"The Beginning of Sin: And How to conquer it" Genesis Chapter 3
PASTOR BOB HUNTER
SPRINGWATER CHURCH
OBJECT: You will need one red delicious apple to demonstrate Eve’s fall into sin.
INTRO: When God’s six day work week was complete, He proclaimed his creation not only good, but very good! (Gen. 2:31) The world and everything in it was ideal. There was perfect order and harmony. There was total absence of pain, suffering, and disease. Evil did not exist in the immediate post-creation world.
Adam and Eve were perfectly content, as you can imagine. They had a home in paradise. The garden of Eden was flawless. And their Fellowship with God in that place was unbroken. There was nothing between them and God. They were truly innocent of evil. At least, until the serpent showed up.
CONFLICT: Now, many people would ask: Why did the serpent have to even show up in the first place. What was up with that? If God is God then why did He allow Eve to be tempted? The world could have been so perfect, flawless & innocent without sin. Why did it have to be contaminated with the disease and affliction of sin?
Things are not the way God intended that’s for sure. You look at the world around us and things are obviously out of order and not in very good shape. Civilization is at war with itself. Take note of the power struggles, crime, corruption. Then add to that, diseases, droughts and famines. Clearly something has gone wrong, who is to blame for this mess? Do we blame God, each other? Or do we do as so many have, and pass it off on the serpent, blame the devil. He is bad, and he’s responsible for this mess!
So, how did this terrible thing happen? Things could have been so perfect. The garden of Eden was ideal. It was the picture perfect paradise. Too bad it couldn’t last forever. Why did the sin have to come along and mess it all up?
Philosophers, thinkers and debaters to no avail have tried to answer this age old question for centuries. And so have rank and file-ordinary people like you and me. It’s not just a question for the intellectually elite, but one for all of us to wrestle with…
"How could a God who claims to be all good allow something to exist that is so bad?" You have maybe anguished over it or you know of someone who has. I know people who want nothing to do with God, because God didn’t stop a loved one from dying, or a son or daughter from running away. The reasoning: If God is so good, then why do all these bad things happen?
Genesis Chapter 3 is probably the best source of explanation we have. No other book explains the origin of evil, quite like the Bible. Now a lot of people refer to the Bible as the ‘good’ book, but I would rather say that it’s not only the good book, but it’s our guide book. It guides us on a journey to find the answers and teaches how to cope with hard-to-understand sin issues. And if you can understand that much about the Bible, you’re going to be a lot better off. Because you can read it cover to cover and maybe still not have all the answers you’re looking for. There are some evils that exist in the world, that we will never have the full answer for until we get to heaven. (ex. Sadaam Hussein) God has only given us the amount of information that we can humanly handle. The Bible exist to guide us in search for answers. And for the things we don’t know or can’t understand, there is faith.
I’m here today to open the guide book, and talk about the origin of sin & the process of it coming into existence. So lets take a look at what happened ‘in the beginning.’ Let’s examine the different factors that played into sin scenario. What were the events that led up to the commencement of evil?
When the Serpent came along in Genesis Chapter three, a series of things transpired that resulted in a spiral downward. And it all began with the seeds of Doubt. I’m going to give you the 4 big D’s ‘tis morning that brought about the problem of sin. Are you ready for them? D #1 is doubt.
THE PROCESS OF SIN (4-D’S)*:
1. Doubt
The serpent came to Eve and planted the seed of doubt. "Did God really say…" And Eve bit the bate. She took it hook, line and sinker. And Eve herself began to question & doubt whether or not she actually heard the word of God correctly. The initiating stage of sin, is doubt. It’s a subtle thing that quietly works it’s way in unannounced. It’s by no mistake that temptation, took the form of a serpent. We all have this picture in our mind of the serpent coiled around a tree branch, showing up unexpectedly. The characteristics of sin are similar to that of the serpent; sin winds it’s way through the forest of humanity looking for a victim. And when the serpent slithered his way into the garden, he found a ready and willing subject to entertain the notion of doubt. Her name was Eve. "Did God really say…" vs. 1. The serpent said with a tone of mockery. And Eve began entertain a notion of doubt. Did God really say don’t eat from the tree of knowledge? Did He? She began to talk herself out of hearing the voice of God. Eve fell prey to the oldest trick in the book didn’t she? She caved into doubt. Satan’s been successfully using that one from the beginning of time, hasn’t he? You know what I’m talking about, many of us are familiar with enemy tactics of doubt. Notice that doubt takes the form of a question…Did God really say? Doubtful thoughts almost always end with a question mark. Satan loves it when we question established facts. He loves to put a question mark where God puts a period. He just has a field day that maneuver. When questions of doubt enter our minds, sin is just around the corner. There was also…
2. Deception
Where doubt leaves off, deception picks up. By now the serpent has really got her on the hook & He’s starting to reel her in. The questions of doubt have partially blinded Eve to the truth. She’s beginning to consider a false reality. Deception is taking place. The serpent takes the word of God, distorts it badly and uses it to deceive her. The serpent says, "Surely you will not die…"vs. 4. Which was patently false. God said, "Surely you will die…"vs. 3. The serpent played on the words a little bit and got Eve believing that she was invincible. The trickery of lies, the falsehood of deception ultimately leads us down a path of imminent destruction. And it just doesn’t stop with that one lie. The Serpent knows progress is being made, so he turns it up a notch and takes it a step further. In verse 5 where he says, "for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened. You’ll be like God knowing good and evil." This is the worst lie of all, because it’s based on a half truth. Yes, Eve would have the knowledge of evil when she only had the knowledge of good. To her it sounds like a real good deal. Eve says, "ooh this is a deal I can’t refuse, I simply can’t lose, I will have both!" Little did she know how terrible it would be. And How much pain it would cause. Yes, the serpent deceived her. Then there was…
3. Desire (use a red apple to demonstrate):
Eve was extremely vulnerable to the forbidden fruit. Because it looked soooo good. Notice what verse 6 says, "When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom." Her desire was growing. She glanced over at the fruit & started saying to herself "hmmm that looks good." She thinks about what the serpent said. Looks at it again. The longer she looks at it, the greater her appetite and the more pleasing to her eye it becomes. It isn’t long and she’s just staring at it, she can’t take her eyes off of it. She now has a huge appetite, and can’t resist. What’s happening here? The serpent is very successfully playing on her desires. Not much has changed hon? We’re extremely vulnerable, as human beings, at the point of our desire. The enemy is an expert at playing on our desires isn’t he? That was true with Eve and its true with us. The more you focus on your sinful desires and zero in on them, the more likely you are to succumb to it. Eve was trapped at the point of her desire. The more she zeroed in on the forbidden fruit, the greater her appetite became. Her desire increased.
4. Decision
Finally, the moment of decision had arrived. (Pull the apple closer to your mouth) She allowed the desire to grow so strong, that she could no longer resist it. By now, Eve had reached the point of no return. She had allowed desire to increase greatly, to the point that she felt like she couldn’t say No. (Pull the apple closer, dramatically)
And She didn’t say NO! The verdict had been reached. SHE BIT IN !!!! (Bite into the apple). Mmmm, says Eve. "This is good." Sin is good initially. She enjoyed it, there was no immediate remorse. Sin is good but for a season. And to Adam, she gave a tasty bite. And after their indulgence, they realized they were naked. The thought occurred to them, that they should get dressed. Eve looks over at Adam and says, "put some boxer shorts on boy!" Adam looks back and says, "Where’s your bathrobe honey?" Behold, the problem of sin was recognized. It entered the human race at the time of decision. And at that moment, the clothing industry was born. Levi Strauss, Gloria Vanderbelt, Gucci have been cashing in ever since.
ILLUST: How would you like to work for a company that owes it’s whole existence to sin? Much less, support the industry? My wife and I went shopping Fri. Night for some new clothes. I was thinking of this sermon. I thought… if we run into someone we know, we can just say, "Yup, we’re out supporting the industry of sin tonight, that’s what pastors do…support industries that owe their existence to sin. We’re going to pay $100 for some new clothes that wouldn’t even have to have if it weren’t for sin! (play this up humorously).
TRANSITIONAL MOVEMENT:
So there you have it, a brief history of sin. It started in the garden with a seed of doubt, leading to deception & desire and finally culminated with a decision. (other biblical references to the origin of evil may be mentioned, see Is. 14:12-14, Ex. 28: 12-17, Rev. 12:4) In the Genesis account, however, Adam & Eve represent us all. They were the example of what probably each one of us would do in the same situation. I’d like to say that I love God enough, that I would be able to resist the temptation they faced. But I don’t know that for sure. I think I would have been as silent and helpless as Adam was. If I were the one in the garden, I probably would have fell into the same trap as Eve did.
But you do realize that God had to give us the choice. He would not, and could not intervene in the situation. God wanted us to be separate from the rest of creation, therefore he created us in His likeness and gave us the free will capacity to choose. And we made our choice. Wrongly.
Without the ability to choose good or evil, we would be mere puppets on string, or robots waiting for our next command. But God desired something far greater from the human beings he created. He gave, the greatest gift of all: the frightening gift of choice. Knowing in advance that we might exercise it wrongly. Realizing it was a big risk. God accepted that risk and gave us total freedom of choice. He didn’t have to do it that way, I mean God is God, He can do whatever He wants. But God chose to do it that way. He could have forced us to love Him, or even programmed us to do so. But what kind of love would that be…if the outcome of it were already programmed and predetermined. God says, "no thanks" I’d rather you love me on the basis of personal choice. Because that’s where love finds it’s value. Our Love for God would not mean a thing if we did not choose it against the option of not loving Him. Love has little value without freedom.
ILLUST: When you got married to your spouse, I have a pretty good idea that you fell into love first, and then made the choice to commit to each other for the rest of your life. If wasn’t a choice then I’ll bet your miserable. If it was circumstance, or pressure from someone then you forfeit love’s most precious alibi: freedom. Our relationship with God is often compared to the relationship of a bride and a bridegroom. We must choose to love. If you’re in a relationship that you didn’t choose, I’ll bet it’s not a very good one. I’ll bet you regret it and don’t find much value in the relationship. Love’s unmatched quality rises and falls on the bubble of choice.
I say all that to say, God delights in our free will choice to love and serve him. Unfortunately, Adam & Eve made a bad choice. They chose the wrong thing and sin entered their lives and the lives of all their offspring. And as a result, grave consequences came upon the human race. A predisposition toward sin was passed along to all of Adam’s offspring.
RESOLUTION: But there is one thing that remains, that God will never take away from us for as long as we live, and that’s our choice. No matter how hard you fall, or how deeply you transgress, God will never take this away from you. Never! The sad consequences of sin, listed out in the rest of the chapter 3, do not include the removal of choice. For as long as you and I live, we will always have it, and it will be up to us to exercise it in keeping with God’s will.
Onto the good stuff. The sub-title of this message is: "How to conquer it." Sin can be conquered, if you’re willing to trust God and follow the guide book on how to deal with it. So let me give you a few guide book steps to overcoming sin.
1. Realize you’re no match for Satan. There is not a single one of us that can stand up to the enemy of our souls. Martin Luther once said, "No man is able to outwit the devil." You see, the deceiver, has been doing this for a long time. He’s got a lot of experience, and He knows how to set the trap and exactly where and what time. That’s why you gotta realize that you can’t do it alone. You’ll get out maneuvered and outsmarted every time. You can’t stand up to the devil alone, you’ll fall. And you’ll fail, miserably. So where do we turn, where do we go for help? We turn to Christ and we learn to rely on Him. Jesus outsmarted the tempter in Luke Ch. 4. He’s no match for the Lord. Therefore, when you invite Christ to take up residence in your heart, you have the resources of someone who is greater. And the Bible says, "Greater is He who is in you, than He who is in the world." I John 4:4
Why do you think people living in sin don’t have much of a struggle? Because the spiritual battle has already been won, and they’re not on the winning side. They’ve conceded defeat a long time ago. You see, it’s a whole lot more difficult to maintain victory, than it is to just throw your hands up and give in. It’s not better, but it’s easier. A sinner is a sold out slave, and there’s no hope whatsoever, unless the greater one, who is Jesus, is invited to help. Greater is He who is in us.
2. Recognize the stages of sin. In other words, be aware of the 4 D’s when you see that happening. Recognize that the best place to defeat sin is in the stage of doubt or deception. You let it go any farther, and your asking for trouble. I’m talking about early intervention. You see, that’s the problem with a lot of us. We let sin run it’s course to the point of desire and decision and then we wonder why we can’t resist it. Well, we can’t resist it, because we’ve entertained it for so long, that our desire increased and our will power decreased, and we’re just stuck.
When, what we should have done is head that thing off before those thoughts spin out of control and take over. James said to readers, "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." Part of the resistance means talking to someone, and revealing your temptations. If you fight the battle in the early stages you’ll have a whole better success rate than you would if you keep entertaining it or ignoring it. So do yourself a favor, start defeating those doubts early on, or whenever they show up. Get a handle on them at the stage of inception. And don’t be embarrassed to tell God about your doubts. He’ll help you sort them out.
3. Redirect your will. You will is a powerful thing isn’t it? How many of us know of somebody with a strong will? How many of us would confess, that strong willed person is sitting right next to us? Now, see I gotcha! You know exactly what I’m talking about. Human will is the God given determination to accomplish a defined goal. You need it if you’re every going to achieve anything in life. The human will tends to kick in after decisions are made. And it’s your will power that drives you along and provides the impetus to accomplish whatever you set out to accomplish. Now here’s the thing: a person’s will can be corrupt or it can be righteous. For some people it’s a real mixed bag. But one or the other is eventually going to win out. Here’s what God says, God says, "I can change your will and redirect it. But this is what you have to do according to the apostle Paul…
"There, I urge in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:1-2
God’s says, I can redirect your will but you first have to submit yourself as a living sacrifice and then a renewing of the mind takes place, a transformation of sorts. Then you will be able to test and approve of what God’s will is.
God says it’s possible. A renewal of mind and transformation of will is attainable in this lifetime. But you first have to submit yourself to the Holy One as a living sacrifice. That’s how we conquer sin. We allow God to redirect our will and transform it. Finally…
4. Remember the promise
The Grace of God is a powerful thing. And it comes through loud and clear in Gen. Ch. 3:15 where the first promise of a victor is given. After the first sinful event took place in the garden, God literally spoke to the serpent an announced the fate of evil. God said to the serpent. "From now on I will put enmity between you and the women and between your offspring and hers, he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." Do you know who He is this verse? It’s Jesus, the greater one promised to the world in the aftermath of the sin event. God is speaking of His Son who would eventually come, be born of a woman, a descendent of Eve herself, and crush the enemy, once and for all. The first installment of the promise has been fulfilled. But listen to what the Apostle Paul says to the Romans that is amazingly consistent with this verse.
"Everyone has heard about your obedience and I’m full of joy over you. But I want you to be excellent in what’s good and innocent of evil. And the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet." Romans 16:19
Amazingly consistent with Gen. 3:15, which many scholars say is the first promise of a savior. The first Gospel ever spoken came right from the mouth of God in Gen. Ch. 3. Remember the promise folks, God is one day going to cast the evil one into a lake a fire once and for all. Rev. 20. The promise of an eternity free from the evil one, is yours for the asking. The final installment of God’s plan to deal with sin, is yet to come. And when it does, you and I will truly be free from the sin that so easily entangles us. Remember the promise.
CONCLUSION: In the meantime, you’ve got a lot of spiritual battles to fight. And your going to need the power of the greater one spoken of in I John 4:4. With the power of the greater one in you, you can face temptations, trials and tribulations of all kinds and still come out on the winning side. When Jesus died on the Cross, He rendered judgment over sin. When you wrestle with the problem of evil, never forget what Jesus did to address it. Jesus fought a bloody spiritual battle to defeat sin. The Cross where He died says to the world: Evil has been dealt with. And for the ones who follow Jesus Christ and devote themselves to Him, there is victory. Does the Christ who judged sin on the Cross abide in your heart today?
(*The Four D’s idea is not all original with me. Many expositor’s note a chain of events leading to the entrance of sin into the human race using different words and alliterations. Mine in particular has more in common with Tom Holladay’s message titled, "In the Garden" Tom adds ‘Death.’ That message is available on www.pastors.com)
POWER POINT SUGGESTION: Use a subtle green garden background with an apple similar in color to the one used as an object lesson. Sample slides are available respond to: springwater.church@verizon.net
