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' March 1932 Employment was given to man by God; therefore it must be good (cf. Jas. 1:17). It was given before sin came ; hence it can not be an ill. It was given as a matter of grace, consequently for man’s good. The constitution of man’s body is such that it needs employment ; but like everything else, it has been spoiled by sin, and now work is looked upon more or less as an evil to be avoided as far as possible. Man works today largely because of what he will get when the work is finished, and the work itself is counted as anything but a blessing. The first man’s work was to bring an increase from the ground. In this, we have a hint of that which, in another sense, is to be the occupation of the Chris tian. The reason so many Christian lives are not productive is found in a lack of cultivation of the gifts which the Lord has bestowed. II. M an ’ s T est (2:16, 17). Man was tested, not tempted to sin (cf. Jas. 1:13-17). God can neither be tempted to sin, nor can He tempt another to sin. But some test was necessary, because of what man was—a free moral agent who must choose to whom he would yield obed ience. He was a man, and as such he was supreme over all and could say, even to God, “I will,” or “I will not.” The test was applied in order to discover to the man himself whether he was ready to serve God, who had made him, or Satan, who tried him. Of course, ,man did not know Satan then, but God did,, .and therefore the test was applied. If the question is asked why God did not make a man who could not sin, the answer is simply that He made a man and not an automaton, or some sort of robot. III. M an ’ s S in (3 :1-5) 1. The source. As far as man is concerned, the source of sin is found in these verses. There.had been sin hefore this, but we are not told where. Man. is given all that he requires to know, but God has not been pleased to satisfy man’s curiosity. There are some things that are not for man to know, and this is one of them. There are certain hid den things which God reserves to Himself (cf. Deut. 29:29). The record in these verses assumes that an enemy exists, and we have some hints concerning this enemy in such passages as Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14. The word translated “serpent” means “shining one.” It calls to mind the one who is transformed into “an angel of light” (cf. 2 Cor. 11:13-15; Rev. 12:9; 20:2). Throughout the Scriptures, beginning at Genesis 3, the serpent is never connected with that which is good. It is continually allied with Satan. The fearfulness .of its bite, its poison, and its hatefulness is often referred to. Jesus Himself, speaking of those given over to Satan and to rebellion against God, declares them to be a “genera tion of vipers,” sure of the damnation of hell. The serpent’s attack upon the man was concerned with the Word of God. This has always been Satan’s method. He has nothing new, but his long experience and wisdom now enables him to bring the old method into play with more subtilty than ever before. As though he had heard a ru mor, but it was impossible that it could be true, he questions the fact of a revelation from God: “Yea, hath God said?” In other words, could Deity actually speak to humanity? And if He could, would He?
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as man can see; it may be a right way, as far as man realizes; but “there is a way that seemeth right to a man but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Not only did the first man deny God’s love, but he also refused His truth. Denying God’s Word, he acted independent of God and thus became a criminal. He trampled up on God’s plain command that he should not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and in eating, he broke that command. Finally, he denied the very be ing of God—His deity—and threw off God’s authority. Thus he became a rebel in God’s universe, acting in opposition to God. The nature of sin is therefore noth ing less than denial of God’s truth, or un belief in God Himself. The sin of all sins is not murder, or robbery, or adultery, or any of the things which appear so heinous in the eyes of men, but it is simply unbe lief in God; in this sin, all other sins are embraced. It is not without reason, there fore, that we are told over and over again that salvation comes only by faith. “Be lieve on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” is the word for sinners to day. IV. T he R esults of M an ’ s S in (3 :7 ,8 ). 1. Shame. The first result of sin is shame, showing itself in self-consciousness, or the loss of the boldness of innocency. This sense of' shame is latent in the child, but absent in the animal. Animals feel no need of cov ering; but when self-consciousness comes to children, they involuntarily feel that need. The very attempt to hide their shame reveals their self-condemnation. Their ac cusing consciences remind them of it, and at the bar of self they stand condemned. And this attempt to hide what they know is there advertises their self-contempt or the loss of their self-respect. Thus sin brings shame to every sinner, whether he be cul tured or vulgar. 2. Self-righteousness. Humans would try to hold their inno cency by denying its loss, and would at tempt to regain their self-respect by what they did to hide their shame. This is the result of sin—a self-righteousness re vealed in such frequently uttered words as these: “I do the best I can, treating my fellow man as I would be treated.” 3. Separation from God. This separation was brought about, and is continued today, not by God, but by man. God would come to the man, but the man flees from God. The separation exists in spite of man’s self-righteousness. He knows that what is good enough to pass muster among his fellows is not good enough for God. Finally, the separation is there because of man’s shame. Salvation by faith in Christ removes the shame of sin, bestows the righteous ness of God, and brings the believer into fellowship with the eternal Giver of all good. Lesson Questions 2:15. What exalted position was given to Adam? Is work a blessing or a curse (cf. Jas. 1 :17) ? Vs. 16, 17. Was God’s prohibition just? Was it necessary that man should be tested ? 3 :l-5. Trace the steps in the fall. What do you know about the nature of the “shin ing one” (cf. Ezek. 28; Isa. 14; 2 Cor. 11 : 13-15 ; etc.) ? Through whom is the race involved in sin? Is God the author of evil?
BLACKBOARD LESSON WATCH FRA Y Ig | 7» ,„«5*51£Pi "V>7>„ a g v 5 "V THE LUST OF THE FLESH ’ • pLISTEN,To Sa*a.7i’s lie f THE LUST OF THE EYES L O O «,A t S a tin ’s offer THE VAIN GLORY OF LIFE LU ST,Toc S a tin ’s ¿eJice - protective A/? prayer .. Keep's our FLI5H in subjection Keeps our EYES on HIM Keeps our SPIRIT Rumble and. contrite. In the second attack, he questions the truth of any such alleged revelation: “Ye shall not surely die.” That is, admitting that God has spoken, either He is not under stood, or He does not mean what He says. Finally, he questions the love behind the alleged revelation by declaring that “God doth know that the day ye eat thereof” ye shall be better off. He would have it be lieved that the revelation God gave is not immutable and unchangeable. How like those who deny God’s Word today! They deny, first, the fact that God has spoken; then, when driven from that position, they deny that what He has said can be under stood; and finally, they suggest that what He has said may be altered to fit so-called modern circumstances and conditions. We should remember that it was the woman who was deceived, not the man. The man sinned deliberately and with his eyes open, knowing what he was doing. As the race stands in the man, and not the woman, the race is involved in the sin. God allowed man to choose, and both heaven and hell lay within his choice. As some one has said, “In man’s moral life, there is the powerlessness of Satan apart from man’s consent. This is man’s final responsibility for his actions.” Man can never say, “I was overpowered in spite of myself.” The m o d e r n evolutionary thought that “man had no alternative than to fail, and hence the failure was not a fall” is a lie. 2. The fact. The fact of sin is declared in the words, “he did eat” (v. 6). This fact is every where assumed throughout the Bible. Man admits it, as the sayings of the world’s philosophers, writers, and thinkers abun dantly reveal. It is admitted by the mere acknowledgment that we are not as good as we ought to be, and that there is still something wrong with us. Even so-called pagan peoples recognize the fact of sin. For instance, a Chinese saying reads: “There are only two good men; one of them is dead, and the other is not yet born.” Moreover, conscience repeatedly reminds man of the fact of sin, and history records it in the tendencies to evil found in chil dren everywhere, whether they be the off spring of a king or a commoner. Two great facts emerge from what has been said: First, God is not the author of sin; and second, sin came to man from without and not from within his nature. He had within him the liability to sin, but not the tendency. 3. The nature. The nature of sin, as well as the fact of sin, is revealed in the words, “he did eat.” In eating, man denied God’s love and goodness by attempting to get some good by disobeying the word of God. In this, he acted apart from God, choosing his own way rather than God’s and thus became a sinner. A sinner is simply one who is walking in his own way in preference to God’s way. It may be a good way, as far
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