“So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.” – Genesis 3:23-24
The book of Genesis tells the account of God creating all that is. All of creation was “good” and the garden God placed man and woman was paradise. Then Adam and Eve sinned. They ate from the forbidden tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Before this, they had only known good. Now, knowing evil, they could not remain. Their sin could not remain.
Paradise was lost. This loss extended beyond Adam and Eve to all their descendants, including you and me. Where Adam was created in the image of God, Genesis 5 tells us Adam’s children were born in he and Eve’s likeness. In other words, their descendants were born sinful just as they had become.
“This is the written account of Adam’s family line. When God created mankind, he made them in the likeness of God. He created them male and female and blessed them. And he named them “Mankind” when they were created. When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image; and he named him Seth.” – Genesis 5:1-3
Paradise was lost fo all of us. However, even in the moment of this great loss, God’s love and mercy were shown.
“The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.” – Genesis 3:21
“So the Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.’” – Genesis 3:14-15
In the first passage above, we see God caring for Adam and Eve after pronouncing their initial punishment for their sin. He doesn’t smite them or send them out with nothing. He sacrifices an animal to cover them.
The second passage is even more wonderful. This is the punishment for the serpent, the devil, who led Adam and Eve into sin. The one who will have His heel struck, but will crush the devil is Jesus.
That’s right, even in the midst of handing out their punishment, God tells of the coming Messiah who will die to forgive them of the sin they just committed (and all other sin). Just like the animal that was sacrificed to cover their nakedness, Jesus would be sacrificed to cover and remove our sin.
With our sin removed, once again we may enter paradise. God blocked the entrance to Eden with an angel, for we could never enter paradise while still covered in our sin, but God opened a new gate to paradise, Jesus.
This is the love God has for us. We still struggle with sin to this day, but when we turn to God in repentant faith through Jesus Christ that sin is covered and He welcomes us home to a paradise that will never end.
Heavenly Father,
I confess that I have sinned, just as my earthly father, Adam, did. Please forgive me. Please purify me. Please hold me in your loving arms until the day when You call me home to be with you in paradise forever.
Amen.
You can read the full account of the Fall in Genesis 3. Click here to read it.
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Kurt
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