The Lord God said - "Where are you?"

Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?”  Genesis 3:9


We all know there is not a chance Yahweh didn't know where Adam was. The question is...did Adam know where he was?

Adam's answer tells us a lot..."I heard your voice in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked". In predictable human fashion, Adam was more concerned about his nakedness (the awareness of which, was a consequence of his sin) than he was about his disobedience.

The expected parental response comes..."Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" The answer is embarrassing. Adam said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate.”  

So...what does this question..."Where are you?"...mean?

It means we are lost. It means we are consumed with the consequences of our sin rather than with our sin. It means we are perfectly willing to cast the blame for our sin on others...even upon Yahweh himself.

"The woman you gave me..."

I'll tell you where Adam was. He was in a place of denial. And we...as his children have been in denial ever since.

We all struggle with sin. The question isn't "what?" The question isn't "why?" The question isn't "how?" The question is "where am I?" And..."how did I get here?" Until I am in a place where I'm more concerned about how I disappointed God than I am about what my spouse will say, I am in a place of denial. Until I am in in a place where I will bear the responsibility for my own disobedience I am in denial.

"Where there is no shedding of blood is no forgiveness" (Heb. 9:22).  That blood was shed for our sin on Calvary. That is where we kneel and find forgiveness. Where are you?

Live boldly out there today...

The Lord God said - "I will make a helper like him"

Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.” Genesis 2:18

It's certainly not a coincidence that the first time Elohim expresses a personal interest in the man they created...the name Yahweh (Lord) is used. Long before the name was known to Moses as the personal God of Israel, it existed in the mind of Elohim because...from the very beginning God was interested in our personal welfare.

The very first words of concern our Lord God has for us is that we are people meant to live in community. "It is not good for the man (Hadam) to be alone".  The term "Suitable Helper" (ְֶֹּֽ עֵ֖זֶר כְּנֶגְדּֽוֹ) is translated by Keil-Delitzsch as "a help of his likeness". In other words, God created someone just like Adam to partner with him in fulfilling God's plans. This is borne out by the fact that they were of one substance since Eve was created from the rib of Adam...his very own flesh and bone. In all respects, Eve was in the "likeness" of Adam.

Before Sin broke God's perfect creation...Adam and Eve were the same.

Eve's first, and most important task as a "helper" was to partner with Adam in perpetuating the human race. Adam could not do this alone. In this respect, the only distinction between the two was anatomical...not substantive. A distinction without a difference. Adam also required help in subduing the earth...work that often required more than one set of hands and one brain. Collaboration, mentally and physically, was critical to Humankind fulfilling its destiny.

After the fall, their roles and distinctions were altered significantly. Men and women have existed with some level of conflict ever since. And, of course, Man has always managed to Lord it over woman...even though God never made man "Yahweh". How can community thrive with such dysfunction?

The Lord God said it; oour wife, sister, mother, or daughter is created just the same as her male relatives. Our cardinal question is evident...and fundamental to how we might expect God to deal with us in other matters...how am I treating the helper that is "like me"?

Live boldly out there today...

God said...

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”  Genesis 1:26

What does it mean to be made in the "IMAGE OF GOD?" Scripture gives us many clues as to the characteristics of God. He is Holy. He is love. And, in fact, He expects us to be the same. However, for the purpose of this lesson on the creation of man what does scripture tell us?

The first clue is...God has creative power. "Let us make..."
The second clue is...God is plural. “...in Our image".
The third clue is...God is in charge...and let them rule..."

So, God created us with creative minds...far beyond the brains of all the other living things He created.  This a serious thing. When God created the world as we know it, He created it with design and purpose. The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans that all of creation reflects the Divine nature of God. I imagine He expects our creative powers to reflect His divinity as well. It means we cannot squander this creativity on selfish promotion or venal aspirations.

God is also plural. We understand, from the whole of scripture, that God is composed of three persons in one. He is a Trinity; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Or, Mind, Body and Temperament. In His likeness, we see that we have been created with the same wholeness and complexity. Our Mind is the eternal, never ending part of our being. Our Body is the part of our being that gives us physical substance while we dwell on earth...and is mortal. Our spirit is residence to our emotions, intellect and intentions. In the sense that our spirit is reflected through our minds and our bodies...it is eternal as well.

Finally, God has sovereignty over all of creation. In his likeness, He has given us sovereignty as well, over all the other living things in creation. God said. "rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth. Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you".

What all this tells us is simple. We were created with purpose and destiny. Our purpose is to reflect the very nature of God while our destiny is to rule over everything He created. It doesn't leave a lot of idle time and it requires focus. We should examine ourselves every evening before we go to sleep and ask one simple question: "Do I look like God?"

Live boldly out there today...

 kkg

The Lord, God

 אֱלֹהִים  or, "Elohim", is the first known word for God. It is the word used through the entire book of Genesis referring to the cosmic God of creation...omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient. But, it is not technically a proper name. Also it is, curiously, a plural noun...confirming our conviction that the God we worship is actually triune (three in one). 

Elohim spoke ten times in just the first chapter of Genesis...with cosmic results.
Genesis 1:3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.
Genesis 1:6 Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.”

Genesis 1:9 Then God said, “Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so.

Genesis 1:11 Then God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit after their kind with seed in them”; and it was so.

Genesis 1:14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years;

Genesis 1:20 Then God said, “Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.”
Genesis 1:24 Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind”; and it was so.

Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 

Genesis 1:28 God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Genesis 1:29 Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you;

  

 יְהֹוָה  or, "Yahweh" (Jehovah), is the name first revealed to us at the burning bush in Exodus chapter three. God (Elohim)  said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘The Lord (Yahweh), the God (Elohim) of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations. It is the proper name of the God of Israel. So...what does "YAHWEH" mean? A fair translation of Yahweh is "I am the One that Is...there is no other". 

In other words, the Lord told Moses "I (Yahweh) am the only God that actually exists. All those marvelous works witnessed by your ancestors...that was me. There is no other. I am now going to be the personal God of Israel."  Elohim and Yahweh are one and the same...which is why we often read the phase "the Lord, God" in scripture.

Which, of course, prompts the question...when the Lord, God speaks, do I trouble myself to listen? We tend to listen to a lot of non-existent gods while failing to heed the voice of the one who actually exists.

At our peril...

The Lord, God, spoke over a thousand times in scripture. The God of all creation...coming to us personally and revealing His desires for us. What could be more important? The next several entries will address some of the important things God said

Live boldly out there today....