The Gospel in the Torah – The Genesis Road
Feb.10, 2009 in
Apologetics
You have probably heard the Romans road, but did you know that it’s really a summary of the Genesis Road?
The basics from B’resheit 1-4 on the Torah
- the commandment/the blessing of eternal life in 1:28,
- the Great Commission of 1:28:
to have fruits of obedience, be filled with the fruit of the Spirit
multiply, make disciples,
fill the earth with the knowledge of Messiah,
and subdue it/teach them to obey the Torah
all in 1:28, - the old covenant (keep the law to keep eternal life) in 2:16-17
- and the new covenant (promised seed, the Messiah who keeps the law for us) in 3:15-16,
- the virgin birth “Seed of the Woman” in 3:15,
- we are to desire the Messiah in 3:16,
- the kingship of the Promised Seed 3:16,
- and the corresponding prophecy of being ruled by him in eternal life in 3:16,
- the imperfection of mankind’s Torah keeping in 3:17
- and the divinity of the Promised Seed who is perfect and who we call upon in 4:26
We have no other King, Savior, or Redeemer than HaShem. He is the Messiah we are to desire, obey, and identify in for our merit to eternal life.
The Genesis Road – The Gospel in the Torah (Genesis 1-4)
- G-d commanded us eternal life, and blessed us with it. Gen 1:28
- He then told us to be fruitful – to have fruits of obedience to his commandment. Gen 1:28
- He then told us to multiply – to make disciples of his commandment. Gen 1:28
- He then told us to fill the earth – to immerse the earth in the fullness of the Messiah. Gen 1:28
- He then told us to subdue it – to teach all mankind the Torah. Gen 1:28
- G-d made the “old” covenant of eternal life with us: we will continue to live forever as long as we keep the law, or else we will die on the day we break it. Gen 2:15-17
- We didn’t keep the law, so we died – we lost what we were blessed with, that is, eternal life (we were still breathing in and out). Gen 3:7
- Realizing our condition, we attempt to cover up our fault with our own works again, but no matter how hard we try, we can not gain back through our own merit and works that which we lost – the eternal life that G-d blessed us with. Gen 3:7
- We miss our meeting with G-d, and G-d calls out to us, asking where we are spiritually, so that we may repent and come to him. Gen 3:9
- Instead in our depravity, we attempt the futile impossibility: we try to hide from the G-d who made us in his image. Gen 3:10.
- When approached by G-d, we respond, but instead of repenting we attempt to justify our sin. Gen 3:11
- We ultimately blame Eve. Gen 3:12
- Eve blames the serpent who deceived her (the Adversary, the Satan). Gen 3:13
- G-d curses the serpent with eternal damnation. Gen 3:14
- G-d promises a renewal of the covenant of eternal life with us, through the promised Seed who remains keeping the Torah perfectly for us. Gen 3:15
- G-d promises that the serpent’s head (strength) (death through sin) will be crushed (destroyed) by the Seed of the woman (the Messiah). Gen 3:15
- G-d promises that the Seed of the woman (the Messiah) will be born of a woman, and not from the union of a man and woman. Gen 3:15
- G-d decrees that this crushing of the serpents head will be accomplished at the cost of the promised Seed’s own death. Gen 3:15.
- G-d decrees that the serpent, and sin and death will be totally defeated by the promised Seed. Gen 3:15
- G-d decrees that the heel of the promised Seed will only be bruised (wounded with death), but not crushed (death forever). Gen 3:15
- G-d therefore decrees that the promised Seed will rise to life again, showing us that we too will rise to life again on his merit as his righteous death atones for those who identify with him. Gen 3:15
- G-d therefore makes a “new” or renewal of the covenant of eternal life with us: rather than us keeping Torah in order to keep eternal life – a covenant which we broke and lost eternal life as a result – we now are promised that one of our offspring, the promised Seed (the Messiah), will remain faithful to the covenant forever, and by his faithful keeping of the Torah perfectly, his reward, which is eternal life, becomes his (and thus our) inheritance, an inheritance which he shares with all those who identify in him and by implication, who identify in his merit alone for the hope of eternal life. Gen 3:15
- To the woman, the mother of all the living, G-d decrees that she will have increased pain in making and raising disciples. Gen 3:16
- To the woman, the mother of all the living, G-d decrees that she will desire her husband (the Messiah). Gen 3:16 (Isaiah 54:5)
- To the woman, the mother of all the living, G-d decrees that that he (the Messiah) will indeed rule over her. Gen 3:16
- To the woman, the mother of all the living, G-d decrees that she will inherit the promise of eternal life in his kingdom. Gen 3:16
- G-d decrees the rule of the husband (the Messiah). Gen 3:16
- To the man, the dust of the earth, G-d decrees that his obedience to the Torah will be flawed. Gen 3:17
- To the man, the dust of the earth, G-d decrees that the fruit of his obedience to the Torah will only come through hard work and toil. Gen 3:17
- To the man, the dust of the earth, G-d promises that even then his fruit of obedience will be flawed with sin. Gen 3:18
- To the man, the dust of the earth, G-d decrees that he will receive satisfaction only when he studies about the Messiah. Gen 3:18
- To the man, the dust of the earth, G-d promises eternal life if he relies on the Messiah for his redemption from sin and merit to eternal life. Gen 3:19
- G-d ratified the new covenant with the shedding of blood, when he made skins for Adam and Eve. Gen 3:21
- G-d has prevented man from obtaining eternal life on his own merit, in order that man not live forever in sin. Gen 3:22
- G-d banished sinful man from himself, to instead serve the ground from whence he came (the Torah, the Messiah who made him). Gen 3:23
- The Way back to eternal life is guarded until Messiah comes. Gen 3:24
- Eve knew (had sex with) her husband Adam, and gave birth to Cain, and believed he was the promised Seed. Gen 4:1
- Cain cannot be the Messiah because he is a sinner like Adam and Eve and Adam and Eve know it Gen 4:25
- Eve knew her husband Adam, and gave birth to Abel, and believed Abel was the promised Seed. Gen 4:25
- Abel cannot be the Messiah because he is dead and does not rise from the dead Gen 4:25
- Eve knew her husband Adam, and gave birth to Seth, and thought Seth was the promised Seed. Gen 4:25
- Seth himself had a son, and it was then that men realized that the promised Seed does not come with man being involved. Gen 4:26
- At that time men began to call upon the name of the promised Seed, which is HaShem, the beginning of the “church”, by relying on the Messiah for eternal life. Gen 4:26
- At that time men began to profane the name of the promised Seed, which is HaShem, by not keeping his commandments. Gen 4:26
- The Messiah is HaShem. Gen 4:26
- All who call upon the name of HaShem (the promised Seed) (and so rely on his merit alone for eternal life), shall be saved. Joel 2:32.
We truly have no other King, Savior, or Redeemer than HaShem. Psalm 45:6, Psalm 18:46, Psalm 78:35
Thoughts? Questions?
February 18th, 2009 at 2:17 am
Be fruitful, and multiply are two separate commandments.
Being fruitful relates to having the fruit of the Spirit, which comes by obedience to the Torah. As Targum Pseudo-Jonathan states, they (Adam and Eve) were put in the garden to serve and guard the Torah. The concept is a very Jewish one. We also know that we were to eat fruit with seed in it – our food was to remind us of the Messiah, and by reverse implication, our obedience to him is described as our fruit. And since it is the Messiah who remains perfectly obedient to the Torah for our merit to eternal life in accordance with the Torah, even though we fell into sin, then our obedience to him as King implies we do what the King commands, which is the Torah.
Multiply does relate to having babies, yes, but it also implies much more: they were to make disciples, as the Torah says “teach them (these words) to your children.” To believe that G-d only wanted them to have babies is really coming from a pagan sex-god mentality. We also know that making disciples is intended because our “children” are our disciples – and this too is a Jewish concept (which is why John calls his students his “children”). Also, as disciples of Messiah, we are counted as children of Abraham. And in context, the “seed of the Woman” can also be the elect of G-d – meaning that scripture counts those of Messiah as the “seed of the woman” – a concept that finds its way in several places of scripture, most notably in Revelation.
February 18th, 2009 at 2:19 am
I am not saying that that is not what that means. It has a small bit to do with procreation, but that is not it’s focus. I am simply saying that the Torah teaches that there is more being talked about here, and we do ourselves a disservice if we do not inquire further into the matter.
If you want to see our in-depth study, please check out:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/7515114/Old-and-New-Covenants-A-Messianic-Jews-Torah-101-Primer
Why does the Torah mention our food is that with fruit with the seed in it? Isn’t the Torah building up to Gen 3:15, the prophecy of the promised Seed, the Messiah? So then the Torah teaches us that our fruit, which we are commanded to eat only, is the fruit of our obedience to the promised Seed, the Messiah.
On the contrary. The first mention of fruit, is that with seed (zarah) in it. The Torah crescendos to the prophecy of the zarah of the woman – the seed of the woman, the Messiah, teaching us on a peshat level, that the “be fruitful” command G-d gives to Adam and Eve is directly related to the zarah of the woman, the Messiah, both procreatively, missionary, and monarchy.
We also know that fruits of obedience is intended because Adam and Eve are put in the Garden to serve (asah) and guard (shamar) “it.” Funny thing is, “garden” in hebrew is masculine, and “serve” and “guard” are feminine, and according to Hebrew grammar you can’t match feminine adjectives to masculine nouns, meaning that the “it” they are to “serve” and “guard” refers not to the “garden.” The implication is that they are to serve and guard the zarah, or for practical purposes, the Torah – which both are feminine nouns. And we find this understanding as one accepted by the Aramaic commentary of the Torah, known as the Targumim, which existed in Yeshua’s day that clearly says:
Gen 2:15 Targum Pseudo-Jonathan
And the Lord G-d took the man from the mountain of worship, where he had been created, and made him dwell in the garden of Eden, to do service in the Torah, and to keep its commandments.
Then please show us how Messiah Yeshua can command us the Great Commission, from other passages of the Torah, or else by your assertion, he would be a false prophet if such a command was not in the Torah.
June 10th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
[...] The first three chapter of Genesis gives the blue [...]
June 10th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
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