God’s Plan of Redemption Revealed in Genesis
Before Genesis 1:1 there was no such thing as time. God exists in eternity and is in no way accountable to time. Before the advent of time God had a plan for His creation. He has revealed that plan in His Word, the Bible. That revelation begins in Genesis.
After He created the universe, including the earth, and after He had created the flora and fauna, God turned His attention to the creation of mankind. The Bible tells us that He breathed into man the breath of life.
All of the flora and fauna God had created was alive. Trees and grasses grew. Animals grew and reproduced. They already had life when man was created. So, what was so different that God had to tell us that He breathed into man that life?
The Hebrew word for breath in this passage is xwr, Ruwach – (Roo’-akh). It is used 378 in the Old Testament (KJV); 232 times to mean Spirit or spirit, 92 times to mean wind, and 27 times to mean breath. It can also mean side (6), mind (5), blast (4), vain (2), air (1), anger (1), cool (1), courage (1), and is also used miscellaneously 6 times. For the purposes of this post, and without going into intricate detail, the word breath used here refers to God making man in His image and imparting to man the thing that sets him apart from all other living things: the human soul.
In Genesis 2:7, we read that God inspired into man the nishmat chayyim, or "breath of life."
In the gospel of John, we read, “In the beginning was the word (Gk: logos), and the word was with God and the word was God. All things were made by Him and without Him was not anything made that was made.” Then, amazingly, “In Him was life (Gk: zoe) and the life was the light of the world” (John 1:1-4).
Jesus said of Himself, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father but by me. (John 14:6). When He appeared to His disciples after His resurrection, He breathed on them, saying, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
What we have ended up with, without getting too pedantic about it, is that God, through His Spirit breathed into man a special kind of life; a life with His image in it. It was a life quite different from the plants and animals. It was a life with consciousness, passion, love, caring, and all of the other spiritual parts of man. It was a picture of the fulfillment of God’s plan in Jesus Christ.
But wait! There’s more!
In Genesis we see that Messiah (NT: Christ) will be born through the sees of the woman (Genesis 3:15, Luke 1:34-35). Messiah would be a descendant of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob (Genesis 12:3, 17:19, 28:14, Luke 3:23-34). Messiah would be a king in the line of Judah (Genesis 49:10, John 1:49).
Later, in Hebrews 8:20-7:28, we find that Jesus had been typified in the person of Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18), and that He would be the high priest of a New Covenant!
Do you see the connection? From the very beginning, God’s plan of salvation was being unfolded in His word: Jesus would be born of a virgin, die a substitutionary death for our sins and afford for us eternal life.
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