Last week we looked at Genesis chapter three and asked the question: Does a spiritual world exist? Given the Biblical worldview and taking into account the fact that evil manifests itself in many unexplainable acts like the Las Vegas shooting, it is undeniable that such a world exists.
The Fall not only infected humankind with sin, it also contaminated the earth itself. Biola University Professor Dr. Clay Jones, summarizes it like this: “Adam and Eve rebelled against God and so God then cursed the ground, enabling every possible pestilence. Then He kicked them out of the Garden of Eden, which removed them from the rejuvenating power of the Tree of Life. When Adam and Eve were on their own, life became very hard, and we’ve been attending funerals ever since.”
As we saw last week, Satan’s main weapon is the twisting of God’s Word as he did with Eve and Adam in reference to the fruit of the tree which, by the way, was the only ‘no-no’ command that God gave them. They had everything they wanted, but Satan got them to think God was holding something back from them and hence influenced them with the three greatest evil characteristics he himself possesses: Lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.
The Effect of the Fall
The fall caused these immediate reactions:
- The opening of the eyes (Genesis 3:7): They became body conscious, before they were only spiritually conscious and were surrounded by God’s Glory.
- The cover up/guilt (Genesis 3:7): Adam and Eve tried to hide their sin by covering up with fig leaves, and this alludes to human’s first attempt at religion (work at covering guilt), but it could not cover the sin that God said would result in death (both physical and spiritual).
- Hiding from God (Genesis 3:8): Adam and Eve knew they had sinned against God and tried to hide from God’s presence, but as the prophet Jonah found out, God is there no matter where we go.
This human nature of disobeying and rejecting God is passed down through…
- The increasing corruption of our DNA, resulting in physical death
- The increasing loss of our connection to God resulting in spiritual death—thus the importance of being ‘born again’ as spoken of by Jesus (John 3:1-21)
Skeptics will question the need for repentance, forgiveness, and being born again. They will say things like, “all I need to do is to be a ‘good person’ and then God will let me into Heaven.” But, where is the line we cross to be that ‘good person?’ How good is good enough? Jesus tells us that no one is good, only God (Mark 10:17-18). As we examine that passage the people around Jesus were saddened because it seemed that there was no way for anyone to ever be ‘good enough’ to enter the Kingdom of God, but the passage goes on: “Looking at them, Jesus said, “With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.”” (Mark 10:27)
Jesus’ response to another question of ‘how good is good enough’ gives us some insight into the ‘just be a good person’ attitude that many have today, and how bad we really are compared to a Holy and Just God. Jesus shows us everyone’s need for repentance and forgiveness when he addressed the following: “Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” Luke 13:1-5
In this passage Jesus was letting them know that humans could never be “good enough” on their own merit, and no one is “more guilty,” we are all sinners. He was letting them, and us, know that all would perish without God’s rescue plan that is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus. What is this rescue plan and when did God promise it? God promised it at the very beginning, at the ‘Fall’:
1st Major Theological Event: The Promise
(God speaking to Satan after the fall…)
And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” Genesis 3:15 (NIV)
Compare with the “Easy Reader Version” (ERV):
So the LORD God said to the snake, “You did this very bad thing, so bad things will happen to you…I will make you and the woman enemies to each other. Your children and her children will be enemies. You will bite her child’s foot, but he will crush your head.”
Genesis 3:14-15 (ERV)
What are the key points God is showing us in the Genesis Promise? (3:14-19)
- An immediate Promise (God’s hesed) for future rescue from this fall through the seed of a women (the Virgin Birth), although Satan will attempt to stop it (crush his heel v. 15)
- A curse on Satan/the serpent (seed will crush his head v. 15)
- A curse on women (pain in child-bearing v. 16)
- A curse on man (toil and labor v. 17-19)
- A curse on the land (the land will bear thorns and thistles vs. 17-18)
Adam believed God’s promise and makes a faith statement right away (believing that the seed would immediately come from Eve):
Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living. Genesis 3:20
The reason for the first sacrifice that would foreshadow Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice:
- To atone for sin the blood (the life source) of an innocent animal brings a temporary covering:
The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. -Genesis 3:21
- This is the first recorded death of any living thing in Scripture
- Because animal sacrifice was only a temporary covering there would be a need for that to continue until a permanent sacrifice could be instituted
And so it began, sin entered the world and evil escalated over time, beginning in Genesis 4:
Sin cascades through the generations and we see that still today…
- Cain was angry and jealous of Abel’s offering to God and because of pride he killed his brother (4:8)
- Even though God gave him an opportunity to correct his mistake, Cain chose murder (4:3-10)
- Lamech, in just a few generations from Cain, is boasting of murder and revenge (4:23-24)
- By chapter six, “the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” (Genesis 6:5)
The importance of the Genealogies:
God spoke truth (Satan lied) when He warned Adam and Eve: “you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die” as evidenced by…
Genesis chapters 5: ‘A walk through the graveyard’
- The life records of the descendants of Adam and Eve end with the phrase, “and then he died” (with the exception of Enoch who “walked with God”)
- A major reason for the Biblical genealogies is to give us a record to follow the ‘Scarlet Thread’ from Adam to Noah to Abraham to Moses to David and eventually to the Promised Messiah, Jesus! (See Luke chapter 3)
- The genealogies we find in Genesis chapters 4 and 5 give us a picture of the two family lines from Adam—2 people groups—one God fearing, the other not:
1. Cain’s line, the ungodly line that ends at the flood:
- The names of the people in Cain’s family line reflect life without God
- This line is a major factor leading to the evil found in the world just before the flood:
- Worship of man-made things
- Wickedness and evil behaviors
- The increase of murder
- The beginning of warriors
- Cain’s descendants disobeyed God’s command for “the two to become one flesh” and had more than one wife (2:24; 4:19)
- The first practice of Bigamy is found in Genesis chapter 4 when Lamech, from the line of Cain, married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah (4:19)
- This practice continued throughout early human history and eventually became acceptable even within God’s people
- This practice always results in hardship and suffering as evidenced in every record found in the Bible (Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon, etc.)
2nd Major Historical Player: Seth
2. Seth’s line, the one carrying the seed that leads to the Messiah, Jesus. The main characters in the antediluvian period from his lineage include…
- Enoch: “Enoch walked with God, and he was no more.” He began walking with God after he had his son Methuselah—Enoch did not die a natural death but was “taken” by God
- Methuselah: His name means “in the year of his death, it will come” and he died the year of the flood as prophesied by his father.
- Lamech: Son of Methuselah, yet died before his father. Named his son Noah and said, “He will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands caused by the ground the Lord has cursed.” (Gen. 5:29).
- Noah: Carried his family through the great flood and into the new world. But, the sin nature followed and soon there would be another escalation of evil…
“Death is a result of rejecting the giver of life.” -Nabeel Qureshi
Going Deeper:
Here are two video presentations by the Late Dr. Nabeel Qureshi that are important and powerful to watch. He, more than any other human I’ve heard, should be respected as an expert on this topic, please watch.
Nabeel on suffering, death and the Cross (3 1/2 minute version):
For the full presentation from this clip you can click here: Nabeel at IPC Hebron Huston
You can also watch this presentation by Nabeel at “The Why Series” called “Suffering and Jesus” (38 minutes)
Bible Study:
Read and study Genesis chapters three through five
- What happened to Adam and Eve after they ate of the fruit? (3:7-9) How did they respond to God after this happened? (3:10-13) Do we ever respond to God in the same way?
- What did God say and do in response to Adam and Eve’s disobedience 3:14-24?
- Write out Genesis 3:15—this is the first Covenant Promise. To get a clearer perspective read Genesis 3:15 in different versions (For example: NASB, NIV, NLT and the Message Bible. Discuss the implications of this promise and curse from God.
- Who were Cain and Abel, what happened between them and how did God respond? (4:1-12)
- How did Cain react to God’s discipline and what happened to him? (4:13-24)
- Where did Cain and his descendants get their wives? (4:25-5:4) Note: Keep in mind that the original creation was perfect, thus the DNA had not yet been corrupted. Years later, during the time of Moses and the giving of the “Law,” God would give a specific prohibition concerning close family marriage.
- Who was Seth? Contrast the descendants of Cain with that of Seth (5:3-32).
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You will not find this material in the public school curriculum even though it is based on solid evidence and grounded in research. It is ironic that following the evidence to where it leads stops at the door of our public schools as they will not let a “Divine footprint” in! Join us as we examine evidence for Christianity and learn how to become a thoughtful defender and ambassador of your faith.
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Teri Dugan
TeriDugan@truthfaithandreason.com
1 Peter 3:15