Week of 9/9-9/15: Broken Response - In God We Trust?

 Day One: Gen. 3:1-2 Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden.”

IMAGINE YOUR PARENTS walk you into the kitchen one day and have a serious talk with you that goes something like this: “We want you to know that we love you. We want the best for you. That’s why we have given you free reign of the kitchen. You can eat everything in the refrigerator that you want. The pantry, too. Any time you need a snack, just come on in.  But there’s one thing. Up there on the shelf, there is a jar of cookies. Those are bad for you. There are plenty of other cookies in the pantry that you can help yourself to, just please keep your hands off that one jar.”

This would be a totally different scenario than if you were starving, and your parents brought you into the kitchen and laughed at your hunger. They opened up all the cabinets and showed you that even though you were hungry, there was no food in the house. Then they put a steaming hot plate of chocolate chip cookies in front of you and told you not to eat them.

In the first scenario, your parents have provided for you. They love you. Their command about the cookies, though you might not fully understand it, is built on that love. You know it’s true.

But in the second scene, your parents are misers. They withhold things just to be mean. They enjoy their power over you and abuse it for their enjoyment.

The great lie of Satan in Genesis 3 made Adam and Eve think about God in terms of the second scenario rather than the first. He talked about God like He was a withholder rather than a provider. And the first humans succumbed to the temptation. They believed the lie about God, and their behavior was devastating.

Sin, at its core, is about disbelief. We sin because we don’t really believe God loves us. That He wants the best for us. That He’s not withholding from us. But if that’s true, then the way you fight sin isn’t just to try hard against it.It’s to remind yourself of what is true about God. Today, when you are tempted, don’t just try and say no.Remember who God is, and use that memory to stand strong.

PAUSE AND REFLECT

▷▷What does freedom in Christ mean?

▷▷Would you describe Adam and Eve as being free or restricted? Why?

▷▷What about you? Do you find freedom in Christ or restrictions? What has caused that feeling??