What do we do with the numbers?

Last Sunday in the youth group we took communion as a group – everyone who made a commitment to Christ was invited to participate.  It was a special time of remembering the Lord’s sacrifice.  After communion we read Genesis 5 (the entire chapter).

In large group, by way of introduction, we discussed how different cultures use time measurement differently.  For example, in Romanian culture, it is often acceptable to use “five minutes” to mean a short period of time rather than the literal five minutes.  A Romanian audience would understand if the speaker means five literal minutes or a short amount of time from the context.  Therefore, we should expect similar nuances to appear in Genesis (since it is an ancient and foreign book).  This should not discourage us but rather encourage us to (1) search the Scriptures, (2) hold on to what is critical to our faith, and (3) avoid arguing over speculations.

We discussed how the author in Genesis 5 restates that God created people in his image.  He then proceeds to list a long genealogy which at first glance seems dry and rather dull.  However, this “dry” chapter brings out some tough questions.  For example:

• What did the author intend to communicate to his audience? (i.e. what is important to the author?)
• Why would such a chapter be important to a modern-day youth group? (i.e. why would God allow this chapter to be part of the Sacred Scriptures?)

The large group lesson provided the following “thought nuggets” that were later discussed in small groups:

• The creation of men and women in the image of God is once again stressed.
• Many people have tried to explain away the long life spans described – these explanations have many assumptions and speculations which makes them “weak” explanations.
• The genealogy has a “formula”:  the person was born, had sons and daughters, and then they died; even in this fallen state, the image of God in us is not completely eliminated.
• The chapter starts with the image of God, and ends with Noah (good news on both ends).
• The divine truth of scriptures has stood on solid ground for many centuries – man made theories have proved to be temporary.