Sermon audio genesis 315
Perhaps you remember things like playing with your siblings, or running through the woods behind the house and just having a grand old time, or playing a ballgame of some sort, riding bikes down the back roads and feeling the wind in your hair or maybe times like these: sledding down a hill and enjoying the snow and the cold, swinging in the park, teeter-tottering, climbing a rope, jumping rope, sliding down a slide, playing with your cars or your dolls or your toy soldiers or-maybe if you are really old-your jacks or playing stickball or whatever in the street. Maybe you can remember all the way back to when you were a toddler or just about ready to go into kindergarten or those years in elementary school or maybe you remember best your teenage years. I am talking about very small children at this point.Įven though not everyone had a happy or maybe even a memorable childhood (some people may have just had a totally boring childhood, but I would say those are very few), for most of us it is probably not too difficult to recall a lot of fond memories of those times when we were little. Most children are not aware of the things that are not going on around them in terms of the larger problems-things that their mom and dad may be going through. It is often a very blissful, carefree time for children. But think about those early years as far back as you can remember. You might have to have a drink or something to remember that far back. I know, for some of you, that is a long time ago. Take a moment to think about your childhood. Here is the true beginning of the gospel. The process of redemption will involve the gathering of a small elect group in perpetual conflict with the seed of the serpent. The redemption of man involves a new nature, given through God's grace and totally at enmity with Satan's nature. The conflict ends with the protagonist, Christ (the Seed of the woman), destroying the antagonist, Satan. The temptation of Adam and Eve by Satan and their subsequent transgression led to three prophecies or judgments, a kind of protevangelium or "first gospel," a glimpse of God's plan to remedy this grim situation. Jesus Christ taught using parables, stoking the minds of the listener with sharp and vivid images. God uses many stories in His written Word, teaching us deep spiritual lessons. The story children learn the best is the one we parents act out in our daily lives. Good stories should contain positive moral lessons. Stories ignite the imaginations of children, allowing them to think about people, places, and situations they have never experienced before, learning the rudiments of how to handle themselves. Stories enable them to grasp the essential moral, filing it away in the mental storage cabinet, accessible for the rest of their lives. Some educators maintain that morals are shaped more by stories than by any other factor. Reading holds a child's attention because of the gripping stories with riveting plots.