Gen 2:7-15... One of the things that was always a delight for my wife and I when our girls were
young was watching them in every new circumstance. We loved to see their expressions of delight
or surprise as they saw something new for the first time, or to enter into their joy and delight in
some new experience. Our oldest was always fascinated by animals and her first question
inevitably was does it bite. Our youngest was always more guarded in new situations, but there was
a particular grin that crept across her face that told us when it was a success.
Since God made us and imprinted His image on us, I suspect He took delight in watching Adam
as he explored his new world. What an experience it must have been as Adam saw, smelled,
heard, tasted and touched everything for the first time. Talk about a kid in a candy shop! When
God breathed life into him, he made Adam the most intelligent, the most handsome and the most
industrious man in the world. And though God created him with a mature intellect, he also gave him
an uninhibited curiosity and innocence in order to take in the new creation. I would love to have
seen his face and watched his reactions as he explored that unblemished world that God called
good. God designed into the new world a maturity that provided an immediate food source for
Adam. Fruit trees speckled with fruits of all colors, bushes loaded with various berries, plants lush
with vegetables, all for Adam to enjoy. He might have marveled at the gushing water source that
supplied the four rivers mentioned in vs 11-14. Curiosity may have moved him to collect some of
the gorgeous gems and gold nuggets that adorned the ground. I was curious about bdellium. It
would seem that it was a pungent and aromatic resin that came from a tree where it would bead
up as it seeped out through the bark and would harden looking like amber pearls. What a sight that
must have been. The garden was most likely a botanists dream, full of fragrant flowers in a myriad
of colors. There were no weeds, no mosquitos, nothing to blemish that perfect paradise. Every day
was perfect. The climate was always temperate. The garden was watered by a morning dew. Every
night was warm and clear and the stars and moon were his night light. As Adam walked through
that environment every nerve in his body must have vibrated with excitement and wonder and
anticipation, for you see it was all brand new...every sight every smell everything that touched his
senses. If you had asked Adam to remember yesterday, he would not have been able to, for
yesterday he did not exist. But today, he was alive. He might well have said "I am". Yesterday I was
not, but today I am. I feel, I think, I reason, I see, I hear, I have purpose... I AM ALIVE and God has
made me so. And He is my friend, my nurturer, my guardian, the source of my life. And I shall live
forever enjoying all that God has made. I like being.
Vs 16,17... I can only imagine Adams dialogue with God on this subject. I would die? What is
death? Is death like yesterday when I did not feel or think or reason or see? Is death like when I was
not?
No Adam. That is not death. Death is to have tasted the joy of life, and to have that joy moved out
of your reach. Death is to have experienced the hope of eternal pleasure, and then to know forever
that you forfeited it. Death is to lose the feeling of every nerve vibrating with excitement and instead
feel every nerve throb with pain. Death is to know My love as your provider, guardian, protector and
friend and then to be separated from My love forever..... with every memory keenly intact.
Adam may have thought, death sounds formidable. But in such a paradise as this I cannot
imagine that death could be real. And besides God loves me, He wouldn’t really allow me to die for
eating a piece of fruit, and yet...
Vs 19-20a... Now remember sin had not entered the world. When Adam gave the Lion its name,
the lamb could well have been grazing beside it, for God had created the animals to eat plants.
There was no animal that was foreign to him. There was none of which he was afraid. They were,
temporarily at least, his minions, his playmates, his companions. When we read in vs 20 that he
gave names to all cattle etc. I couldn’t help but wonder if he not only named the species, but gave
personal, pet names as well. Who knows maybe he had a pet lamb that he named Woolly. In fact
it is quite possible that he became attached to those that were his favorites. Now remember, Adam
had not seen any episodes of wild kingdom with the narrator glossing over death as the survival
of the fittest. In actuality he had never seen the lifeless form of any animal. But in spite of his
relationship with the animals something was missing, they did not provide for a need God had built
into Adam.
Vs 21-25...As special as some of the animals like Woolly might have become to Adam, none
compared in beauty, grace, and intelligence, none had the appeal of this specially formed creature.
This enchanted being was formed from a part of himself. To no animal had Adam ever said "this
is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh". No animal could offer the companionship of this
God inspired sweetheart. The friendship he might have had with his most favorite animal paled into
nothingness beside the relationship he felt with his wife.
We don’t know how long Adam and Eve enjoyed each other and the paradise God had given
them, but the first vs of chap. 3 suggests it was long enough for Adam to introduce Eve to many
of his friends in the animal kingdom, and the vs also reinforces the fact that there was no fear
between humans and animals. Eve too may have developed a fondness for some of those animals
that roamed and grazed in the garden of paradise, maybe she too liked Adams sidekick Woolly.
3:1-3...It would seem from the record that Eves knowledge of the prohibition concerning the fruit
from the tree in the midst of the garden came from Adam. We don’t know why she added "neither
shall you touch it". It could be that she added it to underscore the serious nature of the prohibition,
it could be that she just added it casually with no real purpose, it could be that Adam added it as
he passed on to her Gods command with the goal of protecting his wife from even coming close
to eating that fruit. I wonder as he told her that this tree was off limits, and that death was the
consequence, if he tried to explain that concept that neither of them had yet been exposed to.
"Remember Eve, death is not like yesterday when you were not, when there was nothing to know,
think, feel or hope for. Death is losing all that we have, and never forgetting."
The tempter continued 5-6... Eve was deceived, beguiled, duped. Could it be that her friendship
with the animals, with whom no threat had even been felt, overcame her sense of reason and logic?
Only God will be able to answer that question for us. For now He simply tells us in I Tim that Eve
was deceived. But it was not deception for Adam. He was with her, he knew what he was doing,
he knowingly and willfully disobeyed Gods command. And through one man sin entered the world,
and death through sin, and death spread to all men... what a dark, dark day that was.
vs 7...Innocence was lost. A whole list of emotions they had never felt began to clutch their soul.
No longer could Adam and Eve look at each other unashamed. They knew they had disobeyed
God. They felt a need to hide. They felt terribly afraid. Shame, guilt, disgrace, fear...They knew
instinctively that things had changed. Death began to settle in. They saw each others differences
and tried to hide those differences: maybe from the animals, maybe from each other but definitely
from God. The best they could do was to make themselves aprons by sewing fig leaves together.
Then they hid, waiting for the inevitable.
vs 9-10... How long did Adam wait that day before the Lord called him? What went through his
mind while he waited? Did he remember his first moments of life? the excitement of being? the
sounds and sights and smells? Did he think about the warning of death and realize that already he
was only remembering what had been his?
In the verses following we have the record of the curse of death. The deprivation of the animal
kingdom, the corruption of the plant kingdom, the sorrows and difficulties of parenting, the eking out
of an existence from a cursed earth. All that Adam might have thought about death he now knew
it was worse than he could have imagined.
And then God did something that gave him hope, but that also reminded him of the awfulness of
sin. vs 21...
As the Lord approached Adam with that coat made from the skin of an animal, could it be that
Adam noticed that the coat had a very familiar look about it. Could it be that icy fingers clutched his
heart as with deep apprehension he whispered the name of one of those he had given names to?
Could it really be Woolly?
Innocent blood had been shed to cover his sin. Every day he would don that coat and as his
fingers felt the familiar wool, he would remember that because of his sin an innocent one died. And
yet in the death of that innocent one, came his hope of forgiveness, his covering of sin, his garment
of salvation, his robe of righteousness. In spite of the remorse he would feel for his sin, in spite of
the constant reminder of the death of an innocent one, he would learn to rejoice and give thanks
for Gods grace. He no doubt learned the concept that the Prophet Isaiah would write about
centuries later, (Isa 61:10) I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; For
He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of
righteousness...
I have taken some liberties with this section of history this morning, but not with the basic truths
of Scripture. By one man sin did enter our world and for all of time, all of mankind and nature have
felt its effect. But let’s not let Adams sin overshadow our own. The wages of our sin is death. If
our sin is not forgiven we will experience eternal death...not for Adams sin, but our own. Should any
one of us leave this life without Gods forgiveness, without the covering offered to us through the
shedding of Christs innocent blood we will enter eternal death, and it will be for us as we heard in
Adams dialogue with God. Eternal death is to have tasted the joys of life, and to have that joy
moved out of your reach. Eternal death is to have experienced the hope of eternal pleasure, and
then to know forever that you forfeited it. Eternal death is to lose the feeling of every nerve
vibrating with hope and excitement and instead feel every nerve throb with pain. Remember the
story of the Rich man and Lazarus? That rich man in hell begged for Lazarus to cool his tongue
for he was tormented in the flames. Eternal death is to know God’s love as he causes the sun to
shine on the just and the unjust, to benefit from the good gifts of His grace to all mankind and then
to be separated from His love, yes and His very presence forever..... with every memory of His love
and grace keenly intact.
However, If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins... for God is not
willing than any should perish, rather that all come to repentance. God has provided a covering for
our sin. Only this covering is not the skin of an animal, but rather it is the righteousness of His only
Son ready to be imputed to those who repent of sin and ask for forgiveness, and made available
through the death of a innocent one.... the Lord Jesus.
I don’t think it should be difficult for us to identify with Adam and the reminder of his covering.
Adam felt the coat of an innocent animal reminding him that because of his sin an innocent one
was slain to provide a covering for him, but as we come to the table of the Lord we will hold in our
hand that familiar bread and cup reminding us that because of our sin an innocent one died. The
lamb of glory, the lamb of God. The one of whom God said this is my beloved Son in whom I
delight. And yet in the death of that innocent one, comes our hope of forgiveness, our covering
for sin, our garment of salvation, our robe of righteousness. In spite of the remorse we should feel
for our sin as we hold the elements in our hand, we can rejoice and give thanks for Gods grace.
Can you say with Isaiah, and Adam, and millions of others for whom God has provided a covering
through the shedding of innocent blood..... I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful
in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe
of righteousness...
If you can then take the bread and the cup this morning and as you remember the death of Christ
for your sin, give God thanks for his grace. If you cannot say with Isaiah that He has clothed you
with garments of salvation, may I encourage you not to reject the riches of Gods’ goodness and
forbearance and longsuffering; for it is the goodness of God that leads us repentance... He wants
all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. And Jesus is the truth...no man
comes to the father but through him. Take this opportunity to receive the covering for your sin that
God himself has provided.
