Builders 5 Feb 2012

Class Format minutes – Welcome, Prayer, Icebreaker 30 minutes – teaching time minutes – discussion time 2-4 minutes – wrap-up

The Next 8 Weeks – Hezekiah!! Week 1 – Overview of Old Testament Week 2 – Background of Hezekiah Weeks 3-5 – The three main stories Week 6 – Hezekiah the man Week 7 - ??? Week 8 – Conclusions and Wrap-up

Two Questions 1)Why study/read the OT? 2)If you had to describe the OT in one sentence how would you do it?

The best I’ve found… The Old Testament is the story of God who progressively reestablishes his new-creational kingdom out of chaos over a sinful people by his word and Spirit through promise, covenant, and redemption, resulting in worldwide commission to the faithful to advance this kingdom and judgment (defeat or exile) for the unfaithful, unto his glory.

How to study (read) the OT? Historical (Chronological) Approach Thematic Approach Character Study

The Pentateuch Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy The Historical Books Joshua Judges Ruth 1 Samuel 2 Samuel 1 Kings 2 Kings 1 Chronicles 2 Chronicles Wisdom Literature Psalms Proverbs Song of Solomon Ecclesiastes Wisdom Literature Job ~2100 BC – Gen BC ? 586 BC The fall of Jerusalem I Kings BC Northern kingdom falls Hezekiah BC Major Prophets Isaiah – Jeremiah – (Lamentations) Ezekiel – Daniel – Minor Prophets Hosea – Nahum – ? Joel – 9 th century BC? Habakkuk – ? Amos – Zephaniah – ? Obadiah – Haggai Jonah – Zechariah – Micah – ? Malachi – Post Return

Two Themes Repeated throughout OT 1)The commission of Gen 1:28 2)Judgment and New Creation

The Gen 1:28 Commission Genesis 1:26-28 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth."

Repetition of the Commission Noah - Genesis 9:1,7 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth…And you, be fruitful and multiply, teem on the earth and multiply in it. Abraham – Genesis 12:2-3 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."

Repetition, con’t Abraham - Genesis 17:2,6,8 “I will make my covenant between me and you, and will multiply you greatly…I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you…And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan…”

Repetition, con’t… Israel – Exodus 1:7 But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them. - Deuteronomy 7:13 He will love you, bless you, and multiply you. He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, your grain and your wine and your oil, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock, in the land that he swore to your fathers to give you.

Repetition, con’t Israel - Deuteronomy 15:4,6 But there will be no poor among you; for the LORD will bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess- 6 For the LORD your God will bless you, as he promised you, and you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow, and you shall rule over many nations, but they shall not rule over you.

Repetition, con’t David - 2 Samuel 7:29 Now therefore may it please you to bless the house of your servant, so that it may continue forever before you. For you, O Lord GOD, have spoken, and with your blessing shall the house of your servant be blessed forever.

Fulfillment of Promise Isaiah - Isaiah 51:2-3 Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who bore you; for he was but one when I called him, that I might bless him and multiply him. 3 For the LORD comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places and makes her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.

More to come!! Ezekiel - Ezekiel 36:9-12 For behold, I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you shall be tilled and sown. 10 And I will multiply people on you, the whole house of Israel, all of it. The cities shall be inhabited and the waste places rebuilt. 11 And I will multiply on you man and beast, and they shall multiply and be fruitful. And I will cause you to be inhabited as in your former times, and will do more good to you than ever before. Then you will know that I am the LORD. 12 I will let people walk on you, even my people Israel. And they shall possess you, and you shall be their inheritance, and you shall no longer bereave them of children.

Conclusion Adam’s commission is God’s command for mankind! Man exists to bring glory to God, we do that by multiplying and filling the earth with His name. New Testament Commission: Matthew 28:19-20 (Go therefore) Go and multiply my name and (make disciples) be fruitful to all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, (I am with you always) I will bless you, to the end of the age."

Bottom Line Israel’s commission = Church’s commission They failed, God had to intervene… How are we doing?

Judgment and New Creation Here’s the cycle: 1)Chaos of earth and water – Gen 1:2 2)Creation – Gen 1 3)Commission – Gen 1:28 4)Sin – Gen 3:1-7 5)Judgment and Exile – Gen 3:9-24

The cycle repeats chaos of earth and waters at flood chaos of oppression and Egyptian plagues chaos of exile in wilderness for second generation chaos of oppression and destruction in Israel’s land and exile chaos of oppression and destruction in Israel’s land as continuing exile new creationexodus and new creation through Red Sea exodus and new creation through Red Sea (Jordan river) exodus and new creation through return from Babylonian exile escalated new creation in Christ’s life (and later at his death and resurrection) commission of Noah as new Adam for divine glory commission of Israel as a corporate Adam for divine glory commission of Israel as corporate Adam for divine glory (repeated) promised commission of Israel as eschatological corporate Adam for divine glory commission of Christ as eschatological Israel/Son of Man (‘Adam’) for God’s glory new Adam’s sinsin of Israel (corporate Adam) at the “golden calf” and in wilderness repeated sin of Israel from Judges up to destruction in land and exile to Babylon Israel’s sin in the land and forfeiture of the eschatological role Christ as eschatological Israel and last Adam resists sin judgment and exile throughout the earth at Babal judgment and exile in wilderness for the first generation judgment in land and exile in Babylon judgment of continuing exile even though Israel had returned to the land continuing physical exile for God’s people in the world even though they had begun to be restored spiritually GenesisPentateuch Joshua – 2 Chronicles The ProphetsThe Gospels* *explained in Romans Us Hezekiah

One more time… The bookends of the Bible Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.“ Revelation 21:1-4 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." chaos of last destruction of heavens and earth last new creation last commission of saints as a corporate Adam last resistance to sin by saints last deliverance of saints from exile Revelation

Questions to Consider 1.What does “be fruitful and multiply” look like for us today? Are you “being fruitful and multiplying?” 2.We talked about the cycle of chaos, creation, commission, sin, judgment as it relates to corporate Israel. Does this cycle occur on the personal level as well? If yes, give an example?