One of the key features which distinguishes the Judeo-Christian perspective from other “natural” perspectives is that history has a goal. You can chart the key events on a line and the line is going somewhere. History has a goal. And for Christians that goal can be characterized by the term “hope.” Yes, there is also a judgment — which potentially could shape the goal through fear and dread, rather than through joy or hope. But for the believer, the end of history as we know it is a matter of hope.

But to be able to live in hope, we have to have a secure framework which allows us to look to the future with some sense of security. Our lessons for the next three months focus on the first book of the Bible, Genesis. And our first lesson looks at how the New Testament looks back on the first book of our Bible as the basis for daily living and a future hope.