One Book at a Time: Genesis

Hi! Welcome back to One Book At a Time. This week we’ll be looking at Genesis! I

want to go back and explain why some of the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) are the fulfillment of the Old Testament. Genesis is the first book in the Old Testament and is part of the Bible called the Pentateuch. Pentateuch is Greek for five books, which refers to Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy, the first five books of the Bible.

We do not know who wrote Genesis for sure, but the book is thought to have been written

by Moses. It is also thought that he wrote the rest of the Pentateuch books. The word “genesis” means the beginning of something. The book Genesis means the beginning of the Bible. An overarching look at the book will show that it brings together the creation of the world and the history of humans, then moves into the lives of God’s people of Israel.

The very first verse of the Bible, Genesis 1:1, says, “In the beginning God created the

heavens and the earth.” This is the foundation of everything else we will look at and read in scripture. It establishes that God is the Creator, the sovereign one in control, and that he has had a plan since the very beginning.

As you read more in Genesis, you begin to see how God desired to have a personal

relationship with his people, specifically through God’s relationship with Abraham. In Genesis 15:6, it says “Abraham believed the Lord and he credited it to him as righteousness.” This verse sets up the idea that righteousness comes from faith and a relationship with God as he transforms our hearts. This idea is one that is carried throughout the Bible into the New Testament and is fulfilled through Jesus.

In the book of Genesis, God makes a promise with Abraham telling him that he will be

the father of many nations and that his offspring will be God’s chosen people.

Genesis 12:2-3 says, “I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, I will make

your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, I will curse anyone who treats you with contempt, and all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” This covenant is one that is kept through Israel’s life, showing how faithful God is to the promises he makes.

I personally love the book of Genesis, but there is one part that has to be a favorite of

mine. That’s the story of Abraham and Isaac.

Genesis 22:2 says,“Take your son,” he said, “your only son Isaac, whom you love, go to

the land of Moriah, and him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.”” Abraham trusts God and obeys him. At the last second before Abraham is about to kill his son, God causes a ram to get caught in some bushes to be the substitute for Isaac.

In Genesis 22:13, it says “Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught in the thicket by its

horns. So Abraham went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son.”

The story of Abraham and Isaac is a picture of what is to come. Genesis 22:6 talks about how Isaac carried the wood for the sacrifice to either make the fire or build the altar. That is similar to the way that Jesus will carry the cross. Abraham was willing to give up his son. God actually gave up his son for us.

John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever

should believe in Him will not perish and have eternal life.” The same way that the ram was a substitute for Isaac. Jesus is a substitute for us.

A big theme throughout the Bible is redemption and God’s plan. Genesis is not just the

beginning of the Bible, but also the beginning of the plan for redemption. Throughout creation, covenant, and sacrifice, we see who Jesus is and what the cross represents.

I hope this column encourages you to read Genesis more in depth to see the bigger

picture of Genesis in the Bible and how the book is fulfilled in the gospels.