Jacob must have been one rotten kid!

In spite of God’s clear direction, and although his other son was a numskull, Isaac did not want Jacob to receive his blessing. If it were up to Isaac, it would be Esau who would carry the family line forward. Jacob was not an option. However, God’s decree would not be thwarted, would it? That will be the focus of today’s study in Genesis 27.

Questions That We’ll Answer:

A) Why did Isaac prefer Esau? What were his reasons?

B) Was the ‘ruse’ of Jacob and his mother Rebecca actually a sin?

C) What can we learn from the brokenness of this patriarchal family?

 

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Meet Abraham. Isaac. Jacob.

These men, hailed as the ‘patriarchs’ of the Old Testament, helped shape the entire narrative of our faith.They were also sinners. Big, big sinners. In today’s sermon, we’ll see that the patriarchs needed God’s grace every bit as much as we do. And God gave it to them! His providential care is seen in every part of Genesis 25.

Questions That We’ll Answer:

A) In what way are the patriarchs the ‘Mt. Rushmore’ of the OT?

B) Why them? In other words, why did God choose these three men?

C) What does this text tell us about the doctrine of ‘predestination?’

 

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In Genesis 22, God told Abraham to sacrifice his son. Why?

For many, this event is one of the most confusing in all of Scripture – why would God tell Abraham to sacrifice Isaac? What was His purpose? And then, why would He tell Abraham to stay his knife? In today’s study, we will study this difficult and heartrending event.

Questions That We’ll Answer:

1) What was God’s purpose here? Was He testing Abraham?

2) What did Abraham think would happen on Mt. Moriah?

3) How does this event foreshadow Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary?

 

website: www.fpcgulfport.org/sermons

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Sodom and Gomorrah are the poster children for God’s wrath.

In Genesis 19, we read of a cautionary tale to a world hellbent on offending a holy God. Specifically, Genesis 19 describes the destruction of these two cities. The destruction was horrific. It was severe. And yet, in Matthew 10, Jesus says that an even worse judgment will befall those places that reject the Gospel.

Questions That We’ll Answer:

1) What was the sin (or sins) of Sodom and Gomorrah?

2) Why was God willing to relent if 10 righteous were found there?

3) What did Jesus mean in Matthew 10 (when He referred to Sodom)?

 

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In Genesis 18 made a promise so outrageous that Sarah laughed.

The promises that He has made you are bigger.

Throughout Scripture, God has promised to save and sanctify you, to wipe away all your tears, and to dwell with you in Paradise for eternity. Now those are promises! But how can we be sure they apply to us (and that they will be fulfilled)? That will be the focus of today’s sermon.

Questions That We’ll Answer:

1) Who were the three men that appeared to Abraham in the desert?

2) What promises did One of the men make to Abraham and Sarah?

3) Why did Sarah laugh, and what was God’s reaction to that laughter?

 

 

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God made Abraham mind-boggling promises. Abraham believed Him.

In Genesis 12, Abraham was introduced with little fanfare. He was a man from a pagan family and a pagan background. And yet, God was going to make this nobody a series of incredible promises – promises that Abraham believed in, and then acted accordingly.

Questions That We’ll Answer:

A) What were these amazing promises? And how many were there?

B) Who are the true children of Abraham? Are you one of his children?

C) What does it mean to be called a ‘friend’ of God?

 

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God told the people to go outward. Instead, they went upward.

“Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth,” God told the people. But they said no – in their minds, it was safer and smarter to stay in one place. And so, they built a formidable ‘tower’ in Genesis 11. In today’s study, we’ll read about that tower (and God’s response).

Questions That We’ll Answer:

A) Why was God angered by the building of this tower?

B) Why did God confuse the language of the builders?

C) What relationship does Genesis 11 have with Acts 2 (Pentecost)?

 

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The wrong question: how did all the animals fit in the ark?

The most crucial question of Genesis 6 is NOT about the animals. Not at all. Rather, it is this: why was an ark needed in the first place? In other words, why was God willing to flood the entire globe, only six chapters after creating it? Seems drastic. So why did God do it, and what does it tell us about the future?

Questions That We’ll Answer:

A) In what way did the flood typify the wrath of God ‘poured out?’

B) In what way did the ark typify Jesus Christ? Is Jesus in this text?

C) Why did Christ refer to future days as being ‘like the days of Noah?’

 

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That didn’t take long, did it?

You might have thought Genesis 4 couldn’t go worse than Genesis 3 – that mankind would have learned its lesson. Surely man would do better! Surely he’d turn away from sin! However, before Genesis 4 was over, a blood soaked corpse proved otherwise.

Questions That We’ll Answer:

A) Why did Cain kill his brother? What was wrong with his sacrifice?

B) Why did God warn Cain that ‘sin lay at his door?’

C) Is it possible that sin is at our door as well? What should we do?

 

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One sin. That’s all it took.

In our day, sin is treated casually – as a marketing device (think ‘Sin City’) and rarely as a spiritual anchor. But one sin is all it took for man to be thrown out of the garden, and for chaos to sweep the created realm. This tells us two things: 1) sin must be really bad, and 2) God must be really holy.

Questions That We’ll Answer:

A) What ‘tool’ did the serpent use to attack Eve in the garden?

B) What is the purpose of the fiery sword at the garden’s edge?

C) Why are the words ‘Genesis 4’ the best words in any language?

 

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