The Serving Wife

God created woman so that man would not be alone.  Think about this:  Pretend that you decide to live on an island.  It is perfect in every way.  The soil is good where you can grow any type of fruits and vegetables.  There are plenty of fish in the ocean and wild animals on the island.  You are able to eat and not worry about going hungry.  The weather is perfect all year-it is neither too hot nor too cold.  This island paradise is perfect in every way.  However, it is missing one thing.  This thing is another individual to share it with you.  Whether this individual is a spouse or just a friend to joke around with, you will be lonely if you are the only one.

            God did not want Adam to be alone.  He wanted Adam to have a spouse to share this paradise called Eden with.  When God made Eve, from Adam, she was given several responsibilities.  These included being a wife, a mate and a friend.  However, her biggest responsibility was to be Adam’s helper.  Whether it was taking care of the garden, taking care of his needs or providing advice, Eve was to play the role as the serving wife.

            Take a look at the following verses:

1 Corinthians 11:8-9 “For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man.  Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man” (KJV)

1 Corinthians 11:3:  But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God” (KJV).

Ephesians 5:22-24:  “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.  For the husband is the head if the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the savior of the body.  Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything” (KJV).

1 Timothy 2:12-13:  “But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.  For Abram was first formed, then Eve” (KJV).

            Wow!  Take a look at today’s society and see how many females are following the rules according to the above verses.  If you are lucky, you may find only a handful of married women who are raising a family and attending to his needs the moment he calls or beckons.  Take a look at all of the females who are in the military and law enforcement, who are doctors and who are lawyers and teachers.  Even where I work, there are more female employees than male employees.  Does this mean that all married females should quit their jobs?  With the increases in cost of living rates, for many married couples it would be difficult to survive on one income.  So the answer is no; females do not have to quit their jobs.  However, they cannot be consumed witht heir jobs where they neglect their husband’s needs.

            If you are a married female who works outside of your house, you must balance your daily routines so you can be a serving wife.  It may mean cooking dinner when you get home from work or spending an hour of alone time with your husband.  Each husband is different from the other.  Therefore, each has different needs.  If you want to be a serving wife, you must understand your husband’s needs and know which ones have a higher priority.

Colossians 3:18:  “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord” (KJV).

Colossians 3:19:  Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them” (KJV)”

1 Peter 3:1  Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands, that if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won be the conversation of the wives” (KJV).

1 Peter 3:7:  “Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers benot hindered” (KJV).

            The above verses, and many other similar verses in the Bible, are there to protect the serving wives.  While the husbands are to be the head of the household, they are to treat their wives with love and respect.  As today, there were some men who wanted to become powerful and used their authority to make the wives to do things that would be displeasing to God.  For example, if a husband wanted his wife to kill another person, he would be forcing her to break God’s commandment of “Thou shalt not kill.”  If the serving wife refused to carry out this and other evil deeds, God would be forgiving towards her.  These verses also order the husband to love his wife.  If a husband is abusive towards her and angry because she refuses to commit an evil deed, he does not love her.

            Both the Old and New Testaments stress the importance of being the serving wife. While-if you are a female-you may be laughing at this, just think about this.  The real reason you should be a serving wife is if your husband is not a Christian, his only chance at salvation is through you.  The nonbelieving husband is sactified through the believing wife.

Reference

The Holy Bible.  King James Version.

Random Bible Verses

Genesis 16:10  And the angel of the Lord said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude.

Genesis 22:17  That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;

Genesis 24:60 And they blessed Rebekah, and sadi unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.

Genesis 22:18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou obeyed my voice.

2 Samuel 7:12 And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.

Psalm 89:4  hy seed I will establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations.  Selah

Psalm 89:29  His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

Psalm 86:39  his seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me.

John 8:44-Jesus’ words-Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do.  He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him.  When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for, he is a liar, and the father of it.

Death for All Humans

Romans 8:20-22

20.  “For the creature was made subject to vanity not willingly, but by reason of him hath subjected the same, in hope” (KJV),

21.  “Because the creature itself shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (KJV)

22.  “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travalleth in pain together until now” (KJV).

            The peaceful world of Adam and Eve was tarnished because of the original sin.  How we wish there were not any disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes and blizzards.  How we long for days when we do not have to face bone chilling cold and searing heat.  If the original sin did not occur, we would be in Eden now without any type of wrong going on in this paradise. 

            Even though God appeared to be harsh to Adam and Eve, he was also merciful.  He could have killed them immediately.  He could have cursed the ground where no food grew at all.  Yet, he still provided food for them, even though Adam would need to work day in and day out to provide food for his family.

God’s mercy to Adam and Eve shows to us that God is a gentle and loving God.  He could have allowed both of them to eat from the Tree of Life.  However, by barring the way, he was protecting them.  Imagine having something on your conscience and it causes you emotional pain throughout your life.  If they ate from the Tree of Life they would live forever feeling guilty about the sin they committed.  It is true that they would live forever; however all their days would be full of despair.

            After Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, they did not die.  Does this make God a liar?  It certainly does not!  God did not tell Adam that he would die as soon as he ate the fruit.  The final curse God put on Adam and Eve was death.  They would not live forever; they would die after a specific time-God is the only one who knows the precise moment an individual is going to die.  Whether it is a plant, animal or human, everything that is alive will eventually die.  However, do not despair.  Everybody will have the opportunity to be with God in the new world.

            While Eve had listened to the serpent and took the fruit and ate it, Adam took the responsibility for sinning.  He was not angry with his wife; he loved her.  Even though they were cursed, Adam knew the world would become populated with their offspring.  There was hope that one day they would return to Eden.

1 Corithians 15:22 reads, “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (KJV).  Since he was the father of the human race, when Adam sinned, we all fall victim to sin and death.  This is the consequence of sin.  While this seems devastating, God appointed his Son Jesus as the head of the Church.  According to 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are put away: behold, all things are become new” (KJV), we do not have have to suffer eternally because Jesus was obedient and we can live a life of righteousness because of his sacrifice on the cross.  When we have faith in Jesus Christ we are moved from the sin of Adam to the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:15 “But not as the offence, so also is the free gift.  For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many” (KJV).

Romans 5:17  “For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ (KJV).

Roams 5:21  “That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord” (KJV).

            Some may wonder how any of God’s children can return to the Garden of Eden if it was wiped out during the flood of Noah’s time.  Take a look at the last book of the Bible.  Revelation 22:2 states “In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was where the tree of life, which bare twelve manners of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month:  and the leaves if the tree were for the healing of the nations” (KJV).   God has already made plans for a new world.  He is the only one who knows when the precise time it will be created.

Hebrews 10:22  “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water” (KJV).

God make me more aware of the temptations that are introduced to me.  They may be so small, that I may not recognize them for what they are.  I realize that Satan is a big deceiver and will not know when I am being tempted.  These temptations interfere with you and allow me to give them priority over your Word.  Make me more discerning and give me the grace and desire to live a life for you.  Amen!

References:

The Holy Bible King James Version

The Consequences of Sin

1 John 4:6  “ We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error” (KJV).

1 John 4:16  “And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him” (KJV).

            Godloves us even though we are sinners.  However, he hates the sins that we do.  While God is a God of love, he is also the God of light.  He is a holy God who has to deal with sin.  The discipline he gives when we disobey God is not also for our own good but also for the glory of his name.  With the first sin in this world, God had to discipline the serpeant, Eve and Adam.

            All three-Adam, Eve and the serpent-were cursed.  The serpent was cursed where all the livestock and wild animals would hate him.  He had limited mobility where he lost his legs and would have to slither on his belly to travel.  He could only eat things smaller than him.  Since these creatures scurried along the ground, he would be swallowing a lot of dust with his meal.  God also made humans and serpents enemies.  His offspring would bite her offspring on the heel and her offspring would crush his offspring’s head.  While this is true that some people will not blink an eye when they kill a snake, this is also symbolic.  This is a prophecy of God sending Jesus to the earth to save mankind and to defeat Satan.  Even the New Testament supports the prophecy made in Genesis:

Galatians 3:16 “Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made.  He saith not, And to the seeds, as of many; but as for ones, and to thy seeds, which is of Christ” (KJV).

Romans 16:20 “And the God of Peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly.  The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen” (KJV).

We all face a struggle with issues throughout our daily lives.  Some of us may need to make a decision if one choice is better than the other one.  Sometimes we wonder if we are making the smartest and wisest choices.  We wonder if God will be happy with what we decide to do.  While we want to live a life of peaches and cream, this will not happen until Jesus defeats Satan at the right time.  Some of us may ask why Satan has not already been overthrown.  This all is in God’s plan for humankind.  His timing is the perfect timing.

God next cursed the woman since she was the first of the two to eat the forbidden fruit.  She would desire after her husband, meaning that she would lust after him.  This may not sound like a curse, but it is.  God had caused Eve and all her female descendants to have pain when giving birth to children.  Eve could have decided not to have a sexual relationship with her husband to avoid the pain of giving birth.  However, God caused Eve to desire her husband so she would want to be intimately involved with him.

Finally, Adam was cursed. He could have ignored Eve when she gave him the fruit.  However, he chose her over the Lord.  He disobeyed God because of the woman.  He was cursed by having to work.  While everything in the garden was abundant-and he did not have to lift a finger to grow the fruit-he lost that privilege when he sinned.  Now, Adam had to do back breaking work to grow food.  Adam would have to till the land by hand (tractors were not around back then).  He would have to fight with weeds, storms, floods and barren land.

How many of us wish that we did not have to go to work to make a living?  What would you do if you had twenty-four hours a day where you did not hve to work?  I wish I did not have to work and actually have a plan of what I would do in my free time.  It would involve two hours of Bible Study, writing in my blog, doing some play time on my computer-I admit, I am addicted to Pogo-reading and working on a project.  I have some home improvement and sewing projects that are on my to-do list.  That would still give me plenty of time for me to be a serving wife and mother to my husband and children.

Genesis 4:7:  "If thou does well, shalt thou not be accepted?  And if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.  And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him” (KJV).

Song of Solomon 7:10:  “I am my beloved’s, and his desire is towards me” (KJV).

The above verses symbolize the difficulties of Adam and Eve’s descendants.  Look around you.  How many people do you know are divorced?  The statistics are constantly on the rise.  Some wives may be in an abusive situation.  Some spouses are not faithful to his or her partner.  Some couples just simply cannot communicate with each other.  It may be that the wife wants to be the dominating one in the relationship.  However, Eve was cursed where she was no longer Adam’s equal.  Most married females during the Biblical era played the role of the serving wife.

Genesis 2:16-17 (KJV)

¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:

¹⁷ But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

God gave us freewill, so we can choose to return the love to him or choose not to.  Adam and Eve used their free will to go against what God commanded them not to do.  This act of defiance showed that they rebelled against God and hurt their relationship with him.  However, this did not mean that God stopped loving them.

            When Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, he already knew that they had done just that.  Since they had rebelled against them, he had to enforce the penalty of death.  However, he did not cause them to die at that time.  Since he loved the future human race, he gave them a chance to atone for their sins and protested them from the elements as Genesis 3:21 states, ^2” Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them” (KJV). This first sacrifice was a foreshadowing of redemption when Jesus Christ would come down to earth and die on the cross for all sins. 

1 Corinthians 5:21 “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (KJV),.

            Since there are consequences for sin, Adam and Eve would eventually die for rebelling against God and sinning.  However, since God is willing to forgive and restore fallen humans he gave the rebellious and  sinful humans a chance to return to a realtionship with him.

            As Christians, when we know and accept that our sins are forgiven because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, we have an eternal home in heaven.  When Jesus ascended to heaven, he went there to prepare a place for us.  We experience hard work, see death and suffer.  However, the bright spot is looking to a new life when we are in the presence of God.

John 14:2-3   “In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (KJV).

Revelation 21:3-4  (KJV)

3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

⁴ And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

            To prepare yourself, study the Bible to understand God's word.  Walk in freedom each day and continue to keep your eye on your eternal home in heaven.

Genesis 3:8 And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.

What Happens when you Fall Into Sin

Eve ate the forbidden fruit first and gave some of it to Adam.  Then he ate it.  Even though the fruit was delicious and they enjoyed it, they only got temporary satisfaction from eating it.  Before we go on, who was it who sinned?  According to Romans 5:12-21 , Paul mentions that it was Adam who willfully sinned and brought sin and death to human. 

Since they were forbidden to eat this fruit, they sinned because they disobeyed God.  Things began to happen when they disobeyed God and it was not good.

First they felt shame.  Before they sinned, as Genesis 2:25 states, “And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed” (KJV).  However, after eating the fruit, they realized that they were naked.  Therefore, they rushed around searching for fig leaves to cover their nakedness.  Note only were they covering up the nude bodies, they were trying to cover up what they did.  This type of shame reflects mano of us today.  Many of us are ashamed of our bodies.  For one it might be too short; for another it may be too tall; for another it might be too fat and so on.  God created us with the intention for us to love our bodies and not be ashamed of them.  Whenever we knowingly sin we are ashamed of what we do.  There are some people who constantly and are not ashamed by their acts as the following verses state:

1 Timothy 4:2 “ Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron” (KJV).

Jeremiah 6:15 “Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not

at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore they shall fall among them that fall: at the time that I visit them they shall be cast down, saith the Lord” (KJV).

Then they felt guilt.  They hid from God when he was walking in the garden.  Even though he called for Adam and Eve, asking them where they were, God already knew.  He was giving them the opportunity to fess up.  After all, God is a merciful God and wanted to give them the opportunity to confess to what they did.

Shame and guilt go hand-in-hand.  They felt ashamed because they realized they were naked.  They felt guilty because they realized that they disobeyed God.  This brought around their next reaction that comes along with sin,  It was fear.  They seemed to be hiding in fear when God walked in the garden.  He even admitted being afraid when God asked him why he was hiding.

Imagine that you are a young child in a store and see a toy that you want.  While it is not bad to want that toy, how you get the toy (the temption) can leat to sin if you go about the wrong ways of getting it.  Maybe you have enough money to buy it yourself or have a generous parent who is willingly to buy it for you.  However, let’s say you do not want the money but still want it.  You look around and nobody is looking.  So you stick the toy under your shirt and walk out of the store.  You keep looking over your shoulder, thinking that the storeowners or cops are on your trail.  You get home safely and rush up to your room.  Looking at your toy, all of a sudden you feel shame.  You know it is wrong to steal and if you had waited until you got your allowance, you could have bought it then.  Then you feel guilt since if you got caught stealing the toy you could have been in trouble with the store owner, the cops and your parents.  Then you feel afraid and have to hide that toy.  You are sure if your parents see it, they will wonder where you got the money to buy it.  Even if you do hide what you did from your parents, God will know what you did.  You can never hide anything from God.

  Adam and Eve felt shame, guilt and fear.  Because of this, they could no longer enjoy their garden paradise like they used to.  They used the trees that they used to enjoy and turned them into something where they could hide from God and keep him out. 

The reason why some people do not turn to God and Jesus is because hey feel ashamed of things they have done.  They are afraid that God will not forgive them of their sins.  If you are like these sinners, remember that Jesus died on the cross for your sins.  If you are afraid, turn to the Lord and ask for forgiveness.  He will forgive you.

            While they were hiding in the garden, God came walking looking for them.  They should have run to him as soon as they saw him, confessed what they did and asked him for his forgiveness.  However, they remained hiding until he called out to them.

That God asked questions such as why the man and woman were hiding, who told them they were naked and if the ate the fruit from the forbidden tree, makes people wonder why God did not know tese answers already.  However, he does know everything and already knew what Adam and Eve had done.  He basically asked these questions for their own benefit.  He was giving the opportunity to be honest and to confess their sins.  He mostly likely did not talk to them as if he was a judge yelling at a criminal but rather like a father who was very heartbroken.

God gave Adam the chance to explain himself.  This was when the blame game began.  Adam blamed the woman; she blamed the snake.  All they needed to do was acknowledge what they did was wrong.  I am not saying that God would have been more merciful in his judgements against all humans.  Now, don’t get me wrong, God showed enormous mercy to Adam and Eve.  He could have destroyed man and woman right there.  However, he showed them mercy.  Still Adam and Eve as well as the human race faced consequences for the original sin.

How Temptation Falls Into Sin

2 Thessalonians 2:10  “”And wwith all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they receive not the love of the truth, that they might be saved” (KJV).

            

It seems like everybody has to believe in something.  When it comes to God, people either believe him and his word or they do not believe the Bible and fall for the lies of Satan.  When people reject the truth of God, there will always be consequences.

The serpent did not lose persistence.  He kept attacking Eve with his lies until she looked at the forbidden fruit.  She saw that the fruit was beautiful and her mouth was probably watering.  With the snake’s lies, she was tempted into wanting wisdom.  Therefore, she desired the fruit and took some and ate it.  The fruit was not full of worms or sour.  It was delicious.  Still, what she did-she craved something that she was forbidden to have and lusted after.  It is possible that she did not eat the fruit as soon as the serpent told her his lies.  She may have gone several days or weeks and even longer before eating the fruit.  She may have looked at the fruit, sighing when she saw its beauty, longing to eat it.  Even with all the other fruit in the garden, she would not be satisfied until she ate it.  Finally, no longer to hold back, she took the fruit and ate it.

This threefold temptation is similar to the one described in 1 John 2:16:  “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the father, but of this world” (KJV).

God did not deliberately place the tree of Knowledge of God and Evil to tempt Eve.  When Eve took the fruit and ate it, it was the serpent’s doing and her doing.

The serpent preyed on Eve because she was naïve.  Since she was easily deceived, she fell into the sin trap.  As Psalm 119:11 states:  “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (KJV).  People who are ignorant are more vulnerable to temptation.

Today the biggest temptation to most people is money.  How many of you receive this type of email?  You won a specific amount of money.  The only catch is you have to send a specific amount of money back to cover the taxes.  For most people who are familiar with this know that it is a scam.  However, for some people who are struggling with debt are easily tempted with this type of offer.  While they struggle to scrape the money together for the taxes, they think they will have a windfall within a month.  However, they will lose any money they send out and never see that windfall.  These scammers find as many people as they can, hoping that they get some of the ignorant victims.

Even though it appears that Eve was innocent, she can blame no one but herself.  By disobeying God, she was showing that she distrusted his goodness.  Even though she had everything else in the garden, she was not satisfied until she ate that fruit.

Take a look at John 10:10: “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it abundantly” (KJV) and John 17:3:  “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, who thou hast sent” (KJV).

Eve thought she would have truesatisfaction when she took the fruit and ate it.  However, when she disobeyed God, she was not satisfied.  She used her sight and not her faith to satisfy herself.  Far too little and far too late, she found out that God is sovereign and good.  By not trusting him, she and Adam could not live abundantly.

1 Timothy 2:14:  “And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in transgression” (KJV).  God made Adam first.  Therefore, God spoke to Adam first concerning the forbidden fruit.  

Did Adam listen to God?  Did Adam tell Eve, “I can’t eat that!  That is the forbidden fruit!  No!  He took the fruit and ate it.  Adam obeyed a human rather than God.  When he ate that fruit, he sinned against God.  When he sinned, he not only hurt himself, he hurt the entire human race. 

As the apostle Paul writes in Roman 5:12, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered in to the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.  Everybody, because of the original sin, that is born will start the first second of his life as a sinner. 

The Serpent Tempts Eve

Genesis 3:1 “Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lard had made.  And he said unto the woman…” (KJV).

2 Corinthians 2:11  “Lest Satan should get an advantage of us:  for we are not ignorant of his devices” (KJV).

Whoa!  Wait a minute!  Snakes cannot talk!  Well, maybe during the Age of Innocence, all creatures communicated to each other using the same language.  That might make sense.

However, there is always a question of why a creature that was created by God would turn against his creator.  The serpent was said to be crafty and sly.  This is even true about snakes today.  They slither silently on their bellies.  You may  not see them when they slide by.  However, there is another side to the serpent that deceived Eve.  Take a look at the following verses:

Revelation 12:9 “And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent called the devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.”

Revelation 20:2 “And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years.”

Revelation 20:10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever.

It shows that Satan and the serpent are connected.  While Satan was not actually present in the garden with Adam and Eve, he was using the serpent to do his bidding.  Satan is like that; he talks with a smooth tongue and deceives people into temptation and sin.  Without realizing it all humans-even the strongly devout Christians-fall into the sin trap.

The serpent talked to Eve rather than Adam.  He knew that Eve would be easily deceived;  Adam would be a more difficult task, since God directly told Adm “of every tree of the garden though mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day thou eatest thou shalt surely die” (KJV).

When the serpent questions Eve, asking if she is not allowed to eat of any tree, she refers to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, as the tree which is in the middle of the garden.  The Bible does not state who told Eve which tree not to touch.  If God was the one, he would have told her exactly what he commanded Adam.  If he did then she would have known the importance of the tree.  Therefore, it is most likely that Adam passed on God’s order.

If Eve had known about the importance of the tree, she would have ignored the serpent.  However, the serpent knew what Eve did not know and played with her in order to get her to do his will.

The serpent impiles that God is lying by telling Eve that she will not die if she eats the fruit from the tree.  As a matter of fact, she will become like God; she will know what is good and what is evil.

As verse 22 in the third chapter in Genesis states, “And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat and live for ever.”  Therefore, the serpent was not really lieing when he told Eve that she would become like God.  However, he deliberately failed to tell her that there would be severe consequences for disobeying God.

Satan is a great strategist.  He had to think things through before approaching Eve.  He had to figure out the best way for her to disobey God.  Therefore he used the snake to talk to her.  He used the body of the snake, something that God created and called good.  Eve probably thought of the snake as something good as well, so she wasn’t threatened by it.  It is not like today if we see a snake we might scream, run from it, try to find ways to kill it and so on.  The snake originally was good until Satan corrupted it.

One of the ways Satan gets by the radar trap is that he disguises himself.  He can disguise himself as a man of God.  Take a look at the different religious cult where people are deceived by the leader and listen to his teachings rather that God’s words from the Bible.  Some of these cults can be life threatening when the leaders convince his followers to die for him.  Some examples include Jim Jones and David Koresh.  These men were deceived and influenced by Satan.  He convinced them to be false ministers and to preach a false gospel as Galatians 1:6-10 (KJV) says:

6.  I marvel that you are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:

7.  Which is not another, but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.

8.  But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.

9.  As we said before, so say now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

10.  For do I now persuade men, or God?  Or do I seek to please men?  For if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.

Why were the followers of the above cults so easily persuaded to not only follow the leaders and eventually die for them?  Shouldn’t they have run in the opposite direction if what the leaders were preaching to them not in the Bible?  No because it is very easy to fall into the trap.  There have been some Christians who join with a cult with the intention to expose it  as a cult.  Even ones who know the Bible inside and out can fall victim to Satan’s lies.

Not every cult ends in a mass suicide.  If those two leaders had decided not to end their and their followers’ lives, those cults could have grown and have branched out to more people finding countless more who opposed the true gospel.

As I am writing this, I can the different ways Satan has influenced me throughout my life.  He has given me discouragement, especially when I fall into my daily routines.  I have a routine that is pretty much the same each day.  While at times I am fine with this, there are times when I get bored.  I get depressed thinking that my life sucks-excuse the language.  I find myself wishing that I had more in my life.  I might turn from God and focus on idols.  For me it might be a book or a television show.  However, when I constantly watching TV or reading a book I am not focusing on God.

Satan deceived Eve by questioning God’s words.  He twisted His words and this raised doubts in Eve’s mind.  He made it seem like God was not sharing his full creation by not allowing them to eat the fruit from the tree that was in the middle of the garden-the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  As he continued telling lies and saying things that disputed God’s words, Eve began to doubt the truth of the Lord.  Rather than telling the serpent to go away, she began to believe his lies over God’s truth

There have been times when I have found doubts about God creeping in.  There are times when an atheist might bring up a question like why do we not see God or hear him talk to us or why people never see him.  They might also ask why Jesus has not come back like he promised over 2,000 years ago.  Sometimes, as I am looking forward to a heavenly home one day, I might get a though such as “What if there is no God?”  One time I even heard a voice telling me that there was no God?  That time I was in a spiritual battle for a few moments since this was actually a voice.  I soon realized that this was Satan’s voice and I told him to go away and he did.  That is not the only voice I heard.  One time, while I was driving to work I heard an audible voice and the voise said, “You are going to heaven.”  Whenever I have doubts, I have to remind myself that God spoke to me audibly.  He didn’y tell me when, but I will be there someday.  Whenever I have doubts, it is Satan trying to break through.  I guess I am stronger in a way than Eve.  However, during the Ageof Innocence, lies and deception were not there before Satan stuck his nose in.

The Lost Paradise

Wouldn’t it be nice if the Bible only contained the first two chapters?  In these chapters God created the world and everything in it.  In the second chapter he created the first man and woman and they lived in a beautiful paradise.    As you read further, you will realize that this would not last.  In chapter three we are introduced to sin, which means the Age of Innocence is over.

      

      While some people do not believe in Satan, trust me he is real.  He is is a dangerous enemy.  He was there marring this perfect paradise.

            He was there when Jesus was killed on the cross.

            He will be there at the end of times when he convices his followers to join him in Armageddon and also during the final battle.

Take a look at 2 Corinthians 11:3:  Here he is described as a serpeant.  When you read the third chapter in the Bible, you are going to see how a snake plays a major role in the future of mankind.

Satan is the opposite of what Jesus is.  Satan is a murderer, and the father of all lies.  He has been around since the beginning telling lies.  Jesus on the other hand is truth, is perfect and is a Savior.  Satan is unfaithful.  If you fall for one of his lies do not hold your breath while waiting for him to come true with your promises.  You will be holding your breath for a very long time.  However, Jesus is faithful.  While his promises will not come true right away, they will eventually be fulfilled.  Satan’s works are evil while Jesus’ works are righteous.

1 Peter 5:8 “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (KJV).

It is very important to study the thirdbook of Genesis because that way you will know the ways that Satan used to trick Eve.  Do not think of this book as a story because Satan is right now influencing our daily lives.  As you read that third chapter, you will be able to recognize ways that Satan is using to attack you during you spiritual walk. 

Ephesians 6:10-12

10.  Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

11.  Put on the whole armour of God, that we may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

12.  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.   

Ephesians 4:27  “Neither give place to the devil” (KJV).

This is God’s Wolrd, Not Mine

As Christians we have to set an example by living a life as Jesus did and would.  If we complain, gossip, spread rumors what is that saying about us?  It is saying that we are not setting a good example about Jesus and Christianity.  People who are non-believers would run in the other direction.  On the other hand, if we what we day and do and how we act reflect a Christ-like attitude, we may be able to win people over to be Christ-like as well.

Not only do we have to live this way for people, we have to treat God's creation in the same way.  After all, this is Our Father's world.  It is his creation and we must treat it as it is his and not ours.  For example, the next time you are looking at your flowers in your garden, God created this world to be perfect in beauty.  You might see a flower that is wilting, the one in the Garden of Eden never wilted.  Then when sin entered the world, this beauty disappeared.  Today, while you might see some of God's original creation, such as the stars at night, many of it you cannot see because of litter, pollution and other things that mar the beauty.

Set a mission to restore the beauty to this world.  The next time you are walking and you see a piece a litter where some thoughtless person threw from his car while driving by, pick it up.  You can also help beautify the world by planting flowers in a bare patch of lawn.  While what you do might not take care of all the problems in the world, a little bit goes a long way.

As I am typing this, I am looking around my room.  I do not like what I see.  I see tables cluttered with papers and books; I see a sink full of dirty dishes; I see dusty shelves; I am pretty sure there are clothes in the drier that need to be folded and put away.  I realize that the house I am living in is part of My Father's world.  So I am going to treat it like that.  I am going to get organized and start keeping up with the housecleaning, putting things away, taking things to the Salvation Army.  I also see potential for the house such as making curtains for the living room and going more painting jobs around the house.

Look up at the stars on a clear. cloudless night away from the lights of the city.  See all the constellations and see if you can name them all.  Many atheists claim that the stars were there there the "Big Bang" happened.  If this actually  happened, the universe would be scattered with many stars closer to the earth where life couldn't possibly exist.  To prove this point take a deck of cards and throw them on the floor.  They will be scattered all over the floor with no order to them at all.  If the "Big Band" actually happened there would be no order to the stars and planet in this galaxy and even the entire universe.  Just the stars alone should be enough to reveal God's creation, existence, wisdom and power.  It is the same if you put a bunch of monkeys in a room of computers.  Even if you can keep them still enough to type on the Word program.  All they will type are gibberish.  The odds of the actually writing a story are slim to none.

Romans 8:21 "Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God" (KJV).

            

God gave Adam and Eve dominion over his creation   They were obligated to value his gifts and to use them for his glory.  He created this world and every thing in it as as Revelation 4:11 states.  Everything HE created for himself, he also created for us as well so wecan enjoy and use them as the following verses state:

1 Timothy 6:17 “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy” (KJV).

Acts 17:24-28

²⁴ God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;

²⁵ Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;

²⁶ And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;

²⁷ That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:

²⁸ For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.