The Bible: In The Beginning

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True Wisdom Begins With Genesis : 1

If we say we believe the Bible, we must start where the Bible starts, with the very first verse. Wisdom and truth and the search for God all begin right here. If you want to end up where the Bible ends up, in the New Heaven and New Earth of Revelation 22, then youd better start where the Bible starts, with In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Let me put it another way: If you can believe Genesis 1:1, you wont have any problems with the rest of the Bible. If you can believe that there is a God who miraculously created everything in the universe, you wont struggle over the other miracles of the Bible. Why should you struggle over the Resurrection of Christ if you are willing to believe that God spoke and the stars sprang into place? In that sense we can fairly say that the Christian faith starts with the very first verse of the Bible.

If you can believe Genesis 1:1, you wont have any problems with the rest of the Bible.

When God Gives You A New Beginning Resurrect Your Devotional Life

God caused the worldwide flood leaving only Noah and his family. It took quite some time for the water to subside. But when it finally did dry up enough for them to stand on land, Noah did something special

So Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife and his sons wives. All the animals and all the creatures that move along the ground and all the birdseverything that moves on landcame out of the ark, one kind after another. Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it.

Many stories of new beginnings in the Bible start with worship.

See, the first thing Noah did was to worship and express gratitude to God. When you look back on all God has done for you, when you think about all of what he saved you from, when you think about his protection, you should set up an alter.

Starting over is a great time to start a gratitude journal. Its also an even better time to rekindle or start a devotional life. Work on growing your faith by setting some faith goals.

Start small. Read a Psalm a day. Or a simple devotional. Or start using a structured way of reading and studying your Bible.

Set up and cue a playlist of your favorite praise and worship songs.

Draw close to God and He will draw close to you. Hes always ready to help you start again, no matter how many times you have strayed or fallen.

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When God Gives You A New Beginning Change The Behaviors You Use To Have

They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly while expecting different results.

This next character got one of the most encouraging new beginnings in the Bible.

When the woman caught in adultery was brought to Jesus, he defended her. His defence prevented her from being stoned to death.

But he did not expect her to keep on giving herself to strange men. He told her to walk away from that life and anything related to it.

Jesus straightened up and asked her, Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you? No one, sir, she said. Then neither do I condemn you, Jesus declared. Go now and leave your life of sin.

In another instance, after healing a man crippled for 38 years Jesus says something similar to him.

Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you. John 5:14

Repentance is more than just about being sorry for what you did and the burden you feel from the consequences.

Its also about turning away from the bad things that led you down the path in the first place.

As you start a new journey, make better decisions that you can be proud of. That will bring positive fruits. That God can support.

Engage in behaviors that will grow your faith, finances, relationships, health and career.

When God Gives You A New Beginning Give Yourself A New Start Too

The first lesson about new beginnings in the Bible comes from the life of David.

David is popular in the Scriptures for being a man after Gods heart. But his life wasnt all peaches just because God thought this way about him.

David was a warrior. An extraordinary one too. The number of men he slaughtered in battle disqualified him from building the temple God desires for Israel to build.

David was also a womanizer. He stole another mans wife, got her pregnant and then tried to pin the pregnancy on her husband.

When that wouldnt work, he concocted a plan to have Uriah, the husband, murdered.

Then he married the woman to try and cover his tracks. I tell you, the Bible has all the soap opera you will ever need.

But despite all that and more, David was never afraid to start over with God.

Each time he began afresh, he would repent and pray. Then he would walk away in freedom.

David didnt seem to walk around being burdened by guilt.

The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord I am not guilty of turning from my God. All his laws are before me I have not turned away from his decrees. I have been blameless before him and have kept myself from sin. The Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness in his sight.

God sees you as a brand new person once youve made the decision to start over.

You dont have the right to judge yourself.

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The Headwaters Of Divine Revelation

These are just some of the questions we encounter as we study Genesis 1-11. I hasten to add that I am not going to be able to answer all these questions. For some of them, the Bible doesnt tell us enough to offer an answer. In some cases, the answers are clear and of vital importance. Were going to try to note those answers when we come to them in the text.

And so I invite your careful attention as we begin our journey together. Remember that this is the Word of God to us, to you and to me. Genesis 1-11 is the seed plot of the entire Bible. What the acorn is to the oak, so this passage is to the rest of the Bible. These are the headwaters of divine revelation. Everything God wants us to know starts right here.

Giving Up Sugar Tasting God’s Goodness

As a latchkey kid, Wendy Speake turned to sugar for comfort. Every Friday, she would pedal to the candy show and use her allowance to fill her bag with candy. And one day, when she was older and a mom of three young boys, she came to realize that she was still pedaling away from her stress and using sugar as comfort, instead of turning to Jesus. She was joyless, worn out, tired, and in need of a change. In this interview, Wendy will challenge Christians to take 40 days to focus on fasting from something they turn to instead of Jesus for comfort. She invited people to break free from a dependence on sugar and taste the goodness of God.

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The Universe Was Created By God Out Of Nothing

The Apostles Creed begins with these simple, majestic words: I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth. Ponder this thought. Genesis 1:1 tells us that God created all that we see around us. He created the sun and the stars and the moon and the planets. He created the comets and the asteroids. He created the quasars and the pulsars and the black holes of space. Scientists estimate there are 400 billion stars in the Milky Way Galaxy. Scientists estimate there are more than 100 billion galaxies, each with at least 100 billion stars. Imagine that. And God hung each one in space and calls each one by name . No wonder the Bible says, The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above proclaims his handiwork .

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When God Gives You A New Beginning Share Your Testimony

As Ive said before in this post, your journey of starting over is bigger than you. There is a bigger picture to your story.

There are a few stories of new beginnings in the Bible that was followed with sharing a testimony.

Take the woman at the well for example. She met Jesus while she was doing a daily chore of fetching water from the well.

What was unusual was the time of day she went to do this. It was the middle of the day.

In those days women went to the well either in the cool of the early morning or the cool of the evening. Not at the hottest time of day.

But this woman had her reasons. You see, she wasnt an honorable woman. She wasnt someone any respectable woman or man wanted to be seen with.

And Jesus told her her entire life story right there at the well in the middle of the day.

He didnt only do that but he offered something she had been longing for: freedom from a life of shame and disgrace.

Freedom from a life in which she felt like she did not matter. When she got this freedom, she did not keep it to herself

Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah? They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

As a result of what she did, a large number of people in the town was saved.

Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the womans testimony, He told me everything I ever did.

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What The Bible Says About The Beginning Of Life

The Bible is far from silent on the topic of the sanctity of human life, especially preborn life in the womb. This resource provides just a few of the Scripture verses that speak to the value of preborn life created in Gods image from the moment of fertilization.

Why Should We Value Life?

Know that the LORD Himself is God it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the One who formed you from the womb, I, the LORD, am the maker of all things, stretching out the heavens by Myself, and spreading out the earth all alone.’

But now, O LORD, You are our Father We are the clay, and You our potter, And all of us are the work of Your hand.

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Who Is the Creator of the Preborn?

For You formed my inward parts You covered me in my mothers womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made marvelous are Your works and that my soul knows well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed, and in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.

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The Bible: In The Beginning

Released by 20th Century Fox, the film’s ensemble cast features Huston, Michael Parks, Richard Harris, Franco Nero, Stephen Boyd, George C. Scott, Ava Gardner, Peter O’Toole and Gabriele Ferzetti. The screenplay was written by Christopher Fry, with uncredited contributions by Orson Welles, Ivo Perilli, Jonathan Griffin, and Vittorio Bonicelli, photographed by Giuseppe Rotunno in Dimension 150, a variant of the 70mm Todd-AO format. The musical score was by the Japanese composter Toshiro Mayuzumi, with additional cues by an uncredited Ennio Morricone.

Premiering in New York City on 28 September 1966, the film received generally positive reviews from critics. The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures included the film in its “Top Ten Films” list of 1966. De Laurentiis and Huston won David di Donatello Awards for Best Producer and Best Foreign Director, respectively. Toshiro Mayuzumi’s score was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe. The film was originally conceived as the first in a series of films retelling the entire Old Testament, but these sequels were never made.

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When God Gives You A New Beginning Change Your Name

Let me ask you a question. Now that God has given you a new start, what would you like to be known for?

Many characters who had a new beginning in the Bible had a name change.

Abram became Abraham, Simon became Peter, Saul became Paul and Jacob became Israel.

All their stories are so interesting but I want to talk about Jacob. He and his brother Esau were twins.

Back in those days, birthright was a big deal. Jacob and his mother devised a plan for Jacob to receive his brothers blessing.

It was a web of deceit really. But it shouldnt surprise you.

Why?

Because his name literally translates supplanter which means deceiver.

Jacob was living out his name.

Over 20 years later, after life had battered him and he wrestled with God, pleading for a blessing that was missing from his life all these years.

As a result of this experience, God changed his name to Israel. It means God contends or God shall fight.

Now, Jacob was no longer known as a liar and thief. Now his identity was bound up with the God in whom he believed.

Im not saying you should go out to have your birth certificate changed. Not at all.

What I mean by changing your name is that you will start carving out a new reputation. You are going to work on transforming your story.

So if you were in debt, you change your name to someone who has gained control of your finances.

If you were promiscuous, work on changing your name to a woman whose worth is built on more than getting into bed with a man.