Genealogies are Awesome! ~ Genesis 5 (Chart Lesson)

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Objectives:

• to summarize the purpose of genealogies
• to explain that history, language, math, and science are all created by God
• to discuss that genealogies help us to see that God used real people who lived and died

Materials: I created a poster of the chart. You might want to have your child, or class, depending upon the age, make a chart; Bible

Geography:

Somewhere outside of the Garden

Background:

God created the world. Adam and Eve were placed in the garden. Sin took place. Adam and Eve left the garden and a hard life began. Cain and Abel were born and Abel was killed. Sin is spreading as more and more babies are born.

Main Events of Genesis 5:

Genealogy sections of scripture are usually skipped by children and adults. They are seen as boring and not important. But ALL scripture is useful for teaching, so there MUST be something we can learn by reading the genealogies. God created everything. He created language so He can communicate with us. He also created math because He is a God of order and patterns. So to study the genealogy, we have to take words and turn them into math. Then we can look at history and science! God made those too you know.

{If you are having the students make the chart, discuss with them what they see as the chart is formed. Ask questions such as, How many years did these men live? Compare the bars of the men. Which one is longest, which is shortest? Discuss who would have known Adam and spoken with him.}

Show the chart to the children. Ask observational questions such as the ones listed above.

Read through Genesis 5. [To make it interesting, read the number verses quickly and slow down and enunciate “and he died.”]

What do you notice when we read about Enoch? Does the scripture say, “And he died?” [No, he walked with God and then God took him. He did not experience death like the others.] What does his bar on the chart look like? [It is the shortest.] What happened during the lives of Noah and Shem? [the flood]

Genealogies are important because they give us history. They show us that the people of the Bible were real people who were born, lived, and died. Genealogies also show us the age of the earth. Many people claim that the earth is millions of years old because of fossils and the theory of evolution. Yet when we look at scripture first, that string of thought cannot be correct. The flood took place about 1,650 years after Creation. When we look at Genesis 11, there is another genealogy up to Abraham. Then in the New Testament, there is another genealogy that leads to Jesus. All of these show a passage of time and the years and generations that took place. If we look at scripture and believe that it is the word of God, then the earth is only around 6,000ish years old. There is no way, by looking at scripture first, that the earth is millions of years old. This means Christians must look at scientific finds through a different lens than the world. The Bible does not answer all of our questions. But it does lead us to The One who knows all.

Life Application of Genealogies:

Some people like to accept the Old Testament scriptures and disregard Jesus and the new covenant. Others choose to only read the New Testament and consider the Old Testament as obsolete. In truth, the Old Testament shines with the gospel and why Jesus needed to come. The New Testament shows how Jesus fulfills the Old Testament. We cannot have one without the other.

Even the genealogies reflect the gospel. God uses words to teach us and reveal Himself to us. If we look at the Hebrew meanings of the names of all the men listed in Genesis 5, this is the list we see:

Now read the gospel: Man [is] Appointed [to]  Mortal Sorrow; [But!] the Blessed God Shall come down, Teaching, [and] His death shall bring The Despairing Rest, or Comfort.

Even in a genealogy God tells us about His plan for salvation!!

**Resources used: Do the Genealogies Contain Gaps?; Evidence of Design in Genesis 5 (the name chart is from this website)