Genesis - Chapter 3: verses 7, 20 and 21.
They sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. And
Adam called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of
all living. For Adam also and for his wife did the Lord God make
coats of skins, and clothed them.
A NEW LEAF ON LIFE
(repeat)
As we celebrate this most blessed occasion, I'm reminded of
a song that says "Ring out the old..Ring in the new." God is the
giver of many new wonderful things. Now- to you and me, God is
giving a new year. Now, we have not lived for God as we should,
but He has now given us a chance to make a new start.
This new start may mean to some a new hope.
This new start may mean to some a new dream.
This new start many mean to some a job.
This new start many mean to some a new position or
responsibilities. Church, it is time for all of us to write a new story on a clean page. Church, for all of us to turn over a new leaf and A NEW LEAF ON LIFE
In our text, taken from the 1st book of the Pentateuch, the
book of new beginnings.. Genesis is the book of beginnings.
Genesis records the beginning of the heaven and earth, of plants,
animals, and human life. Genesis records also all human institutions
and relationships. Genesis speaks of the new birth, the new creation
where all was chaos and ruin. Genesis begins the progressive self
revelation of God which culminates in Christ.
Genesis records the problem of sin as affecting man's conditions
on the earth and his relationship to God, and the divine solution
of that problem.
Genesis enters into the very structure of the New Testament.
The roots of all subsequent revelation are planted deep in the book
of Genesis, and whoever would truly comprehend that revelation must
begin here.
Genesis inspiration and character as a divine revelation are
authenticated by the testimony of Jesus Christ, and supplemented
by the testimony of history. Archaeology bears xvitness to the
reliability of Genesis.
Genesis is divided or may be divided into five parts.
1 . Creation ; 2 . The fall and the Promise of Redemption;
3. The Diverse Seeds; Cain and Seth, to the flood;
4. The Flood to Bahel; and 5. The call of Abraham to the
death of Joseph.
Church, allow me to summarize and say that Genesis is the book
of origins. It gives the account of all creation, tells of the
establishment of the family, the origin of sin, the giving of
divine revelation, the development of the human race, and the
inauguration of God's plan of redemption through His chosen people.
It presents eternal truths, resolves enigmas, mysteries, and
puzzling situations in the light of God's will. Genesis takes the
reader to the moment when the omnipotent Creator spoke into being
the matchless wonders of the sun, moon, stars, planets, galaxies,
plants, and moving creatures, and the one whom he made in His
image. In these fifty chapters, the inspired writer tells how
sin came stealthily and relentlessly to bring ruin, disfigurement,
and death; He reveals the tragic fruits of sin in defeat; and shows
how, later, the accumulated wickedness of men almost brought
annihilation to human society. Moses, our writer, traces the
growth of the new race, and finally the exciting careers of Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob, and Jacob's children.
Genesis has 50 chapters; 1,533 verses; and 38,267 words. Our
text stems from verse 7, 20, and 21 of the third chapter of the
book of Genesis.
"And they sewed fig leaves, and made themselves aprons"
A NEW LEAF ON LIFE
And they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons,
for they knew they were naked.
Now, I do not know what they used for thread or needles, but
I know that in this document, there are some serious spiritually
implications that are relevant even today.
Adam and Eve found them selved naked, through disobedience.
Now, if we were to be honest with ourselves, and reflect back over
the previous year of ____..Can we earnestly say that we put forth
100%? Can we earnestly say that we loved our neighbors as ourselves.
Can we earnestly say that we did not break any of the ten (10)
commandments. Can we earnestly say that we gave God what rightfully
belonged to him. His 10% of all our earnings. Through disobedience, we find ourselved naked, and we do what Adam and Eve did. They tried to hide from Him that create them.
That's like my son Anthone' trying to hide from me, and I have been with him all the time. Naked through disobedience.
Bishop., what are the serious spiritual implications you
referred to that are relevant today? Too many of us have not found
ourselves naked. We do not see our own shortcomings, but we can
point out the shortcomings; of others. We need to see our nakedness.
We need to open our eyes.
Adam and Eve felt their change instantly. They had known
innocence and happiness; they perceived at once the difference
occasioned by guilt and misery. But we by nature, are not sensible
of our guilt and danger. Our eyes are not open to behold our
wretchedness. We need to open our eyes and see our nakedness,
before we can place A NEW LEAF ON LIFE.
Man,.. and I use man here in its genetic sense, male or female,
homosaphin-man-wives- was created in the image of God. Therefore
He-meaning man, is after the likeness of God, but man is not God.
Our nakedness play the fool, and try to become God, with our
judgmental attitudes. She's going to heaven and he ain't...he's
going to heaven and she ain't...you know how we do. Our nakedness
decides who';s going to be blessed and who is not going to be
blessed. Our nakedness does not have any sense of God about us.
There are similarities of God. For man was created in the image
of God, but, God is not - let us use the term ANTHROPOMORPHIC.
God is not man. You know how we do sometimes, when people ask us
how we do so well, and we say "the man upstairs is looking out
for us. There is no man upstairs. God is not man, God is spirit,
and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.
Our nakedness needs to discover itself, for its not very much
to any of us.
We have about enough salt for one shaker.
We have about enough sugar to cover a half dish.
We have about enough phosphorus to strike about 4 matches .
There isn't enough water inside of us, that if we squeezed
it outside of us, and put it in a tub, we couldn't take a decent
bath. We're worth about $5.40. Our nakedness causes us problems,
and causes us to get in our own way.
My biggest problem is not my enemies. My biggest problem is
that I get in my own way. Often times, the Kingdom of God loses
value, because we get in our own way.
Jonah got in his own way. Jonah was sent by God to Ninevah
and Jonah wasn't able to see his nakedness but he saw the nakedness
of the Ninevettes, as ragged religiousness, who did not love God,
and who did not love the Lord with all their hearts, and with all
their souls. They were nothing but drunkards, drugs, and drug
addicts, like we look down on other folks, sometimes. All of us
have skeletons in the closets. Jonah's nakedness caused him to
get in his own way, and Jonah ended up in a big fish. And our
nakedness will*cause us to end up in a mess. And what we need is
A NEW LEAF ON LIFE.
Isiah got in his own way and he allowed someone else to get in
his way. For it was the year that King Uzziah died that I saw
also the Lord. God had to move King Uzziah out of the life of
Isiah and God allowed the scalding flame of fire to touch the
tongue of Isiah, and then he heard the voice of - whom shall I send,
who will go for us. Isiah said, "Lord, I've gotten ME out of my
way, and I've gotten King Uzziah out of my way. Lord, here am I,
Lord, send me. "
All of us are nobodys , but we belong to God who is somebody.
I heard somebody say,
Lord, I ain't what I want to be
Lord, I ain't what I ought to be
Lord, I ain't what I should be.
But thank God, I'm no longer what I was.
A NEW LEAF ON LIFE
As I must close and shall take up here again next week, we
must open our eyes, and see our nakedness, we must see our own
shortcomings as well as the shortcomings of others. Jesus, told
the parable of those who trusted in themselves that they were
righteous and dispised others. Two men went up to the temple to
pray. One a Pharisee and the other a tax collector, both of them
were men. They could only put on one pant leg at a time. The
Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself unable to see his
own nakedness, and said,"God, I thank you that I am not like other
men". Now that is a terrible indictment, for him to declare that
he is not like other men. Other men are extortioners. Now I
define extortioners as one who takes from another, against anothers
will. Now, here he was, feeling that he was righteous and everybody
else is unrighteous. Now, if that is not a case of extortion,
I don't know what is. Here his nakedness was robbing from others
the will and the right of being righteous on their own. And he
declared himself the only one who was righteous. Next his nakedness
declares that others are unjust. His demeaner was unjust. Judge
not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge,
ye shall be judged. The pot cannot talk about the kettle, and call
it black, because all have sinned and have fallen short of the
glory of God.
99 1/2 won't do. Everyt ime we miss the mark, we have sinned, and
what we need is a NEW LEAF ON LIFE. The fig leaf isn't good
enough. God made coats for their nakedness and clothed then in
the righteousness of Christ. The first time Adam and Eve had seen BLOOD...The song says...
There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn, from Immanuel' s veins
And sinners and nakedness plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains
And sinners with nakedness lose all their guilty stains.
