The First Appearance of the Gospel
Before John 3:16, there was Genesis 3:15. The Protoevangelium.
Just looking over Genesis chapter 3 one can see some very interesting points. I may be looking too far into what is in the text, but I would like to make some commentary on what I have read. First, let’s look at the order of chapter 3:
- Verses 1-7 – shows the temptation of Eve and Adam following her into sin.
- Verses 8-13 – tells us of God’s “discovery” of the sin after he finds Adam and Eve hiding from Him.
- Verse 14 – God curses the serpent (that is, Satan).
- Verse 15 – God announces victory over Satan through Eve’s offspring.
- Verse 16 – God announces the curse the woman must bear due to her sin.
- Verse 17-19 – God curses man and the entire earth because of Adam’s sin.
- Verses 20-24 – God sends man out of the Garden to work the ground.
Some interesting points, Adam sinned first. We tend to say “Eve bit the fruit first, so she sinned first.” This is not true, Adam sinned by standing around idly while his wife was lead into temptation. This section of Scripture should really make us think a little more about our sins and our responsibilities.
What is more interesting to me is the order of the curses. Like I stated above, but I may be looking too deep into things.
God curses Satan (the serpent) first.
Despite the blame fest (Gen 3:12-13), God chooses to pronounce His curse first to the tempter. If we are to look into the order, this shows God understands we are tempted into sin. Before we get too happy, remember, we also share in the curse because we share in the responsibility for sin (this may help with an explanation of Calvinist free will). Before God tells us the effects of the curse on humanity, He announces a savior (Gen 3:15). I believe this shows us God had a plan to redeem us from the beginning.
Your Thoughts?
-Don-
Old Testament Things to Chew on
Before I begin “fake seminary,” here are some thoughts.
I started reading through the Old Testament (OT) as a part of the Bible in 90 days plan (so far, I have failed on the plan and I am stuck near the end of Deuteronomy, in case you were wondering how it was going). Between that and reading According to Plan: The Unfolding Revelation of God in the Bible
- God called / elected some people to live under grace like Noah, Abraham, Issac, Jacob, Moses, and the people of Israel.
- Those who lived under God’s grace had nothing to do with the reception of grace. God picked an idol maker (Abraham), a murderer (Moses), and a liar (Jacob) among others.
- God called / elected some to live outside of His grace (and some under His wrath); those who perished in the flood, Ishmael, Esau,Pharaoh and those who were driven from the land of Canaan.
- Atonement was limited to those who were part of the people of Israel…
- God required that people submitted all aspects of life to Him.
- Some of the Law was severely distorted by the time Jesus was born.
- God wanted a relationship with His people, and wanted His people in a community.
- God wanted His people to care for the poor and marginalized as well as the foreigner.
How does this make you feel?
I know many who have problems with things like election and limited atonement. My question is, and not to sound all snarky, what makes it different between the OT and the NT? Why would it be OK for God to elect certain people and a nation in the OT, but not the New Testament? Does it show our depravity and our selfishness when we think we are “above” being elected?
-Don-
I’m Gonna Go Old Testament on Ya.
Consider this the syllabus.
I love me some Old Testament (OT). Whenever I had a chance to take an elective during college, I
would aim for some OT classes. I studied Ancient Near East History, Job, OT survey, OT history, and a few others I can’t think of off the top of my head. I was blessed to fall under some great instruction during that time.
At one point, I told my wife I wanted to be an OT scholar.
I thought I would go on to get my masters and doctorate in some kind of OT emphasis. Since my bachelors cost more than a decent sized Volkswagen (but not as much as a sweet Dodge Challenger), I have had to put my plans on hold. Oh, there is also that full time job and raising two kids with a third on the way thing. But more than anything, the cost is too high right now.
So I will torture you guys instead.
I am pulling a Farnworth and earning a self-made masters (until I can afford the time and money for a real one). I am going to spend more time, intentionally, studying the OT. I was recently sparked to look back into it while reading According to Plan: The Unfolding Revelation of God in the Bible
What do I hope to gain from this?
I want to learn about…
- the impact of the Gospel from Adam to Malachi. How does Jesus relate to the Old Testament. How is the story line important. We call this Bible Theology.
- the prophecies related to Jesus and His first and second coming.
- the unchanging nature of God through all history.
- the importance of the OT for the present day.
- ways to increase OT literacy amongst ‘New Testament’ Christians.
How am I going to do this?
There are many great resources available today which are much cheaper than going to a university. First and foremost, there is Monergism. Their MP3 library is filled with great teachings on the OT. For the most part, these MP3’s will serve as my teachers. I will be mapping out a “teaching path” over the next couple of weeks. My goal is to get in at least 36 60 hours of teaching (typical for a M.A. in theology).
Books.
Are you really surprised? I will be spending time learning from reading books. I am going to look into a making a book buying plan. The good news is, I will be buying (and commandeering if need be) my books with purpose (Rick Warren would be so proud). On the other hand, I have limited funds right now, so the process may go a little slower than I want it too (if you would like to rectify this, you can click the ‘donate’ button over on the right hand side…). I will also be using articles and commentaries from Monergism to fill in the gaps.
Tests and projects
If I was attending a university, I would be tested on my knowledge. I really do not have a way to test myself, however, I will be trying to write at least one OT paper / week and posting it here on my blog. I hope to have am “exam” schedule posted soon (after I get my reading tract put together). I am not sure how I will do my self-made thesis yet. I am open to ideas as this will probably be a couple years away.
Anyone want to join me?
You can help a brotha out in two ways:
- Give me your insights into good books, talks, articles, literature and “assignments” I can do. In layman’s terms, help me develop this. Leave it in the comments.
- Join me. We can be fake seminary buddies and do this together. You know you want to.
Give me your feedback.
Leave all your questions and comments in the comments.
-Don-
Next Week
It’s coming. I hope its warm.
Next week I want to write a little about Lent and some other subjects. However, I am making it my goal to get at least one of my two e-books done. You may notice shorter posts as I aim to accomplish this. Believe it or not, I still don’t have a theme picked out for the site, so I may do my time looking for one of those, too. I hate looking for themes.
I am ending this week by thinking “warm” thoughts.
I feel like a 10-year-old boy. I want to go outside and play baseball. I want to go hiking or mountain climbing. Play football in the yard with the boys. Help plant the garden with my wife. Put up the fence out back so the neighbors dog won’t be able to poop in my yard.
When the warm weather hits, we will have little Abigail Ryan to play with too.
-Don-
