THE BOOKENDS OF THE BIBLE

INTRODUCTION

You have Bookends on your bookshelves. In my office I have many metal brackets for bookends, however I prefer the model John Deere toy tractors. They work great, look nice too. The purpose of bookends is to hold up books. On some shelves, I just tip the end books.

The bookends of the Bible - what holds the Bible up - are the first and last books. They support the entire Bible. The first book provides the foundational truth to the rest. It gives us wisdom of our distant history, our origins. The last book provides the conclusion to the rest. It gives us wisdom for our future - the culmination of history. In a very real sense, without those two books, the rest collapse - loose their power, loose their authority. We want to talk about the importance of Genesis and Revelation today.

To do so, let us begin in the middle of the Bible:

Psalm 119:18, 89, 105, 140, 160, 161

All of the Bible is God’s word. We at FBC affirms the authority of the 66 books in our Bible. They are truth, they are life changing, they are wonderful words of life. They are given to us from God, words that have come down from heaven through holy men of God who penned the words in language.

In the New Testament:

2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20-21

That includes each book every book, Genesis and Revelation included. My purpose today is to help you see the essential importance of both books. And that what we believe about them is sadly a minority view in our culture, and even in the world of Christianity. We take them at their literal meaning, what they say is what they mean. We believe this by faith, to many, our views on these books is foolish. To put it this way: If we believe these books to be God’s literal word we are either close to being right or really crazy.

1. Genesis. The Book of Beginnings

• Church Doctrinal statement: “Man is a direct creation of God, made in His image and likeness.” We believe that man did not evolve, but a special creation in the creation week as recorded specifically and preciously in Genesis 1 and 2.


• Man was created on the 6^th solar day of the six 24 hour days of creation. Man is the culmination of God’s creative acts. His greatest master piece, created in His image. Genesis 1:26-31


• Evolution is the popular belief of education, the media, and the government today. Interestingly polls say that most American’s believe God had something to do with how we got here, but much of the intelligentsia of our culture clearly reject any idea of intelligent design much less a personal creator of the universe who made man specifically.


• Naturalism is the prevailing view: We are a cosmic accident, matter which evolved to man, a result of billions of years of struggle and the survival of the fittest. Author Frank Perrite (incorrect spelling) says evolution is: “From goo to you by way of the zoo”


• In the Bible the word “creation” 14 times; “Creator” 7 times and 44 times “created” in Bible. The word “evolved” is never used. Hebrews word for “create” = “bara” is always used in context of God actions.


• A casual, plain reading the Bible will tell you God started this world. Books of Law, Poetry, Prophets, gospels, and epistles all speak of creation.


• The literal week is the basis of the Sabbath command in Exodus 20:11.


• Jesus quoted Genesis 1 and 2 in talking about marriage, and even stated, it was “at the beginning of creation.” (Mark 10:6-8) Evolution says that man came at the end of billions of years. In creation’s short 6 days, man and women were specially created at the beginning of time.


• Secular science: Darwinian, evolutionary, humanistic science sees a incompatibility with the Bible. Actually, science is a matter of interpretation. Different scientists look at the same evidence and draw different conclusions. We believe science affirms the Bible, and there are many scientists who are Christians who clearly see the compatibility with the Bible when the Bible it taken at face value, and we start with God in the equation rather than matter, or a big bang.
  
  We are doing the creation video series with Ken Ham, “Answers in Genesis.” And he makes it perfectly clear that Genesis is the foundation of the entire Bible. If one could doubt the historical accuracy of Genesis, you can begin to erode the rest of the Bible. When the foundation crumbles the whole building of Christianity starts to collapse.


• Ps. 11:3: “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?”


• Psalm 119:161: “Princes persecute me without cause, But my heart stands in awe of Your words.” Christians are persecuted for their view of God’s word. We should be in awe of God’s word, including Genesis.


• Our culture is working over time to destroy Genesis. Secular world view has a number of assumptions that are built into our media, education, government, the fabric of our culture: As I list them, notice how many conflict with the Bible as a whole and Genesis specifically. (I don’t remember where I found this list, but it is accurate):
• We are products of evolution
• The earth has existed for millions of years
• All religions are acceptable, there are many ways to God
• Religion is optional
• Life begins at birth
• Morals are individual choices
• There are no or few absolutes
• There is no personal all powerful all knowing God
• History is a matter of interpretation
• Law is determined by the will of the people
• The Bible is one religious history book
• Science is above religion
• Separation of church and state means Christianity is to have no influence on the state - politics and schools.
• All cultures are equally valid
• Man is autonomous, we determines our own fate
• Marriage is not necessarily for life
• Children don’t need two parents - one male and one female
• Schools should not teach morality


• The Bible is under assault in our culture, beginning with Genesis. The Bible contradicts the values of our culture and cultures response is to criticize and condemn the Bible, beginning with Genesis.


• Where do you stand with Genesis? Is it literal, face value, means what it says? Or symbolic, allegorical, a myth, not to be taken seriously?


• I heard a preacher one new years eve years ago start his message at about 11:00 p.m. and gave us 50 beginnings in Genesis - he missed some, either that or I fell asleep. I can’t believe he preached for an hour until midnight to a bunch of teenagers about ready to go to sleep.


• Yet in Genesis we have the beginning everything. The beginning of life, beginning of death. Beginning of sin, with every category of sin that mankind has experienced identified in Genesis. Explains the origins of universe, life on earth, animals and plants and their relationship to man. The flood explains the continents, the weather, the seasons, life spans. The tower of Babel explains diversity of culture and language. The Story of Abraham explains the formation of the Jewish people and set up the conflict the world has faced for thousands of years between Jews and Arabs. In Genesis is the first prophecies and preparations for the plan of salvation through Christ (3:15). It’s all in Genesis, and more.


• There are wide views about Genesis, Christians have different slants.


• We need to restore the foundation, we need to believe and broadcast the literal truth of Genesis. Isaiah 58:12: “Those from among you will rebuild the ancient ruins; You will raise up the age-old foundations; and you will be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of the streets in which to dwell.” An excellent web Site: www.answersingenesis.org


• There is amazing literature, video, textbooks on Creation
  The Privileged Planet - co author ISU Prof who lost tenure, and Ken Ham The New Answers Book, Did Adam have a Belly Button, and many other books, etc.

2. Revelation. The Book of Endings

• While Genesis is the truth of the past, Revelation is truth of the future.


• Christians believe that God will end our world and have a new heaven and earth. Rev. 1:1-3


• I hold to a literal Revelation. There is symbolism there, but it is explanatory of what will really take place. Apostle John is being told in 90 AD what will happen at least 1900 years into the future, using terms of ancient Rome and Israel. It is like us 30 years trying to describe the internet of today, we wouldn’t do it very well.


• Our Church Doctrinal Statement: “We believe in THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST: that His coming in the air to rapture His Church, which is our blessed Hope; is pre-tribulational; is always imminent; that when He has first by resurrection of the dead and translation of the living removed from the earth His waiting Church, He will then pour out the righteous judgments of God upon the unbelieving world in the tribulation and afterwards descend with His Church and establish His glorious and literal kingdom over all the nations for a thousand years. Then He will create the New Heaven and the New Earth.”


• Revelation is foretold in OT in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel. The words of Jesus in the Gospels, Peter in 2^nd Peter, Paul is 1 and 2 Thessalonians. The world today scoffs at our belief - they did so in Jesus and Paul and Peter’s time too - 2 Peter 3:3-7


• Christians disagree on the details, but we agree that God will step into history in the person of Jesus Christ one more and final time to recreate and restore what we lost in the Garden of Eden - at beginning of creation.


• See how Genesis and Revelation fit together. Revelation 22:6-7


• Reject Genesis and Revelation, it will create doubt in rest of the Bible, and what is left - humanism, materialism, existentialism, pantheism, and every false religion? Do you want hopelessness? Despair? Fatalism?


• The Bible is all about life. Even life out of death. Righteousness out of sin. Purpose out of despair. Eternity out of time.


• The Bible is the winning side. God wins in the end - Revelation. Because God started it all in the beginning - Genesis. The end and the beginning have God at work, and God has even told us the sequences of events. God can do that, He sees the beginning and the end: Rev. 22:12-13


• Resources: www.timlahaye.com; www.evenmore.co.uk. Book Charting the End Times, and anything by Mark Hitchcock, John Hagee prophetic works, Joel Rosenberg, Hal Lindsey.

CONCLUSION

The central theme of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation is the glory of God and the redemption of mankind. The cross stands center in the Bible, where God meets man to give salvation. God is glorious in Genesis and Revelation, and the 64 other books in the Bible. Salvation is predicted in Genesis, and culminates in Revelation, and the other 64 show us the details of presentation of salvation by faith in Christ. - The Bible is the most wonderful book - read it again for the first time. Start in Genesis.

Want a copy of this message? After Monday on the web site, or request a printed one.

Why preaching this, teaching this, why using Answers in Genesis?

1. Culture is attacking Christianity viciously. Post-Christian Culture


2. “Christianity” is even becoming Post-Christian, weakening Biblical world view.


3. I desire you to be a remnant of believers who cling to Biblical truth, who can make a defense of your faith 2 Peter 3:15

Invitation today - get back into the Bible, get into good Christian literature. “This book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this book.”

What is your relationship with the Word of God? The Son of God?