You Can’t Unscramble An Egg (Lent 1 February 26. 2023)

YOU CAN’T UNSCRAMBLE AN EGG

Text: Genesis 2: 15 - 17 and 3: 1 - 6

Genesis 2:15-17  The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.  (16)  And the LORD God commanded the man, "You may freely eat of every tree of the garden;  (17)  but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die."

Genesis 3:1-7  Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God say, 'You shall not eat from any tree in the garden'?"  (2)  The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden;  (3)  but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.'"  (4)  But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not die;  (5)  for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."  (6)  So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate.  (7)  Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.

Many sermons have used Humpty Dumpty references. It makes sense when we think about his “falling” because the “fall” that happened in the Garden of Eden.

Why did Humpty Dumpty fall? Was he pushed? “There are various theories of the origin of Humpty Dumpty. “Humpty Dumpty” referred to King Richard III, 1483-85 the hunchbacked monarch. At the Battle of Bosworth Field, he fell from his steed, a horse he had named “Wall” (as dramatically rendered in Shakespeare’s play “Richard III”: “A horse! A horse! My Kingdom for a Horse!”) Richard was surrounded by enemy troops in the battle, and was butchered right there, his body being hacked to pieces. Hence the final part of the rhyme: “All the King’s Horses and All the King’s men couldn’t put Humpty together again!” https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/humpty-dumpty-s-life-ralph-andrus-sermon-on-christian-liberty-94764

The one thing that is clear from the Humpty Dumpty story is that you cannot unscramble an egg. As it relates to the fall of our spiritual ancestors, you cannot unbite an a forbidden fruit. The characters of both stories start out well until they fall. After they fall, their world is never the same again.

Why did Adam and Eve fall? Was it because they both took a bite of the forbidden fruit? Of course they did. All it took was a bite for them to lose their mostly unrestricted place in the Garden of Eden. The fruit of tree of the knowledge of good and evil was the restricted part of the garden.

Have you ever noticed how people want to condemn Eve for eating of the forbidden fruit? Eve was the first one to bite of it and she then shared it with Adam who also took a bite. They were both guilty of rebelling against God.

Satan was jealous of the role that Adam and Eve had and he decided to tempt them because he had much to gain and they had much to lose. We know how the story ends. They disobey God, realize their nakedness and try to hide from God.

Today we want to talk about the tempter, choices and consequences.

TEMPTER

How would you describe the tempter in this scripture?

The serpent acts like a friend with unsolicited advice. This masked enemy is a subtle, smooth operating, calculating, proportional and packaging pretender. https://ministry127.com/sermon-helps/facing-the-giant-of-temptation The serpent is as smooth as a car salesman and as crafty as a politician with a hidden agenda. He hid has agenda to remove all suspicion as he tempted Adam and Eve with the forbidden fruit.

What is forbidden fruit? Forbidden fruit is are things that are off limits. Cheating, stealing, coveting, conning, misdirecting or any motive or action that seeks to take an unfair advantage. Why did Satan tempt Adam and Eve with the forbidden fruit? Was it because he had a lot to gain in deceiving Adam and Eve?

What does temptation in the Garden of Eden have to do with Jesus’s temptation in the wilderness?

1) Paradise: Paradise was considered the Garden of Eden where Adam and Eve lived before the fall. The serpent stole the opportunity of an unbroken and unhindered relationship that Adam and Eve shared with God he deceived them. Satan’s temptation promised them power.