John C. Rankin. Genesis and the Power of True Assumptions. W. Simsbury CT: TEI Publishing, 2013. Print.

This is a book of practical theology. I recommend it for anyone in ministry. I am normally not a fan of theological works. My experience has been that they often tend to divide. Rather than presenting an essay—literally an attempt—there is a tendency for theologians to say, “This is the way it is and anyone who disagrees is deluded.”

Genesis and the Power of True Assumptions is not like that. Indeed, the book is somewhat refreshing. It is based on principles found in the first two chapters of Genesis. (And it only tangentially deals with the creation vs. evolution question.) Rankin shares stories from his own ministry (for more by him see Jesus in the Face of His Enemies and The Six Pillars of Honest Politics) which show that most of the Genesis assumptions are things that all people desire. The problem, of course, is sin. In these first two chapters of the Bible, we get not only the first indication of what God is like but also insight into ethics.

There is an order to creation. First there is God, who creates life. After he created man, He gave man choice. He then tells man to multiply, so we have ethics with some focus on sex. Sin reverses that order: sin/sex followed by stifling choice, followed by devaluing life, and finally followed by denying God.

Rankin points out that apart from atheism, there are three ways of looking at God: the monad (as in Islam) or unity without diversity which leads to conformity; polytheism (as in most traditional religions, shamanism, and paganism) which has diversity without unity and conflicting claims on power; and the Trinity (as in Christianity) with diversity in service to unity and which provides a balance of power.

Without going into great detail here, Rankin demonstrates ten principles from the Bible which are first presented in Genesis 1 and 2. Jewish interpretation of Scripture notes that the first mention of something is the most significant. These principles are intrinsic parts of Judaism and Christianity, at least for those who take the Scriptures seriously. These principles give great insight into human relations with God and with one another.

These are the principles:
1. The nature of God, especially as giver;
2. Communication, between persons of the Trinity, between God and man, and between human beings;
3. Human nature, that is, man created in God’s image;
4. Human freedom, especially in contrast to the slavery of sin;
5. God’s love of hard questions;
6. Human sexuality, the creation of woman, and the covenant of marriage and family;
7. The scientific method;
8. Verifiable history;
9. Covenant and law;
10. Life, liberty, and property.

Note that most of these are epistemological, that is, they deal with questions of truth. True freedom enjoys the discovery of truth and the sharing of truth. As Rankin puts it, an honest discussion of truth can only happen on a “level playing field” when participants treat one another with respect and when no honest question is silenced.

Note also that these assumptions or principles hold true at all levels of society and in all institutions. Rankin especially applies them to family, to free discussions of issues, and to government.

He has found that virtually everyone who is honest wants to live with peace, order, stability, and hope. He uses the acronym POSH. God gives. God gave mankind the power to give as well. The monad, the polytheist, and most atheistic systems emphasize taking—either by the gods or by the government, or both. So peace, order, stability, and hope become spiritual issues as well. So Genesis 3 records a spiritual disruption which Rankin demonstrates has kept on through history.

But God, the great Giver, has reversed the order brought by sin by giving us His Son to restore His creation to the godly order of freedom He intended.

The second half of Genesis and the Power of True Assumptions takes the reader through every book of the Bible, showing how these assumptions are carried and challenged through history. It also shows how spiritual opponents, led by the devil, try to thwart God’s goodness and giving nature through history.

The great theologian William Shakespeare may have summed it up succinctly: “There’s a divinity that shapes our ends/ Rough-hew them how we will.” (Hamlet 5.2.11,12) Rankin shows how rough-hewn these ends sometimes are, but how great and loving our Divinity truly is.