But I feel the need to back up a bit for those of you brand-new to Bible study, or at least to the study of the Old Testament. If you have a study Bible with lots of great commentaries and explanations about each book of the Bible, READ THOSE. You will learn so much, and all that you are reading will make so much more sense. If you don't have one, get one. It will be the best money you ever spent.
Much of what I am sharing with you I learned from studying the book of Genesis through Bible Study Fellowship (BSF Int'l) and Beth Moore's The Patriarchs, as well as reading those great study notes and commentaries in my Bible. But ultimately it was all the teaching of the Holy Spirit when I spent time in His word. I can guarantee He will do the same for you when you seek Him with all your heart and pray for wisdom, dear sister.
"When you come looking for me, you'll find me. "Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I'll make sure you won't be disappointed." God's Decree. "I'll turn things around for you. I'll bring you back from all the countries into which I drove you"—God's Decree—"bring you home to the place from which I sent you off into exile. You can count on it." (Jeremiah 29:13-14, The Message)
The first five books of the Bible are called the Pentateuch, a word derived from two Greek words--pente meaning "five" and teuchos meaning "volumes". So Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy make up the Pentateuch. All of these books are attributed to Moses as the author, and if you were a devout Jew in Jesus' day or even today, you would have them memorized. Now, Moses writing these first five books might not strike you as amazing just yet, but by the time we get to Moses on our journey through the Bible, you will realize that he wrote these books more than 2,000 years after all these events took place. And we know Moses was not present at Creation to give such a detailed account of God's handiwork.
So how did Moses know all of this stuff? God told him every single word to write. That is why we refer to Scripture as the inerrant word of God--i.e. without error. It is not man's writing but God's writing.
Keep that in mind as you read through the boring lists of geneologies throughout Scripture. God remembered every single person. They may have been a blip on His kingdom calendar and insignificant to you and me, but the LORD remembered their names--they are part of His story, just as we are today. The One "who rides the ancient skies above" (Ps. 68:33) has intimate knowlege of every person He ever created. That includes you, dear one. Let these detailed geneologies be a reminder to you of how intimately God knows your name and your place in His Kingdom plan.
Next time you feel rather insignificant in this world, pull out a list like the one in Genesis 10 and be reminded that even those whom we never read another word about were included. They were all part of the plan. So are you! This is not just a warm-fuzzy reminder, sister; it is actually rather humbling. I certainly feel inept for the task of God's plan for His Kingdom! It is realizations like this that help us keep a proper perspective on our desperate need for God's power to be at work within us.
The good news? Neither you nor I are capable enough to mess up God's perfect, eternal plan...or to bring it to fruition. It's totally dependent upon Him. His grace covers our mistakes. His grace uses the talents which He has given us. And His grace will bring to completion the good work He began in us (Phil. 1:6)...despite us.
For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Eph. 2:10)
I am guessing that not many of you have studied Genesis 10 and 11 much. They are not among the more popular chapters for Bible studies and sermons, except for the Tower of Babel. So we are going to look at these two chapters in-depth during our time together Sunday morning. It will be so much more fun to discuss them in person! You are going to be amazed at what is really going on here.
In these two chapters, God sets the stage for Himself to call a people group to be His chosen nation, set apart to be holy and to fulfill His plan of redemption for the whole world. Before He does that, however, God seems to work against Himself by confusing the languages of the peoples and dispersing them over the whole world, giving the need for foreign missions. We know that at some point in history, God also separated people by dividing the world from one large land-mass into seven continents. Whether it happened before Babel or after, we cannot be sure. But God is not just complicating world missions. The Almighty is setting the stage for all peoples to bring great glory to His Name.
We read the names of nations that will come up over and over again throughout the Old Testament, so take note. The summary of all of it? "From these the nations spread out over the earth after the flood." (Gen. 10:32b)
Tomorrow we will learn from where the name "Hebrew" came as the name of God's chosen people. It's right there in Genesis 10. We will also discover the interesting play on words in Genesis 11 as the people attempt to build the Tower of Babel. God has quite a sense of humor in His writing when you have clues to the original languages. He was certainly the first comedian! We will also see how God's decision in Gen. 6:3 came to pass in Gen. 11. Most importantly, we will have God introduce us to a man with whom He will build a beautiful relationship and make a significant covenant. Our readings next week are some of my favorite in the Old Testament. I can't wait for our time together tomorrow in the most precious Book ever written--God's Holy Word!
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