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First God

Words of Faith Final

First God
Words of Faith 1-3-2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2022
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Genesis 1
           [1] In the beginning God...    

         In our English translations, four words start it all. In the beginning, God. In Hebrew there are just two words: Elohim re'shith. Beginning God. Or more concisely-- First, God.
         These simple words launch the journey of Genesis with a declaration that is so profound that scholars cannot unravel it, yet so simple that anyone can receive it. There is a movement in our contemplation of these words that can be expressed with just a slight variation of punctuation, a question mark, a period and a point of exclamation.
           In the beginning, God? We start with an inquiry. Hmmm. God? A creator who made everything? A divine intelligence giving order to all we see? Why, that would make sense. Yes. God. Someone in charge. Someone working out the problems. Someone watching over us. Yes. God. In the beginning. For some of us, the inquiry is brief. For others it seems to take a lifetime but the matter of God is the first thing dealt with.
       In the beginning, God. We start with the inquiry but then move to affirmation or declaration. We still don't know much about God, but we can begin that journey once we have affirmed the declaration. That is where the Bible starts. In a sense, the Bible says: "In the beginning God-- take it or leave it."  To "take it" is to begin the journey to understand yourself and the universe. To "leave it" is to remain in darkness. We really cannot move farther until we "take it."
       We are not on the journey long before we realize that these four words declare something much bigger than some religious idea or clever construct. This is the key to understanding all of human existence. This is truth. God is declared as a matter of fact. Period.
      In 66 books containing 1,189 chapters consisting of 31,173 verses, the Bible will spend not one breath debating or defending the existence of God. These four words are a revelation of Truth. From there we go!  And boy do we go.
         In the beginning, God!  We start with inquiry, move to declaration, and then we are moved to awe. God! Wow. God!  Life is not meaningless. That is wonderful. There is Someone in charge!  
         These words become our declaration of faith and our exclamation of worship and meaning in life. Now, if there is a God who created everything, don't I need to get to know Him? If He is knowable, then certainly I need to know Him. I need to know what He thinks about His creation. I need to know what He desires and plans for His design. I need to understand why He created humans and how He relates to them. This is the journey of Genesis.
          In Genesis, we will learn some essential things about God, ourselves, His involvement in human history, and His love for us. We will learn that...
    - God created everything and said that it was good.
    - God created the humans in His own image to be in fellowship with Him.
    - God gave the humans free will, and as a result they chose to seek to be their own god. This is sin.
    - The consequence of sin is a broken relationship and separation from with God.
    - Separated from God, the human family is violent and evil.
    - God has a plan to redeem humans and restore their relationship to Him.

        God!  I am in awe of You. I am amazed at the wonder of Your creation. I want to know You. I worship You. Walk with me today on this journey. Help me to see You all around me today. Reveal Yourself to me in Your Word. In Jesus' name.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)        
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2022 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.