Genesis Study Group Presentation

Presented at the 10.30 am Service on 1 September 2013

The Relevance of Genesis for Today

The Genesis Study Group:
Hannah Akibo Betts (Tutor), Krou Assoua, Marie Kingham, Pat Kyd and Glynne Gordon-Carter

A group of us have been pursuing an Open Learning Programme designed by Trinity College Bristol. We started with the book of Genesis. The main aim of this course has been ‘to give an overview of the content and themes of Genesis and to enable us to interpret this book by using various methods of study’. Despite the title of the course, ‘Genesis the ancient story’, this book has a great deal of relevance for us today. We thank Brenda and Ernesto for willingly allowing us to lead part of today’s worship service. This group presentation is our final assignment for Genesis. Our tutor is Hannah Akibo Betts, to whom we are immensely grateful for her skilful leadership.

Today we have selected the topic of ‘Forgiveness’, which is a significant theme in the book of Genesis. God created the heavens and the earth with great care and created man in his own image. Human beings are central to God’s divine purpose, and so from the very beginning God lovingly provided humanity with an abundance and variety of food (Genesis 1: 24–31). He expressed his satisfaction at the end of each day’s creation, ‘and God saw that it was good’.

God does not distance himself from his creation, He is an involved God. He is the covenant God – the God of the three great patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Their significance is not based on their personal characters, but on the character of God. Abraham was one of a handful of people who really tried to follow God and so God appeared to him and promised to make him into a great nation (Genesis chapter 12: 1–9). These men were wealthy and powerful, yet they were capable of lying, deceit and selfishness, none more so than Jacob. Original sin had entered the world due to the disobedience of Adam and Eve. Notice, however, that God never withdrew the Covenant which he promised, despite their brokenness. He reaffirmed the Covenant time after time, and showed forgiveness to his chosen people repeatedly.

Let us consider the life of Jacob, the grandson of Abraham, who from before he was born struggled with Esau his twin in Rebekah’s womb. The younger son was named Jacob, which means ‘he grasps the heel’ (deceiver), and throughout his life Jacob often lied, was deceitful and selfish. He grabbed Esau’s birthright, and with his mother’s cunning plan deceived Isaac, his father, into giving him the blessings which should have been Esau’s. Jacob had to flee from home because Esau would have killed him. In fact, he never saw his mother again. While he was living in his Uncle Laban’s house, Jacob was tricked by his uncle. In the meantime he became wealthy and that incited the jealousy of Laban and his sons.

Then the Lord said to Jacob, ‘Return to the land of your father and grandfather and to your relatives there and I will be with you.’ (Genesis 31:3) While he was on his way, Jacob sent gifts to Esau. We see Esau running to meet Jacob after twenty years of separation, hugging and kissing his brother; they both wept. Esau too has been changed, his embrace expressed his forgiveness. Jacob brought many gifts to ensure Esau’s friendship. However, Esau explained that he was prosperous and did not need those gifts. Jacob addressed his brother as lord, said that it was a relief to see his friendly smile, and it was like seeing the face of God. Here we see total reconciliation.

It must be noted that this reconciliation took place after Jacob had wrestled with a man (angel) who had wrenched Jacob’s hip out of socket. Jacob called the place Peniel, ‘For I have seen God face to face and my life is preserved.’ God changed his name from Jacob to Israel (meaning ‘he struggles with God’). It seemed that Jacob (Israel) realised his dependence on God, who had continued to bless him, and so his relationship with God became essential to his life. So here we see a changed man. It is important to note that God condemned Jacob’s deceitfulness, yet he never took his eyes off him. In fact, years before, while Jacob was fleeing from Esau, God revealed himself to him in a dream and told him that, ‘he would inherit the promises first made to Abraham, of land, descendants and blessings to the nations’. God also said, ‘What’s more I am with you and will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything that I have promised you,’ and so Jacob went to Shechem in Canaan, despite his brother’s invitation to settle in Seir.

It is noteworthy that God achieved a firm hold on Jacob, to the extent that when Joseph (Jacob’s son and Pharaoh’s adviser) invited his father, his brothers and all their families to live in Egypt, in order to be saved from famine, Jacob was unwilling to make the move without God’s approval (Genesis 46:1–3).

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Notice also the humility that Joseph showed in forgiving and being reconciled to his brothers, who had sold him into slavery twenty years before. ‘Don’t be afraid of me. Am I a God that I can punish you? You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.’ (Genesis 50:19). Throughout we see God protecting his chosen people in remarkable ways.

On reflection, some may say that God showed undeserved favour and grace to Jacob, despite his constant deception: remember, Jacob was meant to fulfil a divine purpose, and God was moulding him towards that end. The writer C.S. Lewis states, ‘To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable, because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.’ Philip Yancey, in his book What’s So Amazing About Grace?, said that he ‘came to know a God who is in the words of the Psalmist “a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness”’. Yancey reminds us that grace comes free of charge to people who do not deserve it. ‘… I know more surely than I know anything that any pang of healing or forgiveness or goodness I have ever felt comes solely from the Grace of God. I yearn for the church to become a nourishing culture of that Grace.’

Church family, the good news for us is that forgiveness and eternal life are available to all, and are gifts of God’s grace through faith in Christ.

Bibliography

C.S. Lewis, ‘On Forgiveness’, in The Weight of Glory and other Addresses, New York Collier Books/ Macmillan, 1980,  p. 125.

Philip Yancey, What’s so Amazing about Grace?, Zondervan 1997, p. 42.

Glynne Gordon-Carter

Genesis and the New Testament

We probably all remember the stories in Genesis: the early chapters of the Creation, Adam and Eve, Noah and the Flood. This followed by the story of God’s covenant with Abraham, and stories of the patriarchs Isaac and Jacob.

In studying Genesis, as we did over the last six months, I learnt a great deal, especially from discussions in our tutorial groups, which were fun. I also learnt something I wasn’t expecting: how important this first book of the Bible is to our understanding of Jesus and his ministry, and the spread of early Christianity.

The opening chapters of Genesis are the foundation of the theology of the New Testament writers. They wanted to give evidence of Jesus’s divinity. So, where Genesis begins, ‘In the beginning God created heaven and earth’, John’s gospel begins, ‘In the beginning the Word already was. The Word was in God’s presence and what God was, the Word was.’ Matthew begins his gospel by tracing Jesus’s line back through Abraham, to Adam, to show that Jesus is the Son of God.

When St Paul was explaining the basis of their faith to the newly emerging Christian churches, he referred to Genesis, especially to Abraham and God’s promise. Although the new churches were mainly Gentile rather than Jewish, Paul saw the churches as part of the continuing story of Israel, ‘an olive tree on to which branches of gentile believers have been grafted’.

He tells them that Adam, Noah and the patriarchs of Genesis were early members of the Christian Church and their stories demonstrate how God wants us to live. Paul tells the Galatians, ‘It is through faith that you are all sons of God in union with Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ you are the issue of Abraham and heirs by virtue of God’s promise.’

In his letter to the Romans, Paul emphasises the central importance of faith by quoting Genesis: ‘Abram put his faith in the Lord, who counted him as righteous.’ Paul tells the Christians that their faith too is to be ‘counted’, a faith in God who raised Jesus up from the dead, after he had died, so that their sins might be forgiven.

Paul sees Christ as a second Adam. Whereas Adam’s disobedience to God in the Garden of Eden brought death to humanity, it is Jesus’s obedience to God which saves mankind. In his letter to the Romans Paul says, ‘Adam foreshadows the man who was to come. For if the wrongdoing of that one man brought death upon so many, its effect is vastly exceeded by the grace of God and the gift that came to so many by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ.’

The Bible is the story of how God reaches out to show his love and forgiveness to mankind. Genesis promotes the importance of forgiveness and reconciliation. We have already heard several stories of forgiveness from Genesis: Esau forgives Jacob for stealing his birthright, and Joseph forgives his brothers for selling him into slavery.

Jesus himself taught the Parable of the Prodigal Son, which illustrates redemption, love and forgiveness. And for Christians, Jesus is the source of their forgiveness. On the cross, Jesus forgave his executioners: ‘Father forgive them, they do not know what they are doing’.

So finally, let us all respond to Paul’s letter to the church at Ephesus. In reminding them of the grounds for their own forgiveness he urged them, ‘Be generous to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave you.’

Pat Kyd

Can God use me?

Today, I am going to talk about the theme, ‘Can God use me?’ You may be wondering, ‘Why should I want God to use me anyway?’ Let’s take a look at the picture for this message; it’s a picture of interlocking gears. Those gears represent you and me. God created you and fitted you together in a far more intricate pattern than any complex machine that man has ever made. When people make a machine with gears, they always make it with a purpose in mind. When God fitted you and me together, he made us with a purpose in mind. God wants to use you and me to accomplish something wonderful with our lives.

Many people use their lives to do things that God never intended. The Bible calls that a sin and the results are always tragic. However, when you let God use you for his purpose – brothers and sisters – the results are wonderful. They will make you happier and more fulfilled in life than you could ever possibly imagine. The problem for many people is that they don’t think they are of much use to God. They believe that they have too many imperfections, that they have done too many wrongs and sins for God to use them. However, the fact of the matter is that everyone has weaknesses and God chooses to use weak, imperfect, wrong and sinful people to accomplish great things. God has designed you and me with imperfections and weaknesses that make you and me prime candidate for him to use and work through. So – brothers and sisters – don’t count yourselves out. God wants to use you and me to do great things for him on this earth.

Let’s look at how we can cooperate with God to change the world.

Can God use me?

In Genesis 12:10–20 Abraham our father in faith put the promise of God in danger. He left the land of Canaan that God promised to give to him and to his offspring and went to the Land of Egypt. When there he also put God’s promise of offspring in danger. Seeing the beauty of Sarah his wife he fears for his life and said, ‘She is my sister.’ The promise of great nations that the Lord promised him was in serious danger. The same thing happens also in Genesis 20: Abraham at Gerar put God’s promise in danger again: King Abimelech would have slept with Sarah, had God warned him not to. Still God forgives and uses Abraham as much as he wants. In Genesis 14, when Abraham went to rescue his nephew Lot, some say he killed many people. Again God forgives him and uses him mightily.

Can God use me?

In Genesis 25 Jacob bought his brother Esau’s birthright with a bread and lentil stew. In Genesis 27 he also deceitfully took away his brother’s blessing; we all know the story. When God told Jacob to return to the land he had promised to his forefathers, to him and to his descendants, and that he would be with him, in Genesis 31–32, Jacob was afraid of what Esau might do when they met. He sent messengers to Esau, who returned to report that Esau was already coming with four hundred men. Jacob, fearing for his life, split his people and flocks into two camps, so that if one was attacked by Esau, the other might escape. Then he sent ahead servants with gifts of livestock for Esau. Again God uses him abundantly as he wants.

There are so many stories in the Bible where God uses those who are imperfect and sinful. God can also use you and me, if only we allow him to do so. Brethren, we are all candidates for God’s use. Remember, the Word said that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. He is a gracious and merciful God, who cleanses us and forgives our sin. Regardless of what we have done, God love us. He really does love us no matter how wrong are our sins. He can forgive us and cleanse us, and use us when and where he wants. Can God use me? God can use me! Amen.

Let us pray:

Father almighty, you know the future for each one of us. May your spirit abide in us to enable us to fulfil your purpose, which you have assigned to us on earth in your son Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.

Krou Assoua

The Story of Hagar

Hagar was an Egyptian slave girl. Some said that she was given to Abraham by the Pharaoh of Egypt. She worked in service for Abraham and his wife Sarah. She was Sarah’s maid, but was never fully accepted into their tribe. It is believed that the name Hagar meant ‘Stranger’.

Instead of waiting on God to fulfil his promise, Sarah took matters into her own hands and used Hagar to be a surrogate mother. Hagar did not have any say in the matter, like many slave women in the ancient world. She was simply a possession, an object and a womb that Sarah gave to Abraham.

Hagar fell pregnant almost immediately and her attitude towards Sarah changed for the worse. She became insolent, smugness showing in her looks and actions. Being pregnant, Hagar felt she was a woman of worth and value and looked on Sarah with contempt. Maybe Hagar saw this as her chance for a promotion, to go from lowly maiden to being a full-fledged wife and mother of Abraham’s child. Sarah may have felt humiliated by the news of Hagar’s immediate pregnancy because of her own barrenness. She complained to Abraham of Hagar’s attitude. Abraham was saddened by Sarah’s jealousy, as Hagar was carrying his child. He was in a difficult position and did not know what to do. Abraham left it to Sarah to deal with Hagar as she felt appropriate. In a moment of rage, Sarah had Hagar thrown out into the desert.

The angel of God was looking after Hagar, called her by name and told her astounding things. She would have descendants too numerous to count, the same promise made to Abraham and Sarah. Hagar realised that the angel was really God. She was the first woman in the Bible to talk directly to God since Eve. Her baby Ishmael became the first person in the Bible to be named by God while still in the womb. The encounter must have been a profound spiritual experience. Hence she came to know the Lord as ‘The Living One who sees me’. Hagar was invited into a relationship with the God whom she had previously assumed to be only interested in Abraham and Sarah. In tender grace God met her immediate needs and allowed her to experience his presence. The Angel of the Lord encouraged Hagar to go back to her mistress, Sarah, and submit to her. God promised Hagar that he would multiply her descendants exceedingly. God was not asking Hagar to return to an abusive situation for the sake of it. He knew of the difficulty that lay ahead of her if she was to continue to travel on her own. Even if it was to her homeland of Egypt, being pregnant would not be well received. God guided her to choose ‘life’, albeit under Sarah’s roof.

The angel of the Lord appears to Hagar

Hagar returned to Abraham and Sarah and served Sarah for thirteen more years, during which time life was not easy for her. When Hagar’s son was born, the baby was named Ishmael by Abraham. Several years later Sarah gave birth to her son, Isaac. On an occasion when Sarah saw Isaac and Ishmael playing, her old anger at her slave returned. Sarah demanded that Abraham got rid of Hagar and Ishmael. This again saddened Abraham, as Ishmael was his son, but God told Abraham to go ahead and do what Sarah wanted. Hagar and Ishmael were sent out into the wilderness with only a little food and an animal skin of water. Soon they ran out of water, Hagar did not know what to do and left Ishmael under a bush to die. God called from heaven to remind Hagar that he was going to make Ishmael into a great nation and then showed her a well. That was enough for them to survive and they prospered. God’s relationship with Hagar was resealed with her son.

Abraham banishes Hagar and Ishmael from his home

Although God reassured Abraham that Isaac was the one with whom he would establish his covenant, he told Abraham that he would bless Ishmael to be fruitful and greatly increase his numbers. Ishmael’s descendants became a great nation as God had promised.

On many occasions the Lord came to Hagar’s aid. In the way he responded to Hagar, she said, ‘You are the God who sees me.’ In her plight, Hagar found favour with God and turned to him more and more. Throughout Hagar’s life she experienced estrangement and prejudice as a foreigner, hardship and abuse as a servant, grief and abandonment as an unwed pregnant woman. She also felt hopeless despair on a couple of occasions as she faced imminent death. Yet despite all these difficulties, Hagar responded to the God who spoke to her, the Lord God was her reward. For her, God was the one who heard her cries and who saw her afflictions. In the all-seeing God, Hagar found refuge and life. Hagar got to live out her days in the presence of God knowing that he was listening.

Hagar and Ishmael banished into the desert

Throughout this part of the Bible, people lived in ungodly ways and took matters into their own hands, and Hagar was no exception. But God is gracious and forgave their wrong doings, redeemed them to be in relationship with him and to fulfil the plans he had for mankind. He continues to be with us today, even though we still fall short of his expectations. He forgives us and welcomes us back to himself and uses us for his purposes.

Marie Kingham