THE GOD OF GOODNESS AND GRACE 1. We need to read the first three chapters of Genesis to understand the goodness and grace of God. Take the first chapter. God made a beautiful creation. For whom? For man. Everything that God made was good. That first creation was so beautiful that the angels sang for joy. And then, God’s purpose in creating man was so great. How? It says He made man in His own image. Man was created in the image of God. Does it not speak of our high calling? Further, it says God blessed the first couple and told them, Be fruitful and multiply! God wanted us to be fruitful and to multiply. The same verse, Gen 1.28, says that God gave man dominion over the whole creation. And that God created so many fruit trees and herbs as food for man. Everything that God made was very good, Gen 1.31. 2. Then God put man in a garden, Gen 2.8. He gave him a wonderful environment. Eden must have been a paradise. Then God gave man a companion, a lovely wife. God did not want to be alone. He provided for his comfort and solace. God gave Adam great wisdom; he named all the birds and the beasts. Modern scientific classification pales in comparison to what Adam did when he gave names to every living creature, Gen 2.19, 20. Adam and Eve lived in bliss and innocence in the garden of Eden. They lacked nothing. 3. God gave them a variety of food to eat; there were so many fruit-bearing trees in the garden, Gen 1.29. But there was one tree in the midst of the garden which God forbade Adam and Eve to eat from. Now when God forbids something, we don’t have to ask why; we must implicitly obey. Satan came to Eve and planted a doubt in her heart. “Has God said?” He posed a question to her, wanting her to doubt God’s word. Eve was fully aware of God’s prohibition, Gen 3.3. But when Satan blatantly denied God’s word and maligned God’s character, Eve allowed Satan’s lies to enter her mind and her heart. Satan was in effect telling her: “Don’t trust God; trust me. Don’t trust His word; trust my word.” What did Eve do? She employed human reasoning. She saw that the tree was good for food; she wanted to gratify her appetite. Then she went by outward appearance; she saw that the fruit was pleasant to the eye. Finally, she sought wisdom for herself; the fruit was desirable to make one wise. Without consulting Adam, without caring for God’s injunction, she straightaway took the fruit and ate it. 4. Look at the Lord Jesus Christ. He was in a wilderness. He had fasted for 40 days; He was hungry. Satan came to Him and told him to turn the stones into bread and satisfy His hunger. But the Lord Jesus did not seek immediate gratification. He stood on the Word of God. He resisted Satan’s temptations with the words, “It is written!”. He stood by faith in God’s Word. Eve, on the other hand, rejected God’s word (God’s command) for Satan’s word. She sold her soul to Satan. And Adam did the same. 5. What happened after they ate the fruit? Their eyes were opened. They realized they were naked. They lost their innocence. They had sinned, and sin brought shame. They tried to cover themselves with fig-leaves. They hid themselves from God. A sense of alienation and separation came into their hearts. They did not admit their mistake, but put the blame on others. Adam blamed Eve, and Eve blamed the serpent. They did not humble themselves before God. 6. But did God reject them? Sin brought separation. Sin brought shame. Sin brought a curse – though the curse ultimately fell on Satan. What did God do? He first gave a promise. Read Gen 3.15. He promised the Messiah (the seed of the woman) who would crush Satan on the Cross. That’s what Gen 3.15 means. The Lord Jesus Christ is the Promised Seed. Then God clothed Adam and Eve, Gen 3.21; He covered their nakedness. He killed an innocent animal and clothed the guilty couple with garments of skin. An animal was slain, blood was shed. All this pointed to the Lamb of God who would be slain for the sins of mankind. The garments of skin typified the garments of salvation. 7. I am recounting all this just to tell you that God was so full of grace and mercy towards Adam and Eve even when they had sinned. God had given man a wonderful creation. They had so many earthly blessings – the blessings of providence. But when man sinned, what did God do? He promised the Messiah who would deliver them from sin, and also destroy the power of Satan (Gen 3.15). We believers are inheritors of that great promise, for Christ is our Messiah, our Saviour. Not only that, but when man sinned, God gave up His Son as a sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. 8. My point is: What was Satan trying to tell Eve? God has denied you the fruit of this tree; God is withholding something from you. But when we read those first three chapters of Genesis we find that God withheld nothing. In the end, in order to redeem man from sin, separation and shame, He gave up His only begotten Son as the Lamb of God, the great sacrifice on the altar of Calvary. 9. From beginning to end, we see God as the God of all grace. He is so full of goodness. Everything He did and provided was for the good of man. Man betrayed God’s trust. Man was unfaithful. But God remained faithful. He was determined to save man from the consequences of his fall. God sent His only beloved Son to die for our sins on the Cross. Through the Blood of Jesus we are redeemed from sin, Satan and death and we are brought back into the original purpose of God which is that we should share in God’s glory and have dominion over the whole universe. JK
Posted on: Sat, 06 Jul 2013 02:41:23 +0000