Not So Good

 Write From My Heart / November 5, 2020 / Not So Good

 Genesis 3:1-14 (NIV)  Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’ The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” And he [God] said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

            God created the universe and beyond; he created the world and everything in it and pronounced that it was very good. Then he put man in charge of caring for his creation. This is where our little mini-series on good picks up from yesterday’s devotion, although I feel I must give you a couple of spoiler alerts: 1) this devotion may be lengthy, 2) this devotion does not have a happy ending—yet. You’ll have to continue the mini-series for the happy ending. But if I am truly writing from my heart, I cannot leave out this part. It would be unfair to you.

            For the majority of my readers, you have undoubtedly heard many sermons and Sunday School lessons on the topic of sin. I will make every attempt to keep this brief, but much of that depends on you. Did you really read the text or just skim through it quickly thinking it to be a familiar passage (e.g., “I already know this.”)? Take your time. Read it again, carefully. There are several quick points I’d like to present in hopes of building a foundation for future devotions. I encourage you to ponder the following points:

The crafty serpent entices by challenging God’s authority using generalizations.

            Did God really say? Is it really true? Does ANY tree mean ALL the trees?

            The truth is Satan doesn’t have to work very hard to lead us astray. All he has to do is plant the seed of doubt in our minds. We seem all too willing and able to take it from there and develop it into blossoming sin. Furthermore, the challenge to God’s authority tempts us into the false belief that God’s word is open to our subjective interpretations. We have the false conception that there are little sins and big sins. The truth is that sin is anything that would draw us away from God.

Sin complicates the simple.

            Well…..we can eat it this, but not that….we can’t even touch it or we’ll die.        

            God’s word is truth. God’s word is simple. It is we who tend to complicate matters. I am reminded of an older familiar hymn: “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey,” (words, John H. Sammis, 1887).

The first two recorded lies were spoken only once, but repeated to this very day.

            Lie #1: You will not die.     Lie #2: You will be like God.

            When Eve took her eyes off the Creator to engage with the created, sin entered the world. From that point forward to this very day, and until Christ shall return, God’s very good creation has been marred by decay—flora and fauna alike. No, Eve did not receive struck-by-lightning, instantaneous death, but all mankind began the slow process of aging decay unto death. I have much more to write from my heart concerning these first two lies; but for now, it is sufficient to acknowledge these lies, spoken only once, are currently in circulation today even among many evangelical settings.

The same original temptations are the root of today’s temptations and were in fact the same temptations faced by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

            (v. 6) …good for food     …pleasing to the eye     …desirable for gaining wisdom

 

(Matthew 4:3,8, and 6) …tell these stones to become bread     …all this I will give you (e.g., all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor)     …if you are the Son of God, then—, because it is written…

 

(1 John 2:16) …the cravings of sinful man     …the lust of his eyes     …the boasting of what he has and does 

            Sin follows the same pattern. First we focus on worldly things instead of keeping our focus on God, (i.e., I need this or that, it’s my right, I deserve it). We follow our own pleasures instead of following God’s truths presented in his Word, (i.e., eat, drink, and be merry; it looked or seemed good at the time). We try solving it in our own wisdom and when that fails we attempt to justify our actions, (i.e., my way or no way, everyone’s doing it, it’s just a little thing, besides—things are different now).

The penalty for sin is death; the by-products are fear and shame.

            (vs. 8 and 10) …they hid from the LORD God          …I was afraid…so I hid

            We would do well to remember that God is aware of everything we think, say, or do. Even when we try to conceal things from others, God knows the intent of our heart. There is no hiding from God.

I Samuel 16:7 (NIV)     Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.

Proverbs 28:13 (NIV)   He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.

Playing the Blame Game never works.

            (vs. 12-13) …the woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit          …the serpent

            deceived me

I see something truly sinister about the Blame Game. Adam blames God for giving him a defective product, (i.e., You gave her to me, and she did it first). Likewise, Eve makes her own feeble attempt to justify herself, (i.e., it’s not my fault, the Devil made me do it). Yet in God’s sight, each one was responsible for his/her own actions and each one received due consequences. Just as sin itself continues today, so do the consequences—and these will continue until Christ returns.

No, things are not so good. Could they get any worse?

Gracious Heavenly Father,

            All too often we try to hide the sins of our heart and yet we realize nothing is ever hidden from you. Forgive us for we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed by what we have done and by what we have left undone. The responsibility is ours alone. We thank you for your love, your mercy, and your grace.

            In the name of Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior, Amen.