Church & Community Mobilization –
God’s Purpose for Humankind

Bible Study No. 1

God created a world which was good, suitable for His purposes, and reflected His character. In this world everything had its place, and a sense of harmony and well-being/shalom prevailed.

Tragically, humankind was seduced into believing that a better life might be enjoyed by living independently of God’s oversight. Rather than manage creation on God’s behalf, we seek to master it for our own benefit. This stubborn drive for independence is here portrayed as the root cause of all the difficulties we now experience.

The aim of this Bible study is to grow in each of us a greater sense of our own purpose and calling under God, as those who were created by Him to work together with Him as stewards of His creation. It leads us to reflect on what it means to be created in God’s image, to bear His character and to be co-workers with Him.

We will explore what human thriving looks like from God’s perspective as presented in the story of the Garden of Eden, while also reflecting on our current experience, and that of humankind (which generally falls short of God’s ideal). This will lead us, finally, to consider what specific actions God might be asking each one of us to undertake.