Sunday 03/04/01
6:00 P. M. Service
Intro: The question before us is this, was man able to intelligibly speak with the animals in the garden prior to the fall. Thus we must look to Genesis 1:26 - 28, "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. (27) So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (28) And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth."
Core: Man was given dominion over every living creature. That means many things. It means to have dominion one must be in command and be able to communicate his instructions.
Body I. God made man a living soul we see in Genesis 2:7 "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
A. Man was created in God’s image.
1. He became a living soul.
1. He had several responsibilities here.
1. He was busy with God’s work.
1. He was fulfilling the will of God.
A. But also he was searching.
1. He was searching for a helper.
1. Actually God was showing him the fact that he had certain needs.
1. That need was for companionship.
1. Someone to be able to have communion.
A. Notice in verse 18 what God said about man, "And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him."
1. Man needed that companionship.
1. Man needed that perfect mate.
1. Notice that only God can supply that perfect mate.
1. That soul mate as it is called today.
A. So Adam searched for that perfect soul mate.
1. God showed man his need had not yet been fulfilled.
1. Look at verse 19 of Chapter 2, "And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof."
1. Adam named all the animals everyone that God created.
1. He named them as they came before him.
II. But notice he couldn’t find the companionship he needed, not even with a monkey.
A. Look at verse 20, "And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him."
1. "An help for him"-was not to be found among the animals.
2. That means he was in communication with these animals searching for a helper, a mate.
3. But one was not to be found.
4. Not among any creature or animal.
B. A helpmeet is one who is able to agree and answer him.
1. A counterpart,
2. The other half of him.
3. A man is but half a man until he is married.
4. God’s intention is for men and women to marry and reproduce.
5. The woman is to answer to the man.
6. The man is to answer to God.
C. To find this he had to be able to communicate with each creature that came before him for a name.
1. After all had passed before Adam God caused a great sleep to come over Adam.
2. Genesis 2:21 & 22 states, "And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; (22) And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man."
3. So God created for Adam that perfect soul mate.
4. Adam discovered he couldn’t find lasting satisfaction with any animal, they weren’t compatible.
D. So God created the woman from Adam.
1. She was a part of him.
2. She came from his side, to come along side.
3. God intended for man to take the lead role.
4. Woman was created to follow the man.
5. Man is the aggressor while the woman is to respond.
6. If the man is the right kind of husband, his wife will respond to him.
III. When God brought this beautiful, perfect creature to Adam he feel in love.
A. As we see in verses 23-25, "And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. (24) Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. (25) And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed."
1. Notice here that Adam named her woman.
2. He had to give this creature her name.
3. God named man but man named woman.
4. Notice also after the fall Adam gave her a name, Genesis 3:20 "And Adam called his wife’s name Eve; because she was the mother of all living."
B. Now for the question at hand, were Adam and Eve able to converse with the animals in the garden.
1. To answer that we look to mans creation.
2. He was in fact created in God’s own image.
3. God communicates with the animals.
4. God brought them before Adam.
C. Adam named each and every one of them.
1. He even named the serpent.
2. Adam was able to communicate with them here as he searched for a helpmate.
3. But, did God take that away immediately.
4. To see that we look to Eve’s temptation.
D. While she was out gathering food a serpent approached her and addressed her.
1. The fact that this did not startle her seems to point to the fact that the existence of an intelligent communication did in fact exist between man and the inferior creatures before the fall.
2. But understand the serpent was not that venomous reptile to which we now feel so repulsed with.
3. It was like satan created as a very beautiful creature.
4. Just as his fall brought to him shame so the serpent changed to crawling on its belly.
Conc.: So yes I do believe man and animals could carry on conversations while in the garden. Scripture doesn’t state this but, the facts of the creation and all of man would indicate that yes this did take place. Also I believe God must have granted Noah this same ability so that he could bring all the creatures into the Ark.
