Where do we turn when the world seems dark and our lives seem like chaos? To the first page of the Bible where we read the words, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). Those words were written for a generation that was rescued out of the darkness and chaos of Egyptian slavery, to convince them of the sovereignty of God and his powerful Word. We need convincing just the same.
In Sunday’s sermon, “In the beginning,” we toured the book to discover its central theme, the blessing of God. That is, the favor and smile of God on his people. The theme of blessing bookends the book and recurs some 90 times in-between. Blessing captures the joy and fulness of life with God before sin, what was lost in our rebellion, and the force that drives the book across its fifty chapters. It’s everything we need, even if the word has become cheap. Let’s recover it.
For those interested in studying alongside the series, consider these resources:
- Genesis, by Derek Kidner. This is a classic little tome, readable, and a best short-volume on Genesis you could pick up.
- Genesis: A 12-Week Study, by Mitchell Kim. If you’re wanting to meet up with a friend from church or work one-to-one, here’s a Bible study that asks perceptive questions and includes a bit of instruction along the way.
- The Genesis Factor: Probing Life’s Big Questions, by David Helm and Jon Dennis. Here’s a great volume for reading Genesis with worldview questions in mind—mingling biblical theology and philosophy and insightful observations from the text.
- Genesis: Beginning and Blessing, by Kent Hughes. Hughes is a famously faithful, straightforward, and perceptive preacher. This is his expositional commentary.
Whether you pick up a resource to study along or not, be sure to read along in your Bibles. In fact, that’s the best way to spend your time either way.
I’m eager for this journey of ours and pray for us to know the fullness of “every spiritual blessing” that is ours in Christ (Eph. 1:3).
