The Beginning...

Genesis 1

To study the Israelites, one must being with their beginning. Their beginning is "In the beginning…" Their beginning begins with God and it is He who takes them through their tumultuous history. So in essence this will be a study, not only of the Israelites, but of God. It will be a study of God, as God the Father, but also of the Messiah, and the Holy Spirit.

Father in heaven, please cleanse my mind as I study Your Word. I want Your Word to wash me anew and shape me more and more into Your image. I want to be obedient to You and crazily in love with You.

Genesis 1:1-15

God said - God did. God made a statement and then God completed the action.

Application: What God says, He does. I can trust Him. I can trust Him to provide for me while I do what He has called me to do. I can trust that He will discipline me. I can trust Him to conform me to His image. I can trust that He knows best - in timing, in actions, in my walk with Him.

Stars as Signs - signs: marks, banner, omen, pledge, witness. Matthew 2:2,9,10 - the Magi saw the star and it led to the Christ. The stars reveal God's character - Romans 1:20. The stars are a witness of God's work and are declaring His Glory - Psalm 19:1-6. They are declaring His Righteousness - Psalm 50:6. The heavens are controlled by Him, and obey Him - Psalm 50:4, in the Gospels when they calm down. He controls the constellations and heavens - Job 38:31-33.

Application: God made the stars and one of their purposes was to be "signs". One of the times they were signs, was to the Magi in leading them to the Christ. God created them with that situation in mind, meaning that God knew He would have to send His Son in human form, also meaning that God knew there would be a reason to send a Savior, also meaning God knew Adam would sin and mankind would become corrupt and degenerate. Therefore, God sees the end of the picture and has already planned for those things in the middle. God has Plan "A" and there is no need for an alternative Plan "B". In light of this, I can rest assured that God is in control even when life is out of my control.

Practical Application: Practice Philippians 4:6,7 today. Pray, Give thanks, actively choose to believe God and trust His revealed character.