The story of this lineage begins in Genesis. Significantly, the Greek word genesis means “genealogy.” The whole of Genesis is an extended genealogy that leads to the Serpent-Slayer. The early chapters of Genesis trace the patrilineage from Adam to Abraham. Despite the continued rebelliousness of humans, God remains committed to sending a Serpent-Slayer to deliver humanity from the devil’s control.

We live in a world full of contrasts, with good and evil all around us, shaping our experiences. When a close friend suddenly passes away, it can turn our world upside down, leaving us feeling helpless. It’s natural to wonder whether this is how God meant things to be.

If we are to make sense of the world around us, with all its absurdity and evil, we need to see the big picture—a picture that enables us to make sense of life. Here is where the Bible becomes so vital. As God’s revelation to us, it offers a unique perspective on our world, a perspective that cannot be known through philosophy or science.

A unique collection of God-inspired writings, the Bible explains the root of our struggles and points us to the only lasting solution that can bring us true peace amid the chaos around us. The Bible tells a grand story that starts with the creation of our current world and looks forward to a new world to come. Most important, the inhabitants of this future world are those who, having lived through this present life, are redeemed by God to enjoy life in all its fullness in His glorious presence.

To grasp this big picture, we need to start with the creation of our present world. The opening chapter of Genesis highlights how God formed humans and honored them by giving them authority to rule the earth and all its creatures on His behalf. This authority was not a free pass to do as they pleased; it came from God, and humans were meant to act as His earthly representatives, establishing His rule over the entire planet. As humanity expanded in number, God intended that the whole world should become a sacred space, where He would live in harmony with those who love and serve Him.

God’s creation project faced a startling challenge. As described in Genesis 3, Adam and Eve made a heartbreaking mistake by trusting a mysterious serpent who cleverly tricked them into ignoring God’s instructions. Sadly, they betrayed the trust that God had placed in them to rule over other earthly creatures. Rather than ruling over the serpent, they listened to its subtle insinuations and were trapped by it. The human couple became its servants. No longer could they rule as God’s representatives on the earth. As a result, the serpent gained control of this world.

There is much that we do not know about this mysterious serpent. By gaining control over Adam and Eve, however, the serpent, later identified as “the devil and Satan” (Rev. 12:9; 20:2), became “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11). Because he exercised control over “all the kingdoms of the world,” he could offer them to Jesus as a bribe, hoping that, like Adam and Eve, Jesus would serve him (Matt. 4:8–9; Luke 4:5–7). Strikingly, whereas Adam and Eve yielded to the “serpent” in a garden abounding in food that God had lavishly provided, Jesus was tempted by the devil in a desolate wilderness where He had gone without food for forty days. Given the circumstances of the devil’s temptations, Jesus’ willingness to remain loyal to God is all the more noteworthy.

Despite being betrayed, God did not abandon Adam and Eve. He declared that the serpent would be subdued by one of Eve’s descendants (Gen. 3:15). This promise, known as the protoevangelium, is the first proclamation of the gospel. While Adam and Eve willingly sided with the serpent against God, one of Eve’s descendants would oppose it. Most important, Eve’s descendant would succeed where Adam and Eve had failed. He would, however, suffer while doing this, for the serpent would strike His heel.

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