Genesis: The Global Study

By Pastor Dale CritchleySociety & Culture Religion & Spirituality Christianity History Natural Sciences

Genesis: The Global Study episodes

May 16, 2011 Genesis 39-40
http://shepherdoftheridge.org/genesis_the_global_study/event/bible_study/genesis_39_40
Read Genesis 39 (Potiphar and Wife)
Joseph, based on his dreams, expected great things in his life. How did this event look in comparison?
Have you ever expected great things to happen and see events crumble around you? How did you respond?
Why do you think God allowed these trials to happen to Joseph?
What methods does Potiphar's wife use to attempt to seduce Joseph? (39:7,10,12)
How does he counter each one?
Does Potiphar believe his wife? What clues in the text help answer that question?
Where do you see Jesus in this narrative?
Read Genesis 40 (Dreams: The Cupbearer and the Baker)
Why do you think Joseph asked to interpret their dreams? (40:8)
How do you understand the cupbearer forgetting Joseph? (40:23)
What significance do you give to dreams?
Where do you see Jesus in this narrative?
49 min
April 11, 2011 Genesis 32-33
http://shepherdoftheridge.org/genesis_the_global_study/event/bible_study/genesis_32_33
Read Genesis 32-33 (Jacob meets Esau and wrestles with God)
Genesis 32:1-21
Have you ever had a meeting you dreaded going to?
Has anyone ever tried to buy your forgiveness? How did that go?
Why did Esau bring 400 men with him? (32:6)
How do you think Jacob felt about this meeting? (32:7-8)
What does Jacob's prayer tell you about what's going through Jacob's mind as he prepares? (32:9-12)
Genesis 31:22-32
Why does the struggle between God and Jacob occur at this particular point in Jacob's life? (32:22-31)
Have you ever wrestled with God?
Why does God wrestle all night? Is He that weak?
Who wins? How? What does this mean?
What does Jacob's new name, "Israel," mean?
Genesis 33
Have you had a dreaded meeting go better than expected?
How is this story like the reunion of the prodigal in Luke 15?
What is Jacob trying to do in 33:8-11? Was it necessary?
Why did Jacob decline Esau's offer to travel with him? (33:12-14)
Why did Jacob go to Succoth instead of Seir? (33:16-17)
How does 33:20 show Jacob's spiritual growth?
53 min
April 11, 2011 Genesis 29:14-30
http://shepherdoftheridge.org/genesis_the_global_study/event/bible_study/genesis_29_14_30
Read Genesis 29:14-30 (Jacob marries Leah & Rachel)
Has anyone ever played a mean trick on you? You on someone else?
How did Laban manipulate Jacob's words in 29:21?
How could Jacob have not realized with whom he was sleeping? (29:22) (Compare 24:65 and note that this night was preceded by a week-long feast)
How is Jacob's being deceived in 29:25 ironic?
What would you have been willing to do to marry your spouse? 14 years as an agricultural slave?
Would you be willing to work that hard to keep your spouse once you're married?
Why did Jacob keep Leah as a wife?
How do you think Leah might have felt here?
Does God condone polygamy? How did it work out for Jacob? (Remember Sarah and Hagar?)
From whom does Jesus descend? (29:35)
How do we see the love of Jesus in the actions of Jacob?
54 min
March 28, 2011 Genesis 28:10-22
Read Genesis 28:10-22 (Jacob's Dream)
What was the situation in Jacob's life at this point? Have you ever felt like that?
Note: this probably appeared as a stairway or ziggurat, which were common in Mesopotamia, where the top would represent the place of a deity's presence or a worship connection with that deity.
What does this "stairway to heaven" represent? (John 1:51)
Why does God make this offer to Jacob?
What did this dream mean to Jacob?
What does this dream mean to you?
Why was it significant that God would go with Jacob? (28:15)
What is Jacob's reaction? (28:18-22) What does this tell us about Jacob?
Jacob had used the stone for his head, then raises and anoints it. What's going on here?
What made the place special? What is the significance for Christians? For churches?
What is Jacob's motivation for the tithe in 28:22?
1 hr 15 min
March 22, 2011 Genesis 27:1-40
http://shepherdoftheridge.org/genesis_the_global_study/event/bible_study/genesis_27_1_40
Image via Wikipedia
Read Genesis 27:1-40 (Isaac’s Blessing)
Have you ever misrepresented yourself? (pretended to be someone else, a different age, embellishing a resumé, etc.) What was the result to you or anyone else?
Why was getting this deathbed blessing so important?
What did Jacob hope to get out of this blessing?
In 27:20, why does Jacob say, "your God" instead of "our God"? What is Jacob's relationship with the Lord like at this point?
Do you think Isaac could take back his blessing? God fulfilled this stolen blessing. What does this tell us about God?
Compare 27:27 with Luke 22:48.
How does 27:29 fulfill God's promise in Genesis 25:23? Isn't this Rebekah forcing God's promise?
Why do you think Isaac fell for this trick?
Compare Jacob's and Esau's blessings.
If God's plans depended on our virtue and faithfulness, how would that change things?
Would God's plan have been fulfilled if Jacob hadn't been so deceptive?
If this story took place today, what might Jacob try to steal?
How do we see God's plan for salvation in Jesus Christ working through this narrative?

52 min
March 08, 2011 Genesis 25:19-34
http://shepherdoftheridge.org/genesis_the_global_study/event/bible_study/genesis_25_19_34
Read Genesis 25:19-34 (Jacob & Esau)
Did you ever get the feeling that you or a sibling were a parent's 'favorite'?
Have you ever made a bad swap with someone? What motivated you?
What English idiom do we get from 25:26?
Based on this passage, which of these, Jacob or Esau, would you rather have as a brother?
Which of these men did God choose? Why? (cf. Romans 9:10-16)
What was the 'birthright' Esau gave up? (25:31) (cf. Hebrews 12:15-17)
What was so important about the birthright?
How are these brothers like the first brothers? (Genesis 4)
What was the result of this conflict? (Numbers 20:14-21; Obadiah 1:9-10)
Which of these brothers do you respect more?
Which of these brothers do you think our society would respect more?
How is the exchange between Jacob and Esau like our relationship with Jesus? What's the difference?
56 min
February 28, 2011 Genesis 24
http://shepherdoftheridge.org/genesis_the_global_study/event/bible_study/genesis_24
Read Genesis 24 (Isaac & Rebekah)
Why did Abraham want Isaac not to marry a Canaanite woman? (24:3-4) (1 Corinthians 7:10-18)
Why did Abraham not want Isaac to go to Mesopotamia? (24:6)
What impresses you the most about the servant?
What about Rebekah?
Should we ask God for specific signs like the servant did?
How has God directed you in life? Specific signs? Something more general?
Did God choose your spouse for you?
Various parts of the Bible, like 24:34-49, can be repetitive. Why does the text repeat the details?
Given that arranged marriages were common at this time, how would you have felt if you were Isaac or Rebekah?
How does this story tie in with previous stories, like Sodom & Gomorrah?
How does Jesus 'water our camels'?
58 min
February 23, 2011 Genesis 21
http://shepherdoftheridge.org/genesis_the_global_study/event/bible_study/genesis_21
Read Genesis 21 (The Birth of Isaac)
Has God ever given you the sort of blessing that made you want to invite friends to laugh with you? (21:6)
Why do they name the son, "Isaac"?
Who gets the last laugh in this story?
Why is 21:4 important?
From Sarah's perspective, why send away Hagar & Ishmael? (21:8-10)
Abraham was upset because of both love and law. Why did God tell him to send away Hagar and Ishmael? (21:11-13)
What insight does St. Paul give us? (Galatians 4:21-31; Romans 9:6-9)
How does God treat Hagar? (21:13-21)
What does God's choice of Isaac over Ishmael tell us about God?
Why does Abimelech make Abraham swear not to deal falsely with him? (21:23) (Skim Ch. 20 for a hint)
Compare 21:22-34 and Genesis 23:3-16. What does this tell us about Abraham's relationship with the Canaanites? What can we learn from this?
How does this story relate to Jesus?
57 min
January 31, 2011 Genesis 19
http://shepherdoftheridge.org/genesis_the_global_study/event/bible_study/genesis_19
Read Genesis 19 (Sodom & Gomorrah)
Even though Lot chose Sodom, He's still called a "righteous man" (2 Peter 2:7). Why do you think that is?
Why was Lot sitting in the city gate? (19:1)
Why did Lot insist on the angels staying at his house? (19:2-3)
Why did Lot offer his daughters to the mob outside? (19:8) Is this justifiable?
Why did Lot have so little influence over his sons-in-law? (19:16)
Why do you think Lot was hesitant to leave Sodom? (19:16)
Why was Lot's wife punished? (19:26)
Destroying two entire cities seems harsh. Was it warranted? Why? (Genesis 19:1-11; Ezekiel 16:48-50, Matthew 10:11-16)
How does Abraham's and Lot's reactions to the visitors compare with this reasoning?
What lesson can your house learn from Sodom and Gomorrah? Your church?
If this upset God so much, what does this tell us about the character and priorities of God?
How do we see this character in the ministry of Jesus?
Given Lot's actions in 19:30ff, how can he still be called "righteous"?
What do we know about the Moabites and the Ammonites? (1 Samuel 14:47; 2 Chronicles 20:1)
Who else was born as a descendent of this union? (Ruth 1:4; Matthew 1:5)
1 hr 3 min
January 24, 2011 Genesis 18
http://shepherdoftheridge.org/genesis_the_global_study/event/bible_study/genesis_18
Read Genesis 18 (The Three Visitors)
Who were these three men (18:2) (See 19:1)
According to modern Kosher food laws, beef and dairy cannot be eaten in the same meal. Was Abraham breaking these laws? (18:7-8)
Why did Sarah laugh? How does God respond?
Is Sarah's laughter (18:12-14) different from Abram's (17:17-22)?
Why did God rebuke Sarah but not Abram?
In 18:16ff, God convenes an important meeting in Abraham's tent. What do you draw from this?
Why does God tell Abraham about Sodom and Gomorrah? (18:20-21)
When bargaining with God, why did Abraham stop at 10?
Did Abraham influence God's plans?
Have you ever tried to strike a bargain with God? What was the result?
What can we learn about prayer from Abraham's prayer?
How does Abraham act as a type of Christ?
Is there anyone in your life that God wants you to intercede for?
1 hr 7 min

About Genesis: The Global Study

From the publisher's feed

In recent years, the Book of Genesis has produced more name-calling than any other part of the Bible. With widely varied interpretations, the first two chapters polarize churches, communities, and schools. Organizations, museums, and theme parks have been built around the debate, often making the political sphere look civil and tame by comparison. But Genesis is more than its first two chapters, and even those first chapters offer more than just a look at the early days of the earth.

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Genesis: The Global Study

Genesis: The Global Study episodes

About Genesis: The Global Study