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The Four Themes Of 'The Book Of Genesis'

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The Four Themes Of 'The Book Of Genesis'
The book of Genesis, although written thousands of years ago in a culture far removed from modern America, contains many valuable truths relevant to Christians today. The Pentateuch, of which Genesis is a part, is not primarily concerned with history or the nation of Israel’s history, instead “it traces the actions of God and Israel in history” (Arnold, & Beyer, 2015, p. 39). Although ancient customs may bewilder the modern reader, critical themes do emerge from the beginning. The first 11 chapters of Genesis present four themes, God as creator, Sin, God’s judgment of sin, and God’s grace, which are essential for all Christians to understand.
The very first verse of the Bible, Genesis 1:1, states, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (New International Version). The following verses, Genesis 1:2-2:3, detail God’s creative activity and God’s proclamation that everything was good. Genesis chapter two further elaborates on God’s creation of human beings in the “imago Dei,” or the image of God. The importance of …show more content…
The pronouncement that God made to the serpent in the Garden was a promise of redemption to Adam and Eve: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel” (Genesis 3:15, NIV). God will not allow evil to stand. He will not just destroy sin, He will redeem humanity from it. When the book of Genesis “accounts” for family lines (Genesis 2:4, 5:1, 6:9, 10:1, 11:10), it is a reminder “that God has not forgotten His promise” (Clowney, 2013, p. 42). Through later revelation, it is now known that the offspring referred to in Genesis 3:15 is Jesus Christ Himself. Through Christ’s work, all the destruction caused by sin will be reversed, everything will be made new (Matthew 19:28). Even in the Garden of Eden after the Fall, God’s infinite grace shines
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