THE TEMPTATION AND THE FALL
GENESIS 3
1 Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made.

• Adam was made ruler over the animals but in this instance became subject to the animals.

He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?”

• Satan is already twisting the Word of God.
• Genesis 2:16-17 - And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree of the garden, 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die.”[1]

2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. 3 But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’ ”

• We tend to distort the Word of God ourselves when we try to quote it.
• We can add more rules to it… which is legalism or
• We can make it less vague to establish our own truth.

4 “No! You will certainly not die,” the serpent said to the woman.

• There is a big difference between physical death and spiritual death.
• Death had never occurred at this point.
• Satan has always proclaimed that God would not punish sin.

5 “In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

• God’s intent was for the welfare of Adam & Eve, but Satan insisted it was God’s welfare at their expense.

6 The woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom.

• 1.      Eve saw that the tree was "good for food" (the lust of the flesh: the desire to do something contrary to God's will, i.e., eat the tasty fruit).
• 2.      It was "delightful to look at" (the lust of the eyes: the desire to have something apart from God's will, i.e., possess the attractive fruit).
• 3.      It was "desirable for obtaining wisdom" (the pride of life: the desire to be something apart from God's will).

So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.

• Temptations are not sins until we respond by giving in to them.
• Eve was not more susceptible to sin (that is not Biblical).
• But she was also not the one who was given the command directly.
• The last person Eve talked to before succumbing to temptation was who? Satan.
• Couldn’t she have confirmed the Truth with God before she made her decision?
• What was the look they gave to each other right before the first bite?
• We don’t know what kind of fruit it was.
• The root of sin should be understood.
• The foundation of all sin lies in man's desire of self-assertion and his determination to be independent of God.

7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
 - With the Fall came a tragic loss of innocence (together with resulting shame).
 - God has given us an inner judge called “conscience” that accuses when we do wrong and approves when we do right (Rom. 2:12–16).[2]
 - Non-believers have a conscience of right and wrong.
 - Believers have a Spirit to determine things of the Spirit and things of the flesh.
 
SIN’S CONSEQUENCES
8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 So the Lord God called out to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”

• Did God not already know where they are?

10 And he said, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.”
11 Then he asked, “Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”

• “Who told you that you were naked?”
• “Who is feeding you all these lies?”

12 The man replied, “The woman you gave to be with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate.”

• The fact that Adam viewed God's good gift to him (Eve) as the source of his trouble, shows how far he fell (v. 12).
• He virtually accused God of causing him to fall, by giving him what he now regarded as a bad gift.

13 So the Lord God asked the woman, “What have you done?”
And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

• The text records several effects of the Fall on Adam and Eve.
• 1.      They felt guilt and shame (v. 7)
• 2.      They tried to change these conditions by their own efforts (v. 7).
• 3.      They fled from God's presence out of fear of Him (vv. 8, 10).
• 4.      They tried to blame their sin on another rather than confessing their personal responsibility (vv. 12, 13).

14 So the Lord God said to the serpent:
Because you have done this,
you are cursed more than any livestock
and more than any wild animal.
You will move on your belly
and eat dust all the days of your life.

• As the result of man's disobedience to God, the creation suffered a curse and began to deteriorate.
• Evolution teaches that man is improving his condition through self-effort.
• Eating dust is an expression used in other ancient Near Eastern writings to describe the lowest of all forms of life.
• The snake is a natural symbol of sin. It comes spontaneously to the mind; for sin,

15 I will put hostility between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring.
He will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel.

• Most interpreters have recognized this verse as the first biblical promise and prophecy of the provision of salvation from sin.
• The woman being Mary and Jesus being her offspring (the Messiah to come).
• Some interpreters have believed that this is the first prediction of the virgin birth of Messiah, since it is specifically the seed of "the woman" and not the man that would crush the serpent.
• Jesus will strike the head of Satan.
• Satan will strike the heel of Jesus.
• One blow leaves a bruise and the other is fatal.

16 He said to the woman:
I will intensify your labor pains;
you will bear children with painful effort.
Your desire will be for your husband,
yet he will rule over you.

•  The woman will desire to dominate the relationship with her husband.
• This is where the battle of the sexes began.

17 And he said to the man, “Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘Do not eat from it’:
The ground is cursed because of you.
You will eat from it by means of painful labor
all the days of your life.

• Adam was previously working in the garden, but now he must toil in the garden… he’s gonna sweat.

18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
19 You will eat bread by the sweat of your brow
until you return to the ground,
since you were taken from it.
For you are dust,
and you will return to dust.”

• A physical death is looming.

20 The man named his wife Eve because she was the mother of all the living. 21 The Lord God made clothing from skins for the man and his wife, and he clothed them.

• This was the first animal sacrifice made.
• Blood was shed due to their sin.

22 The Lord God said, “Since the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil, he must not reach out, take from the tree of life, eat, and live forever.” 23 So the Lord God sent him away from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. 24 He drove the man out and stationed the cherubim and the flaming, whirling sword east of the garden of Eden to guard the way to the tree of life.[3]

• This was an act of grace.
• Man realized they needed to be saved from the effects of their sin.

They need a Messiah… a Savior.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ge 2:16–17.
[2] Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Basic, “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor Pub., 1998), 64.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ge 3:1–24.

Enter the room in darkness

• Greece Trip

 
THE CREATION
GENESIS 1
1 In the beginning

• Trinity -
• Angels? Sons of God?
• Job 38:4-7 - 4 Where were you when I established the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.
• Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it?
• What supports its foundations? Or who laid its cornerstone 7 while the morning stars sang together

and all the sons of God shouted for joy?[1] He not only gave us personality—minds to think with, emotions to feel with, and wills for making decisions—but He also gave us an inner spiritual nature that enables us to know Him and worship Him.[2]

• John 1:1-3 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created.[3]
• John 1:14 -  The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.[4]
• Colossians 1:16-17 - For everything was created by him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through him and for him.
• He is before all things, and by him all things hold together.[5]

God created the heavens and the earth.
2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.

• Blank slide

3 Then God said, “Let there be light,”

• One flashlight

and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness.

• Turn on the lights

 
5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was an evening, and there was a morning: one day.

• Flashlight Slide
• Sistine Chapel Slide

6 Then God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters, separating water from water.” 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above the expanse. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse “sky.” Evening came and then morning: the second day.

• 2 Waters Slide

9 Then God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering of the water he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.

• Earth Slide

11 Then God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.” And it was so. 12 The earth produced vegetation: seed-bearing plants according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 Evening came and then morning: the third day.

• 3 Trees Slide

14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night. They will serve as signs for seasons and for days and years. 15 They will be lights in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule over the day and the lesser light to rule over the night—as well as the stars. 17 God placed them in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth, 18 to rule the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 Evening came and then morning: the fourth day.

• 4 Sun, Moon & Stars Slide

20 Then God said, “Let the water swarm with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” 21 So God created the large sea-creatures and every living creature that moves and swarms in the water, according to their kinds. He also created every winged creature according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them: “Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.” 23 Evening came and then morning: the fifth day.

• 5 Creatures Slide

24 Then God said, “Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that crawl, and the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25 So God made the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that crawl on the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.”
27 So God created man in his own image;
he created him in the image of God;
he created them male and female.

• He not only gave us personality—minds to think with, emotions to feel with, and wills for making decisions—but He also gave us an inner spiritual nature that enables us to know Him and worship Him.[6]
• To be one with God, the Father, Jesus, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.” 29 God also said, “Look, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the surface of the entire earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. This will be food for you, 30 for all the wildlife of the earth, for every bird of the sky, and for every creature that crawls on the earth—everything having the breath of life in it—I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good indeed. Evening came and then morning: the sixth day.

• 6 Adam and Wildlife

2 So the heavens and the earth and everything in them were completed. 2 On the seventh day God had completed his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, for on it he rested from all his work of creation.[7]

• God rested
• How can God be resting and yet still at work today
• Sovereignty

 
 

• Creation - Genesis 1-2:3
• - Day 1: Light/Darkness - Vanilla & Chocolate Ice Cream, Oreos, Ice Cream Sandwiches
• - Day 2: Sky & Water - Blue Gatorade or Blue Jello
• - Day 3: Dry Ground & Seed-Bearing Plants - Fruit Salad
• - Day 4: Sun, Moon & Stars - Chicken & Stars Soup - Star Food
• - Day 5: Birds & Sea Creatures - Goldfish, Shrimp, Fish Sticks
• - Day 6: Land Animals & Humans - Chick Fil-A Nuggets, Animal Crackers
• - Day 7: The Sabbath Rest - Served by adults

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Job 38:4–7.
[2] Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Basic, “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor Pub., 1998), 30.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Jn 1:1–3.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Jn 1:14.
[5] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Col 1:16–17.
[6] Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Basic, “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor Pub., 1998), 30.
[7] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ge 1:1–2:3.

Menorah – Middle light, Ner Elohim, the Westernmost Lamp, the Lamp of God, the Servant Lamp –Specially prized.

• The Ner Elohim Lamp quit burning in 30 AD.
• From the Talmud: During the last forty years before the destruction of the Temple the lot [‘For the Lord’] did not come up in the right hand; nor did the crimson-colored strap become white; nor did the westernmost light shine. (Yoma 39b)

 

• Genesis 1:3-5 - Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was an evening, and there was a morning: one day. [1]
• Light was created the first day.

 

• Genesis 1:14-19 - 14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night. They will serve as signs for seasons and for days and years. 15 They will be lights in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule over the day and the lesser light to rule over the night—as well as the stars. 17 God placed them in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth, 18 to rule the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 Evening came and then morning: the fourth day. [2]
• The sun was created on the fourth day.
• Menorah- Picture
• How many days were in the Creation?
  - 7 Days
  - 1-3 – 4 – 5-7 Days

 

• From Josephus (an unredeemed Jew who was an historian):

Over against this table, near the southern wall, was set a candlestick of cast gold, hollow within, being of the weight of one hundred pounds… It was made with its knops, and lilies, and pomegranates, and bowls (which ornaments amounted to seventy in all); by which means the shaft elevated itself on high from a single base, and spread itself into as many branches as there are planets, including the sun among them. It terminated in seven heads, in one row, all standing parallel to one another; and these branches carried seven lamps, one by one, in imitation of the number of the planets. These lamps looked to the east and to the south, the candlestick being situate obliquely. (Antiquities, Book III, Chapter VI, Paragraph 7)

• Josephus realized that the sun, located at the center of our solar system, was providing light for the planets visible to early man.
• Mercury, Venus, Earth (or moon), Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.
• It seems therefore, that he concluded the sun served as the middle lamp (Servant Lamp) of our universe.
• If this is so, the sun is a picture of “the Son” who is the light of the world (John 8:12; 9:5)
• “The Son” that Josephus failed to recognize as Savior!

 
The Legend of Azazel

• Day of Atonement – All sin would be atoned for one day of the year.
• Hebrews 9:6-7 – With these things prepared like this, the priests enter the first room repeatedly, performing their ministry. 7 But the high priest alone enters the second room, and he does that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offers for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.[3]
• What is the difference between atonement and forgiveness?
  - Covered but not removed
• High Priest would go into the Holy of Holies twice.
  - 1st time with the blood of a bull to cover his own sin.
  - Then two goats were brought to the High Priest, lots were cast and one of the goats was sacrificed.
   - The High Priest would then take the blood of the sacrificed goat into the Holy of Holies and offer it as sacrifice for the rest of the Jews sins… to be covered.

 

• Leviticus 16:8-10 - After Aaron casts lots for the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other for an uninhabitable place (Scapegoat or Azazel), A, (Lit for Azazel) B, (Perhaps a term that means “for the goat that departs,” or “for removal,” or “for a rough, difficult place,” or “for a goat demon”)[4] 9 he is to present the goat chosen by lot for the Lord and sacrifice it as a sin offering. 10 But the goat chosen by lot for an uninhabitable place is to be presented alive before the Lord to make atonement with it by sending it into the wilderness for an uninhabitable place. [5]

 

• From the Talmud:
  If you assume it was Rabbai Johannan ben Zaccai [who made the rule], was there in the days of Rabbai Johannan Zaccai a thread of scarlet [which turned white]? Has it not been taught: Rabbai Johannan Zaccai lived altogether a hundred and twenty years. For forty years he was in business, forty years he studied, and forty years he taught’, and it has further been taught: ‘For forty years before the destruction of the Temple the thread of scarlet never turned white but it remained red.’ (Rosh HaShana 31b)
• They tied a red ribbon on the scapegoat which turned white as it ran away.
• During the last forty years before the destruction of the Temple the lot [‘For the Lord’] did not come up in the right hand; nor did the crimson-colored strap become white. (Yoma 39b)

 

• From the Jewish Encyclopedia:

Day of Atonement – A man was selected, preferably a priest, to take the goat to the precipice in the wilderness; and he was accompanied part of the way by the most eminent men of Jerusalem. Ten booths had been constructed at intervals along the road leading from Jerusalem to the steep mountain. At each one of these the man leading the goat was formally offered food and drink, which he, however, refused. When he reached the tenth booth those who accompanied him proceeded no further, but watched the ceremony from a distance. When he came to the precipice he divided the scarlet thread into two parts, one of which he tied to the rock and the other to the goat’s horns, and then pushed the goat down (Yoma vi. 1-8). The cliff was so high and rugged that before the goat had traversed half the distance to the plain below, its limbs were utterly shattered. Men were stationed at intervals along the way, and as soon as the goat was thrown down the precipice, they signaled to one another by means of kerchiefs or flags, until the information reached the high priest, whereat he proceeded with the other parts of the ritual.
 
The scarlet thread was a symbolic reference to Isaiah 1:18; and the Talmud tells us (ib.39a) that during the forty years that Simon the Just was high priest, the thread actually turned white as soon as the goat was thrown over the precipice; a sign that the sins of the people were forgiven. In later time the change to white was not invariable: a proof of the people’s moral and spiritual deterioration, that was gradually on the increase, until forty years before the destruction of the Second Temple, when the change of the color was no longer observed (i.e. 39b).
 

• Hebrews 10:12 - But this man, after offering one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God.[6]
• The sacrificial system that had been in effect for years was not obsolete because of Jesus’ blood.
• Mishnah – 220 AD – Oral Law written down
• Talmud – 600 AD – Expanded w/ stories (Tradition written by unredeemed Jews)

 
9 - Lamps
Zechariah – Additional two branches to serve as resource to make sure the other 7 branches remained lit.

• Persians – 400 years of silence between testaments
• Alexander Great and the Greeks defeated the Persians
• Divided into four regions
• Syria - Antiochus Epiphanes defiled the Temple Mount
• Maccabees came in and rededicated the Temple Mount. There was enough oil in one branch to relight the Menorah and it burnt for 8 days.
• Two additional branches were added during the days of the Maccabees restoration and is related now to Hanukah.

[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ge 1:3–5). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Ge 1:14–19). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Heb 9:6–7). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[4] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Le 16:8–10). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.\
[6] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Heb 10:12). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.