Genesis

Genesis contains one of the passages that is key for understanding the Biblical story of redemption. Without this one passage, the whole story of the Bible doesn’t make sense. What is this passage? It’s Genesis 12:1-3:

Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

This passage is the hinge between two parts of the book – chapters 1-11 and chapters 12-50. The first 11 chapters present the problem all humanity faces. The remainder of the book lays out the beginning of God’s solution to that problem. We’ll come to this passage later.

Let’s start first with the problem in Genesis 1-11. Genesis 1-2 sets the stage for Genesis, the whole Old Testament, and even the whole Bible. God creates a good and perfect world in which humanity is created in God’s image. Humans are placed in God’s good creation to flourish, enjoy God’s blessings together, and to be stewards of the creation in relationship with God.

Then, in Genesis 3, conflict enters the story. The first two humans, Adam and Eve, rebel against God by breaking the one commandment God gave them – to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Basically, this is a rejection of God’s word and offer to do life with Him. God exiles them from the Garden of Eden and sin separates them from the presence of God. But there is grace in God’s response as well – God promises a future redeemer and provides clothing for Adam and Eve. As we read on in Genesis 4-11, we see humanity go on a downward spiral. We also can read about God continuing to respond with both judgment and grace.

So, the problem is that humanity is fundamentally broken – each generation rebels against God and does not respond to God’s offer of grace. Genesis 1-11 provides a clear and powerful picture of the need for redemption of a humanity that has fallen from its special place in God’s creation. Reading Genesis 1-11 helps us to make sense of our world. We see God’s goodness but also the brokenness in the world. And we begin to understand why this might be the case.

This is where Genesis 12:1-3 comes into place. God’s work of redemption begins with His promises to Abram (known later as Abraham) and his descendants in Genesis 12-50. God’s plan is to form a people for Himself, beginning with Abraham. This people will recover what was lost in the Garden of Eden. God will once again be present with a people in a place of blessing. God promises to make Abraham in to a great nation, to give them a land, to bless them, and to make them the instrument of God’s blessing to the world. In the second part of Genesis, these promises get passed on to each new generation. And there are threats to these promises. The question is, “Will God’s people trust in these promises?”

Notice that God’s purpose is to bless Abraham and to make him into a great nation for the purpose of blessing the world. This plan of redemption unfolds throughout the rest of the Old Testament and culminates in Jesus’ coming and work of redemption. We, too, as Jesus’ disciples, are like Abraham – we are called to be blessed to be a blessing. We take part in God’s redemptive purposes in a world that is both good and broken. Like Abraham, we are called to trust in the promises of God and use by God for the restoration of the world.