UNIT 1:

THE GOD WHO IS

Course Introduction &
Genesis 1-11
Questions to Consider...
● Is God real?
● What is the Bible? Unit Objective:
● Students will learn
What is the Old Testament?
how to view the Bible
● What is the purpose of the Old Testament? as an ancient library of
● What is the purpose of Genesis? Hebrew stories that
● What is the Imago Dei? describe a single,
powerful, relational
● What does the name “YHWH” mean? God who has created
● How is God described in Genesis 1-11? humanity to be his
● How is humanity described in Genesis 1-11? “image-bearers” on
Earth.
● How could I retell this story?

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This course is taught from Christians study the
the perspective of the Bible to learn about God
and about themselves
Christian “Worldview” Christians value time
spent learning about God
and hearing from Him
Actions
Christians believe God is a
- Values -
real, relational being that has
made Himself known through
-- Beliefs --
Jesus, the Bible, and Creation.

The Basics of “Worldview”

The specific way an individual
views and understands the world

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What is the Bible?
The Bible is a library of 66 ancient books, poems, and letters written by
40 different authors over the span of 1500 years on 3 different continents.
The Bible is complex, diverse, and intricate, and yet it has one unified message:
God is lovingly redeeming all who trust in His gifts of grace.

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The first 39 books within this ancient
library were originally written in
Hebrew and called “the Tanakh”

In the modern Christianity,

we call this section of the Bible
the “Old Testament” → 77% 23%
 Share Your Thoughts:
What is the purpose of
the Old Testament?

How is the Old

Testament connect to
the New Testament?

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 The first five books of the Old
Testament are called “the Torah”
which means “the Law” in Hebrew

Deuteronomy
Numbers
Leviticus
Exodus
Genesis
(These books set up the themes used
throughout the rest of the Bible) 9
 Share Your Thoughts:
Major Bible What/Who needs
Theme: to be introduced: If Genesis is the first book
in the entire Bible library,
what/who will it need to
introduce to set up the
Bible’s main themes?
HINT:
The word
Genesis
means
“origin” or
“beginning
”
Genesis
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Example: Naturalism - This universe
“In the beginning, God
was created by only natural
created the heavens and
means; there is no God.
the earth…” (Gen. 1:1)

Monotheism - This universe was - VERY DIFFERENT FROM -

created and is ruled by a single,
powerful God.
Polytheism - This universe
Actions was created and is ruled by
many, competing gods.
- Values - The first chapters in
-- Beliefs -- Genesis are needing to

-Worldview-
introduce the basic
beliefs of the Bible’s
worldview...
Genesis
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 Polytheism
Genesis vs. This universe was created and is
ruled by many, competing gods.
Genesis does not appear to be
a science manual intended to
explain exactly how God
created everything (in order to
argue against Naturalism)
.
First composed over 3,000 years ago in ancient
times, Genesis was arguing against the
of ancient world civilizations.
Polytheism
READ: Genesis 1:1-2:3
LISTEN: What portion of the reading stood out to you as
the most important or significant?
Why do you think this passage stood out to you personally?
How could it inform your daily life?

REFLECT: What words do you see repeated

throughout this reading?
In what ways do these words argue against the
belief of “polytheism” within the ancient world?

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Unlike the chaos and violence of ancient Polytheistic
creation stories, Genesis describes one
all-powerful God creating ORDER of out
chaos:
God separates God separates God separates
and names the Waters and names the
Light and and names the Sea and the God in Genesis does not
Darkness Sky Land just ORDER all of this,
1 2 3 He does it by the power
of His “Word” alone.

DISCUSS: What do
you think this means?

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 In Genesis 1, the
1 2 3 God of the Bible is
presented as

God fills the

A God who gives
God fills and God fills the
rules the waters and sky Land with ORDER to chaos
Darkness with with Bird Animals and
Lights and Sea Life Humans and
4 5 6 A God who FILLS
what is empty

APPLICATION: How
might these truths affect the
daily lives of Christians?

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In the beginning, God Which god
ALL humans
created the heavens is this story are made in
and the earth… talking God’s image!?!
about?

This god is WAY more

powerful than any I have
ever heard of! How the
original ancient
This “goodness” and audience may
order does NOT sound
like the world I live in...
have reacted to
hearing Genesis 1-2
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What is the Imago Dei ?
As Genesis 1-2 explain, humanity
is a special part of Creation unlike any other. “The Image of
God got his hands dirty making humans to rule over God”
all other living things within nature. Just like God,
men and women are in a position of authority with a "So God created man
duty to act morally towards the rest of Creation. By in His own image, in
displaying God’s characteristics, humans display the image of God He
God’s goodness. Powerful created him; male
Generous Creative and female He
created them."
Relational Ordering - Genesis 1:27
(Keep the Creation &
process going)
Filling
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If every human being is an
“image-bearer” of God...
❏ Every human being is immeasurably valuable
❏ Every human being deserves dignity and respect
❏ Every human being is morally responsible DISCUSS:
What do think
this means?
APPLICATION : How do people honor the Imago Dei of others?
How do people dishonor the Imago Dei of others?
“Thus the heavens and the earth were
finished, and all the host of them. And on the
seventh day God finished his work that he
had done, and he rested on the seventh day
from all his work that he had done. So God
blessed the seventh day and made it holy, The Creation stories of Genesis 1-2 end
because on it God rested from all his work
that he had done in creation.” (2:1-3)
with an ideal world:
→ God is ruling but resting
DISCUSS:
What do NO mention of → Humans are bearing His image
think this “there was evening → Purpose as has been given
means? and morning”??? (i.e. ORDER and FILL the Earth)
→ Community has been formed
S T HIS IDE AL
HOW I
between Man and Woman

ORRUPTED!? 20
READ: Genesis 3:1-24
LISTEN: What portion of the reading stood out to you as
especially important or significant?
Why do you think this passage stood out to you personally?
How could it inform your daily life?
REFLECT: When God states the poetic consequences (v.14-
19) of the actions taken by Adam, Eve, and the Serpent,
which of these consequences do you see
impacting the world negatively TODAY?

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Two important things to notice: WHY?
God allows this enemy to exist in His good world.

This character’s primary activity in the Old and

New Testament is Lying or Deceiving

o w is t hi s
H ie ?
e n t a l
statem In Hebrew:

“the Satan”
The Fall ➔ “Adversary”, “Enemy” ,
“Accuser”, “Opponent”

from the Ideal

➔ a creature in rebellion
against God’s goodness

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What is the primary “Sin” within the
actions of Adam and Eve?
c o m m and...
of God’ s
EN C E
n o t D ISOBEDI g uid ance.
It’s U ST God’s
to TR
ilure
...it’s a fa
(Imago Dei)
o w is t hi s
H ie ?
e n t a l
statem The Man and Woman are

The Fall
ALREADY like God!!!

They will die if they don’t

from the Ideal

trust God’s goodness

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Obedience to Trust
God [Mom:]
in God
Explain: That’s a hot pan! Explain:
Don’t touch it!!!

Punishments Consequences

Trusting God’s definitions of “Right” and “Wrong” vs.

Deciding for ourselves what is“Right” and “Wrong” 24
 The Bad News:
The humans join the rebellion
of The Satan by
deciding for themselves what
is “Right” and “Wrong”

The Fall
from the Ideal The humans are still
Imago Dei and God
immediately shows
them mercy...

The Good News: 25

 DISCUSS:
How has the status
of human beings
changed from
Genesis 2 to Genesis
3?

How has their

status NOT
changed?

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 The essence of human beings is still

ne s is 1 -2 exalted as “Image-Bearers” of God, but

Ge our nature is corrupted as we have all
sought to dethrone God as ruler over our
lives in one way or another.

m ag e of i s 3 →
“The I Ge ne s
God” eative
Cr
Powerful e ntity
e lational g o ur i d
Forgettin
R
Generous
eri ng & Filling
gr yestructive
D
Or d - hun
Power in S hame
Fle ei n g
d a f t e r Selfish odness
s c han g e ing G o d’s G o
h i s h a Not Trust
None of t , bu t we ’r e a lso
G e ne si s 3
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 Share Your Thoughts:
What do you think this
verse is talking about?
Why doesn’t God claim
- There will be a descendant victory over the Satan
of Man and Woman that immediately?
defeats “the Satan” Re-read:
- He will be some kind of
“Wounded Victor” Genesis 3:15
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 The
Ge “Snowballing”
ne Effects of Human
sis
4- Fallenness
11

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Group Presentation Assignment:
Telling the Story - Learning the Lesson
Slide 1: → Use Google Slides Slide 4:
- Title, Image, and → Everyone Must Participate; - What do you
Passage Assigned Spread the work evenly
→ At least TWO group members must think this story is
- Group Member retell the story with the slides supposed to teach
Names us about (1) God
Slide 3: and
Slide 2: - How is God involved (2) Humans?
- Introduce the and described?
Characters - How do the humans
- Explain the Conflict respond to God?
 The “Snowballing”
Cain and 4A bel Effects of Human
)
(Genesis
Fallenness
t or y of N oa h DISCUSS: Based on
The S sis 6-9) what you heard, do these
three stories have
(Gene
anything in common?

o w er o f B abe l
The T sis 11:1-9)
(Gene
Now THIS is starting
to sound like the
world I live in!! 31
 What is God doing in
response to Human evil?

Cain and Abel

- God is warning Cain
before his act of murder
- God is showing mercy to
(Genesis 4) Cain’s life after the murder
- God is bringing justice
on human evil with the

t or y of N oa h flood
The S sis 6-9) - God is saving Noah’s
(Gene family to reset humanity
- God is promising never
to flood the world again

o w er o f B abe l - God is scattering

The T sis 11:1-9)

humanity instead of
destroying them for
(Gene their prideful building

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“ What does this author mean?
There is something in me that puts on fig leaves of
concealment, kills my brother, builds towers of
confusion, and brings cosmic chaos upon the earth.
There is something in me that loves darkness rather
than light, that rejects God and thereby rejects my own
deepest reality as a human person made in the image
and likeness of God.
-Dr. James Finley, Clinical Psychologist

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The Sin of “Self-Deception”
We do The Satan’s job for him when we deceive ourselves.
When we forget WHO WE ARE and WHO GOD IS, we join the rebellion
Genesis 4:26
“The Image of “At that time people began to call
God” upon the name of YHWH.
→ Immeasurably valuable
→ Deserving of dignity/respect →He is real and active This name in
→ Morally responsible to treat (Others are not) Hebrew:
others like the Imago Dei → He is powerful, creative, “I Am” or
“We are the crown relational, and generous “I Will Be” or
→ He brings order to chaos “He is” or
jewels of God's and fills what is empty
“He Will Be”
creation”
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 Unit 1 Assessment:
Honoring and Dishonoring
the Imago Dei

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