Sosoma Jr
JF-Expert Member
- Aug 7, 2020
- 312
- 281
THE FALL OF HUMANITY.
All humans are living in a painful struggle. This struggle is from a fall. We have fallen the way we were created. This fall has affected our understanding, our relationships, and our morals (our idea of what's right and wrong).
A FALL UNDERSTANDING.
At the core of the fallen human condition, there is a lie. It is the basic lie our first parents, Adam and Eve, believed. Because of this lie, we all have a certain level of mistrust toward God. We all to some degree doubt His faithfulness. This level of mistrust is high enough to affect us all. Let's pick up the story of this first lie in Genesis 3:1-5:
"Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God has made. And he said to the woman, 'Has God indeed said, "You shall not eat of every tree of the garden"?' And the woman said to the serpent, 'We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, "You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die." ' Then the serpent said to the woman, 'You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.' "
First, let's find out who we're dealing with here. The serpent (or snake) in this story is Satan. Satan is the fallen angel we learned about in our earlier study. Revelation 12:9 makes this clear:
"So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
Satan's purpose was to trick Eve. This is why he is called "cunning," which means crafty or sly. First, he suggests to Eve that God is restrictive:
"Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?"
Actually, God said no such thing. He had, in fact, given lots of freedom with only one small rule:
"And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, 'Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die" (Genesis 2:16).
Satan came and carefully reframed God's words. He changed them to make it look like God had given only rules and no freedom at all.
Secondly, Satan pictured God as a liar. He tried to make God appear as someone who can't be trusted:
"You will not surely die." God says you will, but you won't actually die.
The third part of the lie is the main point. Satan made God look self serving. He wanted them to believe God was taking care of Himself first. He suggested that Adam and Eve could become more than human if they ate the fruit. They would have a better life. They would be like God. He suggested that God didn't want them to eat the fruit through because God wanted to keep this better life for Himself:
"For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
The most important point to grasp is that the problem began with a lie about the kind of person God is. Basically, Satan denied that "God is love." He made the Creator look like a selfish bully. This point brings us to the relationship part of the fall.
A RELATIONAL FALL.
The Bible tells us that Adam and Eve both believed this basic lie. Once they did, their relationships began to break down. The story in Genesis reads like this:
"So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, 'Where are you?' So he said, 'I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself. ' And He said, 'Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?' Then the man said, 'The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate. ' And the Lord God said to the woman, 'What is this you have done?' The woman said, 'The serpent deceived me, and I ate' " (Genesis 3:6-12).
First, we see that the relationship between God and humanity was broken. Adam and Eve stopped believing in the purity of God's love. They didn't believe He wanted the best for them. Because they believed Satan's lie, they stopped trusting God. They began a rebellion against Him. This rebellion focused on taking care of themselves first.
This break with God also caused a break in their relationship with each other. Now they naturally started to blame each other and even God for what happened. They had never even thought of talking like this before. Once they began blaming, they felt naked and guilty. They felt this way because they were living a lie. Their behavior was going against God's design. His plan for them was that they would live in love and trust each other.
Now both love and trust were broken.
A MORAL FALL.
Paul gives us a clear understanding of what sin is when he says:
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).
In the Bible the word "glory" means something a little different than you might think. God's glory is His character shining out like the sun. Who He is at heart gets to be seen. It's the inside of God's character shining outward in His actions. It's the way God thinks, feels, and behaves. You can find this biblical idea of "glory" by reading and talking about Exodus 33:18-19:
"And he [Moses] said, 'Please, show me Your glory. ' Then He [God] said, 'I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. ' "
So when Moses asks to see God's glory, God shows Him character. Moses sees the kind of person God is. He sees God's goodness. He sees God's grace. He sees God's love. This is God's glory.
Paul explains that sin means falling short if or failing to reach God's glory. What he is saying is that sin is clash with God's basic character. We've learned from the Bible that God's basic character is self giving love (1 John 4:8). So sin is anything that goes against God's character and breaks the faithfulness of His love.
The following two verses shed more light on what the heart of sin is:
". . . Sin is the transgression of the law" (1 John 3:4 KJV).
And "love is the fulfillment of the law" (Romans 13:10).
The Fall of mankind made humans morally crazy. Right and wrong were no longer clear. God had created humans to live in love. We were to have faithful relationships. There weren't supposed to be any lonely people. There weren't supposed to be any starving children. Families were supposed to love each other and take care of each other. There wouldn't be any fighting or killing. Love would be our reason for doing whatever we do.
But in Christ we see the clear truth about God. We see the beauty of His character. His love is like a light in our sick world. "You shall know the truth, " He said, "and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32). Jesus wasn't talking about truths (plural) in general or random facts from science. Rather, He was talking about the truth (singular) about God's character. This truth stands against Jesus, who is the truth:
"You are of your father the devil, and the the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it" (John 8:44).
There is a connection between lies and desires and actions. Adam and Eve believed Satan's lie about God's character. This belief caused them to have hateful desires toward God. These desires led them to rebellious actions against God. So, our thoughts (beliefs) lead to our feelings. Our feelings lead to our actions. Our actions strengthen our thoughts. The Fall of mankind began with believing a lie about God. This belief led to a broken trust with God. This break in trust led to a rebellion against what God said was right and wrong. This rebellion was shown in Adam and Eve's behavior.
CONNECT
Jesus walked over the same ground as Adam and Eve. The difference is He stayed faithful in love to God and to us.
Satan succeeded in getting our first parents to doubt God's love and stop trusting Him. He tried to do the same thing with Jesus. The Bible tells us in Hebrews that Jesus "was in all points tempted as we are" ( Hebrews 4:15). Satan tried to get Jesus to doubt God's love. He tried to get Jesus to put Himself first. But Jesus was "yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15). He never once gave in to Satan. He never doubted God's love or stopped trusting Him. He never put Himself first. His love for us remained constant. Jesus followed the footsteps of our first parents and succeeded where they failed. Through His human life, complete faithfulness in relationships is restored.
EXPERIENCE
I want to experience restored trust in my heart toward God. This trust will come as I believe the truth of His love for me.
God "desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" ( 1 Timothy 2:4). He wants us to know Him not as we know facts, but to know Him in an experience. The Fall has affected our understanding, our relationships, and our morals. Experiencing the truth of His character will save us from the affects of the Fall. Thank you , God, for making Your true character known through Christ!
GOD BLESS THEM!
All humans are living in a painful struggle. This struggle is from a fall. We have fallen the way we were created. This fall has affected our understanding, our relationships, and our morals (our idea of what's right and wrong).
A FALL UNDERSTANDING.
At the core of the fallen human condition, there is a lie. It is the basic lie our first parents, Adam and Eve, believed. Because of this lie, we all have a certain level of mistrust toward God. We all to some degree doubt His faithfulness. This level of mistrust is high enough to affect us all. Let's pick up the story of this first lie in Genesis 3:1-5:
"Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God has made. And he said to the woman, 'Has God indeed said, "You shall not eat of every tree of the garden"?' And the woman said to the serpent, 'We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, "You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die." ' Then the serpent said to the woman, 'You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.' "
First, let's find out who we're dealing with here. The serpent (or snake) in this story is Satan. Satan is the fallen angel we learned about in our earlier study. Revelation 12:9 makes this clear:
"So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
Satan's purpose was to trick Eve. This is why he is called "cunning," which means crafty or sly. First, he suggests to Eve that God is restrictive:
"Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?"
Actually, God said no such thing. He had, in fact, given lots of freedom with only one small rule:
"And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, 'Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die" (Genesis 2:16).
Satan came and carefully reframed God's words. He changed them to make it look like God had given only rules and no freedom at all.
Secondly, Satan pictured God as a liar. He tried to make God appear as someone who can't be trusted:
"You will not surely die." God says you will, but you won't actually die.
The third part of the lie is the main point. Satan made God look self serving. He wanted them to believe God was taking care of Himself first. He suggested that Adam and Eve could become more than human if they ate the fruit. They would have a better life. They would be like God. He suggested that God didn't want them to eat the fruit through because God wanted to keep this better life for Himself:
"For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
The most important point to grasp is that the problem began with a lie about the kind of person God is. Basically, Satan denied that "God is love." He made the Creator look like a selfish bully. This point brings us to the relationship part of the fall.
A RELATIONAL FALL.
The Bible tells us that Adam and Eve both believed this basic lie. Once they did, their relationships began to break down. The story in Genesis reads like this:
"So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, 'Where are you?' So he said, 'I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself. ' And He said, 'Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?' Then the man said, 'The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate. ' And the Lord God said to the woman, 'What is this you have done?' The woman said, 'The serpent deceived me, and I ate' " (Genesis 3:6-12).
First, we see that the relationship between God and humanity was broken. Adam and Eve stopped believing in the purity of God's love. They didn't believe He wanted the best for them. Because they believed Satan's lie, they stopped trusting God. They began a rebellion against Him. This rebellion focused on taking care of themselves first.
This break with God also caused a break in their relationship with each other. Now they naturally started to blame each other and even God for what happened. They had never even thought of talking like this before. Once they began blaming, they felt naked and guilty. They felt this way because they were living a lie. Their behavior was going against God's design. His plan for them was that they would live in love and trust each other.
Now both love and trust were broken.
A MORAL FALL.
Paul gives us a clear understanding of what sin is when he says:
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).
In the Bible the word "glory" means something a little different than you might think. God's glory is His character shining out like the sun. Who He is at heart gets to be seen. It's the inside of God's character shining outward in His actions. It's the way God thinks, feels, and behaves. You can find this biblical idea of "glory" by reading and talking about Exodus 33:18-19:
"And he [Moses] said, 'Please, show me Your glory. ' Then He [God] said, 'I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. ' "
So when Moses asks to see God's glory, God shows Him character. Moses sees the kind of person God is. He sees God's goodness. He sees God's grace. He sees God's love. This is God's glory.
Paul explains that sin means falling short if or failing to reach God's glory. What he is saying is that sin is clash with God's basic character. We've learned from the Bible that God's basic character is self giving love (1 John 4:8). So sin is anything that goes against God's character and breaks the faithfulness of His love.
The following two verses shed more light on what the heart of sin is:
". . . Sin is the transgression of the law" (1 John 3:4 KJV).
And "love is the fulfillment of the law" (Romans 13:10).
The Fall of mankind made humans morally crazy. Right and wrong were no longer clear. God had created humans to live in love. We were to have faithful relationships. There weren't supposed to be any lonely people. There weren't supposed to be any starving children. Families were supposed to love each other and take care of each other. There wouldn't be any fighting or killing. Love would be our reason for doing whatever we do.
But in Christ we see the clear truth about God. We see the beauty of His character. His love is like a light in our sick world. "You shall know the truth, " He said, "and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32). Jesus wasn't talking about truths (plural) in general or random facts from science. Rather, He was talking about the truth (singular) about God's character. This truth stands against Jesus, who is the truth:
"You are of your father the devil, and the the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it" (John 8:44).
There is a connection between lies and desires and actions. Adam and Eve believed Satan's lie about God's character. This belief caused them to have hateful desires toward God. These desires led them to rebellious actions against God. So, our thoughts (beliefs) lead to our feelings. Our feelings lead to our actions. Our actions strengthen our thoughts. The Fall of mankind began with believing a lie about God. This belief led to a broken trust with God. This break in trust led to a rebellion against what God said was right and wrong. This rebellion was shown in Adam and Eve's behavior.
CONNECT
Jesus walked over the same ground as Adam and Eve. The difference is He stayed faithful in love to God and to us.
Satan succeeded in getting our first parents to doubt God's love and stop trusting Him. He tried to do the same thing with Jesus. The Bible tells us in Hebrews that Jesus "was in all points tempted as we are" ( Hebrews 4:15). Satan tried to get Jesus to doubt God's love. He tried to get Jesus to put Himself first. But Jesus was "yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15). He never once gave in to Satan. He never doubted God's love or stopped trusting Him. He never put Himself first. His love for us remained constant. Jesus followed the footsteps of our first parents and succeeded where they failed. Through His human life, complete faithfulness in relationships is restored.
EXPERIENCE
I want to experience restored trust in my heart toward God. This trust will come as I believe the truth of His love for me.
God "desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" ( 1 Timothy 2:4). He wants us to know Him not as we know facts, but to know Him in an experience. The Fall has affected our understanding, our relationships, and our morals. Experiencing the truth of His character will save us from the affects of the Fall. Thank you , God, for making Your true character known through Christ!
GOD BLESS THEM!
