THE GARDEN OF EDEN
Text: Genesis 2:4-25 W. Max Alderman
Comments about chapter 2:4-25 – The Garden of Eden was a paradise. Often, I think about what the Garden of Eden was like. I love to see things grow and I can only imagine how beautiful all the plants were before the curse fell upon the earth. I believe that today we see through a glass darkly because of the original sin. I sometimes imagine what the intensity of light was before man sinned. I remember the first time that I looked at light as it was being refracted by a prism. I remember how beautiful all of the colors were. I think of what it may have been like in the Garden of Eden with light bouncing off of the flowers and seeing the beauty of light as it may have been with its prismatic effect. Yet, as wonderful as it was, man lost his paradise and all that went with it when he sinned. Man always loses to sin. In this section notice how paradise was truly lost to sin.
I. MAN’S SETTING IN THE NEW WORLD (Vv. 4-14)
A. His setting was DIFFERENT then. (Vv. 4-6)
The surroundings were vastly different from our surroundings today. The geo-structure, the eco-structure, the atmosphere, the botanical structure, etc., was different from that of today because of two important reasons. The first reason was the absence of the sin curse. There were no degenerative conditions as those associated with death and dying. Also, the atmospheric conditions were different due to the protective shield that existed prior to the Flood. (cf. Gen. 1:7).
PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Sin certainly made a difference on the surroundings of Adam and Eve then and it also does now. Before sin took place, there was an absence of sin upon the face of the earth. Now that the sin curse is upon the earth and we are prone to sin, we cannot totally escape sin and its effects until the Lord restores paradise with new heavens and with a new earth. In the meanwhile, we should live upon this earth as free from sinning as we possibly can. We do this through obedience to the Word of God. We should strive to live according to the Word of God as we walk in the light as He is the true Light. We also need to change the atmosphere of our surroundings in which we live. When a Christian walks into town, the people should see a difference. Also, when a Christian goes anywhere, there should be a difference. The atmosphere should immediately change.
B. His setting was DELIGHTFUL then. (Vv. 7-14)
Can you imagine having God as a gardener? Such was the case with Adam! God planted a garden in Eden (v.8). Certainly, if God planted it, it was a lovely and delightful place. A river that had its beginning under the ground (there was yet no rainfall) provided extra beauty and water for the garden. Verse 12 mentions the quality of the gold and the presence of the precious stones. There was so much to enjoy in this wonderful garden. For years, I thought of this garden as being a small neatly tucked away garden… Not so, it must have covered miles and miles of property that was dedicated to the God’s beautiful handiwork.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION: We should be the soil for God’s garden. There is much that the Lord will plant into our lives, if we only will let Him. He can plant spiritual roses that will add fragrance to anyone’s life. He can plant grapes that will yield the wine of joy in the believer’s life. He might even plant some sugarcane that will sweeten up one’s life. We should let Him grow whatever He desires in the garden of our life.
II. MAN’S SERVING IN THE NEW WORLD vv. 15-25
A. Adam’s serving had REQUIREMENTS. (Vv. 15-16)
Work came before sin. It is good for a man to work. Adam was required to dress and keep the garden. His labor was a labor of joy instead of toil as it is today. His serving in the garden was surely a delight.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION: When we do the Lord’s work, we should be mindful that we are working to please Him rather than please man. We should work hard and willingly. Hard work brings about good results. Some of the most miserable people that I have met are those who resist working. They, because of their laziness do not work or do just enough to get by and as a result of trying to live a life of ease, they invite anything but ease. They are more subject to failed health because the body needs to be exercised and challenged on a regular basis for it to remain healthy. Sometimes, I try taking a day off and when I do, I look forward to getting back to work. It is easy to become depressed and physically weakened when you are avoiding work. If you are experiencing health issues, find at which level that you can accomplish the most and then keep yourself under a discipline to work at that level. Do not give in to the flesh… because, it is good for a man to work.
B. Adam’s serving had RESTRICTIONS. (V. 17)
Adam was restricted from eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This restriction may have been placed on Adam to show that he had the liberty to choose evil or continue in obedience. God did not make Adam as a programmable robot. He gave Adam the will to choose obedience or disobedience.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION: We are living in the Grace Age and should be more than willing to choose obedience not only because of a law that lies before us, but because of a Savior who died and was buried and then was raised from the dead for us. That should certainly motivate us to do well. Because of our position in Christ as believers, we ought to live just like we are in the heavenlies; we are seated spiritually with Him in the heavenlies. Our doing right should not be based only on a list of “do’s and don’ts”, but should be based upon a relationship that we have in Christ Jesus. We should have a sensitive spirit wanting to please Him according to the Word of God.
C. Adam’s serving had RESPONSIBILITIES. (Vv. 18-19)
Adam’s intelligence was such that he was given the great responsibility of naming all the living creatures. He was not a hairy, humpbacked caveman with a low I.Q.; instead he was doubtless the most intelligent man that ever lived. He served with great responsibilities. He tended the garden and even named the animals.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Just as Adam used his intelligence and abilities to perform his duties, we too should use our talents to the fullest making sure that as we do we redeem the time… Whatever you do for the Lord, should be done with great purpose and determination. I once knew a man who worked with me at General Electric as an engineer. He was also a Sunday school teacher. Every day during his break he would spend his time in Bible study preparing His Sunday school lesson. He very much impressed me with his diligence. I often thought how nice it would have been to sit under his teaching; he gave it his all. We should do the same as we live our lives making sure that we do it to His glory.
D. Adam’s serving had REWARDS. (Vv. 20-25)
As Adam named the beasts, perhaps by pairs, he must have been aware that each animal had a mate. However, he did not. The Lord may have allowed Adam to sense his loneliness so that he might respect his new wife, as he should. This exercise of naming the animals might have been a practical plea for Adam not to take his wife for granted. God rewarded Adam’s serving Him with a wife taken from Adam’s own body.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION: It is wonderful having a Godly mate to live and share your life with. We should appreciate as believers the way God made men and women with the privileges of being able to spend their lives to gather as husband and wife. Marriage is honorable in all and when a man finds a wife, he finds a good thing. The husband and wife should cherish the time that they have been given to spend their lives together and to cherish each other as they do.
Concluding Remarks: The blissfulness of paradise was destroyed when paradise was lost. Chapter three introduces the sinfulness of man being overshadowed by the grace of God. (Gen. 3:15)
