Biblical Accounts Of Creation Flashcards
there are different interpretations of the Creation stories, but all Christians agree that…
…God cause the universe to exist
at the start of Genesis’ account, God brings order to chaos & his ____ is present, ‘hovering over the waters’
- Spirit
- This image is meant to give the same idea as a bird sitting over a nest of eggs, caring for them & to bring them to life; similarly, the Spirit is preparing to bring life into the world
God then brings all things into existence over ___ days
- six
- starting with light
- Earth takes form + is filled with plants & creatures
- Moon, Sun & stars are called into being at His spoken command
All of Creation demonstrates God’s power & purpose; as soon as He commands something, it happens:
‘God said ‘let the land produce vegetation’ …And it was so’ (Genesis 1:11-13)
All that God creates is described as ____, & once Creation is completed, God describes it as ____ ____
- good
- very good
- nothing in Creation is bad/evil
Quote: Genesis 1:26
HINT:
(Humans as distinct from the rest of Creation)
Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness’
Genesis 2 is different because it’s written like a story & poetically; what does it entail?
- creation of Adam (meaning ‘humanity’) & Eve (meaning ‘beginning’)
- writer shows importance of humanity within God’s Creation by starting with that
For the first time, God is shown as ‘anthropomorphic’
What does that mean & how is he shown that way?
- displaying human characteristics
- He ‘breathed into (Adam’s) nostrils the breath of life’
- This ‘breath’ can also be translated as ‘spirit’, showing God’s unique relationship with humanity
God gives them 1 rule:
- ‘(you) must not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die’
- Spoiler: they break it
- they can do this because they have free will
The Spirit is the agent of God in Creation
Quote: (Psalms 33:6)
By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, And by the breath of His mouth all their host
- breath of God = Holy Spirit
Quote: (John 1:1)
HINT:
The role of the Word in Creation
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and Word was God
- clearly demonstrates Jesus as one of the Trinity’s three persons
Quote: (John 1:14)
The Word became flesh…
- reference to Jesus’ incarnation
THE FALL (You might want to write for this)
A ‘crafty’ 1_____ questions God’s command to Adam & Eve not to eat the fruit of the Tree of 2__________ of Good + Evil. Eve repeats God’s command back to the 1______, but he challenges what God has said, claiming that if they eat the forbidden tree’s fruit they will ‘surely not die ‘(Genesis 3:4). Then, the 1______ suggests that God is preventing Adam & Eve from gaining the same 2_________ as God. Eve is tempted by the fruit’s appearance & by the possibility of gaining greater 2_________. She eats the fruit & shares some with Adam; they have disobeyed God (sinned). By eating the forbidden fruit, sin has entered the world for the first time. This is known as 3________ ___ - the first occasion mankind disobeyed God. This broke the perfect relationship that existed between God & humanity.
God is again depicted 4__________, in this case ‘walking in the garden’ (Genesis 3:8). Adam & Eve try to hide from Him as they know what they have done is wrong & they show guilt. Their sinfulness is clear when God questions them: Adam blames Eve & Eve blames the 1______; neither of them accepts responsibility for their actions. God punishes them + sends Adam & Eve out of the 5______ __ ____ so they can’t take the fruit of the tree of life & live forever.
1 serpent
2 knowledge
3 original sin
4 anthropomorphically
5 garden of eden
The Fall result
- many Christians believe it affected the whole human race & that every person born since then is affected by this original sin
- they believe that original sin means that all humans are born out of a relationship with God & are in need of His salvation
- original sin means that unless redemption occurs, a person has no hope of eternal life in heaven with God
3 things all Christians agree on about the Creation story
- God created the universe
- God acted out of love & goodness; He cares for his creation, even in its broken/sinful state
- Humans are made in God’s image, but are sinful & lack His perfection
Things supporting the view that the Creation story is a myth
- differences between the style & order of Genesis 1 & 2’s accounts
- scientific evidence has shown that the universe is billions of years old, rather than several thousand
These Christians also say that trying to match the Genesis accounts with science is…
unhelpful & unnecessary
- They believe in not taking the details literally + appreciating the important truths about the uniqueness of humans & their relationship with God
- some of these Christians believe in Theistic Evolution; that God started the process & that it’s the way He brings life
Other Christians think that the days (in Genesis 1) are not literal as God’s time is not the same as ours.
Suggests?
- each day of the week in the Creation story represents a longer period of time, perhaps even billions of years
- this makes the Creation account more compatible with scientific evidence of the Earth’s development
