The Missing Link Series

The Missing Link

Introduction: A Kid’s Eye View

When I was a kid, I discovered among my parents’ books an ornately illustrated volume of the 10 Commandments. It looked like it was probably a reproduction of an illuminated manuscript that had been painstakingly created by medieval monks. The writing was big and old fashioned; the language was King James.

Something about that book drew me to it, although it wasn’t exactly because I liked it. Taken together, the words & the pictures & the “THOU SHALT NOT’s effectively conveyed a solemn warning about transgressing God’s commandments.

And the scariest one for me was the seventh commandment, “THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY.” You wouldn’t think that would be scary to a little kid, but it was. The reason it was scary was because I had no idea what adultery was. I knew it HAD to be serious, because it was stuck right between “THOU SHALT NOT KILL” and “THOU SHALT NOT STEAL.” I knew what those two meant and I knew they were both REALLY bad.

So I knew adultery was something really bad, but I had no idea what it was. I was afraid I might accidentally commit adultery and never know it.

So I put my reasoning skills to work. I used my best trick for figuring out words, which was to relate the word I didn’t know to words I did know.

Say, I came across the verb “liquefy.” Well, I knew what the word “liquid” meant, and I could tell this was a verb, so it must mean “to make something liquid” – sort of like what I liked to do to my hard ice cream.

The only word I could relate it to “adultery” was “adult.” So I thought adultery must mean, “to act like an adult.” I figured that it must be ok for adults to act like adults, so this commandment HAD TO mean that kids shouldn’t act like adults. I didn’t know WHY God would make such a big deal of kids who acted like adults, but who was I to understand God’s ways, right? Obviously GOD was VERY serious about it.

Just to make sure, I decided I would NEVER act like an adult. And lo, I have kept that resolution ever since.

When I preached about murder, I said the reason it was wrong was because it was a violation of a principle of creation, that is, that human beings have been made in the image of God

Because human beings have been made in the image of God, human life is more sacred than animal or plant life.

Adultery is wrong because it violates another principle of creation:

Genesis tells us that after God created Adam, He recognized that it was < not good for man to be alone >

And while Adam had all kinds of little and big creatures around for company, God knew that’s not what he needed.

So God created Eve to be a suitable companion for him

Just as a brief side road, the most familiar version – the King James – translated the words “a help meet.”

In contemporary English “help meet” doesn’t make any sense, so it has slid into “help mate,” which we understand better, but isn’t accurate.

And older use of the word “meet” was “suitable” or “proper” – which is a whole lot more like the Hebrew word, which means, “comparable to” or parallel to.

When we say “helper” we think of a subordinate, someone who gets you coffee or serves in some rather lowly capacity.

But again, that’s not what the Hebrew means.

The Hebrew word used here almost always refers to God.

And when I say, “God is my HELP,” I don’t mean, “God is my assistant; God gets me coffee.”

I mean, “Because God is stronger and more powerful than I am, He is able to help me.”

When you take the words together, a “help meet” is neither a weaker, subordinate little helper, nor a bigger, stronger, superior being.

“A help, meet to him” is an equal, a suitable colleague, companion and co-worker for the work God gave Adam to do.

God created Eve as a suitable companion and co-worker for Adam

Genesis 2:24 says, For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.

We’ve heard that often enough, but what does it mean?

The Scripture doesn’t say they become one PERSON, and it’s pretty obvious that people don’t lose their individuality or their personalities when they marry.

But they become fused together.

Like these two pieces of paper, glued together.

Separate personalities

Held together by love and trust – and a covenant made with and before God

If they’re torn apart after being made one, well, it looks something like this.