The Death of Character and Mission -- and Their Restoration Gen. 1-22

The Death of Character and Mission

And How God Is Restoring Them

Genesis 1-12

Sabbath School Bible Class

May 23, 2020

Larry R Evans

The first book of the Bible begins with the words, “In the beginning God” (Gen. 1:1) and the last book closes with the words, “Come, Lord Jesus” (Rev. 22:21). This suggests that God has definite plans to finish what He has begun!  However, between these two phrases are generations of pain, disappointment, despair, and anxiety but there are also echoes of hope, signs of grace and dreams of restoration. The journey has been a difficult one for each of us.  We are not alone. God is traveling with us.

Recently, because of the coronavirus, we have been experiencing both anxieties and a hope—a hope that it will all be over soon.  All of this is due to a tiny virus none of us have ever seen but, nevertheless, believe it is real. Faith is an interesting phenomenon.  We can believe in a virus we can’t see but believe in because we see the effects. Yet some have difficulty believing in a Creator God despite the beauty of a sunset or budding flower or wonder of newborn baby. Even a casual observer to the multiple forms of reaction to COVID-19 “plague” will recognize that we are often our own worst enemy. Something deeper is wrong than a virus or an earthquake or even in the inconsistencies of the political voices that bombard us every day. To study Genesis without the bigger picture is to miss the message that of the book.  A thoughtful reading can help us better understand both God and of ourselves. After all, the Bible does say we were created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26). Do we understand what that means or what it means to break away from our intended purpose?

Nearly 30 years ago, William Bennett wrote a book entitled Book of Virtues.  He wrote the book because he recognized that,

 “Americans no longer know what the virtues look like, what they are in practice, how to recognize them, and how they work; that the virtues he wants to promote may have already been lost to the living memory of the culture.” (James Davidson Hunter in The Death of Character: Moral Education in an Age Without Good or Evil, p.222)

How we got to this point and what God is doing about it is our study for today. The Old Testament hasn’t been written to simply satisfy inquiring minds.  “It’s written to tell the story of what God has done, is doing and will do about evil.” (NT Wright, Evil and the Justice of God, p.45). God is telling us a story and we had better listen.

We see the first signs of the problem in Genesis 3, but from there it grows.  As the experience progresses, evil is unmasked for what it really is and to where it leads. There is more to the story than a punishment for eating a forbidden fruit.

God had created a garden home for Adam and Eve.  They had been created to reflect the character and purposes of God. Every possible need had been provided. They were given authority to open-up or unfold the potential previously placed in all the creation made by God. As they cared for the animals and the vegetation, they were to do so as God would.  That’s what was implied by being created in God’s image. Their care for God’s creation was to be done with the same interest and care as if God were doing it Himself. The stage was set for God’s stewards.  What an amazing future lay before them, but something went wrong—terribly wrong!

Rather than follow the conventional approach of reading Genesis 3 to 12, from problem to God’s solution, let’s begin with the solution and read backwards to the problem.  I think we will have a better chance of understanding the bigger picture of both the problem and God’s solution if we approach it this way.

Abraham’s Call

Now the Lord had said to Abram:

“Get out of your country,

From your family

And from your father’s house,

To a land that I will show you.

I will make you a great nation;

I will bless you

And make your name great;

And you shall be a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you,

And I will curse him who curses you;

And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”  (Gen. 12:1-3, NIV)

At this point we won’t elaborate much other than to say, that through God’s blessing of Abraham:

1.     There would be a great nation despite leaving his home country.

2.     Abraham’s name would be great.

3.     He would be blessing to others

4.     The families of the earth would be blessed.

This is God’s stated solution but I’m not sure just reading this without contrasting it with the problem that we fully appreciate what is promised. To get the context of this promise we need to look backwards in time at:

1.     The Tower of Babel (Gen. 11)

2.     The Flood (Gen 6-9)

3.     Exiled from the Garden Home (Gen 3)

4.     In the Beginning and In the End (Gen 1; Rev. 21)

The Tower of Babel

This tower, in many respects, came in response to the flood.  At that time there was one language (Gn 11:1). The thinking of those wishing to build a tower is recorded in verses 3 and 4,

Then they said to one another, . .   “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.”

1.     They were planning to build their own city. To Abraham God promised he would be the father of a great nation.

2.     The efforts of the Babel builders were to make their own name for themselves.  God would make the name of Abraham great.

3.     The Babel tower builders were building for themselves. Through Abraham God’s mission to bless others would be achieved.

4.     The Babel tower builders sought unity through their own efforts. Through the promise of Abraham multiple families of the earth would be blessed.

The Flood

Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. (Gen. 6:5, NIV)

The book Patriarchs and Prophets (pp. 91, 92) describes the scene before the flood as follows:

Men put God out of their knowledge and worshiped the creatures of their own imagination; and as the result, they became more and more debased.  . . .

They delighted in destroying the life of animals; and the use of flesh for food rendered them still more cruel and bloodthirsty, until they came to regard human life with astonishing indifference

If the flood teaches us anything, it teaches that God hates evil and what it does to His creation. If necessary, He can and sometimes will take steps to stop it in its tracks!  He judges evil.  At the same time, the Bible records that “Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.” (Gn 6:8, NIV)

1.    The inhabitants before the flood had defiled their own character to the point where the thoughts of their hearts were only evil continually. Yet God found in Noah a man who “walked faithfully with God.” (Gn. 6:9)

2.    The waning faithfulness brought the flood which destroyed “every living thing.” “Only [faithful] Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.” (Gn. 7:23)

3.    “Everything on dry land that had the breath of life   . . . died.” (Gn. 7:22) The sign of rescue was “a green olive shoot” which preceded God’s instructions to “come out of the ark “so they can multiply on the earth and be fruitful and increase in number.” (Gn. 8:17)

The story ends in chapter 9 with God’s promise but also with new possibilities for evil and an estrangement from God by some from Noah’s own immediate family.

Exiled from the Garden Home

Genesis 1 and 2 tell of the perfect home provided for Adam and Eve. They themselves were created to be like God, and to be the stewards of God in the newly created earth. When we come to chapter 3, however, we find deception and then deception of others. “Satan tempts men to disobedience by leading them to believe they are entering a wonderful field of knowledge. But this is all a deception.” (DA 55)

Once again, we find that God takes action against the evil by expelling Adam and Eve from their Garden home.  To be in exile means to be away from one's home, while either being explicitly refused permission to return or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return. Instead of giving us an explanation for evil, we are given a brief analysis of it. Before the judgment is given God gives what been called the first gospel promise:

And I will put enmity

Between you and the woman,

And between your seed and her Seed;

He shall bruise your head,

And you shall bruise His heel.” (Gn 3:15)

Judgment follows and includes restriction from the fruit from the tree of life; the ground is cursed. Even during this time there are signs of blessings with life continuing as humans are to be “fruitful and multiply.”

The Future

The future is marked with evil and judgment by God.  Evil must be judged. Humans are bent towards worshiping what they themselves make. The estrangement from their Creator becomes more and more pronounced. Rebellion towards the values of God leads to the death of character and mission. It becomes the enthronement of self.  The earth God created is defaced. Death remains and acts like an executioner. The human race continues in a state of exile.

Yet, Satan will not have the final word.  Mission will be restored.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. (Matt 24:14 NKJV)

Yet grace abounds in the midst of rebellion. The promise to Abraham will be fulfilled.

“The overarching picture is of the sovereign Creator God who will continue to work within his world until blessing replaces curse, homecoming replaces exile, olive branches appear after the flood and a new family is created in which the scattered languages can be reunited.” (NT Wright, Evil and the Justice of God, p.53.)

The triumph of God as promised to Abraham is certain:

The great controversy is ended. Sin and sinners are no more. The entire universe is clean. One pulse of harmony and gladness beats through the vast creation. From Him who created all, flow life and light and gladness, throughout the realms of illimitable space. From the minutest atom to the greatest world, all things, animate and inanimate, in their unshadowed beauty and perfect joy, declare that God is love. GC 678.3

A new day will dawn,

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. . . .

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” (Rev. 21:1,4)

Concluding Reflections

I Know Who Holds Tomorrow

I don't know about tomorrow
I just live for day to day
I don't borrow from the sunshine
For it's skies may turn to gray

I don't worry o'er the future
For I know what Jesus said
And today I'll walk beside Him
For He knows what lies ahead

Many things about tomorrow
I don't seem to understand
But I know who holds tomorrow
And I know who holds my hand

Ev'ry step is getting brighter
As the golden stairs I climb
Ev'ry burden's getting lighter
Ev'ry cloud is silver lined

The first book of the Bible begins with the words, “In the beginning God” (Gen. 1:1) and the last book closes with the words, “Come, Lord Jesus” (Rev. 22:21).  God has a homecoming plan!