by jimwalton » Wed Nov 08, 2017 9:27 pm
From Dr. John Walton: The purpose of Genesis is to begin the story of the covenant. God created everything to function properly, and everything had its appropriate role to play. He wanted a loving relationship with humans. But sin drew people away from God, so much that they no longer had an accurate picture of what God was like. So God decided to make a covenant, so show them what He was really like.
What happened in the world isn't God's fault. He made everything to function the way it was supposed to, and He was blessing creation and humanity. But the blessings of chapters 1 & 2 quickly turned to corruption at the hand of man and a distorted picture of God (by the time we get to chapter 11).
In the biblical world, the most important aspect of creation was that God brought order from disorder, and the order that was brought forth from chaos had to be maintained day by day. God created the world for us (in one sense), but in another sense, He made the world for Himself. The cosmos was created to be His temple, to display His glory, and as a place He could have a relationship with the people He loved. And the people were placed in the garden to serve, not as slaves, but as priests and priestesses of His temple—sacred space—to care for it and to have a love relationship with the God who was making Himself known to them.
It's hard to write in such a short space, so write back with more questions.
From Dr. John Walton: The purpose of Genesis is to begin the story of the covenant. God created everything to function properly, and everything had its appropriate role to play. He wanted a loving relationship with humans. But sin drew people away from God, so much that they no longer had an accurate picture of what God was like. So God decided to make a covenant, so show them what He was really like.
What happened in the world isn't God's fault. He made everything to function the way it was supposed to, and He was blessing creation and humanity. But the blessings of chapters 1 & 2 quickly turned to corruption at the hand of man and a distorted picture of God (by the time we get to chapter 11).
In the biblical world, the most important aspect of creation was that God brought order from disorder, and the order that was brought forth from chaos had to be maintained day by day. God created the world for us (in one sense), but in another sense, He made the world for Himself. The cosmos was created to be His temple, to display His glory, and as a place He could have a relationship with the people He loved. And the people were placed in the garden to serve, not as slaves, but as priests and priestesses of His temple—sacred space—to care for it and to have a love relationship with the God who was making Himself known to them.
It's hard to write in such a short space, so write back with more questions.