GENESIS: The Ultimate Rescuer
There was a child stranded in the middle of the ocean and was scared so she prayed to God to save her, hoping to see God at work. A man came along with a small row boat and offered to help but she refused to get in, saying, “God will save me.”
A motorboat cruised by and she turned it down too, putting her trust in God to save her.
Finally, a helicopter flew overhead offering assistance, but she turned it away, saying, “God will save me.”
Well, she died and went to heaven and questioned God, saying, “Why didn’t you save me?”
And God answered, “I sent 2 boats and a helicopter!”
We are all in need of saving. We all get ourselves into sticky situations sometimes. We all sin!
Adam and Eve ate forbidden fruit. They had to leave the Garden of Eden.
Cain killed Abel and he had to leave his hometown too.
When Noah was alive, the rest of the population sinned and they were drowned in the big flood. God saved Noah by instructing him to build an ark.
The people in Babel were getting cocky and proud, thinking they could live without God and just rely on themselves. God saved them by splitting them up, causing them to wake up one morning all speaking different languages! Divided, they had to rely on God once more.
Lot was literally saved by angels from the sinful town he lived in - he walked away as fire fell from the sky on the town.
Genesis, like most of the other books of the bible, is full of characters who are sinful and need rescuing. God shows that he can rescue in different ways, that he can choose to rescue or not, and that he is the ultimate rescuer when he send Jesus to deal with the sins once and for all.
What do you think?
Who do you identify with the most from the characters you’ve learned about in Genesis this term? Answer yes or no to these questions:
If you were Adam or Eve and were in the garden for who knows how long, would you have eaten the fruit eventually? Yes or no?
Imagine you had a brother or sister and they were the favourite child in your family and you were ignored and mistreated. Would you try to kill them? Yes or no?
Imagine you were told by God to build a huge boat and then he gave you all the measurements and instructions. Would you do it?
If you were in Babel and a tower was being built so that you could all stay safe and together and look after each other, making sure no one needed to starve or be attacked by wild animals, so you didn’t have to rely on God for safety and food and so you could all be known as a great city in the world, would you think it was a good idea? Yes or no?
If you lived in a town full of people who weren’t very nice and were about to marry a foreigner and they told you that their God was going to rain down fire and you had to leave immediately and flee to safety, would you pack up your life and go? Yes or no?
Did you confess to maybe thinking you might’ve made the wrong decision like those in Genesis did? I’m gonna tell you that I did for sure, to probably way too many of them!
The truth is, we all sin. We all make mistakes. We all reject God by doing what he doesn’t want us to do.
Bible Passage: Isaiah 59:2
“Your sins are the roadblock between you and your God.”
God knows this. He understands. He gets it. He doesn’t like it but he likes us. He LOVES us!
He loves us so much that he sent us Jesus to sort it all out.
Bible Passage: Ephesians 1:7
“Christ sacrificed his life's blood to set us free, which means our sins are now forgiven.”
Story Time!
Gary Rosheisen was unwell. He had weak bones and had a few mini-strokes and now he was unable to walk. Gary got about in a wheelchair. He lived on his own with a cat named Tommy.
Gary was concerned about his health and living alone so he decided to wear a necklace that could send a medical alert to a hospital and he also thought he could try to teach Tommy to dial 911 for an emergency, because he was living in America. If it was Australia, he would have taught the cat to dial 000. He showed Tommy how to do it but Tommy never had a turn. Do you think he knew what to do?
One day Gary had a seizure and fell out of his wheelchair and onto the floor in his bedroom. He had forgotten to put his special necklace on and he couldn’t reach an emergency cord he had near his bed that would summon an ambulance. All he could do was lie there. Gary was stranded. Gary needed saving.
Meanwhile, the police received a call from Gary’s phone but no one talked. Then it hung up. The police tried calling back but no one answered so they went around to Gary’s house to investigate. When they came into Gary’s house, they found Tommy the cat, sitting by the phone, and Gary, stranded on the floor in the bedroom. The only explanation is that Tommy saved Gary that day by making the emergency call - what a cat!
We might not have an amazing cat like Tommy, but we do have one that is willing to do anything to rescue us. And I mean anything! He didn’t just have to put in a call, he didn’t have to ask someone to build a boat or send someone to evacuate their home. This amazing rescuer actually sent his only son to die for our sins. No one else could’ve done it. And it was not easy.
Bible Passage: Ephesians 1:7
“Christ sacrificed his life's blood to set us free, which means our sins are now forgiven.”
Question Time!
Have you ever saved anybody?
Has anybody - any human - ever saved you?
What does being saved from our sins actually mean?
