The bible doesn’t tell us that, because that’s not the important bit. God said. And then there was. That’s the point of the scripture – God spoke everything into being.

How?

The bible doesn’t need to go there.

Why is there life? Because certain amino acids combined together? How to the pallets and stars form? Where does water come from? We can look and look for the mechanics, the building blocks… but what does that really matter? That is just process. We can be more concerned about the effect and miss the cause.

There is life because God said.

There is light because God said.

The waters and land are separate because God said they should be.

Which should be enough.

 

Genesis 2:15 – The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.

Adam wasn’t put in the garden to sunbathe. He was put there to work at it and keep it. It’s good to have purpose. Without it… we aren’t living as we’ve been made. In this perfect world before the fall, I’m sure tending the garden was a lot less frustrating than it is today. I try to keep my garden. But things keep dying. And other things that I don’t want in there keep growing too fast. It’s hard work.

But the toil of working the earth comes at the fall. The hardness and challenge of work – that’s not how it should be. The delight of work – the joy in having a role in the world… that’s built into us. Man was made to work. And to enjoy it.

What’s your purpose? What has God asked you to put your hand to? Sure – we are fallen – so work is always going to be hard – even the good jobs. But there’s something about work that connects us to God – because it connects us to His original purpose. Eric Liddel the athlete would say when he ran he felt God’s pleasure. Why? Because he was engaged in something that was part of God’s purpose for him.

When we work to the glory of God – we feel his pleasure.

 

Matt 1:1 – This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:

Funny things, genealogies – we tend to skim them, because most of us don’t really find them to be of interest. But that tells us something, the book of Matthew was written by a Jewish man, for Jewish people. The Jewish people cared a lot about genealogy – about where you came from – far more than our western culture does. And Matthew starts with this because he wasn’t to affirm something right at the start: Jesus IS the king of the Jews. He traces his roots back to Abraham but also, very importantly, included King David. There is a royal line there – through Joseph, who is described as the husband of Mary, not the father of Jesus.

Matthew also tells us exactly who Jesus is, before he’s even born. Not only is he in the royal line, but He was born of a Virgin and His name shall be called “God with us”. And He will save people from their sins. It’s a bold opening – Jesus is God with us, born not through man but of a Virgin, and that He came to save us from our sins.

 

Psalm 1:1,2 – Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.

You know, I love this Psalm. I know it’s looked at so often, but each time I read it – it brings me such a peace. It would be so easy to sit in the seat of a scoffer – the negative root is always the easy one. The downward pull is always there. It’s always tempting to relax… but the pull is always downwards. What do we need to do in order to grow weeds in a garden? Nothing!

It can feel like a lot of word, keeping right before God – but when our delight is in the Law of the Lord – it’s like we are a tree beside a river. We have an ever flowing source of nourishment available to us. Our fruit can our leaves can be strong, because we are drawing on the very best source for life. But the key, is to keep close to the source of water – to keep in the word. And that’s my hope and prayer for all of us at New Life this year – as we keep in the word of God, that it will water and nourish us – so we will grow and bear fruit.