Genesis Chapter 3:1-6

Transcription

1 Genesis Chapter 3:1-6 The Fall and Satan ~ Part 1 The scene is on Perelandra. It has its first two humans, The King and the Lady. It stands uncorrupted before the creator, Maleldil. But evil wants to bring it down just as he did on earth. This time the serpent is the earthly professor of physic,s Dr. Weston. He is speaking to the Lady. Have you understood that to wait for Maledil s voice when Maleldil wishes you to walk on your own is a kind of disobedience? I think I have. The wrong kind of obeying itself can be a disobeying. The lady though for a few moments and then clapped her hands. I see, she said, I see! Oh, how old you make me. Before now I chased a beast for mirth. And it has understood and run away from me. If it had stood still and let me catch it, that would have been a sort of obeying but not the best sort. Your understand very well. When you are fully grown you will be even wiser and more beautiful than the women of my own world. And you see that it might be so with Maledil s biddings. I think I do not see quite clearly. Are you certain that He really wishes to be always obeyed? How can we not obey what we love? The beast that ran away loved you. I wonder, said the Lady, if that is the same. The beast knows very well when I mean it to run away and when I want it to come to me. But Maleldil has never said to us that any word or work of His was a jest. How could our Beloved need to jest or frolic as we do? He is all a burning joy and a strength. It is like thinking that He needed sleep or food. No, it would not be a jest. That is only a thing like it, not the thing itself. But could the taking away of your hand from His the full growing up the walking in your own way could that ever be perfect unless you had, if only once, seemed to disobey Him? How could one seem to disobey? By doing what He only seemed to forbid. There might be a commanding which He wished you to break. 1 And today Satan continues to try to convince people that dependency on God is really a crutch, or that God doesn t mean what he says. The question is: will the Lady set foot on the Fixed Island against the will of Maleldil? To find the answer you will have to read C. S. Lewis book Perelandra, the second in his space trilogy. C. S. Lewis spoke to the issues of sin, the fall and Satan. We will speak to these same issues as we going back into the text itself after an extended look at creation issues. This morning we are going to consider the fall of man and talk a bit about who Satan is. Now, as we pointed out earlier, there doesn t seem to be any way we can tell how much time has gone by since the creation of Adam and Eve and this account of the Fall. 1 Lewis, C. S., Perelandra, The Macmillian Company, New York, NY, 1968, p

2 III The Fall Chapters 3-4 A. The Event Chapter 3 1. The Serpent Verse 1a 2. The Serpent, Adam, and Eve Verses 1b God, Adam, and Eve Verses The Consequences of the Fall Verses Epilogue Verses The Serpent: The serpent is Satan s instrument in this work of temptation. We don t know what this creature was, except it was beautiful and intelligent. Obviously it didn t crawl on the ground, for this was the consequence of God s judgment on the creature. Sailhamer speaking of the serpent that it is described as more crafty than any of the creatures. The word is not primarily a negative term in the Bible but suggests wisdom and adroitness (besides its use here, it occurs eight times in Proverbs and twice in Job). The description of the serpent as crafty is in keeping with the fact that there are several features of this story that suggest the author wanted to draw a relationship between the Fall and man s quest for wisdom. Man s disobedience is not so much depicted as an act of great wickedness or a great transgression as much as it is an act o great folly. He had all the good he would have needed, but he wanted more he wanted to be like God The Serpent, Adam and Eve: Verses 1-3: What is Satan s first approach in bringing down the fall of Man. He causes doubt in God s word. Understanding God s word accurately is vital. If any part of God s word is untrustworthy then He is. This is the kind of thinking that led to the Fall, questioning God s word. Satan asks: Did God really say that you can t eat of that tree over there? Now note Eve s response. She didn t limit herself to God s word but had to expand upon it. God had said: but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die (2:17). But Eve adds to God s words with the phrase, and you must not touch it (3:2). This may reflect her curiosity about the tree. This may reflect Adam s passing of God s word on to her. All sorts of speculation has risen over this incident. Did Adam fail to instruct Eve properly? Was she wandering inappropriately in the vicinity of the tree? We don t have any answers, therefore the questions aren t important to an understanding of the Fall. All we need to know is that Eve fell under the influence of Satan, and therefore questioned the word of the Lord. 2 Sailhamer, John H., The Expositor s Bible Commentary, Genesis, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI, 1992, p. 50. ) 44 (

3 One thing is clear though. Her words demonstrate that she understood the tree itself to be dangerous and that touching it would lead to death. She didn t understand that disobedience was the issue. She thought the tree was. The problem of adding to God s word may have started here, but it has continued throughout the history of humanity. We see examples in the time of Christ. The religious leaders added to God s word by practice and by reliance on Talmud. Christ continually pointed out how these leaders had made the Law a burden. This was certainly not God s intent. Later Roman Orthodoxy did the same thing by placing an elaborate priesthood, one not sanctioned by God, weakening God s word between Him and the people. The leaders of this movement added the doctrines of purgatory, the saints, etc. all of which are not biblical. And even today many churches continue this practice by adding all sorts of non-scriptural burdens on their members. Can you give any examples of these extra-biblical burdens you have either seen or experienced yourself? The trouble with adding to the word or taking on non-biblical expectations, i.e. God intends us to healthy, wealthy and wise, can lead to frustration and anger with God. The problem of course is the expectations, not God. So then, any deviation from God s word is dangerous. This example is just the first step in undermining His word. And when we start the process Satan is more than happy to step in and push us off a cliff Verses 4-5: which he does here when he next contradicts what God has said. He calls God a liar. He states that Eve will not die. What does he give as God s motive for lying? He accuses God of being fearful that she will become God s equal because she would know the difference between good and evil. What is the pattern being established here? First God s words are doubted. What did He actually say? Then, His motives are questioned. Well, maybe this is what He said, but why did He say it? And the pattern continues. There are many people today who question either God s words or His motives regarding the issue of judgment. God, being a loving God, won t really send people to hell just because they aren t perfect. Instead, out of His loving and generous nature, He will excuse their actions. And if God really means what the Bible says then: I wouldn t follow a God who would send someone to Hell. Again, God s motives and/or words are either questioned or completely misunderstood. And Satan uses that approach as he promises Eve two things: 1. Her eyes would be opened. She would have greater understanding. In actuality they would be opened to her sin and misery. 2. She would know the difference between good and evil like God. She would be omniscient. In actuality she would recognize her own sin. ) 45 (

4 Verse 6: Eve added to God s word, then she doubted His motives. Her ego was appealed to. She could be equal to Him. She followed what has since become the pattern by which we fall into specific sins. 1. Looking First, she looked at the object which was forbidden 2. Desiring Having looked on the potential sin, being tempted by it, she chose not to turn away. She was attracted to it and allowed herself to desire it. 3. Taking Even in the desiring it wouldn t have been too late to turn and flee. But instead she takes the fruit and eats it. With God s help we can break the pattern of sin in our own life, by fleeing temptation. It isn t temptation that is sin. It is the giving in to that temptation. No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it (1 Corinthians 10:13). Having eaten of the fruit herself, Eve then offers it to Adam who take it and eats it. She was deceived, he knowingly ate. This is why scripture holds Adam accountable for the fall and not Eve. Therefore, just as sin entered the world though one man (Romans 5:12). Adam deliberately sinned while Eve acted through emotions. But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent s cunning And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived (2 Corinthians 11:3; 1 Timothy 2:14). I ve been using Satan instead of serpent in the discussion because we know that he was the one who through the serpent tempted Eve. But we know this is Satan. He (an angel) seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan (Revelation 20:2). Who is Satan? We are not told here, but again through progressive revelation, we can find out some things about him. Morris speaking of his original condition notes: a great host of angels (meaning messengers ) had been created for a variety of ministries around God s throne. They had various ranks and positions of authority: principalities and powers. Evidently the greatest of these created spirit-beings was one called Lucifer ( day-star ). 3 But somehow Lucifer decided he wasn t satisfied with the status quo. 3 Morris, Henry M., The Genesis Record, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI, 1987, p ) 46 (

5 How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High. But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit (Isaiah 14:12-15). The statements made in this passage could never be true of a mere earthly king. The same powerful spirit is similarly addressed in Ezekiel 28: The word of the Lord came to me: Son of man, take up a lament concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings. By your many sins and dishonest trade you have desecrated your sanctuaries. So I made a fire come out from you, and it consumed you, and I reduced you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all who were watching. All the nations who knew you are appalled at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more. Today Satan generally takes one of two approaches with people. He strives to convince them he is more powerful than he actually is. This approach basically equates good and evil and leaves the final outcome as a doubt. This sales approach is seen in Satanic style cults. Unfortunately it is unintentionally propagated by some Christians in so called deliverance ministries, which leave immature believers with excessive fears regarding him. The other approach is to convince people that he doesn t exist. This is done either by presenting propaganda that says he is simply the mythology of ignorant people (Christians) or by saying that he is the personification of a more abstract evil. In any case it is ignorance of the enemy that is always the greater danger than the enemy himself. But clearly scripture teaches that Satan is a personality. He was created in an unfallen state by God. This means that he cannot be omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent. And most important, Satan has already been defeated. He simply wants to create as much destruction on the way out as he can. 4 Ibid ) 47 (

6 But, even though he is not an equal of God, he is a personality and does therefore have the attributes of personhood. He is intelligent: in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes (2 Corinthians 2:1). He possesses memory: This is demonstrated as he tempts Christ by taking scripture and misusing it. In Matthew 4:6, quoting Psalm 91 out of context, he says: If you are the Son of God throw yourself down. For it is written: He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. He has a will: and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will (2 Timothy 2:26). If you desire to study the Doctrine of Satan in some detail I would recommend you to Willmington s Guide to the Bible. The most important thing to recognize about Satan though is that Christ conquered him. He has lost. J. Dwight Pentecost said the following: According to Hebrews 2: 14 ( Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death that is, the devil ) the one who sought to destroy men and keep them in the power of death was the devil. The only way Jesus Christ could give us victory over Satan was to die for men and then to be brought to life again. Satan can destroy life. He cannot create life. Satan could bring about physical death but Satan could not bring a man to resurrection. So the Apostle who referred to the death of Christ in verse 14 refers to the resurrection of Christ in Colossians 2:15 ( And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. ) to show us that the resurrection of Christ is God s victory over the accuser. Satan can never come before God and indict you for a sin again, because Jesus Christ has removed the indictment and because that debt has already been paid. 5 The message for us is: You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them (the false prophets), because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world (1 John 4:4). We are called to the battle of spiritual warfare which is carried out by putting on the whole armor of God. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is 5 Pentecost, J. Dwight, Your Adversary the Devil, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI, 1973, p ) 48 (

7 not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints (Ephesians 6:10-18). The message for the world is that all have sin and that there is no remission of sin without the shedding of blood. In other words, true freedom only comes with the acknowledgement of the need for a savior if there is to be an eternity in God s presence instead of an eternity of Hell. ) 49 (

8 Genesis Chapter 3:1-6 The Fall and Satan III The Fall Chapters 3-4 A. The Event Chapter 3 1. The Serpent Verse 1a 2. The Serpent, Adam, and Eve Verses 1b The Serpent: 2. The Serpent, Adam and Eve: Verses 1-3: (Genesis 2:17, 3:2) Verses 4-5: 1. Her eyes would be opened. 2. She would know the difference between good and evil.

9 Verse 6: (1 Corinthians 10:13; Romans 5:12; 2 Corinthians 11:3; 1 Timothy 2:14) 1. Looking 2. Desiring 3. Taking Satan: (Revelation 20:2; Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:11-19; 2 Corinthians 2:1; Matthew 4:6; 2 Timothy 2:26; 1 John 4:4; Ephesians 6:10-18) Personal Application: This week, let s focus on the importance of letting God s word teach us, rather than us trying to teach, that is drawing from it what we want it to say, it. Prayer for the Week: Lord, in my job help me do it unto You regardless of my circumstances. And help our marriage be a testimony to You. In Christ s name, amen.