Man – an ingenious creature of God?
We dare to search for the fingerprint of God on us!
My wife received a beautiful wall calendar for Christmas entitled «The Most Beautiful Gardens». I am convinced that the Garden of Eden was even more beautiful than all the gardens in these 12 calendar pictures. Adam and Eve were able to enjoy a splendour of flowers that would put any flower show to shame. During their pleasure walk through paradise, they admired the birds and their singing! They observed the behaviour of the animals with interest. They delighted in streams and lakes whose water was even clearer than the water of Lake Hallwil! Then there were the delicious fruits. When I think of a fruit basket from the Garden of Eden, my mouth waters. And then this air, without any pollutants! No exhaust fumes, no climate problems!!! But enough raving.
Have you ever put yourself in the shoes of Eve and Adam? They had everything and still wanted more!
How would you have reacted in this temptation? As a woman in front of the tree with these «delicious» fruits; or as a man when Eve holds out the forbidden fruit to you?
The serpent was Satan himself. He seduced Eve quite nastily: «You will not die; God did not say that; on the contrary, you will be like God and know what is good or evil.»
Jesus once threw the following at the hypocritical Jews: «You have the devil for a father: you love to do the evil things he does. He has been a murderer from the beginning and has always hated the truth. There is no truth in him. When he lies, it is according to his nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.»(John 8:44 NLB).
After the deep fall of Adam and Eve, it is striking how the couple tries to get out of the noose before God: first they hide and then they blame the other. Eve says: «The snake cheated me, so I ate.» And Adam: «It is the woman’s fault that you gave me, she took the fruit and gave it to me, then I ate.«All that is missing is that both reproach God: «You created us the way we are!»
And God looked at all that he had made, and behold, it was very good. Was it? Or not so good after all? This question might come up for one or the other: «Why did you create the people so temptingly?«There is only one answer to this question: Of course God could have created us differently: with much less freedom! But he did not want puppets as his counterparts! And God created man in his image, in the image of God he created him; and created them male and female. God deliberately created us so that we could choose. Just like this election weekend! We can judge, weigh, examine, decide, say yes or no, obey or reject, listen to what God says or hide from Him.
We are ingenious beings created by God, who are able to perceive their responsibility and act accordingly! That is unique! The Hebrew word bara, the above for created is used three times to describe the activity of God when he creates something new, something that has never existed before. But that’s just it: God’s quality of creation is not only admired, but also sometimes doubted.
«Why did you make me the way I am?» You look at yourself in the mirror and are horrified: «No way, that nose, that hair, that posture.…«and you’re already comparing with others. «I want to be like them too.» «I want to be able to do that like him.» «Why was I born with this shortcoming, with this or that disability?» «I would rather be a man or a woman!«How shamelessly God is doubted and criticised as Creator today. Man places himself above the Creator. Yet God created human beings so ingeniously and endowed them with creativity and creative power!
He has given us the bara-creation entrusted. This «creating something that has never existed before»! How many times in the past millennia have people managed to create something that has never existed before! Of course, there were also some things that we cannot be proud of. But we owe the good things to God, who gave people the necessary wisdom and skill. Man is a tinkerer, an explorer, an inventor! You personally belong to this unprecedented group. After nine months, your parents rejoiced at the baby they were allowed to marvel at in their arms. A unique specimen, a newborn human being that has never existed before in this world and never will. «You created everything in me and formed me in my Mother’s womb. I thank you for making me so glorious and excellent! Wonderful are your works, I know that well» (Psalm 139:13–14 NLB).
After being thrown out of the Garden of Eden, people could not handle this freedom to do good or evil. They wanted to do good, but evil resulted.
The will to decide for oneself often ended in a dead end. Cain, the first son of Adam and Eve, had already planned his fratricide and no longer listened to God, who came to him and said: «Why are you so angry?» the Lord asked him. «Why do you look so grimly at the ground? Is it not so: If you have good in mind, you can look around freely. But when you plan evil, sin lies in wait for you. It wants to bring you down. But you shall reign over it!» » (Genesis 4:6–7 NLB).
Cain could no longer control himself and beat his brother Abel to death. Adam and Eve could no longer control themselves! The fruit looked so tempting! They were convinced, «It has benefits for us in it, we will be like God.» Eve takes a fruit in her hand, although God has already wisely forbidden this: «Do not touch it!» Now it is only a small step: harvest and bite into it…
When was the last time that happened to you? Suddenly you couldn’t control your hand – and it happened. You were too close. You didn’t manage to look away or close your eyes! You didn’t manage to keep quiet and kept on talking. The devil is a brilliant tempter. And there is no place where you are safe from him! Therefore:
«Be prudent and vigilant and be prepared at all times for an attack by the devil, your enemy! He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for a victim to devour. You shall resist him by your firm faith.» (1 Peter 5:8–9a NLB).
Adam and Eve, even Cain, could have said no! They all should have listened to God, but they were no longer in control of themselves. Do we not often feel like Paul: he confessed: «When I want to do good, I don’t do it. And when I try to avoid evil, I still do it»(Romans 7:19 NLB).
Just as with Adam, Eve and Cain, our trust is required that God means well and it is better to listen to him. Fortunately, we live in the A.D. age! We know grace! «So just as sin reigned over all men and brought them death, so now God’s wonderful grace reigns. By it we are justified before God and gain eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.»(Romans 5:21 NLB).
Now God’s wonderful grace reigns through Jesus Christ! Isn’t that to breathe a sigh of relief! We can go into a new day every morning and give thanks for God’s grace and mercy. We once had a budgie in our household that could talk. We also taught him Bible verses, such as, «Gracious and merciful is the Lord.» That was so delicious to be constantly reminded by him of God’s grace!
What does God expect from us, his counterparts? God has said it many times in the 5 books of Moses. Jesus repeated it and a scribe confirmed it in Jesus» day: «You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind. And love your neighbour as yourself»(Luke 10:27 NLB).
I was struck by how God continued to love people after the disappointing experiences in paradise.
Example 1: God could have simply thrown Adam and Eve out the door. They had covered their shame with plaited leaves from the fig tree. Can you imagine how uncomfortable that was?! What happened? Even before they had to leave the Garden of Eden, God comes and stretches out garments of skins for them! And God helped them to put them on, as the Bible says: «And the Lord God made Adam and his wife clothes of animal skins and put them on them»(Genesis 3:21 NLB). This scene of God providing comfortable clothes for the two losers is so beautiful it makes us weep. So much love! Isn’t God amazingly forgiving and merciful?!
Example 2: After his fratricide, Cain complains to God: «My guilt is too great! Now I am a homeless refugee because I always have to be afraid that someone will take revenge on me. I will constantly have to hide!«What does the loving, merciful God do?«And he put a mark on Cain so that no one would kill him»(Genesis 4:15b NLB). What kind of sign that was, we can ask Cain in heaven!
Example 3: After the Flood: God made a covenant with Noah and gives him the following promise: «Never again will I curse the earth for the sake of mankind and destroy all living things as I have just done, even though the thoughts and deeds of men have been evil since childhood. As long as the earth exists, there will be sowing and reaping, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night» (Genesis 8:21–22 NLB).
Once the Flood, but never again. Such biblical passages make us impressively aware of how much God loves human beings. His creature man gets a second chance, although he knows us only too well! The Fall in Paradise changed things, but God’s love for human beings, his creatures, is still great and it culminates in Jesus Christ dying for our sin and guilt. The prophet Isaiah describes it this way: «Let the wicked forsake his way, and let the transgressor turn from his plans! Instead, let him turn back to the Lord, that He may have mercy on him. Yes, turn to our God, for with him is much forgiveness»(Isaiah 55:7 NLB).
My last sentence of the sermon is the last sentence of the Bible: «The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all»(Revelation 22:21 NGÜ).
Amen.
Possible questions for the small groups
- Let’s be honest: How would you have dealt with this temptation in the Garden of Eden?
- Can you find anything good about these two forbidden trees in paradise, or do you think it’s just a really nasty trap?
- «You will be like God»: Satan was not so wrong with this enticement when we read 1 John 3:2!
- Are Satan and his angels (demons) «fallen angels» as we are «fallen men»? Bible passages on this: Revelation 12:7–9; Luke 10:17–19; Ephesians 6:12.
- What is most criticised by people today about our Lord and God?
- How can we help each other when we are under attack from Satan?
- Marvel together for some time at God’s grace and rave about His almost unbelievable love for us humans!
