This week, in our new EPIC series, we’re learning about Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden.  God created the world, then humans, and put them in the Garden of Eden essentially as gardeners, to tend and care for the garden.  He only asked them not to try and take his places, as God.  But, they did – they wanted to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, essentially trying to be wise than God!  But he didn’t give up on them:

But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”  (Genesis 3:9-13 ESV)

When God comes looking for them, they hide, as if that’s possible.  They point the finger at each other – the man saying it was the woman, then lobbing a shot at God as well, reminding God that he gave Adam the woman.  He’s really blaming God – you gave her to me!  The woman blames the serpent, something else God created.  Again, a human is blaming God.  The relationship is broken, and this is the same brokenness that everyone today feels – we aren’t right with God.

Well, after finding out what Adam & Eve did, there are natural consequences to breaking up with God.

The relationship between people and the earth was broken.  They’d now have to work to eat.  There is an imbalance between us and our ecology we still wrestle with today.

                cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
By the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground,

This also broke the relationshiop between the man and woman.  It would now be one of competition, dominance and jealousy, rather than mutual care and sacrifice.  These tendencies are still a challenge for every relationship now.

To the woman he said,
“I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;
in pain you shall bring forth children.

                Your desire shall be for your husband,
and he shall rule over you.”

This is all because the relationship with God and humans is broken.  We no longer experience him like Adam & Eve did, walking and talking in a garden where all our needs are taken care of.  For them, it clearly ended – they were banished from the garden, and had to work for their food, and to reproduce, from then on.  We’ve never known any different of course, but many of us have this sense that it should have been different – that we’re disconnected from the very source of life – that the tree of life is still out there.

But there is a promise here that someday, God will send a rescuer.

I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.”

Can you find it?

Question: Where is hope, here?

Reminder: We are reading the Bible in sync as one community – so check out today’s reading at https://www.redeemthecommute.com/readingplan

Meeting with a Group?  Your discussion questions are in this week’s Group Study Guide

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