TRACING THE STEPS OF TRAGEDY
Text: Gen.3: 1-7
Intro: Tragedies are certainly not strangers to our world. We hear about them every day. Tragedy is no respecter of persons, places, positions, or possessions. No one, no matter what his or her station in life, is exempt from tragedy.
Tragedy has always been a part of life. There are some of you here today who remember World War II, with all of its horrors, death, and destruction. Others of you grew up during the Great Depression of the thirties, with its uncertainties, shortages, and hardships. Still others of you can no doubt remember more personal tragedies such as loved ones who have fallen prey to fatal diseases or fatal auto accidents. Maybe you have experienced great material losses due to acts of nature. But the simple truth of the matter is that tragedy strikes everyone sooner or later. Most however, understand that as long as people live on this planet, there will be tragedies, large and small, with which to contend.
But as bad as these things are, we humans have a marvelous capacity to recover and continue on with life. But though that is true, there is one tragedy that mankind has undergone that has left an indelible mark upon the course of history. That tragedy took place in the Garden of Eden, and it continues to affect all humanity.
Follow me today as we trace the steps of tragedy to find out what happened when Adam and Eve sinned, and how God would remedy this terrible disaster.
Theme: As we trace the steps of tragedy, we notice:
I. THE CONVERSATION WITH THE WOMAN
A. Satan Attacked God’s Word.
1. He did this by planting doubt.
Gen.3: 1 “Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.”
NOTE: [1] The idea here is that Satan wished to change the wording of God’s command, and then hold it up to ridicule before Eve. Satan made it sound as though God was being unreasonably rigid. God had only forbidden the eating of the fruit of one tree, not “every tree,” as Satan suggested (v. 1).
[2] The doubt that Satan wanted to instill in Eve’s mind was actually threefold:
2a. He wanted her to doubt the authorship of God’s Word. Eve had not been present when God gave Adam the command concerning the forbidden tree (Gen.2: 16, 17). How could she really be sure that God had given the command at all?
2b. He wanted her to doubt the accuracy of God’s Word. In other words, “How do you know that Adam accurately related God’s true intent to you, Eve?”
2c. He wanted her to doubt the acceptability of God’s Word. After all, why would God forbid her to have something that was so pleasing and desirable? God’s commandment was in conflict with Eve’s desires, and therefore it wasn’t acceptable.
[3] Doubting the Word of God can lead us to faulty thinking, as well as some ridiculous assumptions. Let me illustrate with this story.
Lord Halifax, a former foreign secretary of Great Britain, once shared a railway compartment with two prim-looking spinsters. A few moments before reaching his destination the train passed through a tunnel. In the utter darkness Halifax kissed the back of his hand noisily several times. When the train drew into the station, he rose, lifted his hat, and in a gentlemanly way said: ”May I thank whichever one of you two ladies I am indebted to for the charming incident in the tunnel.” He then beat a hasty retreat, leaving the two ladies glaring at each other.
Bits & Pieces, May 27, 1993, p. 22.
2. Satan then followed doubt with denial.
Gen.3: 4 “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:”
NOTE: [1] This was a direct contradiction to what God had said in Genesis 2: 17b, “…in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”
[2] The whole matter now depended upon what Eve chose to believe. This is exactly what happens in the mind of the lost sinner concerning salvation. God has said, “For the wages of sin is death” (Rom.6: 23). But Satan says, “Thou shalt not surely die. After all, would God forbid you to live a life that is so pleasurable and desirable?”
B. Satan Attacked God’s Wisdom.
Gen.3: 5 “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”
NOTE: [1] In verse four, Satan called God a liar. In verse five, he says in essence, “Why Eve, not only will you not die by partaking of this beautiful fruit, but God knows that you will acquire a new perspective on life, and you and Adam will be like God Himself.”
[2] When Satan told Eve that she and Adam would “be as gods,” he was actually saying that they would be as God. The word “gods” is the translation of the Hebrew word ELOHIM, which is the same word used to refer to the triune God.
[3] The overall idea of Satan’s statement seems to be that God was not very wise to forbid Adam and Eve something that would be so beneficial to them. Not only was God not being wise by forbidding them this fruit, but Satan implied that God was being selfish as well.
II. THE COMMITTING OF THE SIN
A. Eve Looked.
Gen.3: 6a “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes…”
NOTE: We often think that there’s no harm in looking. But dear friend, it was a look that got the whole proverbial ball of wax rolling. Too often a look turns into lust, which is exactly what happened in this case.
B. Eve Lusted.
Gen.3: 6b “…and a tree to be desired to make one wise…”
NOTE: James tells us, “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust (desire, craving), and enticed” (James 1: 14—KJV). Satan knows how to use our desires against us. And our sin nature can find endless ways of justifying our selfish and sinful cravings. However, just because we desire something doesn’t mean it’s good for us. One man accurately noted, “I’ve learned that if you give a pig and a boy everything they want, you’ll get a good pig and a bad boy.”
Jackson Brown, Jr., Live and Learn and Pass it On.
C. Eve Looted.
Gen.3: 6c “…she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her: and he did eat.”
NOTE: [1] One terrible fact about sin is that it is infectious. Not only did Eve eat the forbidden fruit, but she gave it to Adam as well.
[2] The stories of Achan and king David are good examples of the way that sin infects and brings harm to others, who were not a part of the original sin.
III. THE CONSCIOUSNESS OF THE SIN
A. They Experienced A Consciousness Of Their Condition.
Gen.3: 7 “And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.”
NOTE: [1] It was at this point that the lie of the devil became obvious. He had implied that this new perception would be something wonderful, when in reality it was a traumatic experience. Once they had known only innocence. But now they found themselves naked, empty, lonely, and defiled. The appeal of sin can be extremely disarming and deceitful, as this story illustrates.
Gary Richmond, a former zookeeper, had this to say: Raccoons go through a glandular change at about 24 months. After that they often attack their owners. Since a 30-pound raccoon can be equal to a 100-pound dog in a scrap, I felt compelled to mention the change coming to a pet raccoon owned by a young friend of mine, Julie. She listened politely as I explained the coming danger. I’ll never forget her answer.
“It will be different for me . . .” And she smiled as she added, “Bandit wouldn’t hurt me. He just wouldn’t.”
Three months later Julie underwent plastic surgery for facial lacerations sustained when her adult raccoon attacked her for no apparent reason. Bandit was released into the wild. Sin, too, often comes dressed in an adorable guise, and as we play with it, how easy it is to say, “It will be different for me.” The results are predictable.
Gary Richmond, View From The Zoo.
[2] Adam and Eve did what many try to do even today when their sin is discovered—they tried to cover their shame.
B. They Experienced A Change Of Relationship With Their Creator.
Gen.3: 8 “And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.”
NOTE: [1] Adam and Eve’s relationship with God was no longer one of openness and fellowship, but one of shame and fear. Once they enjoyed the presence of God, but now as sinners, they hid themselves from His presence. Unregenerate man has been trying to hide from God ever since.
[2] Sin always brings separation between God and His creation (Isa.59: 1, 2). How sad that where once there was oneness and fellowship, now there was separation and fear. Sin had changed Adam and Eve’s relationship with God.
IV. THE CONFRONTING OF THE SINNERS
A. Adam Is Summoned.
Gen.3: 9 “And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?”
NOTE: [1] God did not ask this question because of any lack of knowledge on His part. God wanted Adam to consider where he was now in relation to where he used to be. Before he sinned, he did not hide from God; he sought God out. Before he sinned, he did not fear God; he had fellowship with Him.
[2] One cannot receive forgiveness of sin without adequately considering the fact that they have offended a holy God. There can be no forgiveness without an honest admission of one’s sinful condition. The Bible says, “If we confess (say the same thing as another) our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (I John 1: 9).
B. Adam Is Searched.
1. Notice Adam’s explanation of his fear.
Gen.3: 10 “And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
2. Notice Adam’s evasion of his fault.
Gen.3: 11 “And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.”
NOTE: [1] God asked Adam a direct question: “Hast thou eaten of the tree?” But Adam immediately begins to hedge the issue. Adam did not begin his response to God’s question with an admission of his personal guilt and sin, but began by saying, “The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me…” This is commonly called “blame-shifting.”
[2] Adam tried to shift the blame for his sin in two directions:
2a. He tried to blame Eve for giving him the fruit of the forbidden tree.
2b. He tried to blame God, since it was He who had given him the woman to be with him.
[3] The whole point of Adam’s argument was, “God, it’s not really my fault. I’m not really to blame.” This blame-shifting did not fool God for a moment, as we will see in verses 17-19.
3. Notice Adam’s example in evading guilt.
Gen.3: 13 “And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”
V. THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE SIN
NOTE: Sin always carries consequences. As F.B. Meyer noted, it is an inescapable fact, though the consequences may not always assume the form we expect.
This is the bitterest of all—to know that suffering need not have been; that it has resulted from indiscretion and inconsistency; that it is the harvest of one’s own sowing; that the vulture which feeds on the vitals is a nestling of one’s own rearing.
Ah me! This is pain! There is an inevitable Nemesis in life. The laws of the heart and home, of the soul and human life, cannot be violated with impunity. Sin may be forgiven; the fire of penalty may be changed into the fire of trial: the love of God may seem nearer and dearer than ever and yet there is the awful pressure of pain; the trembling heart; the failing of eyes and pining of soul; the harp on the willows; the refusal of the lip to sing the Lord’s song.
F.B. Meyer in Charles Swindoll, Living Above the Level of Mediocrity, p. 246.
A. The Serpent Was Cursed.
Gen.13: 14 “And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:”
B. The Woman Would Suffer In Conception.
Gen.13: 16 “Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.”
C. Adam’s Life Would Become Complicated.
Gen.13: 17 “And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it; cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”
D. The Seed Of Woman Would One Day Provide Sin’s Cure.
1. The seed of the woman would destroy that old serpent, the devil.
Gen.3: 15 “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”
NOTE: Notice that the “seed” is called “her seed.” This makes reference to the virgin birth of Christ, due to the fact that no human child can be born without the seed of man. The virgin birth of Christ was prophesied again in Isaiah 7: 14, which says, “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” This was later fulfilled in the New Testament, when Christ was born to a virgin named Mary (Luke 1: 26-35).
2. The only means of covering sin would be the shedding of the blood of the innocent.
Gen.3: 21 “Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.”
NOTE: This was fulfilled in the death of Jesus Christ on the Cross, as the apostle Peter so adequately brings out, when he says, “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the spirit:” (I Pet.3: 18).
Theme: As we trace the steps of tragedy, we notice:
I. THE CONVERSATION WITH THE WOMAN
II. THE COMMITTING OF THE SIN
III. THE CONSCIOUSNESS OF THE SIN
IV. THE CONFRONTING OF THE SINNERS
V. THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE SIN
