Message Outline

1. Letting Genesis 1 Speak for Itself

2. Other Creation Stories
- Hymn of Ptah
- Hymn of Atum
- Enuma Elish

3. Chaos - Violence - Death - Order

4. Genesis 1's Pattern: Chaos - God - Order

5. The Rhetoric of Order

6. How God Establishes Order

Next Steps

1. Reflect on the other creation stories Pastor Jon mentioned.

2. Reflect on Genesis 1:1 - 2:4 in light of those stories. Take note of what stands out to you in light of other ancient stories taught about the creation of the world.

3. Pray that God would establish order through peace, not violence.

4. Find a way you can bring order to the world in the way God would want.

Growth Group / Personal Reflection Questions

1. Were you surprised that the Biblical creation narrative came into existence in the midst other creation narratives? If not, what other creation narratives are you aware of?

2. By comparing and contrasting creation narratives, how does Genesis 1-2:4 stand out? How do these differences form your understanding of the Christian faith?

3. One thing that sets the Biblical creation narrative apart from others is that God is understood as completely set apart from time, space and matter. Is that easy to comprehend? If not, why not? How might this understanding bolster your faith? What does this say about God's nature?

4. What does a God of order mean to you?

5. In what ways do people preach that order comes from violence in today's world?

6. How can Christian's counteract the message that order comes through violence?

Worship Song List
1. Your Love Awakens Me by Phil Wickham
2. 10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord) by Jonas Myrin and Matt Redman
3. Made For More by Blake Wiggins, Jessie Early, Jonathan Smith & Josh Baldwin
4. Heart of God by Zach Williams
5. Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone) by Chris Tomlin | John Newton | Louie Giglio

Facilitate or host a sermon based growth group this Fall.

Starting the first weekend of October, StoneBridge will be launching a new message series insightfully venturing through the Book of Deuteronomy. Whether in-person or by Zoom, experience your own spiritual blessing by facilitating or hosting a new, Fall growth group. If you have any questions or would like to sign up, email jonathan@stonebridgesimi.com.

FANTASY FOOTBALL PREP NIGHTS

On Tuesday, August 26 and September 2, Pastor Jon will be doing Fantasy Football draft prep and you're invited to join. We will be meeting in the Fireside Room at 5:15. If you've been playing Fantasy Football for a long time, come and share ideas with others. If you're new to Fantasy Football, come and learn.