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")
Thursday, August 7, 2014
Trusting In Him
So he said, “Come.” Peter got out of the boat, walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the strong wind he became afraid. And starting to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” (Matt 14:29-30)
Peter had a little faith in the midst of his doubts, says Bunyan; and so with crying and coming he was brought to Christ.
But here you see that sight was a hindrance; the waves were none of his business when once he had set out; all Peter had any concern with, was the pathway of light that came gleaming across the darkness from where Christ stood. If it was tenfold Egypt beyond that, Peter had no call to look and see.
When the Lord shall call to you over the waters, “Come,” step gladly forth. Look not for a moment away from Him.
Not by measuring the waves can you prevail; not by gauging the wind will you grow strong; to scan the danger may be to fall before it; to pause at the difficulties, is to have them break above your head. Lift up your eyes unto the hills, and go forward—there is no other way.
“Dost thou fear to launch away?
Faith lets go to swim!
Never will He let thee go;
’Tis by trusting thou shalt know
Fellowship with Him."
~L. B. Cowman~
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
War In Your Heart # 22
Defeat Through the First Man in Eden (continued)
satan's Victory Over God and Man (continued)
Let us not shrink from declaring the truth. God has suffered a terrible defeat. But let us quickly assert that God's defeat is not due to any lack in Himself, or in His power to utterly destroy His archenemy by one blow. "And God said." Nine times over in Genesis 1 we read these words. By this divine fiat God wrought in mighty power in creation. by one word God could have defeated and destroyed satan, as one day He will, in the lake of fire. Go's defeat was due to His love for that first man - a love so great that it even risked betrayal with its resultant defeat. Though God had been defeated, He had not been dethroned, for His throne is eternal. "The Lord reigneth." But His defeat calls for both a restoration and a redemption. His dominion over the earth would come by restoration; His dominion over man by redemption. God's defeat was for a brief moment of time. His victory would be eternal. satan's defeat was asserted on the very day of his victory. God's victory was assured on the very day of His defeat.
God's Judgment upon the serpent, satan and the Sinners.
"The "serpent said," and each time he hissed and booed God. "The woman said," and oh! if she had only kept silent! The man kept still. But oh! how even one word of warning and of rebuke spoken by him might have changed everything! Both Adam and Eve listened to the voice of another than God. So in eating of the forbidden fruit both had transgressed. Eve had transgressed, "being deceived"; Adam had transgressed being decoyed.
1 John 3:4: Everyone that doeth sin, doeth also lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.
They had leaped over a divinely marked boundary; they had gone beyond a divinely prescribed limit; they had acted in deliberate rebellion against a known commandment of God; they had refused to live according to the cardinal law of God's kingdom. "Sin is the transgression of the law." Therefore both had sinned. Both were individually responsible before God and must give an account of their actions. Now God will speak. He will call them individually before Him as their righteous Judge, and conduct the trial Himself.
"The Lord God said:"
He first arraigns the man. He has to call him from his hiding place, which he has sought through shame and fear. He is ever and always a righteous Judge, so He gives the sinners a chance to speak for themselves. God puts Adam on the witness stand and asks a pointed question. He goes straight to the core. Let us carefully note that nobody can every get by Go, for He knows our every sin. He said to Adam, "Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat of it?" Adam's answer could have been a monosyllabic "yes." But the man who had been criminally silent a short time before was now unnecessarily long-winded. Adam stood before the God of all truth, who knew without asking exactly what Adam had done.
Genesis 3:12: "The man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat."
Adam told the naked truth. But do you note one word of confession of his awful and hideous sin against God, or even any sense of the guilt of betrayal? Do his words reveal any sense of failure in his responsibility as head of the race to have shielded his own wife in her moment of temptation? Instead, is there not a veiled insinuation that part of the blame for his act of eating must be shared by both God and Eve? Adam the sinner has stated facts, but he has made no confession of sin. The Judge will pronounce his sentence soon.
~Ruth Paxson~
(continued with # 23)
satan's Victory Over God and Man (continued)
Let us not shrink from declaring the truth. God has suffered a terrible defeat. But let us quickly assert that God's defeat is not due to any lack in Himself, or in His power to utterly destroy His archenemy by one blow. "And God said." Nine times over in Genesis 1 we read these words. By this divine fiat God wrought in mighty power in creation. by one word God could have defeated and destroyed satan, as one day He will, in the lake of fire. Go's defeat was due to His love for that first man - a love so great that it even risked betrayal with its resultant defeat. Though God had been defeated, He had not been dethroned, for His throne is eternal. "The Lord reigneth." But His defeat calls for both a restoration and a redemption. His dominion over the earth would come by restoration; His dominion over man by redemption. God's defeat was for a brief moment of time. His victory would be eternal. satan's defeat was asserted on the very day of his victory. God's victory was assured on the very day of His defeat.
God's Judgment upon the serpent, satan and the Sinners.
"The "serpent said," and each time he hissed and booed God. "The woman said," and oh! if she had only kept silent! The man kept still. But oh! how even one word of warning and of rebuke spoken by him might have changed everything! Both Adam and Eve listened to the voice of another than God. So in eating of the forbidden fruit both had transgressed. Eve had transgressed, "being deceived"; Adam had transgressed being decoyed.
1 John 3:4: Everyone that doeth sin, doeth also lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.
They had leaped over a divinely marked boundary; they had gone beyond a divinely prescribed limit; they had acted in deliberate rebellion against a known commandment of God; they had refused to live according to the cardinal law of God's kingdom. "Sin is the transgression of the law." Therefore both had sinned. Both were individually responsible before God and must give an account of their actions. Now God will speak. He will call them individually before Him as their righteous Judge, and conduct the trial Himself.
"The Lord God said:"
He first arraigns the man. He has to call him from his hiding place, which he has sought through shame and fear. He is ever and always a righteous Judge, so He gives the sinners a chance to speak for themselves. God puts Adam on the witness stand and asks a pointed question. He goes straight to the core. Let us carefully note that nobody can every get by Go, for He knows our every sin. He said to Adam, "Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat of it?" Adam's answer could have been a monosyllabic "yes." But the man who had been criminally silent a short time before was now unnecessarily long-winded. Adam stood before the God of all truth, who knew without asking exactly what Adam had done.
Genesis 3:12: "The man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat."
Adam told the naked truth. But do you note one word of confession of his awful and hideous sin against God, or even any sense of the guilt of betrayal? Do his words reveal any sense of failure in his responsibility as head of the race to have shielded his own wife in her moment of temptation? Instead, is there not a veiled insinuation that part of the blame for his act of eating must be shared by both God and Eve? Adam the sinner has stated facts, but he has made no confession of sin. The Judge will pronounce his sentence soon.
~Ruth Paxson~
(continued with # 23)
A Servants Rewards
In His grace, God freely gives salvation to those who believe in Jesus. We cannot earn this gift, nor do we deserve it. Our Father does notice our good works, though. And He promises to reward us according to what we have done for Him.
True service occurs when we allow the Lord to work through us for His glory and honor. True ministry occurs when divine resources meet human need through loving channels.
Revelation 22:12 encourages us, "Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done." Whether large or small, all service done in Jesus' name will be blessed. We must be careful, though, that our actions are for Christ's glory. If motives are self-serving, the only benefit we receive is the praise (if any) that we hear from people in this life. And we know that men's approval is not satisfying or lasting.
While some rewards will be given in heaven, other blessings can be experienced now. For example, we know great joy when we allow God to bless others through us. And there is deep satisfaction in realizing that we are pleasing Christ. In addition,there's a profound sense of fulfillment when we lead a person to Jesus and teach him how to walk by faith.
Serving others is both a great benefit and a responsibility for Christians. We should prayerfully consider our motives to make sure that our goal is to glorify Christ. Only then will we receive God's full blessings--rewards given not only in eternity but on earth as well.
~Dr. Charles F. Stanley~
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
War In Your Heart # 21
Defeat Through the First Man in Eden (continued)
Black Week - in Eden (continued)
Genesis 5:3: "Adam begat a son in his own likeness, after his image." And what kind of children were begotten of Adam? Distasteful - even repugnant - as the answer to this question is, the Word of God, with utter faithfulness, gives the answer. What kind of posterity must come from Adam, the head of the race, the womb of humanity? From the one who intelligently, deliberately disobeyed God and thereby came under the righteous wrath of God? How awfully solemn is the revelation of Scripture!
Ephesians 2:2, 3: Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience ... And were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
One cannot have both God and self as the center of one's life. It is one or the other. Adam and Eve had chosen not only for self against God, but for satan against God. This plunged them into the night of separation from God, as we shall see. Their union with God was broken. Their union with satan had begun. But the break in union with God was not only personal; it was collective. The sin, the death, the defeat of Adam was the sin, the death, the defeat of humanity. Adam as the representative man took the race, for whom he stood, into that break with God and into that beginning with satan. Adam's posterity, the family of whom he was the father, became the children of the devil.
1 John 3:8-10: He that committeth sin is of the devil ... Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin ... In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil.
Matthew 13:38: The tares are the children of the wicked one.
satan's Victory Over God and Man
Since his own sin and fall resulting in his ejection from the mountain of God, satan's dominating passion was the thwart God in His eternal purpose for His creation. satan, who sought to dethrone God, and was thereby himself deposed from his high position in heaven, sought a seat of government for his rebel kingdom.
The cosmos had been given to Adam by a deed of trust, to rule over it. By Adam's sin of disobedience satan secured absolute dominion over him and, by heredity, over the race in him. When Adam gave allegiance to satan, he became a subject under a totally new form of government - the rebel government of a will at enmity with God - and so Adam became a bondslave of satan.
2 Timothy 2:26: and that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.
Romans 6:16: Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants, ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Adam had been given dominion over the earth as God's vice-regent. But this dominion had now been won by God's archenemy, by a legal conquest. Adam, by his betrayal, had surrendered the dominion of the earth to satan, who thereby gained governmental authority and rule over it as "prince of this world." Three times our Lord speaks of satan by his title, and in the wilderness temptation He does not refute satan's claim to the kingdoms of this world (Matthew 4:8-10).
satan has won a twofold, signal victory. All men have become his state slaves: the whole earth has come under his dominion. He has won it through the betrayal of God's first man.
~Ruth Paxson~
(continued with # 22)
Black Week - in Eden (continued)
Genesis 5:3: "Adam begat a son in his own likeness, after his image." And what kind of children were begotten of Adam? Distasteful - even repugnant - as the answer to this question is, the Word of God, with utter faithfulness, gives the answer. What kind of posterity must come from Adam, the head of the race, the womb of humanity? From the one who intelligently, deliberately disobeyed God and thereby came under the righteous wrath of God? How awfully solemn is the revelation of Scripture!
Ephesians 2:2, 3: Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience ... And were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
One cannot have both God and self as the center of one's life. It is one or the other. Adam and Eve had chosen not only for self against God, but for satan against God. This plunged them into the night of separation from God, as we shall see. Their union with God was broken. Their union with satan had begun. But the break in union with God was not only personal; it was collective. The sin, the death, the defeat of Adam was the sin, the death, the defeat of humanity. Adam as the representative man took the race, for whom he stood, into that break with God and into that beginning with satan. Adam's posterity, the family of whom he was the father, became the children of the devil.
1 John 3:8-10: He that committeth sin is of the devil ... Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin ... In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil.
Matthew 13:38: The tares are the children of the wicked one.
satan's Victory Over God and Man
Since his own sin and fall resulting in his ejection from the mountain of God, satan's dominating passion was the thwart God in His eternal purpose for His creation. satan, who sought to dethrone God, and was thereby himself deposed from his high position in heaven, sought a seat of government for his rebel kingdom.
The cosmos had been given to Adam by a deed of trust, to rule over it. By Adam's sin of disobedience satan secured absolute dominion over him and, by heredity, over the race in him. When Adam gave allegiance to satan, he became a subject under a totally new form of government - the rebel government of a will at enmity with God - and so Adam became a bondslave of satan.
2 Timothy 2:26: and that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.
Romans 6:16: Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants, ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Adam had been given dominion over the earth as God's vice-regent. But this dominion had now been won by God's archenemy, by a legal conquest. Adam, by his betrayal, had surrendered the dominion of the earth to satan, who thereby gained governmental authority and rule over it as "prince of this world." Three times our Lord speaks of satan by his title, and in the wilderness temptation He does not refute satan's claim to the kingdoms of this world (Matthew 4:8-10).
satan has won a twofold, signal victory. All men have become his state slaves: the whole earth has come under his dominion. He has won it through the betrayal of God's first man.
~Ruth Paxson~
(continued with # 22)
Our Gifts for His Kingdom
Many people hear the word "serve" and feel that they do not have the necessary qualities to make a difference in others' lives. This is true--apart from God. But He has gifted each of us in unique ways with a purpose in mind. His plan for us involves using these talents to serve Him for the good of others.
Satan would like us to believe otherwise. Our Enemy wants us to notice what others are doing and then to feel inferior. For instance, I have heard women say, "I am just a homemaker." They see people preaching and singing in the choir and wish they could accomplish something so great for God. Friends, there could be nothing further from the truth. An enormous responsibility rests with those who train their children in righteousness.
In fact, the Holy Spirit has gifted each believer for specific work in God's kingdom. Scripture explains this idea by a comparison with a human body: each person has gifts and purposes that make the entire system function well. But if the heel wants the eye's role, the whole being will lose balance.
Each part is crucial, even though some are less noticeable than others. Truthfully, those with less apparent talents have an advantage because pride and self-sufficiency may be less of a temptation.
Notice how Peter defined himself: "a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ" (2 Pet. 1:1). He was no longer a man motivated by self-interest. Once He followed Jesus, he saw himself as a servant of God. We, too, are called to serve the King of Kings with whatever abilities we are given.
~Dr. Charles F. Stanley~
Monday, August 4, 2014
War In Your Heart # 20
Defeat Through the First Man In Eden (continued)
Black Week - In Eden (continued)
"She gave also unto her husband." "Also." Sin is never single. It breeds like a guinea pig. It always seeks company. The sinner invariably invites another to sin with him.
"And he did eat." The man, who might not have listened to the voice of the serpent or responded to his direct appeal, did listen to the voice of his wife and responded to her appeal (Genesis 3:12-17). Oh! how necessary it is to have our Lord's discernment and to be able to detect the voice of satan through the human voice. Oh! what a difference it made to the whole human race, when satan spoke through Peter, trying to dissuade our Lord from the pathway of the Cross and He said unto Peter, "Get thee behind me, satan; thou art an offense unto me: for thou savorest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men." Oh! what a difference it would have made to you, to me, and to the whole human race, if Adam had said to Eve, "Get thee behind me, satan; for thou savorest not of the things that be of God"!
Could and should Adam have known that there was an alien voice speaking through Eve, even the voice of an enemy of God? Let the Word answer. It says distinctly that Adam was not deceived but that his sin was an out-and-out disobedience to the clearly stated command given directly to him, even before Eve's creation, and given primarily to him who was the federal head of the race in creation. "The Lord God commanded the man."
That God held Adam primarily responsible for obedience to that command is seen in His questioning of him as He brings him to trial. "Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou should not eat?" (Genesis 3:11). Later in pronouncing judgment upon Adam, God with crystal clearness placed the primary guilt upon Adam for disobedience to His clearly revealed Word. He had listen to another voice than God's.
Genesis 3:17: 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.
Both Adam and Even were guilty: both had sinned. But Adam's sin was the more culpable and awful in its consequences. Eve had been deceived and beguiled into sin; Adam had deliberately disobeyed, knowing full well the awful penalty for such disobedience. God leaves him without the slightest excuse in the world where He tells him that he listened to another voice than His. In so doing he had sinned both against the truth and the God of truth.
In the day that thou eatest therefor thou shalt surely die.
God is speaking to "the man" - and he did eat. And "In that day" he died. The very instant he sinned, Adam's union with God was broken. Sin is not merely personal: it is collective. The whole human race in creation was latent in Adam, its federal head. So in his sin and resultant death he took the whole race into sin and death.
Romans 5:12: Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.
Romans 5:19: For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners.
Through yielding to satanic temptation both Adam and Eve became sinners. They then gave birth to their first child and it was not Cain. It was sin - the sin of self-will: the will of satan pitted against the will of God in deliberate rebellion. Sin had now entered into that beautiful self God had made in His own image and put it into reverse. God then called it by another name, "flesh". Drop the "h" and spell it backward - "SELF." satan of hatred to God which could only express itself in disobedience and defiance; satan's spirit rather God's Spirit ruled in and over Adam and Eve and their progeny. The heinous, hateful character of this satanic spawn is described in perfectly intelligent language in God's Word.
Romans 8:7: Because the mind of the flesh is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be.
This deadly principle of sin permeated every part of the life of Adam and Eve, and reigned over it. Sinful self now became the very center of their lives; self-love, self-pleasing, self-will, self-exaltation, ruled. Adam and Eve had been told by God to "be fruitful and multiply." Their posterity was to have been like them, "created in the image of God." But now they have both become sinners. The sinless human nature with which God had endowed them had become altogether sinful. So their children would inherit their nature and be made like them.
~Ruth Paxson~
(continued with # 21)
Black Week - In Eden (continued)
"She gave also unto her husband." "Also." Sin is never single. It breeds like a guinea pig. It always seeks company. The sinner invariably invites another to sin with him.
"And he did eat." The man, who might not have listened to the voice of the serpent or responded to his direct appeal, did listen to the voice of his wife and responded to her appeal (Genesis 3:12-17). Oh! how necessary it is to have our Lord's discernment and to be able to detect the voice of satan through the human voice. Oh! what a difference it made to the whole human race, when satan spoke through Peter, trying to dissuade our Lord from the pathway of the Cross and He said unto Peter, "Get thee behind me, satan; thou art an offense unto me: for thou savorest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men." Oh! what a difference it would have made to you, to me, and to the whole human race, if Adam had said to Eve, "Get thee behind me, satan; for thou savorest not of the things that be of God"!
Could and should Adam have known that there was an alien voice speaking through Eve, even the voice of an enemy of God? Let the Word answer. It says distinctly that Adam was not deceived but that his sin was an out-and-out disobedience to the clearly stated command given directly to him, even before Eve's creation, and given primarily to him who was the federal head of the race in creation. "The Lord God commanded the man."
That God held Adam primarily responsible for obedience to that command is seen in His questioning of him as He brings him to trial. "Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou should not eat?" (Genesis 3:11). Later in pronouncing judgment upon Adam, God with crystal clearness placed the primary guilt upon Adam for disobedience to His clearly revealed Word. He had listen to another voice than God's.
Genesis 3:17: 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.
Both Adam and Even were guilty: both had sinned. But Adam's sin was the more culpable and awful in its consequences. Eve had been deceived and beguiled into sin; Adam had deliberately disobeyed, knowing full well the awful penalty for such disobedience. God leaves him without the slightest excuse in the world where He tells him that he listened to another voice than His. In so doing he had sinned both against the truth and the God of truth.
In the day that thou eatest therefor thou shalt surely die.
God is speaking to "the man" - and he did eat. And "In that day" he died. The very instant he sinned, Adam's union with God was broken. Sin is not merely personal: it is collective. The whole human race in creation was latent in Adam, its federal head. So in his sin and resultant death he took the whole race into sin and death.
Romans 5:12: Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.
Romans 5:19: For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners.
Through yielding to satanic temptation both Adam and Eve became sinners. They then gave birth to their first child and it was not Cain. It was sin - the sin of self-will: the will of satan pitted against the will of God in deliberate rebellion. Sin had now entered into that beautiful self God had made in His own image and put it into reverse. God then called it by another name, "flesh". Drop the "h" and spell it backward - "SELF." satan of hatred to God which could only express itself in disobedience and defiance; satan's spirit rather God's Spirit ruled in and over Adam and Eve and their progeny. The heinous, hateful character of this satanic spawn is described in perfectly intelligent language in God's Word.
Romans 8:7: Because the mind of the flesh is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be.
This deadly principle of sin permeated every part of the life of Adam and Eve, and reigned over it. Sinful self now became the very center of their lives; self-love, self-pleasing, self-will, self-exaltation, ruled. Adam and Eve had been told by God to "be fruitful and multiply." Their posterity was to have been like them, "created in the image of God." But now they have both become sinners. The sinless human nature with which God had endowed them had become altogether sinful. So their children would inherit their nature and be made like them.
~Ruth Paxson~
(continued with # 21)
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