The Place For Us-1

The PLACE for US-I—Genesis 1:1-10

Attention/Need:

Mankind without God, is plagued by...

Loneliness(Relationships—personal, business)

Hopelessness(Purpose; Direction; Meaning; Joy; etc.

Insecurities-Losses(Job; Financial; Health—threat of cancer, disease, catastrophic illness; Weather; Stability; Family—relationships, abuse—physical, mental, substance; Marriage etc.)

Fears(Brought on by the above, OCD-Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Paranoias- ‘out to get me;’ Trepidations-fear of ‘what might happen’)

We desperately need 1)A place of belonging, 2)Relationships of various types—Marriage to work, Friends to befriend & be befriended, Fellowship to encourage & to receive encouragement, Boss to appreciate & work done well, Neighbors to neighborly & vice versa....

The beginnings of the heavens & the earth were handed down in God’s word.

Man must be aware the scenario that surrounds the founding of his world.

What is vital to discovering our place in the world?

The foundational means of finding our place in the world.

(“world”—used in the most inclusive sense)

1—The place for us is found in the...

INTENTION of God(:1)

Explanation:(:1)

:1—“In the beginning God created the heavens & the earth.”

This(:1) appears to be a general statement followed by specific or descriptive statements(1:2—2:1) as to our beginnings.

“In the beginning”

God gives us a “beginning.” We must all start somewhere within God’s design.

?Have we taken hold of that fact & better yet, have we allowed that fact to take hold of us?!

“Beginning”—tyvar ray-sheeth’—First, beginning, best, chief. Strong—The first, in place, time, order or rank (specifically, a firstfruit):-- Beginning, chief(-est), first(-fruits, part, time), principal thing.

“God created”

God brought these heavens & this earth into existence from nothing. Matter did not exist before God... Time did not exist before God. God is not a sub-god who molds something from a pre-existing substance. Although He does ‘form’ much from what He Himself brings into existence.

Ps. 104:24—“O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your possessions--”

—The intention of God is that He share His creation with you!

“Created”—arb baw-raw’—1) To create, shape, form. Strong—(absolutely) To create; (qualified) To cut down (a wood), Select, Feed (as formative processes):-- Choose, create (creator), Cut down, dispatch, do, make (fat).

“The heavens & the earth”

That which is visible to the average person viewing the sky. This the heavens would encompass all of space as that is where the planets & stars are set.

“Heavens”(See :8. also 26- “Air”)—Mymv shaw-mah’-yim —Heaven, heavens, sky. Strong—from an unused root meaning to be lofty; The sky (as aloft; the dual perhaps alluding to the visible arch in which the clouds move, as well as to the higher ether where the celestial bodies revolve):-- Air, X astrologer, heaven(-s).

“Earth”—Ura eh’-rets—Land, earth. Strong— From an unused root probably meaning to be firm; The earth (at large, or partitively a land):-- X common, country, earth, field, ground, land, X nations, way, + wilderness, world.

Job 26:7—“He stretches out the north over empty space; He hangs the earth on nothing.”

Argumentation:

Prov. 8:22-31—of wisdom—““The LORD possessed me[wisdom] at the beginning of His way, Before His works of old. I have been established from everlasting, From the beginning, before there was ever an earth. When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills, I was brought forth; While as yet He had not made the earth or the fields, Or the primeval dust of the world. When He prepared the heavens, I was there, When He drew a circle on the face of the deep, When He established the clouds above, When He strengthened the fountains of the deep, When He assigned to the sea its limit, So that the waters would not transgress His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth, Then I was beside Him as a master craftsman; And I was daily His delight, Rejoicing always before Him, Rejoicing in His inhabited world, And my delight was with the sons of men.”

Ps. 102:25-28—“Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You will endure; Yes, they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will change them, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will have no end. The children of Your servants will continue, And their descendants will be established before You.””

Ps. 33:6-9—“By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; He lays up the deep in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the LORD; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spoke, & it was done; He commanded, & it stood fast.”