MasterTruth

What is the First Thing God Said?

Whenever I study the Bible, there’s one little guideline I keep in my “study tool box.”  It’s called “the law of first mention.” I can’t tell you why, but usually the first time a word, truth, picture or type is revealed in the Bible, its meaning carries throughout the Bible. If it’s true the first time, it’s true throughout. It outlines a doctrine that will carry through the Bible, because God is a God of order, and He is faithful. Examples:

• Grace: But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. (Gen 6:8) It’s unmerited favor that God imparts.
• Serpent: (as in Satan) Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? (Gen 3:1) He is crafty and sly, and look at his MO. He plants doubt about what God said. (There’s a whole paper on how Satan gets people to doubt God’s word today here.)
• Merciful: And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his (Lot’s) hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city. (Gen. 19:16) This was God’s way of sparing “righteous Lot” from God’s judgment. God withholds what we deserve.

I am studying Genesis this year. I’m giving myself the whole year, and I’m going to do it through the lens of “first mentions.” Not all of them, because face it, every word in the book of Genesis is mentioned the first time in the Bible right there.

But let’s DO look at the first time “God said.” I’m thinking that whatever God records in the Bible as the first thing “He said” should be pretty important in the context of the law of first mention. Whatever it was “He said,” I’ll bet will carry through the Bible as a word, truth, picture, type or doctrine. So think this through with me. The first thing God said must be super important. So we must pay attention:

And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. (Gen 1:3)

• We know to this point, darkness covered the earth. So first thing, “God said, let there be light.” This was Day One.
• But don’t mistake that for the sun. That wasn’t created until Day Four.
• All else that God created hinged on “God said, let there be light.”
• Darkness flees when there is light. God speaks a clear contrast for darkness.
• Darkness represents evil. Light represents good. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. (Gen 1:4)

Does all this picture something that happened later on? Read with me:

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. (John 8:12) If you have Jesus, you need not live in darkness any longer. But folks don’t readily come to the light, do they?

And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. (John 3:19)

But this carries even further than God sending Jesus to save us from our sins. Usually, we find that whatever truth we learn in “the law of first mention” carries even beyond Christ’s coming.

Look at what happens when we get to heaven. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. (Rev. 21:23) You know, “God said let there be light,” and from that point forward forever, there is light—in Jesus and in His word.

What? His word is light too? Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. (Ps. 119:105) Jesus and God’s word are light—and they always will be. Remember that point about the wily devil trying to get Eve/us to doubt what God really said, because he wants us all in his evil darkness? Do we have God’s word today? Some people don’t think so. Some think we only had it in the original languages they were written in, and now… not so much. That thinking is a trick of the devil. Again, read here for more on that.

Follow with me as we explore “first mentions” in the book of Genesis.

Jody

What Does it Take to Study the Bible?

A good New Year’s resolution would be “to study the Bible more.” To some folks, that idea sounds as burdensome as climbing a mountain. I’ve had seasons like that, especially when I’ve gone for a long time not getting into the Bible. But I’ve discovered a way to study it that really isn’t hard at all—and it is so rich. Life altering, really. I’ll share it.

First, you only need two things to study the Bible: the right tools and a healthy curiosity. But you have to have both. One without the other won’t work.

What are the right tools? Before I tell you, I have to ask you to set aside a tool that you may currently use. That is Bible study guides written by your favorite teachers. Go ahead and put those on the shelf for now. You will thank me later. OK. Done that? Now you need a computer (a laptop will do) with a good Bible app on it. So, I guess you’re also going to need a desk or table and a chair. Sounds like school, I know. Perhaps. But don’t school students need a computer, a desk and a chair? Ah.

There are some good free Bible apps you can download on your computer. My favorite is Bible Analyzer. Another is e-Sword. I encourage you to click the links here and have a look. I like them because these are searchable Bibles. You can type in words and phrases and find everywhere they are mentioned in the Bible. You can then copy and paste them into a computer file. So instead of taking your notes in a physical journal, you will take notes in a document on your computer. Is this starting to sound too academic? Remember our topic is studying the Bible.

If you have a laptop with Microsoft Word and a Bible app, along with a nice cleared off desk and a chair with armrests, you are ready to study the Bible!

The second thing you need to study the Bible is a healthy curiosity. That’s because without it, you will have no desire to seek and search anything. Here are some tips on “how to be curious.”

• How many times does the Bible say X? You fill in the X. How about “the just shall live by faith” I’m using the KJV (here’s why). Those exact words are found in three verses. I copy and paste them into my Word file, and I read 3 or 4 verses before and 3 or 4 verses after each reference, and it gives me an idea of what and why the Bible says this.
• In Gen 22:8, Abraham is offering Isaac, and Abraham says (after Isaac asks about the lamb to be offered) “God will provide himself a lamb.” I think I know what that implies about Jesus being the lamb, but how can I find that? If you’ve downloaded one of the two apps I suggested, if you go to Gen. 22:8, you will find many cross references (more than in the margin of your Bible) that explain that. Look up those cross references and be amazed at how Jesus totally saw Himself as that lamb.
• There really seems to be something with the number 7 in the Bible. It seems to be God’s signature number. In your Bible app, look up such phrases as “seven days” or “seven times” or “seven years.” You’ll only do that if you’re curious. Expect to learn something when you look those up. See what I mean?

That was pretty simple, wasn’t it? Maybe you need a third thing to study the Bible. Accountability. You see the value, you’re curious, you have the tools, but you’re not sure you have the willpower. You need some forward momentum.

One time in my 20s or 30s, as a single, I decided one Saturday morning that if I was going to keep up with daily Bible study and reading, I was going to need to hold myself accountable to someone. Seriously, I went through my friend list trying to decide who might be the best candidate to hold me accountable. One name rose to the top. Debbi. I decided to call her. But before I could dial the phone, my phone rang. It was Debbi. How “coincidental.” But even more so when, before I could say more than “hello,” she asked me a question: “Could I be accountable to you to read my Bible every day?” I shared with her how I was thinking the same thing at the same time. It had to be of God. From there, we took turns calling each other every morning for several months to make sure each of us was up and ready to read. It was exactly what both of us needed. So, I’d like to suggest the same thing. Find someone who will hold you accountable for a set length of time, like a month, or six months.

Decide to be one of a small private club that actually studies the Bible and learns the riches of Christ, making a difference in your life—and those around you as you interact positively with what you learn.

Jody