Tag Archives: truth

Genesis 2:4-7 — How Does Jesus View the Old Testament?

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This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created. When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground- the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

Genesis 2:4-7

I love these four verses. It’s as though God is moving us from the overview of creation in Genesis chapter 1, to the account of man in the rest of the Bible, by rotating His telephoto lens from wide angle to zoom. In chapter 1 of Genesis God’s word is at wide angle, in Genesis chapter 2, verse 8 the Bible zooms in to record that part of God’s creation that is mankind. Genesis 2:4-7 is the time of transition between the two.

“This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created.” (Genesis 2:4) I want to write about what some have said about the Genesis account, that it is a mythical story containing spiritual truths. This thinking supposes that we should accept the truths found in the Genesis account but reject the story as a historical account.

That approach is fraught with problems.

If you make the assumption that the Genesis account, including the record of Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden, is a myth, then you have to make a judgment concerning the giving of manna from heaven, the fiery destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the account of Jonah and the whale, and ultimately, the account of Christ in the gospels. You find yourself attempting to decide for yourself, where myth ends, and where truth and history begin. Instead of the Bible judging you, you become the judge of the Bible — a very dangerous place to be.

Most important is that Jesus himself spoke of the miracles, events, and people in the Old Testament as historical truth.

Jesus validated the account of the destruction of Sodom including the death of Lot’s wife. (Luke 17:29,32) Jesus confirmed that manna fell from heaven (John 6:31-51) Jesus spoke of Daniel of the Old Testament as a real and genuine prophet. (Matthew 24:15) Jesus validated the account of Jonah and the whale. (Matthew 12:39) And Jesus in Matthew 19:4-6 speaks of the Genesis account of the creation of Adam and Eve.

Jesus said, “The Scripture cannot be broken” (John 10:35) He called the Scripture, “the commandment of God.” And Jesus referred to the Old Testament as the the words of God and God’s final authority: “Have you not read that which was spoken to you by God?” Jesus said. (Matthew 22:31)

Some desire to accept Christ but to reject parts of the Bible including portions of the Old Testament, but that doesn’t make sense. Because Jesus accepted the Old Testament as “spoken to you by God” (Matthew 22:31) then if you believe on Jesus you must accept the Old Testament. What you and I are left with is a choice: will you, I, we choose to believe the secular criticisms of the Bible, or the authority of God’s word?

Will you believe the critics or Christ?

References:

Blue Letter Bible

Bible Gateway

Ray Stedman

Josh McDowell, How Did Jesus View the Old Testament?

Learn From Tebow – Stand for Something!

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Critics Bite at Tim Tebow the Boston Herald headline reads. The Herald is talking about Tebow’s sloppy workouts at the Senior Bowl. He’s skipping passes on the ground, overthrowing on out patterns, fumbling snaps from the center. According to CBS Sports Tebow spent the last two weeks training with quarterback legend Zeke Bratkowski in Franklin, Tennessee. Learning a new throwing motion is likely the reason behind his less than stellar performance. Anyone who’s taken a golf lesson can tell you that when trying to implement something new, you may get worse before you get better. However Tebow has other criticisms to deal with beyond those who are scrutinizing his “elongated release.”

The Senior Bowl is nothing compared to what lies ahead. Another headline reads Tim Tebow’s ad Draws Howls of Protests. According to Doug Robinson of the Desert News Tebow has agreed to do a Super Bowl advertisement in which his mother talks about how she had a disease while she was pregnant with Tim Tebow. And how her doctor advised her to have an abortion. Mrs. Tebow declined to follow that advice and gave birth to a baby who became one of the greatest college quarterbacks in history. Much of the reaction has been volatile and the ad hasn’t even run yet. From the Desert News:

— Tebow needs to stick to playing ball and shut the *#&$! up on preaching.

— … just another one of those James Dobson, Kool-Aid drinking, American Taliban that endorse a rewriting of our Constitution to turn this country into a Christian theocracy.

— Give him a religous show on Sunday morning so I can ignore it. And him.

— Tebow’s displays of religious paranoia and Christian-based brainwashing is an egotistical cry for attention. “Look at me, I am perfect, follow my thousand year old carbon copy belief system.

— T-Bow, don’t do it! Just play the game you love for now and go into politics after the NFL!

Your Life:

Tim Tebow should be commended for speaking out in support of life. But I think the take-away for you and for me goes beyond the pro-life cause. John 1:14 says that Jesus was full of grace and truth. Like Jesus, I need to be full of grace and truth. Like Jesus, you need to be full of grace and truth. Jesus attracted people with his grace. He loved people. He cared about people. But He also, most typically in a gracious way, spoke the truth. By all means be gracious. But by all means speak the truth graciously, in love. Stand for something. In Revelation 3:15 Jesus said, “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!” Stand for something! Be gracious but also, speak God’s truth, graciously.

God bless Tim Tebow.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 1:14