“Created in the image of God” ( Genesis 1:26-27 ) - “God saw everything that He had created… it was very good” ( Genesis 1:31 ). At the end of Genesis 1, things couldn’t get any better. It looked so promising. The future looked bright with hope. It was bright with the light of God’s love. Everything looked so good. Could things get any better than this? Sometimes when we feel like this, there can be trouble just around the next corner! That’s what we have in Genesis 3. It begins with the question, “Did God say?” ( Genesis 3:1 ). This is asking for trouble – big trouble! Before long, questioning becomes contradiction – “the serpent said to the woman, ‘You shall not surely die” ( Genesis 3:4 ). God says one thing. The serpent (Satan – see Revelation 12:9 ) says something else. He says the exact opposite! From that moment, there was conflict – but there was also the promise of victory. In Genesis 3:15 , there’s a great prophecy. It points forward to the death of Jesus Christ...
‘I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go into the House of the Lord”’ ( Psalm 122:2 ). Why do we go to the House of the Lord? * We go ‘to give thanks to the Name of the Lord’ ( Psalm 122:4 ). * We seek His mercy for our past sins: ‘Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us!’( Psalm 123:3 ). * We seek His help for our future temptations: ‘Our help is in the Name of the Lord…’ ( Psalm 124:8 ). As we receive mercy and help from the Lord, we worship Him: ‘Blessed be the Lord’ ( Psalm 124:6 ). In our worship, we ‘look to the Lord our God’, drawing encouragement from His Word: ‘The Lord is on our side’- In Him we have the victory ( Psalms 123:2 ; 124:1-5 ). Rejoicing in God’s blessing, we pray for others: ‘May they prosper who love You’ ( Psalm 122:6 ).