Virtual Devotions

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. – Genesis 3:6

Dear Friends,

When I read this passage, I can’t help but think about James 1:14-15, “but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”

This is exactly what is happening.  Eve is gazing upon the object of her sin, she sees that it will fulfill her own evil desire, she is enticed and she sins, which leads to her death.

Eve has taken a beating over the years as the one who brought about the fall of the human race, and much of that is deserved.  However, it is striking that we read that Adam was there with her when this all happened and then he joined in too!

Imagine a couple at a party.  The wife begins “innocently” flirting with one of the men at the party.  The husband sees what is happening.  But rather than intervening and privately correcting his wife, he decides what’s good for the goose is good for the gander or that he is going to get even with her, and he starts flirting with one of the other women.  You can see where this is going to lead.

A husband and wife are meant to be married for life.  Yet in their lifetimes they are going to make mistakes – some big, some little.  As a married couple you must expect that this will happen.   When it does, do not be like Adam.

First, you must be on guard for your spouse.  If something seems wrong, there probably is something wrong.  If you are witnessing your spouse engaging in improper behavior, privately discuss it with him or her in a gentle, loving way.  People get themselves into situations that are going to hurt their marriage.  Be aware of your spouse by staying close to him or her both physically and emotionally.

Second, if you do notice your spouse going in the wrong direction, don’t sit idly by as Adam did or worse yet; join in after the sin has been committed.  Intervene.  As the husband you are the head of your family and your wife is depending upon you to be there for her and protect your marriage.  As a wife, you are your husband’s helpmate.  If he didn’t need you God would not have created the institution of marriage.  You must be there for him too!

Marriage is hard and before I was saved I failed in marriage.  I didn’t understand many of the things I am trying to teach you in this lesson.  I implore you to read your Bible with your spouse and pray with him or her.   Doing these two things will make you a stronger couple and glorify God.

In Christ,

David

 ”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.” – Genesis 3:4-5

Dear Friends,

As we continue to look at the conversation between the serpent and Eve, we see how much more insidious it becomes and how relevant this ancient text is to our lives today.

It begins with the serpent flatly denying the very word of God – something we should be careful of in our lives today.  If someone denies the truth of God’s word, it’s authenticity or accuracy, beware. 

Next, the serpent implies that God is intentionally withholding something of value from Eve, something that Eve should want to possess.  In fact, he states three things, opening her eyes, being like God and knowing good and evil.

It’s not clear what the serpent means by Eve’s eyes being opened.  In a contemporary sense, to have you eyes opened is to reveal something unknown to you.  Assuming this is the correct interpretation, this is a direct attack on God’s word.  All revelation is to come from God alone.  When the Israelites left Egypt and came to the Promised Land, God warned them not to adopt the practices of divination, sorcery and fortune telling used by the inhabitants of Canaan for revelation.  These practices are an abomination to God.  The same is true in the Garden.  The serpent is telling Eve that some knowledge will be revealed to her apart from God.

Second, the serpent says she will be like God.  How true is this in our world today!  Many people believe that the individual can become like God through their works or their meditations or some other means of ascending to this position.  I cringe when someone says they are spiritual.  It’s a euphemism for saying they are finding their own way to being like their own god.  It is all based on human pride and rebellion and is the sin of Satan himself.  It is the proclamation that the individual does not need God.  It is self-centered, self-reliance and the height of arrogance and we see it every day.

Finally, the serpent tells Eve she will know good and evil.  Ironically, this is the only truthful statement the serpent makes.  Eve will in fact very shortly find out what the difference is between good and evil.  Unfortunately, her ignorance is her bliss.  Once she crosses the line into violating God’s command, she will know the full force of evil and long for the good that she once knew.

And this too is true today.  How many of us have committed acts which after they have been done have brought destruction upon our lives.  Once you cross that line, it is too late, you can’t go back – at least not on your own.

But you can be forgiven and that is the glory of the Gospel.  No sin that you have committed will prevent you from entering eternal rest with the Father if you turn to Him in faith through His Son, Jesus Christ.  Even if you are already saved and you fall into sin, you are forgiven by confessing and repenting.  Praise be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

In Him,

David

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.’ ” – Genesis 3:2-3

Dear Friends,

As we continue in the story of the fall of the human race, we should consider carefully each step as it occurs so that we do not follow the same pattern in our lives today.

Last week, I discussed that Eve should have realized that something was wrong when one of the animals spoke to her.  This was based on the assumption that the animals did not speak, as they do not now, and considering that there is no Biblical indication that they did speak then.  And even if that was not enough for her, the serpent spoke against God’s command, as Eve understood it to be.  That should have ended the discussion right there.

But it didn’t and so begins our lesson for today.  Rather than dismissing the serpent as a liar and an enemy of God, Eve engages the serpent in conversation.   Eve proceeds to tell the serpent that God had forbidden them from eating the fruit and that they should not even touch it.  This additional prohibition not to touch the fruit is interpreted by some to suggest that Eve has either added to God’s command or exaggerated it.  I suggest it wasn’t Eve, but Adam.

We know that God told Adam not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil before Eve was created.  So assuming that it was Adam who passed on this command to Eve, it is possible that Adam added the prohibition not to touch the fruit.  This would follow Biblical evidence that those in authority, such as the Pharisees of Jesus’ day, added to God’s law.  These additions are not created with malice, but instead to help the people to stay true to God’s law.  After all, if Eve never touched the fruit, she certainly couldn’t eat it.

But it reveals the underlying pride of man that he can make something better and that somehow God’s commands aren’t clear enough, aren’t sufficient enough in their original form.  It was bad enough that Eve engaged the serpent in conversation, but then she had to deal with an exaggerated law that only confused the situation.

When Jesus was confronted by the Devil in the desert, he didn’t feel the need to add to the Scripture even though he is the author and perfecter of our faith.   He knew that the Scripture was sufficient.  We should bear this in mind.  Many people do not accept the Bible as being all that we need to understand our relationship to God.  They want to add to it in a variety of ways or worse, replace or dismiss parts of it with wording of their own choosing.  Yet, it is the simplicity of the Scriptures that makes them understandable to all people.  How difficult is it to understand that “no” means “no”?  

In Christ,

David

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made.  He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’? – Genesis 3:1

Dear Friends,

Genesis 3 is an extremely important passage to understand in the revealing of redemptive history for it tells us how mankind has fallen from grace and serves as a warning to us to keep us from falling.

First, in the context, the serpent is an actual snake and is compared to other beasts of the field, yet we know from other sections of Scripture (2 Cor 11:3, Rev 12:9) that the serpent is Satan.   This is also substantiated by the personal pronoun “he” used in the second sentence, “He said to the woman…” instead of “it”.  We do not know if Satan took the form of a snake or possessed a snake, but either way it was Satan.

Now a talking snake should have been Eve’s first indication that something was wrong.  There is no other indication in Scripture that the animals spoke to Adam and Eve (though silence on an issue is not a proof).  Even if this was not an oddity, the manner of the question should have been Eve’s second hint that something was wrong.

Satan phrased his comment so as to put doubt into Eve’s mind.  Did God really say so?  If we recall back, God told Adam not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil before Eve was created.  Maybe Eve never really heard the command from God himself, but only from Adam. 

 Also, Satan twists the command to confuse the subject more so.  Did God say, “You shall not eat of any tree in the garden?”  Of course not.   God said they could eat from any tree in the garden except the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.

The fall of mankind begins with a carefully crafted question presented by a familiar friend. Mark this truth, Satan will come to you disguised as something familiar, but something about that familiar thing will not seem exactly right and the words or thoughts conveyed to you will cause you to question or doubt the very command of God. 

Unfortunately, we find this most often in our churches today.  Priests and pastors who should be holding fast to the truth and purity of the Gospel are putting doubt into the minds of their congregations and causing them to question the very word of God.  And this is not a new phenomenon, but one that goes back to the beginning of the church. 

So I will leave you with a warning to test all that is said to you in regard to God and the Scripture.  No matter if it is my devotional or your own pastor, do not sit idly by and take what is being said as accurate.  Read your Bible.  Test the teaching.  Hold fast to the sound doctrine of salvation through Jesus Christ and correct or rebuke any error you find.

In Christ,

David