Genesis 2:1-3 - Cameron Jungles - Sun PM, Nov. 10, 2013

“God Finishes His Creation” - Genesis 2:1-3 – (Eastside Baptist/Sun PM/Nov. 10, 2013)

 

"Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won't you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, 'This person began to build and wasn't able to finish.' (Lk. 14:28–30, NIV)

 

Main Idea: God always finishes what he starts.

 

1.  The universe is a completed project.

 

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. (Gen. 2:1, NIV)

 

2.  God completed the creation of the universe in six days.

 

By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. (Gen. 2:2, NIV)

 

"Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. (Exod. 20:8–11, NIV)

 

3. God stopped his creative activity on the sixth day.

 

By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. (Gen. 2:2, NIV)

 

In his defense Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working." (Jn. 5:17, NIV)

 

He will not let your foot slip-- he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. (Ps. 121:3–4, NIV)

 

4. Because God ceased from his creative work on the seventh day, God blessed the seventh day and set it aside as holy.

 

Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. (Gen. 2:3, NIV)

 

* The seventh day has cosmological significance.

 

He built his sanctuary like the heights, like the earth that he established forever. (Ps. 78:69, NIV)

 

This is what the LORD says: "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be? (Isa. 66:1, NIV)

 

* The seventh day has redemptive significance.

 

"Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the LORD your God has commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns, so that your male and female servants may rest, as you do. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day. (Deut. 5:12–15, NIV)

 

* The seventh day has covenantal significance.

 

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the LORD, who makes you holy. "'Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Anyone who desecrates it is to be put to death; those who do any work on that day must be cut off from their people. For six days work is to be done, but the seventh day is a day of sabbath rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day is to be put to death. The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed. '" (Exod. 31:12–17, NIV)

 

* The seventh day has eschatological significance.

 

being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Phil. 1:6, NIV)

 

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matt. 11:28–30, NIV)