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In the beginning when God made the heavens and earth everything was good and God
placed our ancestors Adam and Eve in a beautiful Garden to live.
In the garden was everything that was good for food and it was all for them. When
God supplies it's always a super-abundance. It's us who limit God, but that's
another story!
Also in the garden were two special trees. One was 'the tree of life' and the
other was 'the tree of the knowledge of good and evil'. Of this second tree Adam
was told... well let's read the account as it is in the bible.
Gen 2:15-17 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work
it and take care of it. And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to
eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
It should be noted that there was only one tree in all the garden that they
were not to eat from; and that was because eating from it brought death.
They were given a working knowledge of how to live. The tree of life or the tree of
death. And, they were told, "Don't eat of the tree of 'the knowledge of good
and evil'!
Into this garden Satan walked one day and said to Eve,
“Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
Here Satan establishes his 'modus operandi'; Question the voracity of what
God says.
You'll notice that Eve does not quote God correctly in her answer, She adds
a clause regarding not being allowed to touch the tree, which was not a part
of God's injunction. She says...
Gen 3:2-3 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.’
This could be as a result of "Chinese whispers", where
with repetition messages get distorted. Or it could have been that Adam
in his zeal to obey, like the children of Israel later, added a fence or
law of his own to 'ensure' obedience when he instructed Eve.
Continuing the conversation Satan tells Eve that
"You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes
will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
Again Satan put's doubts about God's truthfulness in their minds and tells
them that God is holding out on them and keeping them down.
It's interesting to see the reactions of the two first humans to Satan's
temptation to eat of the 'tree of the knowledge of good and evil'.
Eve, not having proper knowledge of the truth, is deceived and eats fruit
from the tree. Adam, knowing the truth, is not deceived, but eats also,
possibly thinking that he can do the good and avoid the evil and live
forever.
It reminds me of when God wanted to make a covenant with the children of
Israel they boasted that "Whatever God says, we will do".
Adam may have passed that gene down to them and to us, because
many people think that 'they can do right and avoid doing wrong'!
But from Adam to today no-one has done this except Jesus.
Did you notice also that Adam was with Eve while Satan was talking to her.
He was not off somewhere out of earshot. He was there and apparently said
nothing while Eve picked and ate of the tree of the knowledge of good
and evil! Was this the first scientific experiment to see if God's word
was true or if there was another explanation for 'Life, the universe and
everything'? Possibly!
Whatever the reasoning, Adam accepted the same fate as Eve and both ate the
fruit and died. They were now spiritually and physically, walking dead. Both
deaths were immediate, but like the fig tree that Jesus cursed, the effect
was not noticed in all areas straight away.
And so the course of man was set. He lost the opportunity of eternal life with
God and put himself on the path to eternal death with Satan.
This was not God's plan though and through Jesus as a descendent of Adam, His
purposes would be fulfiled and men (those who believed in God) would be
reconciled to Him and live forever with Him. So God preached the gospel to
Adam and Eve and also told Satan what would be his end.
Gen 3:15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your
seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall
bruise his heel."
Because Adam had followed Satan rather than God, he (Adam) had ceeded
authority and dominion over the earth, which God had given to him, over
to Satan. And, from that time Satan has been seeking to steal the word
of God from people who chose to follow God, kill their faith and destroy
those who might be a threat to his kingdom.
God though is almighty, and has always powered his good plans for mankind
through with finesse and grace.
When the time was right and all was in place Jesus was born as a man
to be the second Adam and rescue mankind from Satan's clutches.
Gal 4:4-5 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son,
born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the
law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.
We (Christians) were under the dominion of of Satan but Jesus bought our
freedom with His blood and on accepting Jesus as our Lord and Saviour we
were transferred into the kingdom of God.
1 Cor 2:13-14 For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and
transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our
freedom and forgave our sins.
When we learned about what Jesus had done for us, we effectively were placed back
in the situation that Adam and Eve were in before the fall. We had been given a
choice. Live through taking of the 'tree of life', which is Jesus (the way, the
truth and the life) or live through taking of the 'tree of the knowledge
of good and evil', which is Law (Rom 7:7 I would not have known lust except
that the Law had said "Thou shalt not covet"!). It's the Law that gives you
knowledge of good and evil; right and wrong.
The choices for mankind have ever been the same. God wants to give us 'life
everlasting with Him' and if we refuse all His overtures we give ourselves
'everlasting death with Satan'.
Or, as it says in Gal 3:9-12...
Gal 3:9-12 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham,
the man of faith.
For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written,
"Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of
the Law, and do them."
Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for
"The righteous shall live by faith."
But the law is not of faith, rather "The one who does them shall live by them."
There we see the choices spelled out in another way. You can live
through Law, if YOU can keep them, because as it says 'The one who
does them shall live by them'. Do remember though that no-one besides
Jesus has ever done this. I can keep my fingers crossed for you but I don't
like your odds!
Or, you can put faith in and believe on Jesus (the way, the truth and the life),
rest in Him and gain eternal life through Him. Then in this life, you can live
uprightly and grow in grace from glory to glory as you behold His
face and exercise faith in the Lord of Lords.
This is the way. The tree of life. Paul in teaching the gospel said that he
had only one message. It can be and is expanded on in other place to give all
the details a curious mind would want and to cover all the questions that
will arise. The basic message though is this...
1Co 2:1-2 And I, brothers, when I came to you, did not come with excellence
of speech or of wisdom, announcing to you the testimony of God. For I
determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Jesus died for us so that our sins could be forgiven. This was not the
end though. He rose again, defeating Satan and his plans to rule
over mankind, just as God said in the garden of Eden. Satan thought he
had permanently killed Jesus but it was just a bruise in eternity and
instead it was Satan who was defeated and shown to be conquered in
Jesus' triumphant parade as He rose from the dead!
If you accept Jesus' sacrifice on your behalf, He will give you eternal
life now. He will live His life in you. He will empower you to live
righteously. Jesus is grace in us. Jesus in us is grace.
Tit 2:11-12 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people,
training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live
self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age....
Which path will you take? Will you seek the 'do it yourself' path to 'life,
the universe and everything' like Adam and the scientists of today, or will
you seek Jesus, 'the way the truth and the life'?
One way leads to death. The other to life everlasting.
Which one do you choose?
Attlee.
How To Resist The Devil. Click
Here. The Gospel Of The Good Samaritan.
Click Here.
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