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The fall of man
- 1st – The Temptation… vs. 1-5 (4 points)
- 1st – Who was the Serpent… vs.1
- The serpent here is no ordinary animal – this is none other than satan (meaning adversary) …
- Serpent – [נָחָשׁ] – used 31x in OT – describes a snake – but it does have a dark intonation…
- Almost the identical word [נָחַשׁ] – means to practice divination / sorcery!
- Whether satan possessed a serpent / or took the form of a serpent – we do not know
- But perhaps he chose this form because the serpent was the most CUNNING (sensible)…
- CUNNING – used 11x in OT – 8 of those times it is translated as prudent (Proverbs)…
- The idea being the serpent was perhaps the most intelligent / trustworthy of animals…
- Take note that Eve does not even hesitate when it speaks – VERY intelligent!
- The impression most have of satan is a red horned – pitchfork wielding – ugly monster
- But that description actually comes from the Greek God Pan – god of the underworld…
- Likely satan spread this description of himself – so people would not recognize him!
- Satan is not ugly – God created him as the perfection of beauty…
- Ezekiel 28:12 – “You were the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty…”
- Paul would go on to say that satan can appear as an Angel of light – II Corinthians 11:14
- It is possible he was even the worship leader in heaven – for a short time – Ezekiel 28:13
- Satan had rebelled against God – believing that he was equal with God…
- Isaiah 14:12-14 – “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’”
- PRIDE was the original sin – PRIDE was the SIN of satan!
- Pride already knows it all / Pride does not say sorry / Pride is never wrong…
- And if allow ourselves to be prideful – we will also fall from HEAVEN!
- I Peter 5:5 – “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”
- God cast satan out of heaven…
- Revelation 12:4 – 1/3 of all the angels [stars] rebelled along with satan against God…
- How many angels are there – we do not know – but innumerable – Hebrews 12:22
- As a result – God cast them out of heaven – they were banished to the earth…
- Luke 10:18 – “[Jesus] said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven…”
- He and the angels that followed him suffered quick reprisal for rebelling against God…
- He fell like a flash of lightning – so quick if you had blinked you would have missed it!
- Satan is not the equal of God – God has no equal – God has absolute power over satan!
- Having fallen from Glory – he now looks to destroy the work of God…
- There is a final judgment that awaits these fallen angels – Jude 1:6
- When they will be cast into the Lake of Fire prepared for them – Matthew 25:41
- And satan knows his time is short so he seeks to destroy what God cherishes most – us!
- II Corinthians 4:4 – “Satan, the god of this evil world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe, so they are unable to see the glorious light of the Good New…”
- Satan knows his time here is coming to an end – so he is trying his hardest…
- He is going to get violent – hold nothing back – to try and keep people from God!
- We need to be wise – not underestimate the dangerous enemy we face!
- I Peter 5:8 – “Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the Devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour.”
- He is the LIAR – he is the father of lies…
- John 8:44 – “The devil… was a murderer from the beginning [Garden of Eden], and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.”
- Nothing that the devil says is true – everything that comes from him is a lie…
- He lies and tells you sin is fun – just give it a try – get you hooked like a drug dealer…
- He lies and tells you once you have sinned – you cannot go back to God!
- He is the devil – false accuser…
- Satan loves to remind us of our past – the accuser of the brethren – Revelation 12:10
- He has all the evidence he needs – all our sins / our immoral past!
- But God who is THE judge of all men – has forgiven us – who then can accuse us!
- Romans 8:33 – “Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.”
- He is the TEMPTER…
- Luke 4:1-13 – satan even tried three different times to TEMP Jesus!
- Revelation 12:9 – “The great dragon [literally a large serpent] was cast out, that serpent of old [ophis – same as 3:1 in LXX], called the Devil and Satan, who DECEIVES the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”
- Which brings us back to our study in Genesis 3 – when satan first deceived!
- The serpent here is no ordinary animal – this is none other than satan (meaning adversary) …
- 2nd – The question… vs. 1
- Up until this point in the Bible every sentence has ended with a period…
- Everything that has happened has been a statement of fact – and was VERY good…
- Until satan tempted Eve and asked – did God say – question mark!
- His tactics have not changed – he still tries to get us to doubt the Word…
- He tries to keep us from listening to the Bible – from believing the Word!
- Misquoting the Word of God…
- God never said – you shall not eat of EVERY tree of the garden…
- He said of EVERY tree of the garden you may freely eat – except the tree of KNOWLEDGE…
- It is the same tactic he used with Jesus in the wilderness temptation – Luke 4:9-12
- Satan quoted from Psalms 91:11-12 tempting Jesus to jump from the top of the Temple…
- Satan knows the Word of God – and he is willing to misuse it – to confuse people…
- Satan did not misquote the Psalm – what he did was take it out of context!
- Most errant doctrines / many of the cults / and untold confusion about the Word…
- Comes from a misuse of the Word of God – taking it out of context…
- Context is critical when it comes to properly interpreting the Bible!
- We need to be wise – get into the Word of God – and see if what is said is true!
- Acts 17:11 – “They searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.”
- Up until this point in the Bible every sentence has ended with a period…
- 3rd – The response from Eve… vs. 2-3
- Eve knew the Word – she knew that God told they could eat of the fruit of the trees…
- With the exception of the tree of KNOWLEDGE – if they ate that they would die…
- But Eve also added to the command – God never told them not to touch the tree…
- They were only commanded not to eat of the Tree of knowledge of Good and Evil…
- But it may have been a wise addition – the best way to avoid temptation is to stay away!
- If we know something God has told us not to do – better to stay away…
- Do not play with sin – do not put ourselves in a place where we can be tempted!
- II Timothy 2:22 – “Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.”
- 4th – Challenging the Word of God (a lie mixed with a little truth) … vs. 4-5
- 1st – Who was the Serpent… vs.1
- You will NOT surely die – DIE is repeated twice here – DIE imperfect / DIE infinitive…
- This was an outright lie – this is EXACTLY what God had said – Genesis 2:17
- Eating the fruit would directly result in both physical and spiritual death!
- God KNOWS that in the day you eat your eyes will be opened…
- This is the first use of the word KNOW in the Bible – and it comes from satan…
- Satan wants to distract us from have a relationship with (KNOW) God…
- And one of his best tactics is to get us pursuing KNOWLEDGE rather than GOD!
- The common convention today is – those who go to church are blind / fool …
- And those who pursue knowledge – go to universities – will have their EYES OPENED!
- But the truth is most higher education has one purpose – to DESTORY FAITH…
- The students are told there is no right or wrong – it is all relative – Judges 21:25
- Romans 1:22 – “Professing to be wise, they became fools [morons]…”
- Do not mistake knowledge for wisdom – universities might give LOTS of knowledge…
- But the knowledge of men – if we listen – can blind us to our need for Jesus…
- That is not wisdom – that is foolishness – because it keeps us from God!
- They will become like God (Elohim) – SIN OF SATAN – they would know GOOD and EVIL…
- That was true that they would know GOOD and EVIL – just like God…
- But it was a truth mixed with a lie – that was meant to TEMP and DECEIVE…
- Satan was suggesting God was trying keeping something GOOD from them!
- God was keeping them from SIN – from SEPARATION – and from DEATH!
- Satan will always try to make sin look GOOD – but he does it by lying (father of lies) …
- For sure sin is enjoyable – if it were not there would be no temptation to sin…
- But it is enjoyable only for a short time – Hebrews 11:25…
- No matter how we choose to sin – in the end there are consequences – Galatians 6:7
- Like having a boyfriend / girlfriend – till an unexpected baby comes along!
- John 8:34 – “I say unto you he that commits sin is the slave of sin…”
- 2nd – The choice… vs. 6-8 (4 points)
- 1st – Eve saw the tree… vs. 6
- It was good for food – lust of the flesh / it was pleasant to the eye – lust of the eyes…
- Pleasant – used 20x in OT (first here) – means to longs for or lust after…
- It was desirable to make one wise – PRIDE of life…
- I John 2:16 – “All that is in the world–the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life–is not of the Father but is of the world.”
- The fruit ticked all the boxes – it was everything sin can be!
- Eve did not wake up that morning and think – I want to ruin all of humanity today…
- She was tempted by something because she genuinely thought would make her happy…
- We are the same – we think – if I can only get that perfect figure then I will be beautiful…
- If I can only get that next promotion – then I will have enough money…
- If only I look at that picture on the internet – then I will be satisfied!
- But we are DECEIVED – these desires are not from the Lord!
- It was good for food – lust of the flesh / it was pleasant to the eye – lust of the eyes…
- 2nd – The obvious question is where Adam was when this was taking place… vs. 6
- We are not told – perhaps he came up toward the end of the conversation…
- It is also possible that Adam arrived after Eve had already eaten…
- Regardless of when Adam arrived – he knew eating the fruit was wrong!
- Eve was deceived by satan – but Adam ate rebelling against the command of God!
- I Timothy 2:14 – “Adam was not deceived, but… fell into transgression.”
- 3rd – The result of their choice – the EYES of both were OPENED… vs. 7
- Just as satan had said their eyes were opened – but not in the way they expected…
- They were not LIKE God – instead they know SAW their SIN before God…
- They were NAKED – this is not just a reference to a lack of clothes…
- They saw that they no longer were clothed by the righteousness of God…
- They were now dependent on their own righteousness – good works…
- So THEY sewed fig leaves (VERY itchy) together to cover themselves!
- Matthew 22:1-14 – Jesus gave the parable of the wedding feast…
- There was a man who came to God – wearing the wrong clothes…
- Rather than showing up forgiven by Jesus – Revelation 3:5 – clothed in white robes…
- This man came in his clothes – his righteousness – his own good works…
- When God questioned him – the man was speechless – then cast into outer darkness!
- Everyone will one day stand before the Great white throne – Revelation 20:11
- There are only 2 options as to what we can WEAR as we stand before a Holy God…
- We can stand in our own clothes and be judged – FILTHY RAGS – Isaiah 64:6
- Or we can be clothed in FORGIVENESS – in the white garments given by Jesus Christ!
- Just as satan had said their eyes were opened – but not in the way they expected…
- 4th – In the cool of the day (ruwach yom) – afternoon breeze… vs. 8
- The Lord God would come to meet with Adam and Eve every afternoon (lago lago) …
- But this day when they heard the sounds of the Lord coming to meet with them…
- They HID from His Presence – FACE – they did NOT want to see the Lord!
- When we choses to rebel against God – we are convicted of our sin…
- We no longer want to be in His presence – we feel dirty / naked…
- We want to hide – we want to stay away – we do not want God to see us…
- Sin separates us from God – keeps us from being in His presence!
- Isaiah 59:2 – “Iniquities have separated you from God; and your sins have hidden His face from you.”
- 1st – Eve saw the tree… vs. 6
- 3rd – Finding what was lost… vs. 9-13 (5 points)
- 1st – The Lord God called to Adam – where are you… vs. 9
- The first question in the Bible was satan casting doubt on the Word of God…
- The second question in the Bible is God looking to restore what was lost!
- God does not want us to stay in a place of sin – He wants to restore us…
- He wants us to confess and repent so that He can forgive us!
- Luke 19:10 – “The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
- 2nd – WHY did God need to ask… vs. 9
- God knows everything – He knew what had happened – He knew where they were…
- Hebrews 4:13 – “There is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account…”
- He asked so that they could have a chance to repent – to confess their sin!
- When someone gets drunk – wakes up the next morning with a splitting headache…
- Of course they swear they will never do that again because they are miserable…
- So why is it that after a month / week / day – it happens again!
- If we do not turn from our sinful ways TO JESUS – we will not change…
- True repentance is seen through a transformed life – no longer doing the same things!
- Not that we are perfect – but we are different – desiring to live for Jesus!
- II Corinthians 7:10 – “For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.”
- 3rd – Adam was afraid… vs. 10
- Afraid – [יָרֵא] – first time used in the Bible – came as a result of the voice of God…
- Adam was afraid because he knew he deserved the judgement of God for his disobedience!
- True fear – comes from knowing that the judgement of God is coming – Hebrews 10:31
- But the next time FEAR is used in the Bible is Genesis 15:1 – do NOT fear!
- The passage where Abram believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness!
- The greatest fear of all men is the fear of death – some say because it is an unknown…
- But the truth is we fear it death because in our hearts we know we will be judged!
- The solution to FEAR is FAITH – because through FAITH we are FORGIVEN!
- 4th – God asked Adam if he had eaten from the tree… vs. 11-12
- Who told you are naked – did you eat from the tree I commanded YOU not to eat…
- Rather than take the blame and confess his failure – he passes the blame to the woman…
- Not only was Adam blaming Eve – he was blaming God – the woman YOU gave me!
- So many times – when we fail – we want to blame anyone but us – even God…
- If we take the blame – then it means that we have to change…
- It is far easier to just pass the blame onto someone else – ANYONE else!
- But until we accept responsibility – there is nothing God can do to restore us!
- 5th – God next asked Eve – what is this you have done… vs. 13
- Rather than take the blame and confess – she passes the blame – serpent…
- She admitted to having been deceived by craftiness of the serpent – II Corinthians 11:3
- So many times – I have heard people blame their sin on satan…
- It is true that satan loves to see us sin – loves to see us make mistakes…
- He even can have a hand in tempting us to make the wrong choice…
- But in the end we only have one person to blame – we choose to sin!
- James 1:14 – “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.”
- 1st – The Lord God called to Adam – where are you… vs. 9
- 4th – The consequences of sin… vs. 14-19 (3 points)
- 1st – To the Serpent – cursed more than the cattle or all the beasts of the field… vs. 14-15
- On your belly you will go – and shall eat the dust of the earth…
- Now whether or not snakes used to have feet (or talk for that matter) …
- We do not know – it might just be that this refers to the snake satan indwelt
- What we do know is that God gives the first prophesy in the Bible – about the fate of satan…
- The SEED (singular) of the woman – women do not have SEED (Hebrew term) …
- This is not doubt referring to the virgin birth – points to Jesus Christ – Isaiah 7:14
- The SEED of the serpent may very well be talking about the antichrist – 1 John 2:8
- He shall bruise your head – and you shall bruise His heel…
- Speaking of the cross – at Calvary satan bruised Jesus…
- But at the cross Jesus crushed the head of satan – He defeated sin!
- Romans 5:12-15 – “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin… much more the grace of God through Jesus Christ abounded to many.”
- In light of the first sin – God shows us His plan for salvation…
- One man sinned brought all of us under the curse of sin…
- But through one man (Jesus) God showed Grace and gave forgiveness of sin!
- On your belly you will go – and shall eat the dust of the earth…
- 2nd – To the woman – pain in childbirth – desire for her husband… vs. 16
- First – SORROW in childbirth – this does not speak of pain – although God also adds…
- Pain in childbirth (apparently not part of the original plan)…
- SORROW – 3x in OT – likely speaks of brining children into a FALLEN world…
- Eve brought sin into the world – and her children would have to live in that world…
- But through another woman – Mary – salvation also came into the world – Jesus Christ!
- So while it might bring SORROW to think of bring innocent children into a fallen world…
- It is also through our children that we can also bring light back into the world!
- Second – your DESIRE shall be for your husband – but he will rule you – TWO thoughts on this…
- One is that a woman DESIRES to be married / be under the authority of her husband…
- The other is that a woman will DESIRE to rule over her husband…
- DESIRE – only used 3x in OT – also in Genesis 4:7 – sin DESIRES to rule over you!
- The idea here is that woman will want to have authority over their husbands…
- But they will be commanded – Ephesians 5:22 – to be under their authority!
- Seems the better interpretation – if it was their desire – God would not have to command it!
- First – SORROW in childbirth – this does not speak of pain – although God also adds…
- 3rd – To the man – cursed ground – hard work.…
- Frist all of creation was cursed as a result of the disobedience of Adam…
- Before the sin of Adam and Eve – the world was perfect – there was no death…
- After the sin – death entered the world – the whole of creation fell into decay…
- All animals die – trees die – the very world itself began to slowly decay and die – entropy…
- But the world waits for the day it will be redeemed from the curse of sin!
- Romans 8:21 – “The creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God…”
- Second by the sweat of your face…
- In TOIL (same word as SORROW) you will eat of it all the days of your life…
- Every time Adam worked in a now cursed field and a thorn and thistle grew…
- He would be forced to remember what was LOST in the garden of Eden!
- Working was in the original plan of God for man – caretaker of the garden…
- The consequences for Adam was to work HARD for food all the days of his life…
- SWEAT – only here in OT – to violently sweat!
- To sweat to survive until the day he died and returned to the dust of the earth!
- It is interesting that if you ask a man what his role purpose in life – provide!
- Yet the Bible NEVER says that – we are required to work – it is the curse – Genesis 3:19
- But god never tells us we are to PROVIDE – God provides – Luke 12:32-33
- We reap what we sow…
- The point is that we do not get away with sin – it comes with consequences
- When we choose to so what God says is bad for us (touch the fire – get burned)
- There will be consequences for our actions – but there is also hope!
- Galatians 6:7 – “Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.”
- Frist all of creation was cursed as a result of the disobedience of Adam…
- 1st – To the Serpent – cursed more than the cattle or all the beasts of the field… vs. 14-15
- 5th – The hope of salvation… vs. 20-24 (3 points)
- 1st – Adam called his wife Eve… vs. 20
- This is the first time we are given her name in the Bible (used only 4 times) …
- EVE – the root of the names means to breath – she was the MOTHER of ALL life!
- 2nd – God clothed Adam and Eve… vs. 21
- At this point they are both clothed in fig leaves – their own covering…
- God sacrifices an animal (sheep) so He could cloth them!
- If we choose to confess our sin – repent – God clothes us in His righteousness…
- Our sin gets taken away by the blood of the lamb – Jesus Christ!
- All we have to do is cry our and ask for forgiveness – I John 1:9
- 3rd – The Garden was sealed… vs. 22-24
- Behold the man has become like one of US (plurality to God again) knowing good and evil…
- The concern was Adam and Eve might eat the fruit from the tree of life…
- If they did so they would remain in their fallen state (not die)…
- So angels (cherubim) were placed on the east side of Eden to guard the way to the tree…
- And Adam and Eve were kicked out of Paradise – removed from the presence of God!
- The Tree of Life will appear again in Revelation 2:7 / 22:2 / 22:14
- The title deed to the earth had just been handed to satan (the god of this world)…
- The curse of sin had come upon all creation – death had entered the world…
- Adam and Eve were removed from the Garden of Eden never to return…
- But the hope had been given of the restoration of all things that were lost…
- The promise that through the woman would come the savior…
- The one who would take away the sin that they had brought into the world!
- Behold the man has become like one of US (plurality to God again) knowing good and evil…
- 1st – Adam called his wife Eve… vs. 20
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