The Fall

Readings for today: Genesis 3-5

Like us, the ancients often wondered why the world is the way that it is. Why is the world so harsh and unyielding? Why is humanity so brutal and prone to violence? Why does evil exist? Why do people die? Why is there suffering and pain? These are existential questions that have haunted the human race from the beginning. Remember, God is speaking to a people who live in the Ancient Near East. He is speaking to people who already have a worldview. People who already have a fully formed set of beliefs about the world around them. He is reshaping their worldview. Revealing to them the truth of how things came into existence and why things are the way that they are. Through the author of Genesis - traditionally Moses - He is letting them in on the truth of human existence and helping them understand their role in the creative order.

So back to those persistent questions…why does evil exist? Why is there pain and suffering? Why do people die? Why is life in this world so hard? God’s answer is clear. The fault lies with humanity. We were given charge over all of creation. We were set in a Garden to work and to cultivate it alongside our Creator. Because God wanted a partner, not a slave, we were given free will which means we had the very real choice to continue working in God’s paradise or seek to remake the world according to our design. Tragically, we chose the latter. We don’t know how long Adam and Eve labored in the Garden, naked and unashamed. We don’t know how many millennia passed with them working side by side in perfect communion with God. We only know that one day it all came to an end. They began to covet the forbidden fruit. Whether the serpent was real or simply a metaphor for the devil, we do know they gave into temptation. They saw the fruit was good. They crossed the boundary God had set. They rejected His law and aspired to a role not their own. They wanted to be like God so like God they became. The problem, of course, is human beings do not have the power of God or the heart of God or the wisdom of God which turned us into tyrants. We began to oppress each other…the woman longing for the man and the man lording it over her. We began to oppress creation…the land itself refusing to produce for us as we exploited it. Conflict. Violence. Brokenness. All these things entered the world as a result of our decision and we’ve been suffering the consequences ever since.

The Bible forces us to confront our deepest, truest nature. We are sinners to the core. Corrupt and depraved. We covet. We get angry. We lash out at those we love. We even resort to violence in order to get our way. Most of all, we want to be like God. We want to be independent and free but we do not have the ability to use our freedom for godly purposes. Because of sin, our freedom gets twisted into selfishness, greed, narcissistic tendencies, pursuit of pleasure, and so many other proclivities that are not healthy nor good. The choices we make don’t just impact us either. They impact those who live with us and around us. They impact the world in which we live. The earth, the sea, the climate, and all manner of living things. Why? Because God never revokes His mandate. He never removes us from our divinely ordained role in the created order. Despite our sin, we remain stewards for good or for ill and God continues to pursue a partnership with us. It’s amazing when you stop to think about it. God could just as easily wiped us out and started all over but instead He chooses to persevere in chasing after us, not wishing any to perish but all to return to a relationship with Him. This is the heart of the gospel, of course, and it is why God will send us His Son.

So take a moment and consider your life today. Think about the people you will meet. The choices you will make. Where you will spend your time and energy and resources. Are you living your life in partnership with God or are you still trying to be your own god? Are you making decisions with His purposes in mind or are you doing what’s best for you? Are you cultivating and caring for all God has placed under your authority or are you using and exploiting these things for your own ends? Take these questions to prayer and ask the Holy Spirit to show you how to better align your life with God today.

Readings for tomorrow: Genesis 6-7

Where Art Thou?

Readings for today: Genesis 3-5

Father, through your Holy Spirit, open my eyes and heart that I may receive the gift of your Word today. Grant me wisdom and understanding so that I may know how to walk more fully in the light of the Lord. 

Where art thou? What a question from God. It’s not like God can’t see Adam and Eve crouching in the bushes behind their fig leaves. The Psalmist is clear that there is no place I can hide from God. If I climb to the highest of heavens, God is there. If I plunge into the depths of the earth, God is there. If I rise on the wings of the morning and settle on the far part of the sea, even there God is waiting for me. Nothing is hidden from Him so why this question? What is God after with Adam and Eve? What is God after with me? Where are you, Doug? Where’s your head? Where’s your heart? I am here waiting for you, Doug. Where are you? Why are you hiding? Why are you running? Why are you avoiding Me? Where are you, Doug? I miss our time together in the silence and solitude of each morning and evening. I miss our time together in worship. Where are you, Doug? 

It’s a powerful question for reflection. It reminds me that God is ever seeking after me. Relentlessly pursuing me. He will not rest until He tracks me down. My heart is so prone to wander. I am so easily distracted. The cares and the worries of this world cause me a lot of anxiety. My desires can be all over the map. Physically, I am getting older and I can feel my body breaking down. I have more aches and pains than in previous years. The toll I’ve taken on my body is catching up to me. My shoulders ache. My back hurts. I can’t do the things I once was able to do. Mentally, I continue to grow but I too often fill my mind with all sorts of unnecessary things. I do not think on what is noble or true or righteous or good but instead I allow myself to get drawn into the anger and frustration and bitterness that plagues so much of our world. Emotionally, I am learning. As a young boy, I learned to bury my emotions as a coping mechanism and have spent my entire life feeling stunted as a result. I feel deeply but cannot seem to find ways to express it. I have a hard time shedding tears. I do not let myself get too up lest I become disappointed or too down lest I feel weak. I keep a tight rein on my emotions because I am not sure I am safe. Spiritually, I know my sin. It is ever before me. I know my failures before the Lord. I know I do things I ought not to do and don’t do things I should do. Where are you, Doug? 

One can easily see my natural bent to be self-critical. ;-) But the above certainly does not define me and does not tell the whole story. When answering this question before the Lord, I must also acknowledge the many ways I have grown in my life. Yes, my body is breaking down and yet I enjoy good health. I get a good night’s sleep. I exercise regularly. I eat well. I pay attention to how I physically feel. I maintain an active lifestyle. I want to honor God with my body. Mentally, I am sharp. I read the Bible daily. I read books that encourage and equip and help me think more deeply about my faith. I use my intellectual gifts to serve others and to build up the Body of Christ and I know God is pleased. Emotionally, I have come a long way. I am learning to express my feelings to those I love. I am learning to identify the lies I tell myself. I am becoming more comfortable with naming my feelings and talking about them. This, in turn, has helped me become a better listener. A more empathetic and sympathetic person. Someone who is emotionally safe for others. Spiritually, I am more like Christ than ever. God has done a great work in my life. He has drawn near to me as I have drawn near to Him. He has honored every moment spent in prayer and in His Word and in worship. He has literally re-shaped how I view the world. How I understand life. He has re-ordered my desires. These things are just as true for me as the self-critique. In fact, an honest look at my life would say they are more true of me. 

For many years, my prayer has been “less of me, Jesus, more of you.” I have longed to decrease so that Christ may increase in my life. The only way that can happen is by intentionally dwelling in God’s presence. By living my life ever before Him, I become who He created me to be. Becoming like Christ has nothing to do with my work, it is a byproduct of being present before God. Perhaps this is why I find God’s question to Adam so heartbreaking. Where are you, Adam? As a father, I know what it’s like to feel distant from one’s children. It’s the worst feeling in the world. To not know where they are physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually. To not feel connected to the one you love most. God must have felt all these feelings and more when He asked the question and His hope was for Adam’s return. Sadly, Adam and Eve chose to blame-shift. They chose to justify themselves. They chose the path of sin. How different things would be if they had torn off those fig leaves, confessed their sin, and humbled themselves before God! How different things would be in my own life if I too would stop trying to hide and vulnerably, authentically, honestly approached my Savior.  

Readings for tomorrow: Genesis 6-7

The Pervasiveness of Sin

Readings for today: Lamentations 1-5, Hebrews 7:11-28

There is a debate raging in our culture today. Is sin systemic or is it personal? Is sin communal or is it individual? Are we guilty of sin as we participate and perhaps unwittingly perpetuate sinful systems of injustice and oppression or are we only guilty of the sin we personally commit? The Bible’s answer is “yes.” It’s not an either/or but a both/and.

We have to remember that while the Bible was written for us, it was not written to us. In the case of the Book of Lamentations, it was written to people living in an ancient near east, honor/shame culture where the group identity of a particular people was far more important than the individual identity. In fact, you would be hard-pressed to get an ancient Israelite to even understand what an “individual” identity might look like apart from his or her community. When God brings judgment on the nation for the sins they’ve committed, they would have understood it as the just punishment for their collective guilt. The righteous action of a holy God against His people for the sin that has been building up over generations. The author of Lamentations says as much when he writes, “Our fathers sinned, and are no more; and we bear their iniquities.” (Lamentations‬ ‭5:7‬) He suggests as much when he personifies Jerusalem and gives her a collective voice in the narrative.

“How lonely sits the city that was full of people! How like a widow has she become, she who was great among the nations! She who was a princess among the provinces has become a slave…Jerusalem remembers in the days of her affliction and wandering all the precious things that were hers from days of old. When her people fell into the hand of the foe, and there was none to help her, her foes gloated over her; they mocked at her downfall. Jerusalem sinned grievously; therefore she became filthy; all who honored her despise her, for they have seen her nakedness; she herself groans and turns her face away…Look, O Lord, and see, for I am despised. Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Look and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow, which was brought upon me, which the Lord inflicted on the day of his fierce anger. From on high he sent fire; into my bones he made it descend; he spread a net for my feet; he turned me back; he has left me stunned, faint all the day long. My transgressions were bound into a yoke; by his hand they were fastened together; they were set upon my neck; he caused my strength to fail; the Lord gave me into the hands of those whom I cannot withstand.” (Lamentations‬ ‭1:1, 7-8, 11-14‬)

Conversely, we live in a guilt/innocence culture where everything is viewed through a highly individualistic lens. As such, we believe each person must be held accountable for their own choices in life. They must be responsible for their own actions. Therefore any and all punishment - if it is to be just - must be leveled against individuals for the crimes they’ve personally committed. And, to be sure, this idea is also present throughout Lamentations. We see Jeremiah lifting his own lament in the pages of this book. Acknowledging his own sin, suffering, and pain. Chapter three, in particular, seems to reflect Jeremiah’s experience.

“I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of his wrath; he has driven and brought me into darkness without any light; surely against me he turns his hand again and again the whole day long. He has made my flesh and my skin waste away; he has broken my bones; he has besieged and enveloped me with bitterness and tribulation; he has made me dwell in darkness like the dead of long ago. He has walled me about so that I cannot escape; he has made my chains heavy; though I call and cry for help, he shuts out my prayer; he has blocked my ways with blocks of stones; he has made my paths crooked…Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall! My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me.” (Lamentations‬ ‭3:1-9, 19-20‬)

We get no sense from Jeremiah that he is innocent or that he should escape or be protected from God’s righteous judgment. Instead, Jeremiah suffers the penalty for his sin and that of his nation. He accepts God’s judgment as just and then looks to Him for hope even in the midst of all he is going though. “But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord…For the Lord will not cast off forever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not afflict from his heart or grieve the children of men.” (Lamentations‬ ‭3:21-26, 31-33‬)

Now I know we struggle with God’s judgment. We struggle with it’s severity. We struggle with it’s seeming cruelty. We think to ourselves, “What about the innocent? Why do the righteous suffer alongside the unrighteous? What have the children or the poor or the outcast or the marginalized done who get caught up in this terrible holocaust?“ These are thoroughly modern and thoroughly western cultural questions. In the Bible’s view, no one is innocent. All are born into sin. All are born under judgment. All bear the guilt of our forefather and mother, Adam and Eve. We confirm our collective guilt each and every time we act in selfish and self-centered ways. As the Apostle Paul puts it, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned…But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many…Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans‬ ‭5:12, 15, 18-21‬)

You see, as much as we may want to deny the idea of collective guilt, we absolutely cling to the idea of collective righteousness. As much as we may want to deny the idea that we are held accountable for the sins of our fathers and mothers, we absolutely want to believe we are set free by the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. We can’t have one without the other and the great news of the gospel is the sacrifice of Christ is sufficient for all sin. Individual and collective. Personal and communal. Systemic and singular. When Christ died, He died once for all. He made atonement not just for our individual sins but for the sins of the whole world. (1 John 2:2)

Readings for tomorrow: Ezekiel 1-3, Hebrews 8