Created for a perfect purpose from the beginning - Genesis 2:4-25

Genesis 2:4-25
Created for a perfect purpose from the beginning
INTRO
I am overwhelmingly delighted to be here with you this morning with the bonus
thrill to share God’s Word from Genesis chapter 2. My family and I were absent
last weekend for a ‘staycation’ with my two brother’s and their families.
It was a dream visit filled with mountain bike adventures each day. My
soul is so very refreshed by it. Two of my nephews were sporting their brand
new 29” dual suspension mountain bikes they saved up two years for which
they were super excited to now revisit these trials around here, where in the
past, their previous…DICK’S SPORTING GOODS baseline hardtail mountain
bikes….failed them every time.
These previous bikes of theirs, simply fell apart on every ride…no joke.
Their prior bikes couldn’t handle the level of riding my nephews used them for.
They were not made for that purpose. We even had one outing where my
brother, (their dad) brought an extra older bike they had as a back up…because
of the track record history. By the end of that trip….ALL three of their bikes
were non-operational. So, finally, spanking new bikes they saved two years
for…are ready and perfectly equipped for the purpose to give them the full
experience the trails have to oﬀer. And they delivered. I think I had as much
fun watching the cousins ride as I did riding myself.
There was one devastating moment however on day 2. Our wives kindly
provided us a shuttle ride to the high point of Post Canyon trails giving us fresh
legs for the long decent. Upon unloading our bikes, my nephew Wyatt
discovered something heartbreaking. A peddle from another bike was touching
the swing arm of his spanking new bike which resulted in a soft cluster of
scratches marring his once perfect bike. UGH. It’s one thing to have scratches
occur as the result of some fantastic yard sale crash you somehow were able to
walk away from……BUT ugly scratches that resulted from a transportation
mishap occurring only a short time after you have owned it. That’s hard to
swallow. His bike wasn’t compromised for it’s purpose…that happened later
when he got a flat….but the thing of it was that it was no longer perfect. It was
now marred.
I believe we can all relate to that. Something you get in your possession that is
brand new like a new vehicle, a new couch, bike, phone or even a new home
and inevitably it get’s marred from use or mishap. Boy though, that window of

time when it is flawless, spanking new and being used for it’s intended
purpose…that’s a nice sweet spot. Everything functioning perfectly for it’s
purpose.
Today, God’s Word gives us a look into that sweet spot in God’s Creation
before it was marred by sin. Everything today in the passage before us is prefall, before Adam and Eve sinned and therefore before God brought about the
curse as a result of it,…which we are still feeling the eﬀects of today.
And, similar to Wyatt’s new bike prior to it’s scratches and a flat tire…God’s
creation was perfect. Flawless in every way with perfect purpose in it’s design.
And that is our focus this morning in “…the generations of the heavens and the
earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and
the heavens.” Stated right there in (verse 4)… “These are the generations….”
Or you could say these are the origins of….the course of history of..the account
of…in this case….of creation….but we will see this phrase repeated numerous
times in Genesis speaking to the origins of a people race. The first time it is
used however,…is here, speaking about the origins of God’s creation in
everything that He had made which had perfect purpose from the beginning.
AGAIN, remember, this is all pre-fall, sin has yet to occur and mar God’s perfect
created world which He (God) created for a perfect purpose from the beginning.
Which is our BIG IDEA to grab hold of today.
Created for a perfect purpose from the beginning.
There are three origins I aim to give attention to in God’s creation that had
perfect purpose. Origins which sinned marred and Christ will restore upon His
return. The 1st is The Origin of intimacy with God - our first point.
BODY
1)

FIRST POINT - (Genesis 2:7). Origin of Intimacy with God

Where do we see this first expressed in the text? In the account of God
making man. (Genesis 2:7) “then the LORD God formed the man of dust from
the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became
a living creature.”
Our Creator God is intimately involved in the making of us…of mankind…who
bear His likeness. We are made in the image of God, made male and female by
God who took great care and intimate involvement in the process. These details

of God forming us out of the dust and breathing into our nostrils the breath of
life….giving us a living soul…these details were not necessary. If He can
simply say a Word and the creation of stars, galaxies, planets and so forth
come into existence at His command, He is more than able to speak His image
bearers into existence.
But that is not how He chose to do so. At the origin, Gods perfect
purpose in creating man was for intimacy between them to be shared. Hold
that thought for a moment. Intimate relation with the God of the universe, the
Eternal God who dwells in unapproachable light. God’s perfect design and
purpose for man from the beginning was that He would have intimate
relationship with Him. God didn’t need this. NOT EVEN. But, in His free
pleasure, He delighted to do so and it began in the very creation of man. At the
origin and it continues today. YES, sin has marred it. Focal attention will be
given to that next week when Ben takes us through chapter 3 of Genesis.
But even now it continues today, before the consummation of what
Christ already accomplished on the cross. Before we are living in what we read
about in (Revelations 21)…before then, in the here and now, through faith in
Jesus Christ, intimacy with God is not only possible but an expected part of the
christian life….and is….good news saints… ’is’ bountifully available to us. Why
do I say so….so confidently? Because GOD says so. “I am here” says God. I
welcome you as you are. “If you seek me with all your heart I-will-be-found by
you.” (Jeremiah 29:13, 2Chronicles 15:2, 1Chronicles 28:9)
“Behold, I….Jesus speaking in (Revelations 3:20). Behold, I stand at the door
and knock. If anyone, (you hear that?) If anyone, hears my voice and opens the
door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” That’s intimacy
with God readily available to us through faith in Christ Jesus who promises so in
His WORD,….which saints…His WORD, being “….All Scripture…” what does IT
tells us in (2 Timothy 3:16-17)?
It tells us that it - “All Scripture is…..breathed out by God and profitable for
teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the
man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” Anything sound
familiar? Sure it does. “….breathed out by God…”. then the LORD God
formed the man of dust from the ground and….breathed into his nostrils the
breath of life.”
In the first account, the giving of a living soul….all before the fall…all before
man sinned and died spiritually…and therefore, having been given a living soul
that God breathed into him, ‘before the fall’….man was alive in relation to God
as was the perfect purpose from the beginning.

The second account,….after the fall of man, after Adam sinned and died
spiritually….we see once again this life giving breath of God in His Word. God’s
WORD is…what does (Hebrews 4:12) say? “For the word of God is living and
active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and
of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of
the heart.” Can God’s breathed out,…’inspired’…WORD be more explicit in it,
His Word, being living and active…and I’ll add life giving whereby one may be
reborn spiritually to once again have intimacy with God.
And that is not me saying that..it’s once again the living and active Word
of God that says it in the two verses prior to saying “All Scripture is breathed
out by God….” that’s (verse 16)….(verse 14 & 15) say this - “But as for you
(Paul speaking to Timothy here but it can be applied to any one of us),…But as
for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing
from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted
with the sacred writings, which are, (now watch this christian) which are able to
make you wise for (what?)…for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” ……for
salvation through faith in Christ Jesus
What do you think that salvation is? It’s God bringing us back into that
intimate relationship with Him through His Son Jesus Christ. Let’s finish this
thought using God’s Words spoken through Peter who was inspired by The
Holy Spirit to do so. (1 Peter 1:22-25). Addressing the church, Peter
says…“Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere
brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have
been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through (now here
it is) born again…through the living and abiding word of God; for
“All flesh is like grass
and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
and the flower falls,
but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that
was preached to you.”
Did you hear that undertone promise?
“All flesh is like grass
and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
and the flower falls,….as will all flesh
“…but the word of the Lord remains forever.”
Mean-ing…if your are born again, spiritually made alive in Christ by the
imperishable seed, the living and abiding Word of God,….then this new life in
Christ….is everlasting. It will never whither or fall.…in other words..it will never
die out. A christian may feel depleted, wearied, downcast and the like but that

will never change one iota the reality of being made spiritually alive forever
and thereby able to enjoy wonderful intimacy with their Creator God for all time
as was purposed from the beginning.
Our perfect purpose in this life is to have intimacy with God. To walk closely
with Him by faith all our days till we are forever with Him in heaven. It brings
glory to His name in doing so. We enter into to this intimacy by spending time
in His Word…. time in God’s breathed scripture. Which itself…as promised in
(Psalm 19:7) “…revives our soul” You feeling dry?…spend time in His Word.
Plead with Him that very promise to revive your soul from His Word. I love
pleading God’s promises back to Him. They bring a confidence…not a
presumption, but a confidence in my prayer for the fact that they are His
promises in His Word which He holds in highest regard. I can be confident
those prayers are eﬀective prayers…which is another means for intimacy with
God.
PRAYER. Talk with God and listen to Him. Prayer is both…be sure
to give time to both. And certainly, fellowship with other believers.
Experiencing intimacy with God works largely as His Spirit works in and
amongst His people who are gathered under His name.
SO, what have we covered thus far? 2 VERSES. (verse 4 and 7)… Gulp. There
is a lot more ahead of us. Take a deep breath, no worries….Much of it we’ll
move through in good stride while retaining the central focus from the text of
how we were created for a perfect purpose from the beginning. We saw first
how God’s perfect purpose at the origin of creation was for man to have
intimacy with God. And we’ll see more of this progress as we move on through
the text,…for it carries on further into the other original, prior to the fall, that
sweet spot in God’s Creation before it was marred by sin…it carries into the
other original perfect purposes of God’s creation. The next being - Origin of
work - our second point.
2)

SECOND POINT (Genesis 2:5-17) - Origin of Work

I recently finished going through EXODUS. Taking the advice of Jason to read
through Exodus and Revelations at the same time to see the parallels that
exist between them. And I’ll have to say…I have no idea what you are talking
about ….- Kidding….of course. It was great! First time I’ve ever done that, and
was greatly blessed by doing so. Thank you Jason for suggesting it.
And an added bonus in doing so, but a familiar one, is in the account of the
making of the tabernacle. LISTEN to this passage found in (Exodus 35:30-35) turn to and read

NOW, yes, this is a special instance. The making of the tent of meeting and all
that it entailed from the pegs outside that held the outer court walls up, to the
details in the priestly garments warn, to everything within the tent of meeting as
was shown Moses on the mountain. So, YES, these men were especially
equipped by God for this task.
But would this working of God in them be
limited to only them? NOT EVEN. I firmly believe, from scripture, that each
and everyone of His image bearers, you and me, have waiting to be discovered
that which God has equipped them with and the very purpose for it.
Our youth here are coming to discover at various levels their unique giftedness
as to the work God is preparing them for,…but also….every adult at each
stage of life. For God’s supply of equipping you for usefulness for His names
sake is a deep well that never runs dry. If the Lord should tarry, I pray he equips
me with a mighty prayer warrior’s heart. That the bulk of the contribution to the
building of His Kingdom He works through me comes….chiefly through fervent
prayers continually lifted up to him in the time of my old age. That I, (70, 80, 90
something) would be like one of the righteous spoken of in….(Psalm 92:12-15)
who “…. flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are
planted in the house of the LORD; they flourish in the courts of our God. They
still (listen to this) they still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and
green, to declare that the LORD is upright; he is my rock, and there is no
unrighteousness in him.” OH, may that be my God’s report of me at the time of
old age.
It is to be acknowledged, however, that many who discover their talents
and giftedness,….use it for their own personal glory. OR, the other sad
outcome,…is many never apply themselves in the first place and therefore
remain in a perpetual state of waisted emptiness and fog. BUT that was not so
in the beginning. The origin of work really began with God Himself who worked
six days in creating everything. And what does God’s Word say when He
finished each day.…looking upon His work done. “God saw that it
was….good.” Another way to put it. “That’s so satisfying”. As was work at it’s
origin was and will one day be again when Christ returns. The Kingdom of God
where Christ reigns as King and we rule and reign with him will function as a
perfect Kingdom and we will have our work, our function, our specific role in
His Kingdom that will be ever so satisfying to us. In God’s grace we have
glimpses of it now I’d say. Consider work done that you thoroughly enjoy and
how satisfying it is,..both…in the process and in it’s completion….
Examples….
Craig and I…and many others also,…would say yes and
amen to wood cutting…sweat and toil involved…sure…but OH how

satisfying….GIDEON - constructing one of his many aviation models to be flight
worthy and the joy and satisfaction it brings his soul to fly it to the shared glee
of many youth here…. To some it may be tinkering on an engine to get it
working or improve it’s power…others it may be making online animation
video’s…composing music…we could go on. Such things we are uniquely
drawn to and gifted by God for,…which require time, eﬀort and thought….and
are….enjoyable from start to finish…. now multiply that times 1000 and your a
little closer to what work was in the garden and what it will be at the
consummation of Christ’s Kingdom - Created for work as it was intended from
the beginning.
Let’s look in the passage to see how this comes together. FIRST is by God
giving us something to do. Check out (verse 5) - read
Nothing springing up from the ground, no man to work it anyway if it did spring
up. Nothing to do. What happens next? (Verse 7) God creates man….and OH,
check out (verse 8). Man needs something to do. Okay then…so “….the LORD
God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he
had formed.” And what happens next in (verse 9) “And out of the ground the
LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good
for food….” Remember (verse 5)? Nothing had yet sprung up. But now that
man is made, made in the image of God, God is a worker and therefore man
created in the image of God is created to work…GOD provides for him a…job.
A job He (GOD) equips man with ability to do.
And note, again this is pre-fall, note how delightful this task is. Everything God
made to spring up is pleasant to sight and good for food. You could say….
“Adam saw that it was….good.” He didn’t do a lick of work yet…and even
then, what God provided for him was very….satisfying. And this took place
here on this earth. OKAY. This was a real place on this same planet GOD made
and Adam was formed out of and walked on. (verses 10-14) provide some
details that assure us of this. Minerals we know of today and the names of four
rivers. Two of the four rivers mentioned in those passages, Tigris and
Euphrates hold to the same name today. The other two have either diﬀerent
names or are no longer in existence. The point is, this was a real place on this
earth and when Christ returns to rule and reign for all eternity…..it will be on this
earth.
When the Bible says “New Heaven and New Earth.” (Revelations 21:1-2)
It’s not some distant land in another galaxy. It’s this place here - renewed.
Made new again. The very thing that has taken place in you if you love and
follow Christ. The Christian has the first fruits of this new creation by the

indwelling Holy Spirit. (Romans 8:23) The Spirit of Christ in you who has
awakened you again to be spiritually alive and enjoy intimacy with God is the
first fruits of this new world order Christ will usher in at His return.
This place of work, God provided for man, existed here on earth…and,…The
LORD God (verse 15) “…..took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to
work it and keep it.” A very satisfying job for man who was surrounded by
God’s stuﬀ that was pleasant to the sight and for food. But notice how
restrictive God is here. (verse 16). “And the LORD God commanded the man,
saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden,…” What a miser.
JOKING…of course. Completely joking!…“…you may surely eat of every tree of
the garden,…”. What a generous command! God even adds a sweetness in the
delivery. “..surely eat…”. “freely devour,….consume to your enjoyment…” And
observe also how there is no mention of moving irrigation lines, or weeding or
pest control or annoying root eating rodents to eliminate. NO, nothing of that
nature. Just take it ALL in,…sight and savor as my gift to you as you enjoy the
satisfying work I’ve equipped you with in working it and keeping it. The perfect
purpose of God’s origin of work.
God’s origin of work for man whom God continues this progression of intimacy
with….for what does God also place in the midst of this garden? First
mentioned in (verse 9) and then again in His command in (verse 17).
None other than the tree of the knowledge of good and evil….
And for the purpose to have sincere, real, intimacy with God,….GOD, knowing
what is necessary for this to be happening…,, Following His overwhelmingly
generous permissive command…He then gives a single restrictive command
(verse 17) “…but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not
eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” A simple, don’t do this
with an added warning…a reason behind as to why. It wasn’t,…don’t do
this..period. But He provides warning as to why. In short, what God is saying
for man to enter in and engage to have intimate relationship with His creator is
simply…. “trust me”
God is saying….“Trust me”….. “Enjoy all that I have made and given to you to
work and keep. Enjoy it all….and…trust me.” That’s foundational in the
christian life. TRUST. Trusting God…which is expressed in abiding obedience
to His WORD. (1 John 5:3). “For this is the love of God, (our intimate love
towards God) that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are
not burdensome.” TRUST is foundational in having intimate relationship with
your creator God…He is putting before you today the same command as He did

to the first man. “Trust me.” TRUST is foundational in having intimacy with
God. It also, bears crucial significance in our relationships to fellow image
bearers of God. If trust is marred between either you and God or between
image bearers…the relationship is suﬀering….there is no way around it. The
relationship is suﬀering and will continue being so until restored.
Trust bears crucial significance in our relationship to our creator and to fellow
image bearers of God which moves us right into our 3rd and final point today
and that is The origin of marriage. The closest form of relationship between two image
bearers of God. Between a man and a woman.
Our Third and closing point. The origin of marriage
3)

THIRD POINT (Genesis 2:18-25) - Origin of marriage

The first and only time, pre-fall, where God says that “it was not good.” Where
is this? (verse 18) “Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man
should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” Not good…meaning, not
complete. Our God, the One true living God is a triune God. Wayne Grudem
states it this way “God eternally exists as three persons, Father, Son and Holy
Spirit, and each person is fully God, and there is one God.”
This truth is progressively revealed to us in the pages of scripture. In fact,
right away in the opening chapter of Genesis we are introduced to hints of it in
(verse 6) of chapter 1…where God says “Let us make man in our image, after
our likeness…”. SO, being that God eternally exists as three persons there
existed interpersonal relationships within the being of God before creation. You
track’n? And so, from the beginning, at the origin of life, God knew that it was
not good for man to be alone, that he was incomplete if so. THUS we are
introduced to God’s perfect design and purpose for marriage.
The storyline how this unfolds is so lovely for it involves the other origins in
God’s created design. Our intimacy with God and our work. Another one of the
Adam’s jobs was to name every living creature God had made. (Verses 19 &
20) tell us this. God, who named man “Adam” which simply means man or
human being, gave Adam, God’s first image bearer, gave him a similar job.
Name all the creatures I have given you to care for. GOD equips Adam with the
wisdom to name every living creature and brings them to Adam to do so. And
what a cool job to do.…right? Elk, Deer, Bear, Dog, Cat, Rat, Lizard, Dolphin,
Whale….could you picture these creatures named anything else? I can’t. Their

name fits them. But what doesn’t fit is anyone of them as a suitable helper for
Adam himself….as the end of (verse 20) states - “But for Adam there was not
found a helper fit for him.” While Adam is enjoying the work of naming all God’s
creatures there is along with it an increasing awareness that none of them line
up well to do life together with. Right on par with what God in (verse 18)
already said. “It is not good for man to be alone.”..and therefore, God is going
to complete His work by making a helper that is fit for Adam. HOW does He go
about doing it? Intimately as He did so with Adam but also intimately involves
Adam in the process as a part of creating her. Let’s read (verses 21-23) - read
So much a part of Adam that it is what formulates the name Adam gave her.
Woman - “because she was taken out of man.”
And then, here, at the origin of life, we have the institute of marriage as
designed by God before sin entered and marred His creation. How it was at
the beginning and how it is to be till Christ returns. (Verse 24-25) - read
NOW there is something remarkable here I do not want you to miss. Pre-fall,
before sin encroached upon God’s creation,….we have here before us a
foreshadowing of the gospel. How can I say that? Listen to what Paul says in
quoting this very verse in Genesis.
(Ephesians 5:31-32) “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and
hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” (that’s quoting right
out of Genesis 2:24,…..now listen to what follows)….Paul says This mystery is
profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.” The union of a
husband and wife is a picture of the mystical union between Christ ‘the groom’
and the Church ‘His bride’. BELOVED…that’s the gospel Paul is speaking of
when he is quoting from (verse 24) in Genesis 2 which,…I emphasize again is
pre-fall, before sin entered creation.
What am I saying here?
GOD, in is Sovereignty, knowing that sin would encroach upon His creation,
being both Creator God and Redeemer God,….Already has as plan A,…the
original plan of redemption of a people for His own possession to have
fellowship, intimacy with God forever where sin would no longer have dominion,
being forever triumphed over in Christ who is the groom, His church the bride.
CHURCH, hear this clearly. God is not only Creator God but also Redeemer
God, He is unchanging, the same yesterday, today, and forever. Forever the
same. We see here in the closing of this chapter, we see our Creator God

shining through also as Redeemer God in the origin of marriage, the perfect
original institution of marriage, the union between and man and woman,
husband and wife. This glorious mystery of Christ and His Church….The
Gospel.
CONCLUSION
Already, so early in the pages of scripture, God’s plan of salvation is taking
shape and coming into view. Next week, in chapter 3, we’ll see another
revealing marker of it…of God’s plan of redemption in Jesus Christ who by
whom and through whom all that God created with perfect purpose from the
beginning……will be restored.

- PRAY
COMMUNION

BENEDICTION
Ephesians 3:7-12


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