This message was preached by Donald D'costa at Word of Grace Church on October 22nd, 2017. To listen/download the audio please click here. To listen to the Sunday's worship and prophetic contributions please click here.
I’ve been going through the book of Genesis for the last two
years. I want to speak this morning on choices. We will look at Chapter 3 where Satan comes to speak with eve and the
choices she makes. We can learn a lot from that conversation.
1. God made us
special, made in His image and likeness. We need to remember that. Secondly, God alone planned it all, initiates
all creation, above all creation and he is sovereign. His will is free and no
one can cross it. He alone can decide the purpose for His creation and we
cannot question it. He alone can choose the destiny and future of all creation.
By virtue of being our creator, we can
rest in the assurance that he loves us. He created everything good and only
good can be expected from him, not evil. Therefore, God’s choices are good and meant to bless- not harm or curse. In
Jeremiah he says, I know the plans I have for you, plans for good and not for
evil.
2. By being made in
the image of God, we can choose to love
back too. The purpose of love is to be loved. He does not look at us as
slaves who do not have a choice. He gives us a choice to reciprocate. In Gen 2:18- 20 he let man name every animal
and have dominion. We see here a freedom that no slave is given.
Further we see God’s
heart to work out love in a covenant relationship. So he makes woman who is
a suitable helper. If God has made us as a regent here to ensure the reign of
man, he has to give us a choice. Love must
always find a free and willing responder.
God knew the risks of creating a being who had the choice to
love him, because that means that being could also reject him. So this being
can cause God much pain. Love endures pain and continues to love. God has not given up on mankind. This is a
good relational tool for us as well.
All our relationship must reflect the Kingdom of God. the
very garden still exists on earth, but the environment has gone and so Eden is
gone. We now bring Eden in the
boundaries we exist in. The boundaries are physical, but there is a relational,
work and spiritual boundaries. Gen 3:1- 7 “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord
God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from
any tree in the garden’? 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.’” “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God
knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like
God, knowing good and evil.” 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. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized
they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for
themselves.”
Adam and eve were created by God in His image, without sin
as beings of choice give freewill to reciprocate to his love. This freewill
also meant they could choose to obey God.
As Christians, we have the same choice. Therefore, the Bible talks about a
time of accounting. You choose to love him by obeying him or choose to disobey
him. in his intention we want to obey
God but they have made the wrong choices. They fall into temptation and
then into sin. This is nothing new.
There are threats to the choices we make for God. the threat
comes in the form of temptation. In this story, something comes to Eve outside
of herself, but our own inner desires and longings give in to them.
If you think you can
recognise the devil, you need to think again. Paul says, He can appear as
an angel of light. Jesus said while addressing Peter “Get behind me Satan”. It
is what the person says that is from Satan. Eve is having a conversation with
someone who is cool, crafty and sensible. What the person is saying to her is
not cool. He is getting her to question her choices. Anyone who brings into question the choices you have made in God is
unhealthy.
Some of the examples:
1.
angry people are loving people
2.
money makes the world go round
3.
Sex is clean and normal and natural
4.
I never forget an injury and I never forgive an
insult
5.
God helps those who helps themselves
6.
Do not judge me dude, you don’t know what the
**** I’ve been through
Q. What are these
phrases doing to your thinking?
They are subtle. People are so gullible
that they believe anything the media says. Today the church has become a Mimosa
plant- Touch-me-nots. We are not called
to be a touch-me-not and curl up as soon as the world touches us, but to touch
the world and take to the world what we have.
2 things the voice of evil will do:
1.
Call into
question what God has said. When we are not sure, go back to God’s word. Hosea
4:6- “my people are destroyed from lack
of knowledge.”Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my
priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your
children.” However personal your leadings of God are with you, they will
never contradict the scripture. God will not ask you to commit sin no matter
what the circumstances are.
2.
Satan
addresses desire- He speaks to Eve about something she desires, something
she wants to do- to eat. Our needs are valid and need to be discussed with God
and not with Satan. All the evil one needs to know is that God knows what we
need and He will provide.
Eve responds to the temptation with her own understanding. Her response shows that she wasn’t relying
on God’s word. The tree had a name- the tree of the knowledge of Good and
evil. And she adds- neither shall you touch it. This attitude leads to making
rules that are not called for. When we do this, we go beyond the realm of what
is permissible. Some Christians make rules about wearing only white clothes and
no make-up or jewellery. The word of God only calls for modest dressing and not
all of this. Many men and women in these Christian groups have fallen despite
these rules. So, Eve is not thinking straight.
The temptation from
the outside manipulates the desires that are inside. We need to base our
choices and decision on what God says.
Gen 3: 4-6-
·
“You will
not surely die”- once we enter into the discussion with Satan, there is a clear negation of the Word of God. He
made God seem like a spiteful person who wants to withhold power from us.
Secondly, to overlook an offence, we
use this line- that God will understand.
·
“Your eyes
will be opened”- We tempt God with
evil. We are called to relate with unbelievers, not to give them company. We are
like God but we will never be God. So,
what are we trying to achieve? We want to be something- only if certain
desires are fulfilled we will serve God. Don’t test God. If you know good, you don’t
need to know the evil.
Our acts of
disobedience to God only lead us astray and the many who follow us. We make
wrong choices, and the wrong choices don’t take away the value God has placed
in us. God has not given up on us. Our wrong
choices give us a chance to change and repent. God will say, get up. He has a
plan and destiny for our lives.
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