ILL BREAKS CREW

God created the world and humans and set it up to be a good place with good people. Then it went to the crappe r. Well, maybe not all, but a lot of it. How? God had left Adam and Eve with one clear instruction. The thing is, we normally think of God’s rules as fun-killers when in fact, they’re things that are good for us. Then the devil came and they broke that rule. They disobeyed God.

I’m pretty sure it wasn’t an apple that they ate as we see in so many pictures, but I do have other questions about this time. How old were Adam and Eve? 5? 55? Did the devil look like a snake or a lizard? Why didn’t Eve think it strange that a serpent was talking? Did all the animals talk? Was that part of the temptation, that if a serpent talks, he couldn’t be wrong, right? But anyway, I digress.

The consequences of what happened set the stage for everyone on, including us. We see the effects of this disobedience [sin] in ourselves and the world around us. The thing is, God isn’t leaving it – or us – to suck it up and live through it. In the book of Genesis, chapter 3, verse 15, God says that Jesus wins. See, the solution for sin isn’t ignoring it, or trying to pretend it doesn’t exist, or saying that’s not really bad at all, or embracing it, or doing enough good to cover it up. The solution is forgiveness. It’s acknowledging the reality of it, but then also having it not count against us. When Jesus died, and Jesus was in effect even from the beginning of humanity’s sin, God put the punishment for our sins on him. If we believe this, then our sins do not count against us. We have forgiveness and have a new life, one in obedience to God, doing our best to follow his rules, those things that are good for us.

The devil tricked Eve into believing that what was bad was good. Adam also fell for it and was God said was good, they thought of it as bad. Let’s not all into the same trap. Jesus is good and a life following him, cuz he followed God perfectly, is good. Won’t you follow?

Do you need/want God to do something in your life? Write it in the comments box below and we’ll pray for/with you about it. You can leave it as an anonymous comment if you like.

The picture on the left is of a star being created taken by the Hubble Telescope. ‘Created’. When we think of the world, we have to consider the words we use. Was the star born? Evolved? Created?

God tells us through the Bible how everything was created. Well, kind of. In the book called Genesis, chapters 1 and 2, tell us that at first, the world was formless and empty. Then God begins to form it and fill it. In roughly the same order, he forms the lights, the water & sky, the land, and the vegetation. He fills it in the order of sun, moon & stars, sea creatures and birds, livestock and wild animals & humans, and things to eat.

There is debate though. It’s not in the order of things, but in how long it took. Was it really seven days or was it billions of years? I’ll admit something: I don’t know. But it might not matter. It might not matter because I think that point is not in the when, but in the who. Genesis 1-2 tells us that God created everything, including humans, the first of which being Adam and Eve, and that when he did, it was all good. It might be a true story about how things began – but its point is about God!

There might be a couple things to ask ourselves now:

1. When we look at the world, how do we see it? Did it just come to be? Did science do it? Did God? If so, what does that mean for our lives and how we view it?

2. If it was all good, even “very good”, then what happened? Cuz it certainly ain’t all good now. And what does Jesus have to do with this? Ah, stay tuned.

Check out Genesis 1-2 by clicking here.

What do we imagine God to be like? What do we think that he wants? How do we relate to him? I think that many times we “know” him to be a miracle-man, some kind of genie in a bottle, or simple computer (input A -> output B). We want him only when we want things, usually a change in circumstance or to bless our chasing of the American Dream.

God can certainly be that and do those things. However, I think that there is more. God knows that we want more, but he also knows what we need more. God knows that we need forgiveness. He knows we need better character and better relationships. He knows that we need peace and joy, love and hope.

In the book of John, chapter 4, verses 43-54, we see this in action. A man came and wanted a change in his circumstance. Jesus wanted a change in his soul. He asked for his son to be healed. Jesus did it, but that also allowed the man to find the forgiver of his sins. Everyone sins and we can never do enough good to make up for it. The only solution to wrong-doing is forgiveness. That’s why God sent Jesus, the Messiah. Jesus means ‘he saves’ and messiah (which is the same as Christ) means ‘the anointed one’. He came to show us God and his love (that even though death would be fair, forgiveness through grace because of his love is what he wants). He came to show us this by his death and resurrection – that’s how our forgiveness comes about.

What do we imagine God to be like? What do we think that he wants? How do we relate to him? I think he’s all powerful and all loving. I think he wants the best for us. But I also think that we need to relate to him understanding that life can be hard and he could change things, and he has a plan that will change things, but first he wants to give us what he all need: forgiveness, truth, love, and a new life with him.