We are All Sinners
Day 12
by Gini Crawford, MSW
Doubting God's love
Why did Adam and Eve choose to eat from the tree God told them not too? That is an age old question that we won't know for sure until we ask them in heaven. But let's take an educated guess from our own experiences with God. I believe it was their lack of trust in God. They doubted His love and care for them. Why would they doubt God's love? Now granted, a talking serpent does grab your attention, but to throw out their loving Creator's only command and trust in the talking serpent to give them advice was foolish to say the least. Remember, they were literally with God face to face. They knew He had created them and the very good world around them.
How heartbreaking! God had created them so He could love them, and they turned their backs on that love by trusting in Satan. Yet, we can all doubt God's love for us, can't we? Do you doubt God's love for you? Satan loves it when we doubt God's love for us.
It's just not Adam and Eve who sin
God's Word teaches us that we all are sinners (Romans 5:12, 19). This is because we are born with a nature coming from our ancestors who sinned. Yes, what Adam and Eve did thousands of years ago still affects us today in a horrific way, and that does seem unfair. But reality is, we all would have eaten the forbidden fruit sooner or later. I know I would have. Yes, for worse and not better, we all sin.
...as it is written: "None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one. Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive. The venom of asps is under their lips. Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes." Romans 3:10-18 ESV®
How often do you think you sin? The difficult truth is, even if we only have sinned once in our life, because of that one sin we would be guilty before God. Remember one sin brought death and evil into the world. If we are honest with ourselves, disobeying God is our natural way of life. It is supernatural for us to desire what God wants in our lives. (Psalm 14:1-3; 143:1-2, 8).
For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. James 2:10 ESV®
Christians are set free from the punishment and power of sin because of Jesus. (Romans 8:1-3). Yet, the unfortunate truth is, even after we become Christians, the sin nature stays lurking around tempting us to sin (Romans 6:12-13; James 1:13-15). One of the positive things about dying is we are completely set free from our earthly struggles at death, sin being one of them, to living in the glory of heaven (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; Jude 24).
How often do you think you choose to follow God and not sin?
God's sovereignty gave us a free will
A logical question would be, why did God give Adam and Eve even one command, since He knew (Psalm 139:1-4) they would disobey Him? God is sovereign over all things - the earth and the heavens, what we know and don't even comprehend. No king, ruler or force, human or demonic, can even come close to controlling or conquering God. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. (2 Chronicles 20:6; Isaiah 40:10-31). Yet, amazingly in God's sovereignty, He gave us all the incredible gift of a free will. Granted our free will is limited compared to God's, but it still gives us abundant freedom to choose, even whether to obey and love God or not. God's one command was a simple and loving way to give Adam and Eve a free will even towards their Creator.
A famous Christian speaker and author who is dead now, chose to live a secret life of sin. This man was a wonderful teacher for God, who led people to Jesus Christ and blessed many through his ministry. I enjoyed his teaching. His hidden life of sexual impurity came to light shortly after his death, and has put the ministry he founded in an awful situation. His family whom he loved, is now living a nightmare of feelings and questions. Choosing sin never has a happy ending.
Consider this: You can choose to make the right choice which is spelled out in God's Word and has wonderful consequences, or choose what your sinful desires are whispering to you, and end up like the man in the illustration above, hurting yourself and many others. You have a choice.
Making wrong choices
It's an understatement to say Adam and Eve made a wrong choice, isn't it? Their choice literally condemned all of us to eternal death (Romans 5:17-18). Yet, if we are honest with ourselves we have all made bad choices that brought devastation into our lives and others. How many wrong choices have you made or still make? Have you chosen to be lazy, reckless or dishonest and it has damaged a business, a school career, or a relationship? Maybe you have allowed anger, jealousy or unforgiveness to control you? Perhaps you drink too much and can't or won't stop. Maybe you are hurting your child, your family, a ministry, a friendship, or your career right now because of wrong choices. King David could relate to Adam and Eve. He knew He was a sinner too. David said,
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin! For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment. Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. Psalm 51:1-5 ESV®
We can all relate to Adam and Eve, can't we?
Life Application
God loves sinners
I watched the movie, Apocalypto, by Mel Gibson years ago. Human sacrifices were portrayed in living color, with the heads of the sacrificed men rolling down the stairs of the temple of the sun god, and the priests with blood dripping down their fronts from the still beating hearts that had been just cut out of their human victims. (Jeremiah 19:4-6, 32:35). I thought, "Oh Mel, why be so graphic?" Then it hit me that this is the history of our sinful human nature, granted, at its worst. Yes, thank God few people do this type of evil, but if we are honest with ourselves, we all do many things that are contrary to what God wants. (Genesis 6:5; Jeremiah 17:9-10; James 4:17).
We need to keep in mind, when Adam and Eve sinned, God still loved them. Remember what happened in the garden. God still wanted a relationship with them, but there is a separation now. However, God never wanted any of us to be separated from Him, so He paid for our sins by doing the unthinkable, sacrificing Himself for us, so that the people He loved would not be separated from Him. Read Psalm 51:1-5; Isaiah 53:4-12, 59:1-2; Ephesians 2:1-9. What do these passages say about sin? What did God do to take care of our sin? How did God show His love for us even though we were sinners?
Reflect on Psalm 51:1-5