The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. [Genesis 3.6-7]
The woman was convinced...
What was the woman convinced of? Whatever it was, it caused shame and fear. Shame is mentioned in the context above and fear is mentioned shortly thereafter:
He replied, “I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked.” [Genesis 3.10]
So, again, what was the woman convinced of that invoked shame and fear? Let's look at what led up to the woman being convinced:
The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’” “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” [Genesis 3.1-5]
Let me paraphrase what Satan convinced the woman of: "There is more to living than what God has said. You need to do something about it."
The moment a person makes it his (or her) way, instead of God's way to preserve or improve their life, their insufficiency is revealed and shame and fear are the result.
Any time anyone doubts God's Word, shame and fear lead them to do something on their own. In Adam and Eve's case, it was first to cover themselves and hide from God.
The irony of Adam and Eve hiding from God is that Satan had convinced them they would be like God. So, in thinking they could do something - anything - to improve the condition of their lives, they inadvertently revealed their own insufficiency. What seemed like a good idea quickly and irreversibly bound them to overwhelming shame and fear.
Man's ways, brilliant as they may seem, always ultimately reveal his vulnerability - his inability to attain the goal, his sin.
As the Bible plays out, there are two ways man may choose to deal with his vulnerability: one is to yield to the taskmaster of Satan enslaved to the constant toil of seeking new and better ways to preserve or improve his life, and the other is to yield to Jesus (God With Us) turning away from any hint of self-preservation in order to trust entirely in Him. Jesus said it like this:
“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]
Our only role in preserving or improving our own life is complete trust in, and subsequent obedience to God. The moment we take our eyes off Jesus, looking to ourself and our inventions born purely of human reason and logic, is the moment that shame and fear find their relentless authority over our lives trapping us as slaves to "self" - slaves to our own ways, slaves to our own reason and logic, and slaves to our own resulting man-made idols. This bondage costs man in every way: time, money, and ultimately, his very soul.
Father, as I begin this New Year, may I be found methodically shedding every layer of my own ways (the ways of man) so that my trust in You is pure and unadulterated. May the shame and fear that exist because of my disobedience (faithlessness) be addressed only by Jesus as I strive to live in humble repentance and faith in Him. May I truly seek first Your Kingdom and righteousness while You take care of the things I otherwise would try to remedy myself out of shame and fear. May I genuinely understand my vulnerability. May I genuinely understand there is nothing I can do to preserve or improve my life because that is entirely Your role... You alone are my God. So be it.
No comments:
Post a Comment