Who are we? What are we? Where are we? These are questions that we all want answered whether we’re conscious of it or not. Human existence is pretty weird and the desire to orient ourselves is always in play. Basic questions regularly need to be answered such as: What time is it? How do I get there? What happens next? They can pertain to ordinary daily activities or the fundamental beliefs informing our lives. We all want to know where we are at any given moment. This isn’t necessarily obvious until we become disoriented; then it can become critical. A dizzy spell, a wrong turn, a sense of isolation or an unexpected reaction from someone can cause us to lose our bearings. When that happens our immediate response is to get back on track, to right the ship … recover our balance. There’s a defensive element to this because being disoriented is uncomfortable; and the process of finding our way requires a response from us. In some respects we’re always trying to answer the question, where am I? Where am I in time? Where am I in place? And if the answers aren’t obvious then other questions arise like: How did I get here? Or: Where am I going? We need to orient ourselves in order to feel comfortable. The unknown is a challenge…or a threat, depending on what we rely on to answer the questions. And the process is ongoing and often unconscious. The questions float around in our thinking but they’re always there, motivating us to make the best sense of life that that we can.

This is where myths can come into play. They provide a foundation for us, a platform from which we can get our bearings. They help us organize the “data,” point us in a direction and provide a starting point from which we can address our circumstances.  The term itself denotes a type of presentation that explains fundamental concepts regarding our existence. Whether that presentation is true or not is a secondary issue. For the Christian the fundamental myth that informs our understanding of ourselves is found in the first three chapters of Genesis; it’s a rendition of God’s creation of everything, and helps us understand who we are, and why we are the way we are. What sets this “myth” apart from others is that it’s true; it’s god-breathed. The proof for that evaluation is what prompts all the contention regarding human origins: old-earth vs new-earth theories etc. However, the purpose of this discussion is not to prove that the view of humanity in the Bible is true; I’m addressing an audience that already knows that to be the case. Rather the effort here is to listen to what God our Father is telling us through this story of beginnings.

In a previous post we looked at chapter 1 in which the Lord established our universe. He basically spoke our reality into existence. He said “ ‘Let there be light’; and there was light.” (Genesis 1:3) Then He created all the features of the universe and populated it with flora and fauna. He then created people: He created them “in His own image”, male and female, and gave them plants for food. (Gen 1:27-29) What I emphasized previously from this chapter was the implication of the Lord speaking light into His creation, recognizing the power of that declaration. He basically spoke the fundamental parameters of our universe into existence. What power…what majesty this declaration presents to us! We need to keep this in mind as we delve further into this presentation of our origins. When the Lord speaks EVERYTHING can change!

When we get to chapter 2 the focus is on the first man and woman. We’re told that after having created everything in six days, the Lord rested on the seventh day and “sanctified” that day accordingly. Then the narrative delves into certain aspects of the creative process, and gives particular attention to the creation of the first couple. There are several things to note here and I’m not going to try and give attention to all of them. However, one thing of significance is the way in which God created the first man, Adam. According to this account, God formed the man from the dust and then “breathed” life into Him. The nature of this process is quite different from other creation stories of the ancient world. Other renditions of human origins have the god or gods creating people as a group, but this account points to the personal relationship of man to His creator from the very beginning. This is important because it points to the type of relationship that we’re all to have with our creator God.

The next thing that we should focus on is the establishment of gender; God created us male and female, and the manner in which he did this is significant. Furthermore, in trying to understand this we must recognize the influence of this fallen world on our thinking. With that in mind we need to ask the important questions such as: Why did He make us the way He did? He could have made us any way He wished. Even the initial creation of gender is significant. Why did he make two genders as a means for reproduction in the first place? Other species present different means of reproduction. But the Lord chose to establish two genders of humanity, and the differences go beyond our reproductive organs. Think about it. When the Lord made the woman, Eve, He made her smaller than the man. Now saying that is an assumption on my part, but I think it’s reasonable. I don’t think that feature is the result of being alienated from God—which happens in the next chapter. The significance of the different statures of men and women may be indicated by the way in which the woman was formed from one of Adam’s ribs. What we do know is that Eve was made because God didn’t think it was good for Adam to be alone. And the Lord created her to assist Adam in the cultivation and keeping of the garden of Eden, (Genesis 2:18)

In the effort to hear what the Lord is telling us in this chapter I want to encourage you to avoid the tendencies for misusing the text that I’ve mentioned previously. This isn’t a science book so trying to disprove the truthfulness of the text by pointing out that men and women have the same number of ribs is invalid. At the same time, this story is inspired text and needs to be taken seriously, allowing it to inform our thinking even if it runs counter to the views of modern society. Now there are various aspects of this account that we could focus on, but I’d like to give further attention to the issues of size and gender. As I’ve already suggested God could have made us any way He wished but He chose to make the woman smaller and physically weaker than the man. This is a statement that is true in general, but, arguably, with exceptions. He also chose to make our reproduction dependent on the two genders having intercourse. Why did He do it that way?

If I were the one engineering the production of the human race I may have discerned the need for companionship leading to the creation of two genders, but I probably would have made the woman bigger and stronger than the man. Think about it, the woman needs to bear the child and nurse them till their weaned. The man needs to be out and about in order to provide the sustenance for the woman and child. Why not make the woman bigger and stronger in order to protect the household while the more nimble man is our running around cultivating and gathering the necessities of life for his family? If it had been done this way the size and strength of the woman could be the features that attracted the man, rather than her curves and her femininity? She could have the physic of a gorilla and men would be enthralled with her gorilla-like features while anyone threatening her offspring would have to deal with her strength and power. I’m being facetious here but it is possible given the power of God to determine all things pertaining to His creation.

Considering this may sound silly but I think it gets right to the heart of the human condition in this fallen world. Why do you think there’s so much discussion about human sexuality in our modern culture? Why do you think that sexual conduct and misconduct have been so pronounced in human history? In times past it was the case that soldiers were paid through pillage and rapine including the raping of the enemy’s women.  The Lord had to stipulate the dos and don’ts of sexual conduct in the law; and prior to that an entire segment of society was destroyed due in large part to sexual deviation. (Genesis 19) Why does God guard sexual conduct so rigorously?

As I’ve contemplated this it occurred to me that the Lord’s concern for proper sexual behavior, and the tendency for fallen humanity to deviate from His norms, is due to the iconic nature of human gender and procreation. Men and women are designed in such a way that their relationship is meant to represent humanity’s relationship with the Lord Himself. We’re weaker than the Lord and dependent on Him for our sustenance. He cares for us and works to insure our well-being in relationship with Him. And the ultimate realization of our humanity comes through intimacy with God. In our fallen condition the tendency, informed by the god of this world, is to distort and obscure our relationship with the Lord, and we do this, in part, by defacing the icon of our relationship with Him through sexual deviation.

One place where this is specifically expressed in the Bible is Ephesians. In chapter 5 of Paul’s letter, the apostle encourages us to be imitators of God, walking in love and avoiding immorality, and he’s referring to sexual immorality. He makes it plain that such deviant behavior will exclude us from the kingdom that we’re being challenged to enter. It is the kingdom of God that we seek, and the good news is that we have the opportunity to enter into it, starting now and culminating in the return of Christ Jesus. Later in the chapter the iconic nature of our sexual conduct as it’s expressed in the marriage relationship is made evident.

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife even as Christ is head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to theirs husbands. Husbands love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word…(Ephesians 5:22-27)

There’s a lot more that could be said about these verses, and I know it’s controversial given the current condition of our society, both inside and outside the church, but I think that what I’m suggesting is valid. God created us in such a way that our sexuality and our sexual relationships are meant to reflect humanity’s relationship to creator God. That’s why the Lord made us male and female as He did, and that’s why He stipulates our sexual behavior as He does. To deviate from His intentions results in marring something that is a fundamental expression of our humanity. We exist because God made us. And we, as a race, continue to exist because God gave us a means to procreate. And the Lord, being the eloquent creator that He is, designed our means of procreation in a way that reflects our dependence on Him and our need for intimacy with Him.