You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. John 5:39-40 NASB

How futile that the Pharisees diligently searched the Scriptures to find eternal life, but they rejected the true source of life, Jesus. The irony is that the very Scriptures they had to go on clearly pointed to Christ, and if they would have willingly looked past their stale religious traditions and hardened hearts they would have recognized Jesus as the Messiah and experienced this life they sought.

We now have the same opportunity to study the same Scriptures that they did that also point us to Christ. Will we see Him, or will we remain lost skimming the surface and see only the detached stories that merely offer inspirational stories for a positive life?

I have found the author’s approach to this study so interesting. Nancy begins with the end and reveals the central thread that ties all of the Biblical stories and precepts together, and that is Jesus Christ. Have you ever thought to begin a study of the book of Genesis with the final chapter of Luke? How eye-opening this has been, and I hope it has been a boost to your faith and understanding.

In our small groups this past week, we discussed our early experiences hearing the Old Testament stories for the first time, as well as sharing our salvation stories. Some of us recalled as children the blue flannel boards our Sunday School teachers used to make the Old Testament stories come alive. Some of us accepted Christ at a very young age, but others revealed that they did not come to Christ until they were adults, regardless of whether they were brought up with Bible stories as children or not. It was so interesting to see the progression of our unique experiences and how God used each of these to bring us to Himself.

Irrespective of your personal experience with the stories of the Old Testament, particularly in the book of Genesis, we will soon discover each character, event, precept, and attribute revealed about God with a fresh perspective. We will begin to make sense of how all of it fits together in God’s greater plan.

Looking back on the walk to Emmaus, I found it interesting that these men did not even recognize that it was Christ who was walking right beside them. How many times have our eyes been closed to what He is trying to say to us? Could it be because we tend to think we have Him already figured out? A prideful spirit or an unteachable attitude will certainly hinder us from discovering what He is trying to say to us. We will miss Him just like the religious leaders of Jesus’ time!

One of the concepts Jesus was trying to convey to these men is that if they had gone beyond just hearing what the prophets had foretold and had actually examined, processed, and truly believed what the Scriptures said, they would have understood that Christ had to suffer before entering His glory. It would have made sense to them, and they wouldn’t have been so distraught.

That is the same with us. We must go beyond the flannel board stories of our childhood and truly examine the depths of what God has made available to us that reveals His Son and His purposes to us. It’s all there!

We also must understand that the Old Testament provides more than just the promises and prophesies about Christ. God reveals the context throughout the history of the world and of His chosen people that necessitated the coming and the suffering of Christ in order to save us. We can see through these stories the depravity of human nature and our need for a Savior. We observe the fall, the curse, the restrictions of the Law, and God’s standard of holiness that we can never reach. We see the sacrifices God required, the role of the priests, and God’s way of making us holy like Him by providing a perfect way on our behalf. We see the attributes of Christ and His relationship with humans revealed. His unfathomable love and mercy are demonstrated through every account.

As I see Jesus more clearly, he melts my hardened heart.

In this day of our social-media-fast-food-microwave-drive-through lives, many people have become satisfied with limiting their spiritual growth to the mere quick and simple devotional thoughts and nuggets of Scripture that provide nothing more than positive points for living, and we have shortchanged ourselves from knowing God intimately and living the fullness of life He has provided for us.

Well, I want more, and God’s Word is where we will find it!

We don’t want to read little bits of Scripture and take away an inspirational thought. We don’t want to pluck out Scriptures that make us feel good regardless of whether we’re reading them in context. We want to understand the big picture of what God has done and is doing in the world. But more than that, we want our hearts to burn in recognition that this is not just a story outside of us, but a story God is accomplishing in us through Christ!

God open our eyes to see Jesus!

Make our hearts burn in your presence!

We do not want to settle for dry doctrine or factual knowledge about the Bible. We want the Word of God to do its work in us, burning away the impurities in our hearts; we want sparks of new insights to fly; we want the flames of our passion for God to be fanned into a raging fire. We want our hearts to melt at the beauty of Christ.

Here are some of the wonderful things we will see about Jesus in the coming weeks from the book of Genesis:

• As we gaze into the wonder of creation, we will see Jesus as the light that was in the world before there was a sun or moon.
• As we agonize with Adam and Eve over the curse that came after the fall, we’ll see Jesus as the promised offspring who will crush the head of the serpent.
• In the terror of the flood, we’ll see Jesus as the ark of safety in whom we are saved in the storm of God’s judgment.
• In the story of the tower of Babel, we will see that we do not need to build a tower to get to God, because Jesus in God come down to us.
• When we walk alongside Abraham, we’ll see that it is Jesus’s righteousness that was credited to him because he believed God.
• When we walk up the mountain with Abraham and Isaac, we’ll see that they point us toward the Father’s provision of a once-for-all sacrifice – his own beloved Son.
• As we feel the intensity of Jacob’s wrestling in the dark to gain a blessing for himself, we’ll see One who wrestled with God in the dark of the garden of Gethsemane so that he might gain a blessing for us.
• As we look with Joseph into the faces of the brothers who sought to kill him, we’ll see the One who also could have said to those who nailed him to the cross; “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive.” (Gen. 50:20).
• And as we see Jacob’s sons become the leaders of the twelve tribes through whom God intends to bless the whole world, we will see the One through whom that blessing will come, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, before whom people from all tribes and people and languages will one day bow.

This first chapter has been a powerful foundation to our study of the book of Genesis, and our perspective is set to seek and understand what God wants to show us about His Son, Jesus.

We need to let go of false assumptions and stubbornly limited beliefs. Let us approach this study will open and willing hearts, ready to listen, learn, and surrender fully to what the Holy Spirit would say to us through God’s Word, and may Christ be revealed to us in a more intimate and profound way than ever before. May our lives be transformed in His presence!

Let us be so careful not to merely skim the surface of Scripture and miss the very One to whom these Scriptures point. Rather, let us be like the disciples whose “hearts burned with a more passionate love for Jesus, and whose minds were opened to a deeper understanding of Jesus.”

Week 1 Discussion Questions

Here is a preview of what we will be talking about in our small groups from WEEK 1.

ICE BREAKER: Since we will be studying the account of creation this week, what is something you observe in creation that simply blows your mind and causes you to be in awe of God?

And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. Luke 24:27 NIV

QUESTION 1: Imagine you are one of the disciples walking with Jesus on the road to Emmaus. You have just witnessed the crucifixion, and you have heard rumors of His resurrection. With only the Old Testament Scriptures and the teachings of Jesus as your foundation for understanding, what are some questions you might have? What are some of the things you would be talking about? How would you be feeling after all you have seen and heard in Jerusalem in the last few days? Do you think you would have recognized Jesus?

QUESTION 2: See pp. 24-25 in the book, or the bulleted points in this week’s blog. Which of these scenarios mentioned of how we are going to see Jesus in this study intrigues you the most and why?

QUESTION 3: Jesus said that the Pharisees studied the Scriptures intently, thinking that their knowledge of the Scriptures and tedious law keeping would put them in good stead with God. But there was Jesus standing in front of them, and they rejected him. He infuriated, offended, and threatened their power, so they had him killed.

How can we keep from being like the Pharisees as we study the Scriptures?

QUESTION 4: Now that we have laid a solid foundation for this study, we will be diving deeply into the Word over the next few weeks. Get ready for the real work to begin!

As we immerse ourselves into the book of Genesis, tell us what you hope to gain from this study? What do you want to learn? How do you want to be different at the end of this study?

QUESTION 5: What has impacted you the most from the introduction to this study?

QUESTION 6: As we conclude each week of this study, we will also discover ways that the book of Genesis points to the coming of Christ. What are some questions your have, or some things you hope to learn about this topic?

Week 2 Assignments

LEVEL 1:

1. Read Genesis 1:1 – 2:3
2. Personal Bible Study, pp. 31-37 from book
3. Study the Week 2 Teaching Chapter: All Things New, pp. 38-54
4. Participate in a small group. (Discussing Week 1)

 

LEVEL 2:

1. Look for daily activities in the Heart to Heart Facebook group.
2. Watch video from “Quick Study, Genesis 1-3 | Truth in History”
3. Watch video from Answers in Genesis with Ken Ham, “The Six Days of Creation.”

 

LEVEL 3:

1. Scripture memory of the week: 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.” God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Genesis 1:26-27 NASB
2. SOAP Scriptures:
   1. Monday: Read Genesis 1, SOAP Genesis 1:27
   2. Tuesday: Read Genesis 2, SOAP Genesis 2:18
   3. Wednesday: Read Genesis 3, SOAP Genesis 3:15
   4. Thursday: Read Genesis 4, SOAP Genesis 4:7
   5. Friday: Read Genesis 5, SOAP Genesis 5:24
3. (Optional): Watch Video, Week 2

 

LEVEL 4:

1. Read Genesis, chapters 2-50
2. Daily journaling or blogging about how God speaks to you through His Word
3. Choose from the following articles to read for broader understanding: Jesus in Every Book of the Old Testament, When God Shows Up, Will You?,  Christ in the Old Testament, Biblical Prophesies Fulfilled by Jesus, Evolution vs. Creation: The Order of Events Matters!, Six Literal Days
4. More videos: Louie Giglio: Our God is Indescribable, Creationism Vs Evolution Debate Ken Ham and Bill Nye 2014

How This Works

1. If you have not done so already, please register by leaving your name and email address in a comment below.
2. Purchase the book, The Promised One: Seeing Jesus in Genesis, by Nancy Guthrie. You can find it at one of these sites:

Nancy Guthrie’s website

Amazon: Paperback, Kindle

Christianbook.com: Paperback, ebook

Barnes and Noble: Paperback Click “View all available formats and editions” for link to purchase Nook book.

LifeWay: This book is no longer available at Lifeway.com. If you would like to pick it up at your local LifeWay store, you may need to request a special order, but they should be able to get it for you.

 

1. Subscribe to this site to receive future updates by email. Enter your email address in the field to the right, and then click the subscribe button.
2. Join our closed Facebook group, Heart to Heart Women’s Bible Study, for weekly interaction, activities, videos, and small group sessions. Closed means that no one will be able to see our posts unless they are members of the group. This is for your safety and privacy.
3. Small Groups: See the pinned post at the top of the Facebook group, Heart to Heart Women’s Bible Study, for the schedule and instructions. All you need to do is show up at the scheduled day and time, and the discussion will take place underneath the group photo.
4. Follow my ministry page on Facebook, Shari Lewis Ministries, to stay up-to-date on ministry events and for daily prayers, nuggets of wisdom and encouragement for your life, photos that you are welcome to share, and faith building blog posts to strengthen you in your walk with Christ.

 

Well, that’s it! A full week of resources to explore and study! I look forward to seeing you in a small group this week, and I pray that this will be an extremely blessed, eye-opening, and heart-transforming week of Bible study for us all!

God bless!