The "Big Story"
(Genesis 1-3) A good God created a good world, teeming with beauty and order, and assigned humankind to a unique vocation as its stewards. Entrusted with this sacred task, humans, bearing God’s image, were poised not merely as passive inhabitants, but as active collaborators in God’s unfolding plan. Yet, a tragic misstep occurs—not just one of disobedience, but a profound failure of vocation. Seduced by the serpent’s promise, humanity abdicates its God-given role, leading creation into disarray.
(Genesis 12-50) Amidst a fallen world, God reaches out to Abraham to carry on the work he began with Adam. God made a covenant with Abraham that through him and his extended family that all of the nations of the world would be blessed. In spite of the flaws in humanity, God continues with his plan that mysteriously involves an intertwining of divine sovereignty with human action. In every chapter, God's unwavering covenant faithfulness is evident and through Abraham's lineage a hope emerges.
(Exodus) As generations pass, Abraham's descendants find themselves enslaved in Egypt, seemingly forsaken and far from the promise of blessing for all nations. Yet, God hears their cries and remembers His covenant and chooses Moses to lead His people out of oppression and into liberation. The journey through the wilderness, while fraught with trials and moments of doubt, further illuminates God's desire to be intimately connected with His people, culminating in the giving of the Law at Sinai. This covenant at Sinai, much like the one with Abraham, signifies God's intent to guide and shape a people who will showcase His character and intentions for all of creation. Through the building of the Tabernacle, God's presence is tangibly among them, echoing the Edenic desire for close communion.
(Genesis 12-50) Amidst a fallen world, God reaches out to Abraham to carry on the work he began with Adam. God made a covenant with Abraham that through him and his extended family that all of the nations of the world would be blessed. In spite of the flaws in humanity, God continues with his plan that mysteriously involves an intertwining of divine sovereignty with human action. In every chapter, God's unwavering covenant faithfulness is evident and through Abraham's lineage a hope emerges.
(Exodus) As generations pass, Abraham's descendants find themselves enslaved in Egypt, seemingly forsaken and far from the promise of blessing for all nations. Yet, God hears their cries and remembers His covenant and chooses Moses to lead His people out of oppression and into liberation. The journey through the wilderness, while fraught with trials and moments of doubt, further illuminates God's desire to be intimately connected with His people, culminating in the giving of the Law at Sinai. This covenant at Sinai, much like the one with Abraham, signifies God's intent to guide and shape a people who will showcase His character and intentions for all of creation. Through the building of the Tabernacle, God's presence is tangibly among them, echoing the Edenic desire for close communion.