God’s Covenant Plan, Lesson 3.5

God’s Covenant Plan

Lesson Two: Creation, Fall, and Promise

Lesson Objectives

  1. To read Genesis 3-50 with understanding.
  2. To understand God’s covenants with Noah and with Abraham and to see how these covenants look forward to, and are fulfilled in the New Covenant of Jesus Christ.
  3. To appreciate the key figures in the story of Abraham - Melchizedek, circumcision, the sacrifice of Isaac - as they are interpreted in the Church’s tradition.

V. Study Questions

1. How does the covenant with Noah point us to the Sacrament of Baptism?
2. What are the three parts of the covenant that God makes with Abraham?
3. How, according to the Church’s ancient tradition, is the sacrifice of Isaac similar to the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross?
4. For Prayer and Reflection: The Church’s Liturgy of the Hours has always included the Canticle of Zechariah (see Luke 1:68-79) in its Morning Prayers and the Magnificat (see Luke 1:46-55) in its Evening Prayers. Both prayers see the coming of Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s covenant with Abraham. Pray these biblical prayers of the Church and ask God to help you understand more fully "his promise to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever."

Begin Lesson 4

Lesson Outline

  1. East of Eden, Before the Flood
    1. Cain the Wicked
    2. Seth the Righteous
    3. Saved Through Water
  2. After the Flood
    1. Ham’s Sin
    2. To Make a Name
  3. Our Father Abraham
    1. Hebrews and Semites
    2. Priest of the Most High God
    3. ‘Covenant in Your Flesh’
    4. Binding Isaac
  4. Age of the Patriarchs
    1. Jacob the Younger
    2. Joseph and Judah
  5. Study Questions

Other Lessons

  • Lesson One: How a Catholic Starts to Read the Bible
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To learn how to read the Bible the way the Catholic Church has always read it.
    2. To understand the concepts of “salvation history” and “covenant” and their importance for reading the Bible.
    3. To learn the key points of the creation story in the Bible’s first book, Genesis.

    Begin Lesson One

  • Lesson Two: Creation, Fall and Promise
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To read Genesis 1-3 with understanding.
    2. To learn God’s “original intent” in creating man and woman.
    3. To understand the sin of Adam and Eve and understand God’s promise of a New Adam and a New Eve.

    Begin Lesson Two

  • Lesson Four: On the Way to the Promised Land
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To read the Books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy with understanding.
    2. To understand God’s covenant with Israel at Sinai and to see how this covenant looks forward to and is fulfilled in the New Covenant of Jesus Christ.
    3. To appreciate the key figures and events - Moses, the Passover, and the vocation of Israel as “a kingdom of priests” - as they are interpreted in the Church’s tradition.

    Begin Lesson Four

  • Lesson Five: To Kingdom Come
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To finish reading the Old Testament (from Joshua to Malachi) and to read with understanding.
    2. To understand the broad outlines of the history of Israel in light of God’s covenant with Abraham.
    3. To appreciate the crucial importance of God’s everlasting covenant with David.

    Begin Lesson Five

  • Lesson Six: Into the Kingdom of the Son
    • Lesson Objectives
    1. To read the New Testament with understanding.
    2. To understand how the New Testament depicts Jesus as the fulfillment of the covenants of the Old Testament.
    3. To appreciate, especially, the importance of God’s everlasting covenant with David for understanding the mission of Jesus and the Church as it is presented in the New Testament.

    Begin Lesson Six