I'm going to attempt to hold to my suggested format, which can be difficult. Genesis 1 sparks so many thoughts about so many things that I have preconceived notions about, but I'm going to attempt to restrict myself to offering only what I draw from a fresh look at this text.
1. How would you summarize the meaning of this passage? How would you tell someone verbally what this passage said or meant?
God created the world (and the universe). He spoke each piece of creation into existence, including time itself. And after he spoke each piece into existence he called it good. The crown jewel of his creation was humanity, male and female. He created them in his image, provided for their needs and gave them a job: to have families, fill the earth with people and collectively rule over his creation. Upon completion of the project God said that it was all very good. He completed his project in 6 days, rested on the 7th day, and set aside the 7th day as special because it was the day he rested from his work of creation.
2. What does this passage tell us about God?
God has a spirit (an observation from the text
, not planning on going deeper on that point at the moment). God is creative, powerful beyond my imagination and amazingly detail oriented. He calls his creation, and us, good, even very good. God seems to like light, order and substance rather than darkness lack of form and void. This suggests to me that he's active and productive.
He doesn't seem to be interested in doing everything by himself because he not only provided for our needs, but he gave us a job to do, and spoke a blessing to us regarding the doing of our job. Since God can create by speaking, it seems that "speaking" a blessing to us would be very empowering. So he's a giver, a ruler, an empower-er.
The fact that he created humanity and told us to multiply makes the think that God loves families. And three things in the passage make me think that the passage suggests that he created both a heavenly and earthly family. God called some of his heavenly creation "rulers", said "Let us create", and then said "the heavens and earth were created, and the host of them". It appears that he created a "host" in earth and a "host" in heaven. This checks out with something I know of ancient Israel's (the audience of the passage) thinking. They spoke of spiritual beings using sun, moon, star vocabulary. They thought of the stars that they saw in the sky as representative of spiritual beings who lived in God's realm (the heavens). I make this point in a question about what God is like to say that it appears that God loves family so much that he created a heavenly family and an earthly family, and involved both families in his business ("Let us", and "Be fruitful, fill, subdue, have dominion").
This passage suggests that God is a God of abundance. There is lots of life created, and plenty of provisions for the sustaining of that life.
3. What does this passage tell us about Humanity?
Humanity was created to be good and created to work for/with God to accomplish God's plans. Humanity is valued, honored and empowered by God to such an extent that he puts them (male and female together) in charge of his plans on the earth he created. So humanity was created with the capacity to grow, be productive and rule (with God), and to do so in a way that fits with God's plans and character. Humanity has the capacity to have all their needs met from God's creation.
4. If this passage is true, what does it say about how we should live?
I should live in connection with the God that made me and gave me a job to do. But God didn't just give me a job to do, he gave the job to humanity, so I should live in connection with other humans, and work with them (male and female) to do this job that God have us to do. I should seek to carry out my task in a way that jives with the One who created me, my task, and the world inn which my task will be performed.
I should live in awe of God who shows himself to be creative, caring and powerful beyond my imagination. I should live in respect of humanity who God created and called good. I should exhibit care towards God's creation, the kind of care worthy of the responsibility he imparted when he asked us to husband something that belongs to him. I should live in humility, knowing my responsibility to the Creator and to creation, yet with confidence that comes from knowing that he empowered me for my task.
I should love my family knowing that families were God's idea, and knowing that I must teach my family that they have been created by God for a purpose, and are not just answerable to themselves. I should follow God's example and be creative and productive in work, but also follow his example in rest, knowing that he set apart time for rest, and built it into the very fabric of creation.
I should live knowing that I serve a God of abundance and not scarcity. He has provided for my needs and the needs of all creation, including all of humanity. This makes me think that if there is scarcity then it is not caused by God, but caused by the failings of humanity's stewardship. I must not join with those who assume scarcity, but instead, be like God who is amazingly generous and caring.
That's my contribution to Q/A part of the study!
1. How would you summarize the meaning of this passage? How would you tell someone verbally what this passage said or meant?
God created the world (and the universe). He spoke each piece of creation into existence, including time itself. And after he spoke each piece into existence he called it good. The crown jewel of his creation was humanity, male and female. He created them in his image, provided for their needs and gave them a job: to have families, fill the earth with people and collectively rule over his creation. Upon completion of the project God said that it was all very good. He completed his project in 6 days, rested on the 7th day, and set aside the 7th day as special because it was the day he rested from his work of creation.
2. What does this passage tell us about God?
God has a spirit (an observation from the text
, not planning on going deeper on that point at the moment). God is creative, powerful beyond my imagination and amazingly detail oriented. He calls his creation, and us, good, even very good. God seems to like light, order and substance rather than darkness lack of form and void. This suggests to me that he's active and productive. He doesn't seem to be interested in doing everything by himself because he not only provided for our needs, but he gave us a job to do, and spoke a blessing to us regarding the doing of our job. Since God can create by speaking, it seems that "speaking" a blessing to us would be very empowering. So he's a giver, a ruler, an empower-er.
The fact that he created humanity and told us to multiply makes the think that God loves families. And three things in the passage make me think that the passage suggests that he created both a heavenly and earthly family. God called some of his heavenly creation "rulers", said "Let us create", and then said "the heavens and earth were created, and the host of them". It appears that he created a "host" in earth and a "host" in heaven. This checks out with something I know of ancient Israel's (the audience of the passage) thinking. They spoke of spiritual beings using sun, moon, star vocabulary. They thought of the stars that they saw in the sky as representative of spiritual beings who lived in God's realm (the heavens). I make this point in a question about what God is like to say that it appears that God loves family so much that he created a heavenly family and an earthly family, and involved both families in his business ("Let us", and "Be fruitful, fill, subdue, have dominion").
This passage suggests that God is a God of abundance. There is lots of life created, and plenty of provisions for the sustaining of that life.
3. What does this passage tell us about Humanity?
Humanity was created to be good and created to work for/with God to accomplish God's plans. Humanity is valued, honored and empowered by God to such an extent that he puts them (male and female together) in charge of his plans on the earth he created. So humanity was created with the capacity to grow, be productive and rule (with God), and to do so in a way that fits with God's plans and character. Humanity has the capacity to have all their needs met from God's creation.
4. If this passage is true, what does it say about how we should live?
I should live in connection with the God that made me and gave me a job to do. But God didn't just give me a job to do, he gave the job to humanity, so I should live in connection with other humans, and work with them (male and female) to do this job that God have us to do. I should seek to carry out my task in a way that jives with the One who created me, my task, and the world inn which my task will be performed.
I should live in awe of God who shows himself to be creative, caring and powerful beyond my imagination. I should live in respect of humanity who God created and called good. I should exhibit care towards God's creation, the kind of care worthy of the responsibility he imparted when he asked us to husband something that belongs to him. I should live in humility, knowing my responsibility to the Creator and to creation, yet with confidence that comes from knowing that he empowered me for my task.
I should love my family knowing that families were God's idea, and knowing that I must teach my family that they have been created by God for a purpose, and are not just answerable to themselves. I should follow God's example and be creative and productive in work, but also follow his example in rest, knowing that he set apart time for rest, and built it into the very fabric of creation.
I should live knowing that I serve a God of abundance and not scarcity. He has provided for my needs and the needs of all creation, including all of humanity. This makes me think that if there is scarcity then it is not caused by God, but caused by the failings of humanity's stewardship. I must not join with those who assume scarcity, but instead, be like God who is amazingly generous and caring.
That's my contribution to Q/A part of the study!