FRIDAY, July 24, 2009                                                       READ: Genesis 3: 14 – 19                                                                                                        

GOD CURSED THE GROUND FOR ADAM’S SAKE

MEMORIZE: Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree which I commanded you saying ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life.”         Genesis 3: 17

God, the Son, Jesus of Nazareth, is the center of the divine redemptive focus (cf. Psalm 2: 11, 12; Matthew 3: 17; Colossians 1: 15 –18; Hebrews 1: 1 - 14). He was introduced in Genesis 3: 15, and presented as the Seed of the woman, who would become a member of the human family, and would do battle with the devil and destroy the works of the devil as He provide redemption for Adam’s descendants (cf. Hebrews 2: 9 – 14; 1 John 3: 8).

According to our text, Genesis 3: 14 - 19, after Adam made the choice to heed the suggestion, advice or even enticement of his wife and ate of the fruit, God informed each of the four participants, who had a part in the rebellion, the devil, the snake, the woman and the man, of the consequences of their own actions. In today’s reading, we are going to look at the consequences which were set forth for Adam. Adam is charged with heeding his wife’s insistence and disobeying God’s command. If Adam had a problem with what God had said to him, it, very likely did not become evident to him until after had listened to his wife’s insistence. No matter how persuasive your arguments are in your effort to convince me, in the final analysis, I am the one who must make the decision. Adam’s wife sought to persuade him to join with her in what she had done. He considered what she had said and he made the decision to go along with her, thereby disobeying God. He failed to believe God. and to do what he knew was the right thing to do. He decided to transgress God’s command. In telling him of the consequence of his action, God informed him, in v. 17, that “Because you heeded the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree…,” I am cursing the ground for your sake. That might sound like judgment, and it was. It was also an act of mercy. Think about it! What would it have meant for Adam, and his descendants after him, to have been in their fallen state, with the creation remaining pristine and productive? Instead of being able to exercise dominion, we would have been overwhelmed and outshone by the creation. Think of planting one melon seed and having melons so large and so numerous that we would not to be able to manage the harvest. “… in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life.” God’s design for Adam and his descendants after the fall, was that we should eat as a result of legitimate labor and toil, all the days of our lives. What is wrong with work? What is wrong with delight in the fruits of our labor and toil? In v. 18, we see how God spoke of “Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field.” Up until this point in time, there is no recorded death. Neither Adam nor his wife have eaten meat. Their diet was consigned to be of "the herb of the field." The ground will yield up more than what was expected and that will add to the toil. In v. 19, we are able to see how God emphasized the fact that life will not be easy and will involve toiling and sweating. Adam and his wife elected to go it on their own. God allowed them to have to fend for themselves and to eat as a result of labor and effort (cf. 2 Thessalonians 3: 10). Observe how God indicated that ultimately, the man and all of his descendants will have to return to the dust - that is, die (cf. Genesis 2: 17; 3: 4; Hebrews 9: 27; Romans 5: 12)! Unfortunately, the consequences which were consigned to Adam as a result of his sin, have been passed down to his descendants as well. It also affects the created order around us. Our redemption will affect theirs as well (cf. Romans 8: 19-23).

PRAY: LORD, God Almighty, You are the Creator of all of life. LORD, I am able to see what our drive for independence has brought to us. Thank You for making Your ways known to us. LORD, please help me to join You in what You are doing and to trust You for what is best. I am asking this in Jesus' strong name. Amen!