From Eden to the Kingdom

From 1 Samuel 16:1-13, we find that Jesus is a better David because he has a better heart and is a better heir.

From Genesis 1:26-31 and Romans 5:12-19, as we consider the Christmas story, we find that Jesus is a better Adam because he was a greater ruler and a greater righteous one.

From Genesis 17, God gives Abraham a new name and a new sign of the covenant promise.

From Genesis 16, Abram and Sarai gave into the pressures of the world and ungodly counsel, while Hagar ran from everyone, including God. But, the Lord is the God who sees, and he graciously saved Hagar, even as she ran.

From Genesis 15: we humans love promises but are horrible at keeping them. Yet, we find in scripture that God keeps his promises, even when people fail miserably.

From Genesis 14:17-24, we have to ask whether we are seeking the approval of man or the approval of God?

From Luke 15:11-31: The Pharisees believed that they were slaves who could earn acceptance into God's family, but Jesus explains through the parable of the prodigal son that our acceptance is based on his grace to us as his children, not our outward obedience.

From Genesis 13:1-18, Lot exemplifies the unbeliever who chases after the immediate, while Abram exemplifies the faithful believer who waits on the promises of God.

From Luke 15:8-10: We measure our own value based on our comparison to other people or our acceptable moral behavior before God, but God gives us value by his grace, in making us in his image and redeeming us through Christ.

From Genesis 12:1-3: Fallen men and women seek physical blessings through some form of perfection, but such perfection can never be obtained. In this passage, the story of humanity shifts for the better, not because of some great hero, but because of the gracious covenant of God.