The Tragic Consequences Of An Unrepentant Heart

When you chose to sin, it will lead you to do some very stupid and foolish things.

Well, God came looking for Adam and Eve because just like Elisha, He knew he must confront them. And on that day in the garden, Adam and Eve instituted something into the human race that has thrived, literally thrived over the history of mankind. In fact, we have even given it a name: it’s called “passing the buck.”

-3:11 - Adam in response basically said, “I’m not going to take the blame for this. It’s Eve’s fault.”

As the spotlight shifted over to Eve, she said, “Well, I’m sure not going to take the fall for this. It’s the serpent’s fault.”

No confession. No repentance, just “it’s someone’s fault. Can’t blame me!” By the way, you can be sure when someone tries to pass the buck there is no repentant heart because the very essence of attempting to pass the buck is to try to keep from acknowledging and confessing your sin.

So again, we see here an example of someone who was confronted about their sin, but refused to humble themselves and repent. Therefore, God was left with no other choice but to issue judgment.

What were the consequences of their unrepentant hearts? Wow, how do you begin to name them? There are the obvious, the ones God names in verses 16-19. In addition, they are banished from the Garden of Eden and basically banished from the pages of Scripture in terms of their life after this. Other than the announcement of Adam’s children being born and how many years he lived, we know nothing else about him or Eve. And there were so many, so many more consequences.

My guess is, like with Gehazi, they did truly repent at a later time and while I’m grateful for that, how tragic that they didn’t confess and repent when first confronted. See, that is what we are trying to center on this morning.

Well, have not we all wondered at one time or another what would have happened that day in the garden if when God came walking in the cool of the day if Adam and Even had come running up to Him & confessed and repented of their sin? Or at least if when He called out to them and they openly and freely confessed their sin. What would have happened? Again, I don’t know, and it would be foolish to speculate, as some have, because their situation was unique in the sense that through their actions, sin had been introduced into the human race – so it is unwise to speculate. But the same truth that would later be written into Scripture was still true in the Garden which was he who confesses and forsakes his sin finds compassion and mercy.

We are examining the tragic consequences of an unrepentant heart and we do not have to go much further in the Bible to find another example.

• Cain – Genesis 4:3-16

Again, you are familiar with the story. Both Cain and Abel brought their offerings to the Lord. As Scripture declares, Cain’s offering was inappropriate and therefore unacceptable. There is an argument from silence here that says God revealed to Adam and Eve what was required in bringing an offering to Him and Cain was in disobedience to that requirement. We don’t know what had been going on in Cain’s heart that led him to bring this inappropriate offering but here we have the first example in human history of man trying to be religious or practice religion but on his own terms. Notice Cain had not rejected God per se, but he wanted to come to God and worship God according to the way he wanted to, not according to the way God declared. And what he started that day has continued on to this present day. But God did not accept Cain’s worship and He does not accept peoples’ worship today if they come in a way other than what He has said.