A Book of Beginnings
As a book of beginnings, Genesis has as its central concern the explanation of why things are the way they are. And we must read Genesis as a foreign text. It is ancient. It comes to us from a culture other than our own, and from a place many of us will never visit. Even so, because we have been “grafted in their place to share the rich root” (Romans 11:17), this story has become our story. Our place, then, as readers is to understand that this text should undermine our certainties. It should challenge our cultural assumptions, and if we let it, we might also find that it challenges our assumptions about God, about one another, and about ourselves.
SAMPLE: A Book of Beginnings
lessons
1. Created by God to Know God (Genesis 1:24–31; 3:1–9)
2. God’s Concern for Humanity (Genesis 4:1–10; 6:5–8; 7:1–5)
3. God Intervenes (Genesis 9:8–17; 11:1–9)
4. Sacrifice and Blessing (Genesis 12:1–9; 15:1–11)
5. God Is Faithful (Genesis 17:1–8; 17:15–21)
6. Faithfulness and Obedience (Genesis 21:1–7; 22:1–4, 10–14)
7. Conflict and Blessing (Genesis 25:19–26; 25:27–34)
8. God Gives Second Chances (Genesis 27:6–17; 27:30–37)
9. God Honors Our Persistence (Genesis 29:15–28; 32:22–30)
10. Hope in the Face of Hardship (Genesis 37:17b–28; 39:16–21)
11. The Spirit Gives Wisdom (Genesis 41:34–44; 41:46–52)
12. From Death to Life (Genesis 44:27–34; 45:1–8)
13. God’s Providence Is Powerful (Genesis 48:1–7; 50:15–24)
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Norman Carr
Friendly Perspective
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