E100-02

 

The Fall

Genesis 3

My Commentary

You are encouraged to go through steps or process scripture in these steps:

• Pray = in anticipation of what God wants you to discover. Lord God, I thank You for the many truths in the Bible, even those that make me uncomfortable.
• Read Genesis 3 = with purpose look for what God is trying to communicate. You may want to read out of several translations and highlight key words.
• Reflect = on the context and put yourself in the shoes of people at that time.  The idea of “sin” is old fashioned to many people today. What do you think? Is sin real and how do you define it? What major effects of sin do you see?
• God is ... What do we learn about God?
• We are ... What do we learn about people?
• Do you think God judges people for sin today as he did in Noah’s time? If so, how and why? Do you think it’s fair for God to judge people?
• Do you ever find yourself in a situation where, like Noah, you are surrounded by sin? If so, explain.
• What makes you feel guilty? How do you handle those feelings?
• Have you ever experienced forgiveness from someone close to you? Have you ever experienced God’s forgiveness? Share what you learned from these experiences.
• Apply = information without application is fruitless. Decide on some practical steps you can take for fulfill what God wants you to do. All during the day, watch for temptations to sin. When you identify one, stop and decide how you’ll avoid it. Ask God for any help you need.
• Pray = yielding to God to empower you to do what the word convicted you to do. God, You know temptation is all around me and it’s not easy to avoid. Keep me alert and ready to ask for Your help.

For deeper Bible study and more resources go to my Commentary Blog notes.

For other parts of the Essential 100 Scripture Series, click on the link with the topic #E100.

#Sin  #FallOfMan

Personal Application

What indications of the Fall do you see in your own relationships with others? Be encouraged! Christ died to deliver you from just these consequences of sin.

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God's Greatest Intolerance

from  Every Day with Jesus Daily Bible.

Wrath is not a defect in the divine character; rather, it would be a defect if wrath were absent from Him. Those who see God's wrath as petulance or retaliation, inflicting punishment just for the sake of it or in return for some injury received, do not really understand it. Divine wrath is not vindictiveness; it is divine perfection, issuing forth from God because it is right.

Human beings tend to make God in our own image. He made us in His image, but we want to return the compliment, and it is there that so often we go wrong. Instead of reasoning from the divine down to the human, recognizing that sin has marred the divine image within us, we reason from our fallen condition and project our own feelings and ideas onto God.

Thus, when thinking of the wrath of God, we tend to look at what happens in our own hearts when we get angry, and we imagine God to be the same. But divine anger must never be confused with human anger. Most of what goes on in our hearts whenever we are angry is a mixture of unpredictable petulance, retaliation, hostility, and self-concern. God's anger is always predictable, always steadfast, and always set against sin. We must never forget that God's nature is uncompromisingly set against sin. We may tolerate it; He never.

Sin has been defined as "God's one great intolerance," and for that we ought to be eternally grateful. As His children we ought to rejoice that He will not tolerate anything that is harmful to us.

Prayer

O Father, what a change comes over me when I realize that Your wrath is not so much directed at persons as at the sin that demeans and destroys them. You are not against me for my sin, but for me against my sin. I am deeply, deeply grateful. Amen.