Summary: This is the battle that was raging in Eden!

Pastor Allan Kircher

Shell Point Baptist Church

December 8, 2013

Seed of a Woman

Genesis certainly is a strange place to preach/Christmas sermon.

• Here/midst of man’s greatest tragedy

• revelation of man’s greatest hope

• here the tale of sin, judgment and death

• meet/message/saving Gospel and

• Person of the Lamb of God for the first time.

• What more/wonderful message to preach for Advent.

_____________________________________________

God has made man in His image.

• He created man/perfect innocence

• Placed him in a perfect environment.

• Adam/given dominion over/Lord’s entire creation

• Presented/perfect companion/woman called Eve.

• They live/idyllic existence, free/pain, disease, death/sorrow.

Every need they have is met and they enjoy unbroken, unhindered fellowship with God Himself, Gen. 2:8-9.

Only restriction: one tree

• “The tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”

• Adam/warned to stay away from this tree

• to eat its fruit will bring death into the world

___________________________________________

Gen 3:15 “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

• Everything else/Bible flows from these words.

• As the acorn contains the mighty oak

• These words contain the entire plan of salvation.

• would be fulfilled thousands of years later/Calvary

• Neither Adam or Eve could fully have known what these words would one day mean.

• right in the middle of this tragedy is a flicker of hope.

Verse 15 shines out of this darkness like a great beacon, illuminating the amazing grace of God.

______________________________________________

I. The personality of the promised lamb

This Lamb Is Unique In His Origin

• Told/One Who is coming “the seed of the woman.”

• strange statement

• Told/woman will produce/offspring w/o aid of a man.

• First prophecy/Virgin birth/Lord Jesus Christ.

• Satan/Adam/Eve did not understand it

God indicates He will send His Lamb/world through a woman without the involvement of a man!

• This is how the birth of Jesus came about.

• Isaiah prophesied it, Isa. 7:14

• angel Gabriel announced it to Mary and Joseph

_______________________________________________

Why is this important?

• Bible teaches sin/sin nature/handed down through the man

Every person who/entered/world through/old fashioned method inherited a sin nature, and is a sinner at birth

• Birth of Jesus/different.

• He came into this world without a human father

• Born w/o taint of sin! pure and sinless

• qualified to die for the sins of humanity, 2 Cor. 5:21.

birth/Jesus particularly unique is the fact that He was no ordinary baby, but He was, and is, God in the flesh

======================================

This Lamb Is Unique In His Occupation

• coming into/world to do battle with/forces of evil.

• coming to “bruise” the serpent’s head.

This refers to a fatal injury.

Coming to this world not to show men a better way to live.

• not coming to improve their environment.

• not coming to improve their social standing.

• He was coming to defeat evil.

• His sole mission

• deliver humanity from the sin into which it had just fallen.

======================================

II. The purpose of the promised lamb

He Would Come As A Warrior

• “enmity” means “hatred or enemy.”

It refers to

• Hatred Satan possesses toward/Lord all/Lord represents.

• hatred that resided within the heart/devil

• Hatred/caused him to attack Adam and Eve/Garden and tempt them to sin.

Hatred/desires nothing less than/overthrow/Lord/His kingdom.

hatred that demands the death of God and the installation of Satan as god, Isa. 14:12-16; Eze. 28:11-19.

• This is the battle that was raging in Eden!

• It had less to do with mankind

• than it did/Satan’s desire to wage war on God Almighty.

=======================================

We are told/One Who is coming was coming world as a Warrior.

• Who would engage/warfare with/determined enemy.

• Taking up the fight Adam lost in Garden of Eden.

• He would come to do battle with Satan!

• 1 John 3:6-10

Of course, Jesus did just that!

=======================================

From the instant this prophecy was given in Genesis 3:15 until the moment Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose again from the dead; Satan did everything in his power to stop “the seed of the woman” from being born.

• He worked through Cain to kill Abel, Gen. 4.

• Sought/corrupt/human blood line through evil marriages

• He tried to kill the people of Israel in Egypt, Ex. 1-2.

Then when Jesus was born, Satan tried to destroy Him as an infant, Matt. 2.

It was the devil:

• The heart of Judas/betray Jesus

• Of Peter to deny him/chief Priests/prosecute him.

• Pilate to condemn him.

Who was behind the crucifixion of Jesus?

• The ungodly line of Satan.

• Real “Conflict of the Ages