The Scarlet Thread - Pt. 2 Adam and Eve
Pt. 2 Adam and Eve
The Scarlet Thread is the story
behind the stories of the Bible. It is the Gospel and it is present in each
chapter of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. In this blog series, we’re
doing a very brief survey of this truth. We’re picking out some of the big
stories and finding the main points of the Gospel.
Last month we explained that God
made everything and it’s all for His glory. He rules. That’s the first point of
the Gospel, and it’s absolutely necessary that you understand it.
This month we’re going to explain
the next part of the Gospel; how mankind ruins everything by making it about
our glory. We call this sin, and the story of Adam and Eve illustrates this
point very clearly.
Here’s how it goes: God makes man
from dirt. God puts His breath in him. Literally, God put His Spirit in him,
and that’s what separated Adam from the other animals. Mankind was the crown of
all creation, placed in the most beautiful scenery of Eden. Of course, Adam is
lonely, and so God finishes His creation by giving Adam a partner from His side (to indicate equality.)
The story of the Gospel begins with God introducing mankind to His
universe. And then says, “Here, you take care of this planet.” It’s here
that Adam and Eve lived in the gorgeous world, with a loving and caring
marriage, surrounded by peaceful animals. Life was extremely good for Adam and
Eve. It’s peaceful and nice. We all would love to live in Eden.
This was life as it should have
been. But the best thing above everything else was this; they had a perfect
relationship with God. They had nothing to hide. They were never angry at what
God did. They submitted completely to His will. And they enjoyed complete
honesty and openness. As a result of this perfection, God physically walked
with them.
After creating this perfect world,
God handed it over to Adam and Eve and said, “It’s now your great privilege to
take care of this beautiful world.” What’s crazy is that God knew what was
going to happen. And yet, in His love He did not withhold this wonderful gift.
So after He gave it, mankind ruined it.
Now, many people think the
original sin was disobedience. And while it’s obvious that they did disobey, I
believe that was only a secondary sin. The
original sin behind the disobedience was idolatry. The worship of themselves.
We call this pride.
Genesis
3:1-7 tells us exactly what happened. If this isn’t the oldest trick in
the book then I don’t know what is. Satan, the serpent, tells them that if they
eat the fruit then their eyes will be opened and they will be like God. And of
course they wanted to be God. Truthfully, that very sin is what’s been passed
down to us. We ALL want to be God.
Within all of us is a need to
control. Like Adam and Eve, we want to be God. And we’re devastated when our plans
and expectations aren’t met. As a result
of our idolizing ourselves, the relationship was broken with God. The world was
broken and now sin runs far deeper than we realize.
This is some pretty stark truth.
The reality of this is dark, uncomfortable, and often times feels hopeless. So,
in one word, let me tell you some good news: “protoevengelium”. This is what
theologians call the verse, Genesis 3:15. This
is when God is delivering the consequences to Adam, Eve, and the Serpent, and
he promises a Savior. He says there will be a Savior who will fix what’s been
broken, reconcile the sinful world to God, and kill the serpent while also suffering
a minor blow Himself.
The Scarlet Thread in this story
is pretty clear. God made the world perfect, He gave the world to mankind, Adam
and Eve had a perfect relationship with Him, but mankind ruined the perfect
world and wrecked the perfect relationship with God. So God promised a Savior while telling mankind that we are not the
hero.
The sin inside all of us wants control. We still want to be God. The
Gospel is the correction of this stubbornness. Here’s the action point for
us all: Surrender your pursuit of
control. Let go of your pride. Accept the promised Savior. Submit to His will.
The Scarlet Thread is the story
behind the stories of the Bible. It is the Gospel and it is present in each
chapter of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. In this blog series, we’re
doing a very brief survey of this truth. We’re picking out some of the big
stories and finding the main points of the Gospel.
Last month we explained that God
made everything and it’s all for His glory. He rules. That’s the first point of
the Gospel, and it’s absolutely necessary that you understand it.
This month we’re going to explain
the next part of the Gospel; how mankind ruins everything by making it about
our glory. We call this sin, and the story of Adam and Eve illustrates this
point very clearly.
Here’s how it goes: God makes man
from dirt. God puts His breath in him. Literally, God put His Spirit in him,
and that’s what separated Adam from the other animals. Mankind was the crown of
all creation, placed in the most beautiful scenery of Eden. Of course, Adam is
lonely, and so God finishes His creation by giving Adam a partner from His side (to indicate equality.)
The story of the Gospel begins with God introducing mankind to His
universe. And then says, “Here, you take care of this planet.” It’s here
that Adam and Eve lived in the gorgeous world, with a loving and caring
marriage, surrounded by peaceful animals. Life was extremely good for Adam and
Eve. It’s peaceful and nice. We all would love to live in Eden.
This was life as it should have
been. But the best thing above everything else was this; they had a perfect
relationship with God. They had nothing to hide. They were never angry at what
God did. They submitted completely to His will. And they enjoyed complete
honesty and openness. As a result of this perfection, God physically walked
with them.
After creating this perfect world,
God handed it over to Adam and Eve and said, “It’s now your great privilege to
take care of this beautiful world.” What’s crazy is that God knew what was
going to happen. And yet, in His love He did not withhold this wonderful gift.
So after He gave it, mankind ruined it.
Now, many people think the
original sin was disobedience. And while it’s obvious that they did disobey, I
believe that was only a secondary sin. The
original sin behind the disobedience was idolatry. The worship of themselves.
We call this pride.
Genesis
3:1-7 tells us exactly what happened. If this isn’t the oldest trick in
the book then I don’t know what is. Satan, the serpent, tells them that if they
eat the fruit then their eyes will be opened and they will be like God. And of
course they wanted to be God. Truthfully, that very sin is what’s been passed
down to us. We ALL want to be God.
Within all of us is a need to
control. Like Adam and Eve, we want to be God. And we’re devastated when our plans
and expectations aren’t met. As a result
of our idolizing ourselves, the relationship was broken with God. The world was
broken and now sin runs far deeper than we realize.
This is some pretty stark truth.
The reality of this is dark, uncomfortable, and often times feels hopeless. So,
in one word, let me tell you some good news: “protoevengelium”. This is what
theologians call the verse, Genesis 3:15. This
is when God is delivering the consequences to Adam, Eve, and the Serpent, and
he promises a Savior. He says there will be a Savior who will fix what’s been
broken, reconcile the sinful world to God, and kill the serpent while also suffering
a minor blow Himself.
The Scarlet Thread in this story
is pretty clear. God made the world perfect, He gave the world to mankind, Adam
and Eve had a perfect relationship with Him, but mankind ruined the perfect
world and wrecked the perfect relationship with God. So God promised a Savior while telling mankind that we are not the
hero.
The sin inside all of us wants control. We still want to be God. The
Gospel is the correction of this stubbornness. Here’s the action point for
us all: Surrender your pursuit of
control. Let go of your pride. Accept the promised Savior. Submit to His will.
