- Read
Genesis chapter 1
a.
“And there was evening, and there was
morning—the first day.” (Genesis 1:5)
b.
God created the universe in six literal
solar days, not over long periods of time
c.
We shouldn’t let the scientific claim
of an old universe influence our understanding of the Bible
d.
God created everything already fully
mature—trees already had fruit, animals were already adults
e.
Adam would have appeared to be 20-30
years old the day he was created yet he was actually only one day old!
f.
The same is true of the universe, it has
the maturity of billions of years because it was created fully mature but is
actually only about 6,000 years old
- The Son of
God created all things
a.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. He was with
God in the beginning. Through him all
things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. … The Word became flesh and made his
dwelling among us.” (John 1:1-3, 14)
i.
Jesus Christ is the Creator. He created man and
became a man, “The Word became flesh”
ii.
Our lives begin at the moment of
conception but this is not true of Jesus Christ
iii.
“He is before all things, and in him
all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:17)
b.
“And to make all see what is the
fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been
hidden in God who created all things
through Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 3:9 NKJV)
c.
“The
Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created:
things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers
or rulers or authorities; all things
have been created through him and for him.” (Colossians 1:15-16)
d.
“In the past God spoke to our ancestors
through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days
he has spoken to us by his Son, whom
he appointed heir of all things, and through
whom also he made the universe.” (Hebrews 1:1-2)
- Mankind—both
male and female—was created after the image of God
a.
“Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they
may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock
and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the
ground.’ So God created mankind in his
own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:26-27)
b.
Since the Son of God created all things
then mankind was created after the image of the Son of God
i.
Adam was created as a son of God after
the image of the Son of God
ii.
Because of sin, we are no longer
children of God after the image in which we were created
c.
Both male and female were created after
the image of God but at different times and ways
i.
“Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his
nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” (Genesis 2:7)
ii.
“So the LORD God caused the man to fall
into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and
then closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he
brought her to the man.” (Genesis 2:21-22)
iii.
The man was created first from the
ground then the woman was created from the man
iv.
The woman bears the image of God by
virtue of having been taken out of the man
d.
Paul quoted from this very passage in
Genesis and said that it speaks of Christ and the church
i.
“The man said, ‘This is now bone of my
bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out
of man.’ That is why a man leaves his
father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.”
(Genesis 2:23-24)
ii.
“‘For
this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife,
and the two will become one flesh.’ This is a profound mystery—but I am
talking about Christ and the church.”
(Ephesians 5:31-32)
iii.
The church is Christ’s wife as seen in
the woman being Adam’s wife
iv.
As the woman was made after the image
of God through Adam, the church is restored back to the image of God through
Christ
v.
We are to become Christ-like not just
individually but corporately as a church body
- Salvation
is essentially being restored back to the image of the Son of God by whom
we were created
a.
“For those God foreknew he also
predestined to be conformed to the image
of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”
(Romans 8:29)
b.
“And we all, who with unveiled faces
contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being
transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the
Lord, who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18)
c.
“To
be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true
righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:23-24)
d.
“Do not lie to each other, since you
have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the
image of its Creator.” (Colossians 3:9-10)
- God planned
and showed our salvation from the very beginning
a.
Adam was a type of Christ
i.
“Adam,
who is a pattern of the one to come.”
(Romans 5:14)
ii.
“For as in Adam all die, so in
Christ all will be made alive. … So it is written: ‘The first man Adam became a living being’; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit.” (1 Corinthians 15:22, 45)
b.
Eve was a type of the church
i.
“Husbands,
love your wives, just as Christ
loved the church and gave himself up for her … This is a profound mystery—but
I am talking about Christ and the
church.” (Ephesians 5:25, 32)
ii.
“I am jealous for you with a godly
jealousy. I promised you to one husband,
to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him. But I am
afraid that just as Eve was deceived by
the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your
sincere and pure devotion to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 11:2-3)
c.
Jesus Christ is the only way of
salvation because He is God’s plan from the very beginning
i.
We can’t come to God in a different way
than what He has provided
ii.
If He made only one way to be right
with Him and only accepts one way to be right with Him then there truly is only
one way to be right with Him
iii.
We must submit ourselves to God to be
saved and we can only submit to God by submitting to the Lordship of Jesus
Christ
iv.
Since the Son of God created all things
and gave us life then only the Son of God can give us eternal life