Jesus In Genesis
The first thing we see in the Bible is that there are these connections between what we call: Act One and Act Two, or better known as the Old and New Testaments. You don't have to look far to find them. In fact, you can find glimpses of Jesus throughout the first book of the Bible!
In Genesis, we find glimpses of the life and death of Jesus. The story starts with a man named Adam and ends with his son Seth. It is through this lineage that we see God's plan unfold to crush sin and provide salvation for all mankind through the Son, Jesus Christ. One might be surprised to find out there are these hyperlinks between what we call: Act One and Act Two, or better known as the Old and New Testaments. You don't have to look far to see the connections. In fact, you can find glimpses of Jesus throughout the first book of the Bible, in Genesis!
In the beginning, before all things were created, there was God. And with him was his Son, Jesus (John 1:1). You can find glimpses of Jesus throughout the book of Genesis. Genesis 1:1-5 tells us that “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Jesus was there with him from the very start of creation! In fact, John 1:1 tells us that before anything else existed, before time even began, Jesus already existed as God’s Word. John goes on to say in verse 14, “The Word became flesh."
Jesus shows up in Eve's promised offspring who will crush the serpent's head. (Genesis 3:15)
God's promise of Eve’s offspring is fulfilled in Christ. Though sin entered the world through Adam, Jesus has crushed Satan and brought life from death (Genesis). This victory was won at a great cost: "He shall crush your head." That price was paid by Christ himself on Calvary (Joshua 24:15).
Jesus shows up as Abraham’s descendant who will bless the whole world.
In Genesis 12, God tells Abraham that his descendants would be blessed so greatly, they would “be a blessing to others" (12:13). The same chapter also says that all families of the earth will be blessed because of Abraham's covenant with God--the people know him as the father of many nations.
This is a foreshadowing of the gospel, fulfilled by Christ. Jesus was sent from Abraham's descendants to be a blessing for all nations (Galatians). As he walked this world, he announced that his mission would one day come true--that God’s promises were coming to fulfillment through him!
Jesus is the ultimate king promised as a descendant of Judah in Genesis 49:29-30. This passage speaks about someone who will not only rule on David's throne and establish an eternal kingdom but also "crush [his] enemies before you." The same person is called "a shoot" and given the title “the everlasting Father." One look at history reveals that Jesus accomplished both parts of these prophecies. He established an everlasting kingdom with David’s throne, and he crushed his enemies before the Father.
As a descendant of Abraham who will bless all people and rule forever as a king from David's line (Genesis 12:2-3; 49:10). In the gospel of Matthew, great pain was taken in the genealogy to show that Jesus is a descendant of David.
We see Jesus in Genesis through a character named Melchizedek.
Melchizedek was a priest-king who appears to Abraham after he defeats four kings (Genesis 14). Melchizedek first introduces himself by blessing Abraham, then offers bread and wine in a ritualistic fashion.
Melchizedek is significant because he appears to be the only person described as being both a king and priest who was not from Israelite lineage. In Hebrews, we see an allusion to Melchizedek when eternity past God's promise of his eternal reign over "all kingdoms" (Psalms 110:12) with Jesus called "a priest forever." This has significance for Christians today since kingship belongs exclusively to Christ - so it speaks volumes about how shockingly good this news is that He would take on priesthood too! The writer of Hebrews goes even further in identifying Melchizedek as one greater than David.
Jesus shows up on Mount Moriah (Genesis 22)
When Abraham climbs Mount Moriah, prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac on an altar, a ram is found to take Isaac’s place, prefiguring what Jesus would become for us: our substitute.
In the first place, Isaac is a type of Christ. The name “Isaac” means laughter or joy and Jesus will bring us eternal joy (John 16:22-23). Furthermore, Abraham was as good as dead when he offered up his son but God provided an animal to take Isaac’s place. Similarly, our sins are taken away by Jesus who died on behalf of sinners while they were still alive. The picture of the provision of the ram being caught in the nearby thorn bushes is a picture of Jesus who was caught in the thorns on our behalf.
The ram is also a type of Christ because it points to his future work as priest (Exodus 29:36-37). The ram which Abraham sacrificed prefigures that God’s chosen one would be anointed with oil, treading olive and wine into the ground for people to drink at all times in remembrance of their sins (Leviticus 14:14-17; Hebrews 13:11). Just like this animal, we are saved by grace through faith without any works or deeds being necessary from us so that no man will boast before God about what he has done in order to get eternal life.
