In the Beginning

In the beginning, God said let there be. Within a fraction of a moment, mass filled the void and in an infinite expansion, our universe began to grow and take shape. Within the mess of tangled atoms, a perfect environment began to form; the exact distance from a star to produce adequate warmth, and with just the right amount of oxygen, hydrogen, and water. As it began to take shape, from the dirt living beings were fashioned. Beasts, birds, fish, and people all began to crawl up from the earth. The Genesis narrative shows us a beautiful allegory of how mankind came to be. It eloquently depicts scientific theories disguised as history and poetically, it falls in line with many of our modern insights into creation. But aside from all of that, it does one more thing exceedingly well: it shows mankind just how easy it is to set us off course. And if there is any merit to the story then we have been struggling to make our way back to what we were created for since the first humans ever walked the surface of this big blue marble. Sin, the product of human disobedience against God, was introduced the moment Adam and Eve decided they wanted to know more. God was holding out on them and just like the best gossipers and scholars among us even to this day, knowledge took precedence over relationship. As we know, knowledge is power but with power comes great responsibility and the responsibility we took on that fateful day was the responsibility to govern ourselves. They say ignorance is bliss, but if knowing is half the battle then with the words of the serpent humanity drew its sword for the very first time. Because sometimes, the more you know, the more you feel the need to fight for what you’ve learned - even if what we believe isn’t the whole truth after all. A half-truth is a whole lie, but is it lying if we don’t know what we don’t know? So here is your warning: Today we are delving into a story that’s as much true as it is false, has much evil as it has good, and is as redemptive as it is damning. This is a tale of half-truths, whole lies, and requires a lot of reading between the lines. It has been molded through the years by kings, bishops, popes, pastors, and reformers time and time again. It’s been misunderstood, mistranslated, and has been taken as far out of context as one could take such a simple, yet an intricate piece of scripture. Why? Because we are still subject to the same desire that seduced the minds of the first fruits of creation that day in the garden: we still have that same desire to not be left out in the dark, that same desire for enlightenment, that same desire to know. --- Thank you for listening to this episode of Itinerant. If you enjoy the show, take a moment to subscribe, rate, and share it on with a friend. Word of mouth is a powerful thing and your recommendation is much appreciated. You can find out more about me and the show at itinerantpodcast.com. I co-host another podcast called The Reckless Pursuit. The Reckless Pursuit is a show dedicated to providing a safe place for Christians to ask unsafe questions. If you need a community of people where you can talk about your questions safely, we might just be your tribe. No matter your current church status or even religious views, all questions are welcome to help us grow and lay down our spiritual baggage. So if you feel like a spiritual Nomad we invite you to stop and rest. The journey is long but the beauty lies within it. Visit us there at https://therecklesspursuit.com. And until next time, keep searching, you never know what mysteries lie ahead.