Trouble in Paradise
Introduction
Last week we were in Paradise. We left Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. At that point their life was perfect. Their relationship with God was perfect. God made it a habit of walking in the Garden with them every evening, personally teaching them the truth. By the way I believe that is one of the Old Testament appearances of Christ. Any time you have God appearing in human form in the Old Testament, that is Christ. So Adam and Eve had Christ Himself teaching them every day. Can you get a closer relationship to God than that?
So at the end of Chapter 2 of Genesis everything is perfect. Adam and Eve are in paradise. But even then we have the hint of bad things to come.
I. The Fall.
Genesis 2:15-17 (NLT)
The LORD God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. But the LORD God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden—except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”
What a strange command. What was the big deal about the fruit of that one particular tree? It didn’t look poisonous. Actually it looked pretty good. But God made a huge deal about Adam and Eve not eating this particular fruit off this particular tree. Yet, that is the one command that God gave Adam and Eve.
By Jesus’ day there was over 1,000 commandments. At Mount Saini Moses was given 10 commandments. But Adam and Eve had only one. Do not eat of the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Do not break this one command. Yet, they couldn’t keep that one command.
We are going to come back and look at Genesis chapter 3 in a moment, but I want you to think about how quickly things went downhill. Think about the guilt that Adam and Eve felt after committing that first sin. Possibly the worst guilt came from what they saw in their children. Right off the bat it seemed like their kids were leaning away from God. They seemed bent on their own destruction. They witnessed their first born, Cain, killing their son Abel. And then the grand-kids came along and sin seemed to spread further and further. It seemed like each generation plotted new ways to rebel against God. Murder, multiple wives. They cheated. They stole. Things got worse and worse.
Just how bad did it get.
Genesis 6:5-6 (NLT)
The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. So the LORD was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart.
This is talking about the days from Adam to Noah. And during that time mankind broke God’s heart. Every thought all the time was totally evil. It was a completely self-absorbed culture. All they cared about was their pleasure, their happiness. All they cared about was getting ahead and they didn’t care who they hurt as long as they got what they wanted.
The culture in Noah’s day is very much like things are today in our culture worldwide.
Let me give you a little picture of what some of the immigrants here in the United States faced back in their home country.
One immigrant is here because of the gangs that controlled her village. She used to make $10 a day with which she had to feed and care for herself and her child. A gang moved into her village and said, “If you don’t give us $5 a day we are going to kill your son.” She immediately told them no because there was no way to properly care for her child on less than $5 a day.
That same gang told another woman in the village who only made $5 a day that if she did not give them $2 a day they would cut off her hands. She refused because she knew that she could not feed her 3 children and herself with only $3 a day. What did the gang do about her refusal to pay? They cut off her hands. Now she must beg for scraps to feed her children. Seeing this and knowing that this gang would kill her son this immigrant, who now attends our Spanish service, fled to the U.S.
But the same kinds of things are happening here in the U.S. This past week many of us received a phone call warning us of a dangerous thief who was loose in our county. That night for the first time in a very long time I locked my doors and protection was very close at hand.
We live in a day and age when the thoughts of many people are totally evil all the time. But Jesus warned us about this day. He said:
Luke 17:26 (NLT)
When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day.
The Apostle Peter also warns in his two letters that the time just before the end would be like the days of Noah. The thoughts of most people would be totally evil all the time. We live in a fallen world. We live in a world filled with sin and sinners. So Genesis chapter 3 is just as important for us to read today as it has been in any other age. It is probably more important today because we do live in an age like Noah’s.
So what can we learn about sin from Genesis chapter 3.
II. The Cause of Sin.
First, we learn that the cause for sin is universal. Paul once said:
1 Corinthians 10:12-13 (NLT)
If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.
What tempts us to sin is universal. Our temptations are no different than what any else experiences. Our temptations to sin are no different than what Adam and Eve faced.
Genesis 3:6 (NLT)
The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too.
There are two things that tempt all humanity. Those two things are pleasure and looking out for #1. The two things that will tempt all humanity are: Is it something that feels good? Or Is it something that I want? Selfishness and pride. Sin hasn’t changed at all. What causes someone to become addicted to drugs? It feels good. What causes a spouse to have an affair? Selfishness and the pursuit of pleasure. What causes people to steal and kill? Selfishness. Pride and selfishness are the root of all sin.
Look at the rich. Look at politicians. Look at these superstar preachers. Often it is pride that leads to their fall. They believe that they are so powerful that they are immune to the attacks of others. As the old saying goes: “Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
Satan is not the cause of sin. Satan just understands humanity. And plays on our weaknesses.
Genesis 3:1-5 (NLT)
The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”
“Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’”
“You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”
All Satan did was to help Eve justify her selfishness and pride. He said to Eve, “Look at the fruit. Isn’t it beautiful? Doesn’t it look like it would taste really good? Not only is it going to taste good, it is going to make you like God. If you eat this fruit you are going to be just like God. Don’t you want to be like God? Don’t you want the best? Don’t you deserve the best?
Isn’t that what advertising is constantly telling us.
I hate. I absolutely hate plastic surgery commercials. The current one out in our area shows deflated balloons with the caption, “Why would you want this, when you could have this?” And then it shows beautiful inflated helium balloons. And then it ends with, “Be your best.” I despise the message there. The way God created you is not good enough. Don’t be satisfied with what you have. Spend 10’s of thousands of dollars so you can be your best.
Advertisers do exactly what Satan did with Eve. They appeal to our selfishness and pride. I remember years ago children were killing other children for shoes. They had bought into the lie that somehow the running shows that you wore defined how good you are. And some were willing to kill to have what they couldn’t afford.
Did those commercials make them killers? No. But it helped them to take that step of absolute selfishness.
III. Become a Second Place Christian.
So what is the answer? How do we overcome sin? How do we avoid temptations? How protect ourselves from the advertising of the devil?
Philippians 2:3-4 (NLT)
Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.
Paul says that the answer to sin is to put yourself in Second place. If selfishness and pride leads to sin, then humility is the answer to sin. As Paul goes on to say:
Philippians 2:5-8 (NLT)
You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
Paul says that if we want to overcome sin, then we need to follow Christ’s example. And what did Jesus do? Jesus put Himself in second place. First, He put Himself in second place to the Father. Jesus said not my will but your will be done.
The reason that Eve failed to fight against temptation is because she put herself above God. Satan said, “Did God really say that? Is God really telling the truth? Don’t you deserve to be just like God?” And Eve put herself above God. She should have said, “Yes God did really say that. God is telling the truth. And no I don’t deserve to be like God.” Instead, she agreed with Satan and put herself before God.
We need to follow Christ’s example not Eve’s. We need to put God’s will above our own. And the amazing thing is that when we put ourselves in second place to God we are blessed far more than anything our own selfish can give us. As Peter said:
1 Peter 5:6-7 (NLT)
So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
God wants the best for you. And He is the only one who can give you the best. So the only way to have the best is to put yourself in second place to God.
But we shouldn’t stop there. Jesus told us of the attitude that we are to have towards others as well. He said:
Matthew 20:26-28 (NLT)
Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.
Jesus says that we need to put the needs of others before our own needs. He says that we need to serve others if we are to be great in God’s Kingdom. If we want what is best for ourselves, we need to put other first.
• If you want the best marriage, put your spouse first.
• If you want great kids, put their needs above your own.
• If you want to get ahead at work, then put the company first.
• If you want a great church, a great spiritual life, then put everyone else first.
Do you know why there are so many church divisions and church fights? It is because we don’t come to church seeking to serve others. We don’t put others first. Eve certainly did not put others first. What is the first thing that she did after she sinned.
Genesis 3:6-7 (NLT)
The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame…
Conclusion
The answer to sin is humility. Put God first and God will lift you up. Victory only comes through the power of God. As Jesus said:
Matthew 19:26 (NLT)
Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.
Humanly it is impossible to conquer sin. Humanly speaking it is impossible to be saved. It is only possible to conquer sin and be saved through God. We must humble ourselves, repent and accept Christ to be saved. Then we are given the power to overcome sin through God’s Holy Spirit.
So if you have been losing the battle against sin: the answer isn’t to try harder. The answer is to humble yourself before God. Confess your sins and be forgiven. Confess your weakness and receive God’s strength. Put yourself in second place. That is the answer to life’s problems. Victory is only found in second place.
Do you want to put yourself in second place today?
