Top Ten Ways to Know You Need To Study Genesis: 10. Your pastor announces a new sermon series from Genesis… and you check the Table of Contents to see if it’s in your Bible. 9. You think Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had a few hits during the sixties. 8. You open to Genesis and a WWII War Bond falls out. 7. Your favorite OT patriarch is Hercules. 6. A small family of woodchucks has taken up residence in the book. 5. You become frustrated because Charlton Heston isn’t listed in your Bibles concordance. 4. You catch your kids looking at pictures in their Bibles of the Garden of Eden and you demand, “Who gave you this trash?” 3. You think the Tower of Babel is in Paris, France. 2. You keep falling for it every time your pastor says, “Please turn to the book of Melchizedek, chapter 14.” 1. The kids are asking you too many questions about your unusual bedtime Bible story: “Noah the Shepherd Boy and His Ark of Many Colors.”
This year I have begun reading the Bible straight through. Usually in my devotional time I skip around the New Testament. I love reading the letters of Paul and John and Peter. I love reading the words of Jesus. For some reason, and I think many of you can probably relate to this, for some reason I find it difficult to sit down and read many of the books in the Old Testament. Some of them are great like Psalms and Proverbs. And there are some great stories you can find there. But if I finish a particular book and I’m trying to decide on the next one to read I tend to look in the New Testament. So, I’ve decided that, at least this once, I’m going to read the Bible straight through.
Obviously, the place to start when reading a book straight through is the beginning. So I’ve been reading in Genesis this month. And really, there are some great lessons found throughout the book of Genesis. There are some great truths that we can take and apply to our lives. And so, beginning tonight, I want us to take a trek throughout this first book of the Bible and see what’s there for us. We probably won’t cover everything that’s can be discovered in this book of stories. But I do want to point out some of the highlights and gather what we can.
Tonight, I want to have you turn with me to chapter three. This is the chapter in which we’re told of the day that changed the course of history. God had created everything good. Man and woman were happy to govern the animals and enjoy God’s daily presence. But in a matter of moments bright hopes of a perfect world became darkened by sin. This is the story of that day. Gen. 3:1-13…
Have you ever done something that you said you would never do? Have you ever been to a spot in your life that you took a second to look where you were and then wondered how in the world you got there? Have you ever stopped to look where you stood spiritually and had to admit that you weren’t as close to God as you used to be?
I know in my own life, there has been time after time that I’ve had to admit to myself and to the Lord that I had slipped away from Him. You ever gotten to that point? Have you ever gotten to that point and wondered what happened? If you have ever been there or if you’re there now, I think I can tell you why. It’s because there is a subtle, clever deceiver that is working as hard as he can to drag you down and cause you to fail.
Years ago, when Billy Graham’s children were small, their family was enjoying a meal together when someone began singing the chorus, “I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart.” The rest of the family chimed in on the song. They concluded with that famous verse, “And if the devil doesn’t like it he can sit on a tack. Ouch!” When they finished, Billy Graham sternly looked at his children and said, “I don’t want you to sing that verse ever again.” Then the children quickly asked, “But, why Daddy?” The famous evangelist replied, “Because the devil is a good devil.” They looked confused and so he explained a little further. “The devil does a very good job of being the devil. He is real and powerful, and he is no joking matter.”
This evening, I’m here to tell you that the devil is a good devil. His job is to tempt and he is good at his job. I think sometimes we underestimate him. I think sometimes, just like we do with God, we put Satan in a box. Sometimes we think of Satan as simply that roaring lion seeking souls to devour. I’ve preached a message about him being like that. But sometimes we just think of Him as a loud, obnoxious tempter who comes at us like a flood. And I think we forget what Paul said in his letter to the Corinthian church, that Satan transforms himself into an angel of light. I think we forget that he can come at us from many different angles.
You see, he knows that there are some people who would never fall for a temptation to do something wicked. He knows there are those that he could not get to just jump right in to deep sin. And he doesn’t try very hard to get those people to do that. But he patiently, slowly draws them further and further away from Christ. Can you see what I’m saying? I believe that a lot of times, Satan can drag us down in such a way that we don’t even know he’s doing it. He is very subtle.
As we look at this sad story of the first sin, we see a very real picture of how Satan often works. We don’t see him just walk up to Eve and say, “Hey, why don’t you eat this fruit.” He doesn’t do that. He knew that probably wouldn’t have worked. So he tried a completely different approach. And it worked. And that’s what I want us to look at for a while. I want us to observe this subtle serpent in action and see if we can identify the steps that he took to cause Eve to sin.
I. Satan Focused On The Negative
The first step that he took was to focus on the negative. Look at vs. 1… Satan says, “Eve, hath God said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Now look at that question and what do you see? Satan doesn’t say, “Eve, did God really say you can’t eat of this tree?” No, he asks Eve if God really said they couldn’t eat of any tree in the garden.
That wasn’t what God had said at all. God had put only one restriction on Adam and Eve. Look at what God really said in chapter 2:16-17… And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
God had only given them limitations about eating from one tree. Only one tree was out of bounds. Everything else they could eat from. But Satan asked, “Did God really say that you couldn’t eat of every tree?” Now, what difference does that make? I think it makes a whole lot of difference. I think his little changing of the wording of the rules was purposeful. I think his question was a subtle way of making God look like he had put some terrible restrictions on these first humans.
God had said, “Hey, you can eat of any tree in this whole garden. I’ve provided so many different types of food for you, and you can have any of them that you want. There is only one tree that you are not to eat of. That is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat of that tree, you will die.” God had given them complete freedom and authority of the garden, minus only one tree. He had given them everything they needed and had made provisions even for their enjoyment. Don’t think for a minute that the food that God provided in the garden was distasteful. Don’t think for a moment that no other tree really was able to satisfy their hunger. It was good, just like everything else He had created. There were good things to eat. I’m sure there were a multiplicity of different types and tastes of food for Adam and Eve to eat. He had put restrictions on only one tree.
But Satan made God’s simple rule look extremely negative. He caused Eve to begin questioning God’s goodness. “If God really loved you, he wouldn’t keep something from you.” He took one small restriction and made it look as if it were some big, huge, burdensome demand forced upon Adam and Eve by God.
You see how Satan tries to make God look so mean? He makes God out to be such a harsh and cruel slave driver. He’ll tap you on the shoulder and get you to focus on the commands that God gave us. He’ll try to get you to think about the don’ts, the thou shalt not’s. He’ll try to make those restrictions look a whole lot bigger than they really are. He’ll try to get you to forget about all the good things that God has provided for you, and he’ll try to shift your focus to those things that your religion is holding back from you. You know, forget the blessings, forget the promises; just look at the things God is withholding from you, just look at what God won’t let you have.
You’ve heard it. “You mean you can’t look at other women?” What do you mean you can’t tell a little white lie every once in a while?” “You really can’t do this? You really can’t do that? Come on, that’s so ridiculous. How do you live with that?” You know what I’m talking about. “Forget the Mountain Dew and the good old sweet tea. What do you mean you can’t drink beer? Forget the blessedness and happiness found in marriage. What do you mean you can’t just sleep with anyone you want to?”
Satan tries so hard to just get us to start looking at the things that God wants us to stay away from. He tries to create a picture of God in our minds as a cosmic killjoy as one preacher put it. But I’m serving the God who said, “I have come that you might have life, and have it more abundantly.” God is not a hard taskmaster. He is not someone who is trying to deny you any happiness you might possibly attain. He is a God who provides us with so many necessities and blessings, and draws boundaries for the purpose of keeping us out of harms way. The number of His requirements is so small in comparison to the number of His blessings and provisions.
But Satan doesn’t want you to know that. He wants your focus to be upon what you can’t have, or what God doesn’t want you to do. And that’s exactly what he put into the mind of Eve. “Eve, did God really say you can’t eat of the trees in this garden?” And he quickly puts a little bit of doubt in her mind as to what God has really said. How? He caused her to focus on the negative.
II. Satan Made God Out To Be A Liar
Secondly, I believe we can see that Satan will go even further than focusing on the negative. He’ll even try to make God look like a liar. Look at verse 2. Eve answered Satan and said, “No, God didn’t say we couldn’t eat of any these trees. But He did say that we aren’t to eat of this tree or we will die.” And Satan goes a step further from just putting doubt in Eve’s mind about what God said, to totally attacking God’s words. He’s planted the seeds of doubt, and now he calls God a liar. He says, “You will not die.”
Can’t you just hear the sneer on the serpent’s lips as he says this? “What in the world are you thinking? You believe what God said? You really believe that if you eat of this tree you will die? You’re not going to die. That’s so stupid.”
Satan, who is the father of all lies, works so hard to make God out to be a liar. Henry Morris said, “Sin always begins by questioning either the Word of God or the goodness of God, or both.” Satan has already caused Eve to question the goodness of God, and now he is attempting to get her to question the Word of God.
But let me ask you… do you think that Eve had any reason to question the Word of God? After all, the previous two chapters have just told us how God simply spoke the word and it happened. He said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. He said, “Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear,” and it was so. Never once did something that God speak not come to pass.
But now Satan was telling Eve that God really didn’t mean what He said. “What He said was just a lie. It’s really not going to happen. God was just messing with you.” Satan uses this tactic in several areas. Many times he’ll call God a liar when he’s trying to talk a sinner out of seeking forgiveness. He’ll say, “God’s not going to forgive you. You’ve gone too far. You’ve done too much. His blood was not spilled for you.” But that’s a complete lie. The Bible says, “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” The Bible says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The Bible says, “Whoso confesses his sins and forsakes them shall have mercy.” God has promised us that if we come to Him in faith confessing our sins and repenting of them that we will find forgiveness. But Satan calls God a liar.
He makes God to be a liar when it comes to His promises. He’ll say, “God’s not going to do what He said. He’s not going to be there for you. He’s not going to supply your needs.” But that’s a lie. The Bible tells us that, “Faithful is he that calls you, who also will do it.” The Bible says, “But the Lord is faithful, who shall establish you, and keep you from evil.” The Bible says, “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
Satan calls God a liar, like he does in our text, when it comes to the consequences of sin. He says, “You will not surely die. God isn’t really going to punish you for your sin. There really are no consequences for your disobedience.” But that too is a lie. For the Bible tells us that “the wages of sin is death.” The Bible tells us that “when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” There are consequences to sin. But Satan doesn’t want you to know that. So He emphatically tries to scream at us, “There’s no way in this world that you will die.”
An old Indian legend tells of how many years ago, Indian youths would go away in solitude to prepare for manhood. One such youth hiked into a beautiful valley, green with trees, bright with flowers. There he fasted. But on the third day, as he looked up at the surrounding mountains, he noticed one tall rugged peak, capped with dazzling snow. I will test myself against that mountain, he thought.
So, he put on his buffalo-hide shirt, threw his blanket over his shoulders and set off to climb the peak. When he reached the top he stood on the rim of the world. He could see forever, and his heart swelled with pride. Then he heard a rustle at his feet, and looking down, he saw a snake. Before he could move, the snake spoke. “I am about to die,” said the snake. “It is too cold for me up here and I am freezing. There is no food and I am starving. Put me under your shirt and take me down to the valley.”
“No,” said the youth. “I am forewarned. I know your kind. You are a rattlesnake. If I pick you up, you will bite, and your bite will kill me.” “Not so,” said the snake. “I will treat you differently. If you do this for me, you will be special. I will not harm you.”
The youth resisted awhile, but this was a very persuasive snake with beautiful markings. At last the youth tucked it under his shirt and carried it down to the valley. There he laid it gently on the grass, when suddenly the snake coiled, rattled, and leapt, biting him on the leg. “But you promised...” cried the youth. “You knew what I was when you picked me up,” said the snake as it slithered away.
The serpent in the garden did the same thing as that serpent on the mountain. He took something that had already been established as truth and denied it. He made the truth out to be a lie. And today, Satan does the same thing. God has said that the wages of sin is death, but Satan says, “Not so. God’s a liar.” But when it’s all said and done, we will see that God was true, and Satan, the father of all lies.
III. Satan Twisted God’s Purpose.
Satan focused on the negative, he tried to make God look like a liar, and thirdly, he twisted God’s purpose for the restriction He placed on Adam and Eve. In verse 5 he said, “God knows that if you eat of this tree, it will make you just like Him. And He doesn’t want that. That’s why He told you not to eat of it.” Right away, I say that if that was what God was thinking, why did He even put the tree there? If that was His purpose, He could have just not put the tree there and left no chance for humans to become like Him. But Satan wants to make God look like a bad guy, like someone who puts rules on you for his own selfish desires.
Now in order for us to really understand this, we must understand what God’s purpose was. Why did God tell them not to eat of that one tree? Why was that tree there in the first place? I answer and say that God wanted Adam and Eve to obey Him because they chose to, not because they didn’t have any other choice but to do so. He didn’t want to make robots who could do no wrong and could do nothing but obey Him and serve Him. He wanted to make people who would serve Him because they wanted to. And in order for Adam and Eve to be able to choose to obey God, there had to be an alternative. And that’s what the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was. It was the alternative. That was God’s true purpose.
But Satan said, “Eve, God just doesn’t want you to be like Him.” He made God look like a selfish being who was just putting rules of them just to achieve his own selfish goals. And many times, Satan will tap us on the shoulder and say, “God just doesn’t want you to have fun. He just wants you to be miserable and have to be His servant.”
You know, football is a wonderful game. But how exciting do you think it would be if football didn’t have any rules? There would be no point in football would there? There would be no game. There would just be a scene of constant chaos. Rules are necessary to make football a fun and exciting game with any rhyme or reason.
What about fences? Is there a point to fences? Absolutely. I remember when I was in the fifth or sixth grade we had a beagle named Mischief. He got his name honestly. But the day came which scarred me for life. For one afternoon, my brother was getting ready to go into the back yard and in an instant that dog was out that gate and chasing a lady and her baby in the stroller she was pushing. Just barking away at her. Of course, she tried to kick at him and shoe him away. I was mad at her then, but I understand now. But she finally chased him away from the stroller. The only thing was, she chased him right into the street just in time for a car to introduce him to his tires. Whelping, Mischief came hobbling back to the house bleeding profusely and with very disfigured legs. The last I saw of that dog he was bleeding on a bunch of towels in the back of our neighbor’s truck.
There was danger outside of that fence. Were we keeping Mischief inside the backyard to keep him from being free and to make him miserable? No. We kept him back there in order to keep him safe. You see, many times God has put restrictions on us for our own good. He knows that if we go down the path of sin it will ruin us. He knows that smoking habit will kill you. He knows that drinking habit will destroy your life. But Satan just wants you to believe that God just wants to suppress you. The Lord knows that there is a beauty in saving yourself for your husband or wife for life. He knows that promiscuity leads to disease and unwanted responsibility. But Satan wants you to believe God just wants to keep you from having fun and doing what you want to do. God knows that when you cheat on that test, you really just cheat yourself. But Satan wants you to think that God just wants to keep you from passing.
You see what I’m saying? Satan wants to make God look like a selfish dictator. He wants to twist the purpose of God’s restrictions. He wants you to think that those fences, those rules are just put there to make you miserable and to keep you from really being able to achieve your destiny and your freedom. But God’s reasons are light years away from Satan’s lies. God has His reasons for giving you boundaries. And those reasons are pure and holy and come from a heart of love for His children. And when you are staying inside of His fences, that is when you are, in fact, free. Jesus said, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. And if the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” God has a purpose for His restrictions, but Satan wants to twist those purposes.
IV. Satan Made Sin Attractive
Finally, and quickly, after he focused on the negative and made God to be a liar and twisted God’s purposes, Satan appealed to the flesh. Verse 6 tells us that Eve saw that the fruit was good for food. He appealed to the eyes. It was pleasant to look at. And he appealed to the pride of life. She saw that it would make her wise. Satan made sin attractive to Eve. It looked good. She forgot about the fact that God said, “don’t.” She forgot that God said they would die if they did. All she thought about was the desire she had to eat of that tree. That attraction took control of her.
Now, let me just say right here, you don’t sin by being attracted to sin. You aren’t a sinner because you are tempted to sin. You don’t have to fall to your knees and beg for forgiveness when you walk into a store and Satan puts the thought in your mind to go ahead and take that candy bar and stick it in your pocket.
But I will tell you, when that temptation comes, you better get on your knees and beg that God would keep you from sin. You better run from that. Because you can’t handle it by yourself.
Think about the story of Joseph. Potifer’s wife said, “Hey, my husband’s gone. Why don’t you and I get together?” Every day she would tempt him. Then one day, she tried to tempt him again, and what does he do? He runs. You know why I think he ran? I think he really was tempted to do exactly what she was asking him to do. I tend to believe that Potifer’s wife was a beautiful lady. And I believe Joseph ran because there was an attraction there, and he knew that if he didn’t get out of there quick, he’d be in trouble.
You better run too. When you are tempted, you had better plead the blood of Jesus Christ and run. Because you can’t handle it by yourself. Eve couldn’t. She gave in. She ate the fruit. She sinned. But you don’t have to.
Satan will make sin attractive. He’ll make it fun. There are things in this world that will be fun for a while. But we must not give in to temptation, because sin will ruin us.
In Southern Mexico lies the Cueva de Villa Luz, or Cave of the Lighted House. As you make your way to the cave you walk through a veritable paradise of tropical birds and lush rain forest. Underwater the cave is fed by 20 underground springs, beautiful watercourses which teem with tiny fish. The cave itself is home to spectacular rock formations and beautiful ponds. The environment is inviting. Yet accept the invitation and you’ll soon be dead. You see, the Cueva de Villa Luz is filled with poisonous gases.
Satan will make sin to be enticing. Temptation would be worthless if it wasn’t appealing. And Satan will make sin look so much better than it is. But we must run. We must not give in. Because doing so will bring death. It’s not as good as it looks.
This evening, I hope that we will be a people who are on the lookout for Satan. He is roaming about as a lion seeking whom he may devour. But often times he’s so subtle in his hunting that we don’t even realize what’s happening. Often times, when we stop and take a look at where we’re at, we’re forced to wonder how we got there. Because Satan is not just a roaring lion, but he’s also a subtle serpent. His job is to steal, kill, and destroy. And he is good at his job. He has learned how to vary his tactics. So we must be sober and we must be vigilant.
How can we do that? By making sure that we understand that there is more to the Christian’s life than rules. God has given us so many other options and so many other blessings. Let’s not allow Satan to shift our focus to the can’t’s and don’t’s. We must make sure that we know what God has said, so that when Satan tries to make Him out to be a liar, we know the truth. We should always remember that God’s purposes are just and pure, and that He always has a reason for building a fence. And we should always keep in mind the fact that sin is not near as nice as Satan would make it out to be.
Let’s be sober. Let’s be vigilant. Let’s leave the fruit Satan would have us to eat on the tree.
