There are two ways to build our lives. We can build our lives in faithfulness to God - Noah building an ark out of faithfulness to God. We can build lives in isolation from God - the ambitions of the Tower of Babel. The towers differ not only in the materials used or the time of when it took place; no, the towers differed largely because of the wrong motives for one (Babel) and the right motives for the other (the Ark).

Today’s passage covers the story of Noah and the ark. We look at this story to understand the sinfulness of the world, the corruption and evil that was rampant among mankind, and yet God still chose to use Noah to showcase His saving grace and mercy for humans.

As we continue on in the story, we see how the fall of Adam and Eve segregate them from God. The punishment of sin brings about a loss of privilege of abiding close to God’s presence and shalom, and the sense of security and rest they were meant to enjoy. 

In today’s passage, we will explore what life looks like outside of God’s providence. We see how sin naturally grows (metastasizes); we see how sin intensifies and spreads throughout humanity; and we see how sin destroys relationships. Though the stark reality of human sinfulness without the Lord’s favor is shown, sin does not have the last word – the Lord’s graciousness and authority does. 

It is hard to deny that evil broods deep in each one of us. Everyday, we are constantly bombarded by stories and news of suffering and pain resulting from wars, crimes, scandals, abuse, and more. Humanity holds so much potential to do good but we also have an infinite capacity to destroy and ruin. In today’s passage, we will look at when sin first entered into the world, it’s distorted effects on the lives it affects, and how to overcome sin with Jesus’ help.

David is the author of today’s psalm. He was often described as a: shepherd, the defeater of Goliath, courageous, the King of Israel, and genuine. God Himself even calls David “a man after His own heart”. Psalm 103 is an exhortation that David lifted up to the Lord. At the bottom of his heart is a genuine sincerity to praise God.

We continue in discussing the topic of gender from last week’s sermon. Today, we’ll explore 5 questions:

1. What is gender?

2. What is gender dysphoria?

3. What causes gender dysphoria?

4. What does God say to those who are struggling with gender?

5. How should we respond to those who are struggling with this issue?

When we speak about sex and gender, there are nuances that are not apparent to each person.

Sex often refers to the physical body – the biological aspects and physicalities that are true to our human bodies.

Gender refers to the sense of self that is culturally, psychologically, socially, and spiritually created. Gender is more subjective and less tangible than the use of sex.

Oftentimes, the focus of the creation story is on days 1-6. But there is also something created on day 7. God introduces the concept of rest into His creation by choosing to rest Himself. The use of the word “rested” comes up twice in our passage –

• “Rested” on the seventh day from all His work that He had done

• So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God “rested” from all His work that He had done in creation.

This word “rested” in Hebrew is Shabbat, and also the origin word of our English word “Sabbath”. We will explore the importance of rest and compare the creation story of day 7 with the previous 6 days.

‘What does it mean to be human?’ may be a question we seek to answer from time-to-time. This question affects our ways of living and how we may come to find our purpose one earth. When we read into the creation story of mankind, we arrive at the pinnacle of God’s creation story. Humanity is made in the image of God. The use of “likeness” or “reflection” alludes to humanity’s purpose of mirroring God into the world. 

Sometimes, we may subconsciously answer questions with a certain frame of mind the asker is not curious about. When we think about Genesis 1 and the story of creation, we may answer questions rooted in frames of reference touching on ideas of evolution, scientific evidence, astronomical principles, etc. Even after multiple attempts to explain this chapter, Genesis 1 remains heavily debated and struggles in being accepted wholly and satisfactorily under one interpretation.

We dive into a new sermon series titled ‘The Image of God’. We will be starting in Genesis in hopes to re-alter and renew our perspective of developing a worldview anchored unto the unchanging truth of God. Our worldview can heavily impact how we live our lives. We’ll be using Pastor Darrell Johnson’s approach to dividing the Bible topically: Genesis 1 to 11 and then everything else. These 11 chapters in Genesis help set the stage for the rest of the biblical narrative: knowing God, purpose of this created world, human sin, judgment, and the redemptive grace of God.