Journey to Christmas

Creation
Scripture: Genesis 1:26—28, 31 Revelation 4:11

God created by His Word for His pleasure and not out of need. Everything He made was “very good”

His desire was that Adam and Eve would have an intimate relationship with Him and each other. Also that they would have offspring and “have dominion over the earth”

The Fall
Scripture: Genesis 3:

Adam?s and Eve?s disobedience to God’s command to not eat of the tree of life resulted in death, distortion of relationships, both with god and with other humans, drudgery in the work of tending the earth and imperfect plant and animal kingdom.

Although God could have abandoned us at that point, He set in motion a plan of rescue and redemption.

The Election of God's People
Scripture: Genesis 12:

As time passed, and the descendants of Adam and Eve filled the earth, the dividing line between good and evil became more and more pronounced. Though sin and evil got progressively worse, there were always remnants of good. God continued to rescue and recreate in spite of man?s repeated disobedience. His plan could not be destroyed. When Able was murdered by his brother, God chose the descendants of Seth to be the new line through which redemption would come. When sin was so rampant on the earth that God could no longer stand it, He chose Noah, a righteous man to build an arc and give mankind another chance.

When the people of earth decided to make themselves great and become like God, they were scattered and given different languages to prevent them from carrying out their plan.

God's plan for us became more specific when God chose Abram to leave his pagan family behind and travel to a new land which God would show him. Abraham’s trust in God enabled him to obey just as the righteous ones before him had done. Abraham became the father of the Jewish people who were called to bring God's plan of redemption to the rest of the nations of the world.