Scripture: Genesis 1:26-31 Genesis 3:1-7

Mark
The bible is filled with stories. Some repeat. Some contradict. Some are just stories. They are not history. They are not memoires or diary entries. They are not reports about what happened. Walter Cronkite does not say, “And that’s the way it was…”

The two stories that make up our scripture readings for this morning come from 2 of the three main creations stories in the bible. Stories. Not history. How can they be history when there are two stories that disagree?

Our first piece of scripture comes after there already have been 5 days of creation.
Day one: God’s spirit, breath, wind moved over the face of the deep and light was created.
Day two: waters were separated from waters by the sky.
Day three: separated waters meant there was now dry land and plants appeared.
Day four: light and dark were separated with the sun and the moon.
Day five: animals of the sea and of the air were created.
And God saw, continually, that these things were good.
Day six: the animals of the land were created. This too was good. Then…

Joe
Then God said,
“Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.”
So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
God blessed them,
and God said to them,
“Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.”
God said,
“See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.”

And it was so.
God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Mark
The second creation story is actually the older creation story. What we have for a reading this morning also deal with people, like the first reading. In this story, we are created because God had created heaven and earth, but no plants or animals. Creation was incomplete, God needed irrigation and a way for the ground to be tilled – cared for. We are to till the ground. God forms mud, some of the ground that needs to be tilled, and blows breath/wind/spirit into the mud creature. This is how humanity starts. We then get to be a part of creating by giving a name to the animals. God allows us to care for the creation and eat anything, ACCEPT the fruit of the knowledge of Good and Evil. Humans, those mud creatures, are told that to do so is a death sentence.

At the time this story is written, a snake was a symbol of wisdom, fertility, and immortality. The word “craftiness” to describe the serpent is used as the contrast of the description for the humans: naked and innocent.

JOE
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. The serpent said to the woman,
“Did God say, “You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
The woman said to the serpent,
“We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, “You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.’ ”

But the serpent said to the woman,
“You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

So when the woman saw that the tree was:
• good for food,
• and that it was a delight to the eyes,
• and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,
she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.

Mark
Then they all play a game of ‘not my fault’ that would make today’s politicians proud.

At the Beginning of the Sermon I refer to a picture/poster. This is it.

Sermon: “Where Do You Enter In”

To down load: 180527_0901

Prayer: