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Genesis

Genesis is not just the first book of the Bible, it really forms a foundation for all that follows in the Bible. In fact the name ‘Genesis’ in Greek means ‘origin’. A great title because Genesis is all about origins – of the world, of the human race, of sin, and of the Israelite people.

There are lots of great stories in Genesis, enjoy them, but don’t lose track of the bigger story: in great kindness, God has a plan to fix up the Genesis 3 mess through a descendant of Eve – one who will “crush the serpent’s head” (Genesis 3:15). As each new generation is described through this book, we find some promising identities, and yet we don’t find any who really fits the bill. Where is our serpent crusher? How is God going to fix our mess? More clues are given in God’s incredible promises to Abraham and still further in the stories and promises made to Isaac, Jacob and Joseph.

Key reflection questions:

  • Genesis 1-11: What is the damage? What is God’s response to the damage? (Resignation, aggression, sadness?)
  • Genesis 12-50: By seeing how these characters fail to take up the role as serpent-crusher, can you outline what he would look like?

 

Exodus

The end of Genesis found the Israelites experiencing great blessing, but off in the land of Egypt. But with a new Pharaoh in power – how things have changed! They are enslaved, and this presents a real threat to the promises God has made to them.

And yet God has a plan that will not come unstuck. We are introduced to the key Old Testament figure of Moses – an unlikely leader. God reveals Himself to him as “I AM” (which basically means- “You just wait and see who I am when I show my true colours pal!”)

Exodus means “departure” - and the first 20 chapters reveal what an incredible departure this is. God really does show His true colours through this rescue: His incredible commitment to His people, and His incredible power in judgement against anyone who gets in their way.

From chapter 20 God speaks to His people. God shows how His saved people are to now live before Him. (The sequence is really important to see here: they have been saved, and as a result, they now live for God. All other religions of the world have the order around the other way – i.e., if you are good, then God might save you.)

Importantly, much of the tail end of the book deals with the Tabernacle – which is the mobile worship centre for the Israelites as they travel to the land God promised them. At the heart of the Tabernacle is the Ark of the Covenant with the 10 Commandments within. The Tabernacle symbolised God’s presence with His people and spoke of the way they were to relate to Him. “Exodus takes us from Israel in slavery to Israel bound to another Lord, whose service is perfect freedom.”

Key reflection questions:

  • Exodus 1-20: Exodus could be described as the ‘Gospel of the Old Testament’. In what ways does it reflect God’s rescue in Jesus?
  • Exodus 20-40: What does the Law of Moses say about the God we worship?

 

Leviticus

After giving the Law to the people, it seems very appropriate what comes next – a book about how to make amends when the people miss the mark! Hopefully you have seen this theme developing already: how can a sinful people relate to a holy God?

The book takes its name from the Israelite tribe of Levi; this family was chosen by God to act as priests and assistants in the Tabernacle. The book deals with a world very unfamiliar to our own, with strange ancient rituals and worship practices of the Tabernacle. The book has two basic sections: chapters 1-16 which is about the ritual regulations, then chapters 17-26 focus on their moral/ethical commands.

When you read ‘clean’ or ‘unclean’ don’t think hygiene. These are terms that refer to ritual states. If you are clean, then you can be involved in the Tabernacle worship. (Kind of like if you are registered in a council area, you can participate in voting at the elections.)

It is important to see that these sacrifices were simply a system given to the Israelites by God to acknowledge their wrongdoing (they did not in themselves do away with sin). Only God’s forgiveness, mediated through the system did that.

Don’t get too overwhelmed by all the weird things going on in Leviticus. Remember how Jesus is the fulfilment of the sacrificial system (Hebrews 9). Understanding this means that we can better understand how the work of Christ saves His people. The second half of the book reminds us that our holy God requires His people to be holy – a point we can’t hear too little of.

Key reflection questions:

  • What does Leviticus say about sin and its solution?
  • Do these sacrifices shed any further light on Jesus’ sacrifice for us?
  • What does it say about how we are to relate to this same God?

 

Numbers

Don’t get turned off by the name! The opening and closing chapters are the hardest because they do deal with a lot of numbers of Israelites.

In the book of Numbers we start to see well and truly that this trip to the Promised Land is going to be a bumpy one. The people don’t want to follow an invisible God, they don’t trust Him to give them what He has promised, they don’t even like Moses and Aaron as their leaders. And tragically in chapter 13, when the spies return and report about what the land is like and the scary people who currently live there, the Israelites turn to jelly. They don’t trust that God will fight their battles (despite what they saw in Egypt!). So God puts them in remedial class – they are punished with a year in the desert for every day they spied the land.

It is a heartbreaking book – Moses their great leader is barred from leading them into the land, Aaron their priest dies and has to be succeeded. By the time of the second census of the people however (Numbers 26) we have a new generation – more in step with God.

Key reflection questions:

  • Why is trusting God so hard?
  • Will this new generation get their act together in the land?

 

TROUBLESHOOTING: GENEALOGIES

Genealogies might seem incredibly boring and tedious with their endless series of names about who begat who, but they are actually pretty important.

When you find yourself with a genealogy on your hands, take a moment to explore what the author is trying to explain by it (i.e., that this person is a grandson of Abraham, etc.). The author’s purpose is usually made clear in the way he starts his genealogy. Often family lines in the Bible are explaining the line of blessing – that is, how God’s blessing to Abraham worked its way out.

Once you’ve worked that out, proceed into it using a low gear. Pay particular attention to familiar Bible names that feature (ie. Jacob, Jesus, Noah).
 

Deuteronomy

The big moment has arrived, the people have wandered for 40 years in the desert and are now on the plains of Moab, on the brink of entering into Canaan, the land the LORD promised Abraham all those years ago.

The book of Deuteronomy is basically a big pep talk by Moses, reminding the people that if they are obedient in the land, life will be great. They will enter into a wonderful relationship with God – His people, in His land, under His rule. But Moses also warns them that that if they are disobedient, the LORD will turf them out of the land.

Moses’ words are all the more moving in light of his impending death at the end of this book. The LORD punished his disobedience by banning him from leading them into the land.

Key reflection questions:

  • Why is obedience in the land so important?
  • Is what Moses (and the LORD) calling them to unreasonable or unrealistic?