• What does it mean to be made in the image of God?
• How might our life and faith change if we understood the call of being God’s image-bearers as service, not dominance?

God calls creation good seven times in the first chapter of scripture.

• What does it mean to you for God to call creation “good”?
• What are the key differences between the two creation stories? Taken at face value, the two creation accounts in Genesis raise questions of evolution, biology, theology…
  • How do you rectify the tension between science and scripture? Is there any tension for you?
  • How do these stories work together to build a foundation for further understanding of scripture?

The innocence of humanity gives way to the awareness of sin.

• How did awareness of their situation change Adam and Eve?
• In what ways do we hide our true selves, cover up our sins, or medicate to prevent from having to face reality and repent?  What are our “fig leaves”?

Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah and the flood… these are all fall stories that follow a similar pattern: God does something good, we mess it up, God gives us more grace than we deserve. Lather, rinse, repeat.

• Have you ever considered there being more than one fall story in Genesis?
• Which of the fall stories resonate most with you and your personal story?
• What tend to be your biggest temptations in life?

The obvious answer is yes. We are all our sisters’ and brothers’ keepers.

• What new insights emerge by reading Cain and Abel as a fall story?
• What are the dangers of letting resentment and anger build up inside of us?
• Where do we find grace in God’s interaction with Cain?

To most modern readers, genealogies are repetitive and boring, but they serve an important role in Scripture. They get us from one familiar person or generation to another, and often hold clues in the names, patterns, and anomalies in those patterns.  

Our first genealogy starts at Adam and carries us all the way to Noah. 

• How do you think this genealogy sets the tone for the rest of Scripture?
• How will you read genealogies from here on out?

The story of Noah and the ark is much more complex than what you learned at Vacation Bible School.  God grieved the creation of humanity. Noah walked with God. One thing is certain, this story is about a whole lot more than animals on a boat.

• How does the Noah story change when we see it as a part of the genealogy that precedes it?
• How can we make sense of God’s grief?  
• What do you think the story of Noah is about?

We have seen so much brokenness in our reading this week, but in the midst of brokenness is grace. God made clothes for Adam and Eve, gave Cain a protective mark, and sustained Noah through the flood.

• What images of grace in these stories are most meaningful to you?
• What do you think it means to walk with God?