Established in Genesis

Genesis is a book of beginnings. In it, we find the creation, humanity, the flood, the story of redemption begins to unfold, and the nation of people is promised to Abraham. God begins to set things in order very quickly, and certain things established in Genesis carry through the entirety of Scripture. For example, Malachi 3:6 says, “I am the Lord; I change not.” It’s easy to assume that there was no law before Exodus twenty, but we will see several things established in Genesis that the law codifies. 

MARRIAGE AND FAMILY

Genesis 1:27-28 KJV “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. ²⁸ And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”

Genesis 2:21-24 KJV “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; ²² and the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. ²³ And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. ²⁴ Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”

The family is the first institution God established, which is important to Him; this is why genealogies are so prominent in Scripture. The enemy has always tried to destroy the family. The first murder is between two brothers, Cain and Abel. Much of the sin in Scripture occurs within the family unit or outside in a way that destroys it. We must stand guard for the protection and sanctity of our family and the families around us. God was clear about what constitutes a family, and any deviation from what is outlined in Genesis is to be rejected.

THE SABBATH FOR REST

Genesis 2:1-3 KJV “Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. ² And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. ³ And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.”

Much debate has been had in the Church over the Sabbath, but the bottom line is that God established it for our good. Rest was turned into a burden in Jesus’ time, but that is why He constantly healed on the Sabbath and discussed the correct observance of the holiday with the Pharisees.

The Sabbath was even in place in the wilderness before the Ten Commandments were given. Exodus 16:22-30 KJV “And it came to pass, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. ²³ And he said unto them, This is that which the Lord hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the Lord: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning. ²⁴ And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein. ²⁵ And Moses said, Eat that to day; for to day is a sabbath unto the Lord: to day ye shall not find it in the field. ²⁶ Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none.²⁷ And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. ²⁸ And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? ²⁹ See, for that the Lord hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. ³⁰ So the people rested on the seventh day.”

While I do not advocate a legalistic observance, the very thing Jesus corrected, the fact is that we all need rest, and that is why God instituted the Sabbath. Yes, we have spiritual rest in Christ, but our bodies still need physical rest, and that is why God instituted the blessing of Sabbath rest, which the enemy has been trying to turn into a burden ever since.

TITHING AND GIVING

I’m writing a blog, not taking up an offering, so before you say I want your money, I don’t. The tithe, just like the Sabbath, is not a legalistic issue. Giving a tithe is a way to show love and honor to God. He established the tithe from the beginning.

Genesis 4:1-7 KJV “And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord. ² And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. ³ And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. ⁴ And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: ⁵ but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. ⁶ And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? ⁷ If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.”

How did Cain and Abel know about giving? Adam must have said something to them about it. Could it be that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was a form of the tithe? Scripture does not say how the tithing principle was given, but it is in place from the earliest record of Scripture.

Genesis 14:18-20 KJV “And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. ¹⁹ And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: ²⁰ and blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.”

Genesis 28:20-22 KJV “And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, ²¹ so that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God: ²² and this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.”

Tithing and Giving were established by God so that we would have a way to honor Him and bless others. Of course, anything can be abused, and the subject of tithing and giving has been. However, that does not change the fact that it has been a principle from the beginning. Giving has always been an issue of the heart, which is why Cain’s offering was rejected.

CLEAN AND UNCLEAN ANIMALS

Genesis 7:2-3 KJV “Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. ³ Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth.”

Noah was before the law, so how were there clean and unclean animals? As we have seen, God’s character and ways were present and established before it was in the form of written law. 

Gentiles are indeed free to eat as they desire. However, it is not true that Jesus nullified the dietary laws; neither did Peter’s vision nor Paul’s comments. Jesus took issue with the demand for ceremonial washing, not the food itself. Peter’s vision likewise was not about food but about the willingness to accept Gentiles into the faith. Paul also did not go against dietary laws, but instead said not to judge someone whether they do or do not eat or observe feasts.

ESTABLISHED FOR BENEFIT

Tithing, Sabbath, and clean versus unclean animals are generally seen as a law issue, but as we have seen, each was established in Genesis before a written law existed. This affirms the fact that God’s character and ways are consistent. When we read Genesis through Deuteronomy, we need to read through the lenses of blessing and grace. The Old and New Testaments are not opposed to each other; they are two parts of a whole. Noah found grace in the eyes of God, and Galatians says we are blessed with believing Abraham. Abraham is our father in the faith. Let us read Genesis and the entire Old Testament through the lenses of blessing and receive the instruction God intends for us.