Remember 12 years ago, today. To be honest, I had to be reminded. I wonder how it comes to be that one forgets...and such a monumental and wide-reaching fact. I have yet to forget one of my elementary school teachers, or a lunch sac I carried then that read "SCHOOL IS KOOL," or maybe "SKOOL IS KOOL." It was red, for sure.
Forgetfulness is a human condition, and perhaps the human condition. I mean, really, if we remembered everything we experienced, then we would still be in the garden of Eden walking with God Himself on a regular basis. We would have said, "No, you silly serpent, God said I would die if I ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. How about we just ask him ourselves, since HE WILL BE WALKING BY HERE LATER ON TODAY?!" Adam and Eve would also have remembered that there were two trees in the midst of the garden, the TREE OF LIFE being the other one! "Hey, Eve, let us partake of the tree of life instead, since it is also in the midst of the garden," I imagine the conversation might have gone.
See how much differently this whole situation could have been handled? But, sadly, we forgot.
You know what? In the present day, we forget the point of that passage to begin with. Genesis 2:9, 15-17 and all of chapter 3 looks like the swaying of our First Parents by a talking, deceptive serpent. How could Eve do such a thing? Where was Adam? He ate too?? They were swayed by a snake and some forbidden fruit off a tree.
The Point, though, is found in 3:11:
Genesis 3:11
And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
Whereof I commanded.... The woman saw that the fruit was food and beautiful and had immediate and perceived benefits, then she ate. Are these not qualities with which God imbued the tree's innate structure? That is to say, there was nothing evil about the tree. So why was it forbidden? Because God said so. This is the whole of the matter: obedience. Adam and Eve disobeyed the Lord their God, and that is why there were consequences. They even knew the consequences, but must have deemed them less offensive to them than the actual knowledge of good and evil. Then came the devastating result.
The two put their new sense to the task right away, sewing up some coverings (the first animal sacrifice, perhaps?) to save their skin. My theory here is that they got it backward; right was wrong and wrong was right to them. Think about it, why would they want to cover themselves (the way God had intended them to be) and hide from God (the one who loved them and whom God intended them to love), as their first courses of actions following the "opening" of their eyes?
We must remember. It is not God who has messed up our lives. It is we ourselves. Sheep are pretty dumb (no, not mute), in case you were not aware. I would know, because I have seen more sheep stand in the middle of a busy road that have no idea what is coming than I care to count. Goats and chickens at least try to run away. Who are we? The sheep of God's pasture. Need I say more?
Also, we can see that God has good things to give us. Note in Genesis chater 2 that every tree that God caused to grow in the garden was beautiful and good for food. So obviously God is not being malicious. But we just have to get the only good that we cannot have. Sound like humanity today? Why were they not tending to the trees somewhere near the edge of the garden or something?
I have an exercise for us. Today I want us to remember 10 good things about God. You can think of what God has done or of who God is or of what God has said in his word. Today I want us to remember.
Forgetfulness is a human condition, and perhaps the human condition. I mean, really, if we remembered everything we experienced, then we would still be in the garden of Eden walking with God Himself on a regular basis. We would have said, "No, you silly serpent, God said I would die if I ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. How about we just ask him ourselves, since HE WILL BE WALKING BY HERE LATER ON TODAY?!" Adam and Eve would also have remembered that there were two trees in the midst of the garden, the TREE OF LIFE being the other one! "Hey, Eve, let us partake of the tree of life instead, since it is also in the midst of the garden," I imagine the conversation might have gone.
See how much differently this whole situation could have been handled? But, sadly, we forgot.
You know what? In the present day, we forget the point of that passage to begin with. Genesis 2:9, 15-17 and all of chapter 3 looks like the swaying of our First Parents by a talking, deceptive serpent. How could Eve do such a thing? Where was Adam? He ate too?? They were swayed by a snake and some forbidden fruit off a tree.
The Point, though, is found in 3:11:
Genesis 3:11
And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
Whereof I commanded.... The woman saw that the fruit was food and beautiful and had immediate and perceived benefits, then she ate. Are these not qualities with which God imbued the tree's innate structure? That is to say, there was nothing evil about the tree. So why was it forbidden? Because God said so. This is the whole of the matter: obedience. Adam and Eve disobeyed the Lord their God, and that is why there were consequences. They even knew the consequences, but must have deemed them less offensive to them than the actual knowledge of good and evil. Then came the devastating result.
The two put their new sense to the task right away, sewing up some coverings (the first animal sacrifice, perhaps?) to save their skin. My theory here is that they got it backward; right was wrong and wrong was right to them. Think about it, why would they want to cover themselves (the way God had intended them to be) and hide from God (the one who loved them and whom God intended them to love), as their first courses of actions following the "opening" of their eyes?
We must remember. It is not God who has messed up our lives. It is we ourselves. Sheep are pretty dumb (no, not mute), in case you were not aware. I would know, because I have seen more sheep stand in the middle of a busy road that have no idea what is coming than I care to count. Goats and chickens at least try to run away. Who are we? The sheep of God's pasture. Need I say more?
Also, we can see that God has good things to give us. Note in Genesis chater 2 that every tree that God caused to grow in the garden was beautiful and good for food. So obviously God is not being malicious. But we just have to get the only good that we cannot have. Sound like humanity today? Why were they not tending to the trees somewhere near the edge of the garden or something?
I have an exercise for us. Today I want us to remember 10 good things about God. You can think of what God has done or of who God is or of what God has said in his word. Today I want us to remember.
posted from Bloggeroid
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