Thursday, August 7, 2014

War In Your Heart # 23

Defeat Through the First Man in Eden (continued)

satan's Victory Over God and Man (continued)

The Lord God now gives Eve a chance to speak. He draws her out by a question also. Will you note that the Omniscient Judge does not make Eve face the command which had been given to "the man"? "What is this that thou hast done?" Her answer was much more simply stated.

Genesis 3:13: The woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

Her words also were the exact truth but, as in the case of Adam, there is no word of confession of her double sin of yielding to the devil's temptation and of leading her husband to do the same. Sin had already begun its hardening process in both hearts. Nothing withing their sinful selves convicted them of their guilt against God or led to confession and seeking God's mercy. The initiative for this would evidently have to come from God.

Then "the Lord God said unto the serpent."  Note that the serpent is not asked any question, not even allowed to speak. For him there is no reprieve. Upon the serpent as an instrument of satan God pronounces an immediate sentence. The serpent is cursed above all animals. The shining serpent becomes a writhering serpent, one of the most repulsive and repugnant of all creatures. Upon satan himself as the source of man's betrayal of God the sentence is irrevocable and unending. God's judgment upon satan is final.

Genesis 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.

God here declares war upon satan and his seed that will result in ultimate perfect victory for the Lord. The fatal blow will fall upon the vulnerable part of the serpent. Its head will be bruised. The one who sought to exalt himself above God will go down into the utmost of humiliation and defeat. The one who has twice openly sinned against the throne will meet his doom at the Cross. The curse pronounced upon satan in Eden will culminate in his consignment to the lake of fire for ever and ever.

Judgment upon the Woman

Genesis 3:16: 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.

Suffering, sorrow, subjection - what woman from Eve to the present day has not felt the severity of this punishment of Eve's sin?

Judgment upon the Man

Genesis 3:17-19: Unto Adam he said ...cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it was thou taken; for dust thou art, unto dust shall thou return.

"Sweat, blood, tears" - long hours at hard work to wrest from a ground cursed because of man's sin even the necessities of life. "Thorns and thistles" - adversities, afflictions, obstacles of every description to work against. Earth will yield its fruit only after arduous toil. Man is even deprived of the willing help of the animals that once feared and served him. They now have to be tamed and trained.

~Ruth Paxson~

(continued with # 24 - ("Consequences of Defeat")

No comments:

Post a Comment