God's Creation Foreshadows God's Salvation (Gen. 1:1-2)

Outline: God's Creation Foreshadows God's Salvation (Gen. 1:1-2): 

           

God created everything (1:1)

• God set the stage: creation (1:2a)
• God foreshadowed the story: salvation  (1:2b) 

Summary: With a big view of our eternal God fresh in our minds, we focus our attention on the fact that this eternal God created everything.  But we also note God's basic description of his initial creation: it was barren and dark.  This description seems to be very intentional on God's part. God must act again.  God must bring light and life.  And we shall see that the need of light and life was not just the physical need of the world God made but the spiritual need of the people God fashioned.

Main Point:  God created everything.  And God's initial work of creation is an intentional foreshadowing of God's eventual work of salvation.

Discussion Questions:

• Why would God initially create the earth barren and dark?
• What is the imagery of the Spirit hovering over the dark and barren earth meant to awaken in us as we read?  
• What can we learn from the progression in the text from a dark and barren earth to the Spirit hovering to light leading to life and flourishing in the rest of Genesis 1? 
• How does God's initial work of creation in Gen. 1:1-2 foreshadow God's eventual work of salvation? [Hint: Read Jeremiah's description of Israel's idolatry Jer. 4:23-26 that echoes the earth's initial condition in Gen. 1:2 along with his description of the heart change that is promised in the new covenant Jer. 21:31-34].  
• What role does the Holy Spirit play in salvation? (see. Ezek. 36:25-27; John 3:1-8; 16:7-11; Titus 3:5)

Application Questions:

• What encouragement and hope might you draw from Gen. 1:1-2 when you think about areas of unmet potential in your life?
• What encouragement and hope might you draw from Gen. 1:1-2 when you think about the state of unbelievers in your spheres of influence? 

Prayer Points:

• Praise God for his wisdom in initially creating the earth in a way that would remind us of the condition of the human heart and the utter need for the Holy Spirit's transforming power
• Praise God for the work of the Holy Spirit that has washed and renewed our hearts   
• Acknowledge ways in which you've either minimized or been ignorant of the powerful working of the Holy Spirit, especially when it comes to the Spirit's work in salvation
• Ask God to open our hears to see more clearly his mighty acts in creation and in salvation