Thursday, January 10, 2019

The Fall – Part 1



This week, Michael writes that God created the perfect environment in the Garden of Eden to bless Adam and Eve. How did they fall from God’s grace? Genesis Chapter 3 is the story of the original sin. We did not realize just how great a fall original sin created, but this is the greatest tragedy of mankind. A tragedy is an event marked by great loss, distress, and lasting misery. Jesus’ parable of the foolish man who built his house on the sand is an illustration of tragedy: The foolish man built his house upon the sand and when the wind came and the waves crashed, great was the fall of that house because it was built upon the sand.

According to Genesis 3, “the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” The devil’s job is to question the truth of the word of God in order to cause us to doubt what God says. In our culture, it’s considered foolishness to believe that the bible is the revealed word and will of God. Satan caused that doubt.

In verses 2-3, Eve answered the devil’s question: “And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” To entertain the devil’s question is the beginning of the fall of man. When you engage with the adversary, then you’re in the devil’s ballpark and he’s in control of the game. Eve knew exactly what God had said, but she added the words “lest ye touch it”. Then she changed the words “thou shalt surely die” to “lest ye die.” When you add to the Word of God and then change the Word of God you no longer have the truth of the Word.

The devil replied in verses 4-5: “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5. For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” When she considered the devil’s lie, Eve doubted the word of God and that was the “original sin”. Then the devil told her an outright lie: “Ye shall be as God knowing good from evil.” His message was, “God’s not God. You are. You can worship and serve yourself.”

According to verse 6: “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.” Jesus said that loving the world is not of the Father but is of the enemy. The lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the God-rejecting world system. Lust is anything that we desire over our fellowship with God. Eve walked by sight and not by faith when she saw that it was good for food, saw that it was pleasant, and desired it to make one wise. But, according to the Epistle of James, the wisdom of this world is earthly, sensual, and devilish.

Let's continue Michael's message on the Fall of Man in the next post.
In Christ, Brian

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