Walking with God - Genesis 5

Sermon Nuggets Mon April 2 Gen 5     Walking with God

Verses    Gen 5

Does the name Josh Gibson ring a bell? There has been lots of comparisons in the sport of baseball with muscle man Mark McGwire against the gentleman Sammy Sosa. There are still discussions that both surpassed Babe Ruth’s 60 home runs and then flew by Roger Maris claim of 61 before McGwire took the prize with 70 homers.

Yet there was hardly a mention of Josh Gibson. He was considered by many as the greatest power hitter ever to hold a bat in any baseball league in the US. He played form 1930 to 1946. At the age of 19 he hit 75 home runs in one season a feat that no one has ever accomplished. Perhaps the reason that Gibson is an unsung hero is that he played mostly in what was known as the Negro League. This period of racial discrimination ignored such achievements among the whites even though the white and Negro leagues did play.  The white league lost 3 to one games on the average According to some accounts, Gibson hit 962 home runs in his 17 years career and complied a lifetime batting average of .391 in 1972 he was inducted posthumously into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

There are many unsung heroes in the Bible. Some of them would be put in the Hall of Faith but maybe there isn’t a great deal of publicity about them. After Seth was born, Adam lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. Man is created in the image of God. Yet when you read the book of Adam and his family tree one after another the record says and he died. That is the result of the fall. Death comes to all. We might be impressed with the longevity of life, but sooner or later all die. Everyone except Lamech lived to be about 900 years old including Noah.

Now there are some explanations as to how this can be literal. Some believe the climatic conditions before the flood were ideal and were conducive to long life. Or simply, God in his sovereignty determined that certain special people should live unusually long lives and made it possible for them to do so in order to populate the earth.

Spurgeon used the illustration of waves at the shores of a tide ocean when describing death. One wave takes your grandmother. Then a while later another wave comes and takes away your mother; and a little later your wife; and is now at your feet. We live, we die- then what?

But in the middle of these lists of names we read vs. 21-24. There is something about a man born that was different from the others. Enoch walked with God. He is in God’s Fall of Faith in Hebrews 11, but not an awful lot is said about him. More is said about Enoch in the NT than in the Old. There are only 5 passages that refer to Enoch two are genealogies; Heb. 11:5 and Jude 14, 15.

We may never get our names in books or biographies of faith written about us, but God keeps the books and knows his own. Enoch serves this morning as our model to follow. To follow Enoch’s example will take away the fear of death.

What is implied in walking with God? That is the topic of this week’s devotions.

Pastor Dale

Sermon Nuggets Tues April 3 Faith

Verses Gen 5: 21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. 22 After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters.23 Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. 24 Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.

Heb 11: 5 & 6 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.” For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Walking with God implies Faith.

The Bible says in Hebrews "without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and rewards those who earnestly seek him."

Enoch pleased God. Now Enoch had no portion of the Bible. His revelation of God was small and dim as compared with ours. He believed in the existence of the Supreme Being and was convinced that God is and knew something of his holy will.

To walk with God implies he had faith. "Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." When it comes to God there is confidence in his promises, even though we don't see them.  We cannot see that part of our being which thinks and feels hopes and fears, loves and hates. Spiritual truth is invisible.  But because you cannot measure it for scientific experimentation doesn't deny it's reality.

We live today in the clear and full light of Divine revelation. For God hath spoken unto us in his Son. We know how to please God. It is the acceptance of Jesus Christ and following Him. If you want to begin a walk with God you  have to confess your sins, ask God to forgive you your sins and put you faith in His Son Jesus Christ.

One speaker at our State’s Annual meeting said for him it was as if he was driving the car of his life and making a mess of it, until he finally gave up the drivers seat and allowed Jesus to do the driving in his life. That is a good explanation of faith.

It was harder in the Old Testament when the revelations of God weren't as clear as today. He did not have the revelation of the coming of the Son of God on the earth. He did not have the historical evidences of the effect of Jesus life in the world. He did not have the testimony of the million of lives since Christ time that have been changed not the witness of the centuries of the Christian church.

But as we live our lives we learn that we need to do it God’s way even though we don’t always understand. In order to go God’s way, Enoch had to have experienced testing of faith because all the examples of the people in the Bible make choices. Those choices fall down to the question of trusting God or not. Faith is an obedience response without regard to circumstances or feelings. There will be times when God puts you and me to those tests of trusting his word instead of our wisdom and to do so is faith.

Which is a better prayer, “Lord, walk with me in my travels, or “Lord let me walk with you in your paths”? Faith is not asking God to help us on our agenda. It is putting ourselves at His disposal and going his way. Walking with God is a faith agreement to go in his direction. Enoch did not fight or resist God but delighted to walk as God directed.

What does it mean for you to walk with God in faith today? What does it mean for your choices, your relationships, your words and your actions?

Pastor Dale

 

Sermon Nuggets Weds April 4 Intimacy

Verses- Gen 5:22b , Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters.

 Walking with God implies Intimacy.

A pastor’s wife was speaking to pastors one day about some of the needs of a pastor’s wife. She was trying to impress on us thick headed men that women need to have time with their clergy husbands. She reminded us that being in the house together at the same time is not the same as being with your spouse. When she suggests to her husband to go for a walk what do you think his first response is? “Where do you want to go?” Makes sense doesn’t it?

She doesn’t really care where they go as long as they go together to talk and maybe hold hands and develop a closeness without other distractions of phone, or books or jobs that each can see.

We sing, “And he walks with me and his talks with me and He tells me I am his own. The joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known.” One of the greatest privileges we have is we can have a closer walk with God in our personal lives.

There is a vast difference between merely living on the one hand and walking with God on the other. To walk with God is to desire to be in his presence, to enjoy his fellowship, to experience  his love. It is to want to talk with Him and listen for what He wants to say to us.  I often thought, wouldn’t it be wonderful to have that dialogue like these OT saints? Well we can and do even more because God lives within us wherever we go. It is a privilege available by the presence of the Holy Spirit.

 Do you desire a closer relationship with God? Most do not and therefore do not seek Him. What are you willing to change to see that happen?  Others call upon Him and determine in their hearts to face what needs to be faced, confess what needs to be confessed, obey what needs to be obeyed for they want nothing to get in the way of the joy of the presence of God.

I can think of nothing more important to strengthen your faith walk than in personal private prayer.  When one grows in prayer there is an intimacy and love with God that brings out joy. Have you come to times in your life you just want to read the Bible as part of talking and listening to God?  The more time you spend with a person the better you know him. The same principle applies to you and the Lord.

Too many Christians spend an hour or two a week in church. But you don't get intimately acquainted with a person you meet only in a group. One group of ministers were  polled revealed they averaged only 10 minutes of prayer and personal quiet time a day. If that is the statistic for ministers what about the church people? Most do not have any consistent daily time spent in personal prayer, devotional reading, or meditation at all. You just don't develop a walk with God unless you spend some time in His presence. I'm not talking about the Pharisee who makes a mockery of prayer and fasting by watching the clock or calendar. I am saying that if there little desire there is not much room for faith to grow. May Enoch be an example to us all in faith where his time being with God was the most important in life.

Part of the walk that is ours with the Lord and the sweet communion of being in his love is also the realization that he is involved in our lives. Prayer and the reading of the Word not only strengthens the relationship that is ours in Jesus Christ, but gives us the wisdom that is from above. "Call on me and I will answer thee and show thee great and might things that you know not"  Jer 33:3.

There are enemies of intimacy. Time is one enemy. Our daily commitments can  become an enemy if we don’t rearrange priorities. Interruptions are enemies. Is there anything we can do to minimize interruptions? Perhaps we don’t have to answer the phone in the middle of prayer, or respond to email notifications. Maybe it is going away for a short period of time without one being able to be contacted. 

The greatest enemy to intimacy with the Lord is sin. To ask God to reveal things in your life that may hinder your relationship and be committed to confess and repent will take away the spiritual barriers that get in the way of your walk with God. It is worth it.

Pastor Dale

Sermon Nuggets Thurs April 5 Consistency

Verses – Gen 5: 22 Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters.

Walking with God implies Consistency .

I often wondered what life was like when Adam and Eve and their great great great grandchildren were all still living and could sit down and have them tell their families what it was like to be with God in Paradise. But what the Bible tells us from Cain on, that sin had grown to unbelievable portions in just a short time. Sin abounded and resentment against God and leaving his ways was the norm.

To walk with someone may be but for a brief time. To walk together may have been only as long as the road to Emmaus with the resurrected Jesus. It is significant to be sure. But to walk consistently, daily, and for years will develop a character including faith, intimacy, and love.

Spiritual growth doesn’t happen by trying harder to be perfect. Growth happens when we spend time with God. His character begins to rub off on us. When we think of the fruit of the Spirit we know that when Jesus comes into our lives and hearts he begins to change us, only with our permission. God does not look so much at our performance, as he does the motives of our heart.

Peter had tremendous potential for growth for two reasons. First God called him to himself and began to let him see more of Jesus, and secondlyaAlthough Peter kept getting it wrong, he had the right motive. He wanted to please God. He wanted to serve God. He wanted God to work in his life so whatever he did was for Jesus.

God sees our motives; He has perfect love and understanding. Faith of Enoch serves as an example to want to please God by facing sin repenting of it and living for God in righteousness even in a area were unrighteousness abounds. Faith is seen in the sincere effort to do His will consistently in life, not just the spurt of emotional commitment. 

Jesus Christ came as the example of desiring to please his Father in Heaven.  His joy was to do the will of him who sent him. Twice the Father testified of him from heaven.  "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” He was sinless.

As Enoch made his faith commitment to God there was a growing commitment to live for God in a consistent manner and not for self or for others.  To the man of faith he trusts the Spirit will illuminate his mind to do God’s will. The world will say all that is important is what you store up on earth. But the Spirit shows the foolishness of that thinking and says what is important is what you store up in heaven and peace is not in what we have here, but what we have inside. Be content with what you have, Contentment doesn't come from the outside but the inside wisdom.

If you know that God is trustworthy and loves you and wants what is best in His mind for you. If you are convinced that God know the beginning from the end and will reward you richly in the glories above then you will have confidence that all He does in your life will be for your good. Even if you do not understand respond on what you do understand. 

What Enoch did understand was simply the ways of the world around him were different than the ways God wanted him to walk. When he made his commitment to God he saw evil in a new and horrible way.  There is an interesting couple of verses in Jude 1:14-15 "Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: "See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones  to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him."

When we are committed to God we see the world as He sees it. There is judgment coming. That is troubling. So Enoch becomes a preacher. He does not hate the people he loves them to warn them of the judgement. The moral separation which sin causes between soul and God was seen right from the earliest of generations.

Enoch lived in a sinful age. Man’s wickedness on earth had become great. In his day there were acts of evil, sexual promiscuity, materialism, demonism,  What would Enoch say if he were here today? Ungodly? The outcome in Enochs day was terrible judgment of God by flood

Enoch walked with God. Jude says that he preached judgement to the world by his walk with God. He preached judgement not only in the words he spoke but also in the life that he lived. Just as Enoch was active in proclaiming the news of salvation to the people of his day,  Christians today play a significant role in God's plan. Our lives warn others of the judgement that is to come. Consistent living and walking with God is something honored by God and has stability in our maturity.

Pastor Dale

Sermon Nuggets Fri April 6 Blessing

Verses Heb 11: 5 & 6 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.” For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

To Walk with God implies Blessing

 When I was young there was a short piece in the newspaper called “Ripley’s Believe it or Not”. It had tidbits of unbelievable, odd, or different information. One time this question was posed: “How did the oldest man on earth have a father who outlived him?” That was a riddle. The answer of course is Enoch outlived  Methuselah. Yet Methuselah was the oldest recorded life in history- 969 years. This happened because Enoch was taken up into heaven without dying.

Contrast the fate of Abel and Enoch. One was crushed to earth by the hand of a brutal murder, the other conveyed to heaven by God. Enoch’s son was Methuselah who lived up to the time of the flood and whose grandson was Noah who was saved by the ark.   How sad that the testimony was there but apparentely he didn’t listen.

There is much speculation of Enoch's miraculous removal from earth.  There are many questions as to what happened. How does God translate a body from here to heaven without death? He did not pass from earth by the same way as other men but his body must have undergone great change.

1 Corinthians 15 shows that our bodies change.. There is a natural body and a spiritual body.  So the body of Enoch was spiritualized by God. It underwent essential change. It was mortal and now immortal; it was corruptible now incorruptible; it was of the earth, now it became of heaven. His body was refined and purified by God

 His translation was a distinguished honor and reward to Enoch. The only two men who passed from this world without tasting of death were distinguished as prophets fearless in rebuking evil- doers and asserting the divine message, and each in an age of dominate wickedness.  Enoch and Elijah's translation was testimony from Heaven that these men, though no sinless, were especially honored by God.

Those who remain until the Lord’s coming will also experience this translation without death .1 Thess 4: 17 “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” Perhaps Enoch experience was a shadow of what is yet to come for many.

Enoch pleased God. Wouldn’t that be great if that were said of us? Unpopular with people, but popular with God. 365 years old God took him home to be with Himself. It was as if God said, “Let’s not go back to your place tonight. You’ve walked so long with me it’s closer to my home than yours. Come home with Me.”  Through the revelation of God they learned that Enoch had not been murdered but taken away by God and given a place in Paradise. Death is not the end but there has been another place prepared for us and set aside better than this present existence.

I believe this was for a sign to the men of that age. Enoch was a prophet to the sinners. His prophecies and rebukes had created enemies instead of repentant followers of God. Now perhaps his sudden and strange removal from them would give new and addition light to his words. It was God's way of stressing the spiritual and eternal.  The people were reviling in pagan worship and sinful actions but the extraordinary removal of the holy prophet of God from the world might force them to reflect on the existence of the real God and reward that awaits us of faith.

We have the confidence of blessings from God. I already spoke of the blessings that are ours on this earth in Jesus Christ. But there is more to come. I think Enoch's blessing was means of testimony not only to his faith but to draw people to God who witnessed it as a sign of God's reality in the world and his reward to the one who diligently seeks him.

But as all die where are you going to spend eternity, and how are you going to spend your life? Enoch’s walk was exhibited by faith, intimacy, growth, consistency and blessings. What about yours?

Pastor Dale

Effects of Sin Gen 4

Sermon Nuggets Mon March 26

Verses- Gen 4

Effects of Sin-
I liked Jerry Shirley’s sermon on the first in our previous chapter. Last week we were introduced to the first time Satan was mentioned, Sin came on the scene. It introduced for the first time a sacrifice for sin as well as a need for a Savior. And it was the first time a sentence was carried out.
We saw the sin has consequences. When God said in the day that you eat of this forbidden fruit you will surely die. What died that day first and foremost was a spiritual death. There was not the intimacy with God. There was the beginning processes of the body decaying. There was death in the garden when the animals died for the sins of Adam and Eve.
Sin is initially attractive. It is pleasurable for a season. But as we see in the rest of the book of the Bible it destroys self, relationships, spiritual vitality, and our circumstances and environment.
A Minister tells the story of Jill, their 6-year-old, who was “helping” him in the front yard of the parsonage. She chattered away about her Sunday school lesson on Adam and Eve. He thought he’d test her. “Did you know Adam and Eve sinned?”
    “Yep.”
     “What did God do to them as a punishment?”
      Her answer was immediate and matter-of-fact, without even looking up she said: “He made them have kids.”
This week we will look at the kids they had. It is the first mention not only of children but the jealousy and crime of murder taking place.
We read regular of the sons and daughter of Adam committing murder. We read about it in countries overseas with the terrorist bombing. We know about it in US with shootings that are publicized in schools. We see people beaten by gangs for various reasons include racial hatred. We have families killed because of fighting going on between husbands and wives, between boyfriends and girlfriends. We have been churches bombed and entered into with mad gunmen.
The first murder of an innocent godly person came right from the beginning chapters of Genesis. As soon as sin entered the world it didn’t even take one generation before the worst of sins was committed against the closest of relatives.  Right from the beginning we see how the fall of man affected the sons of Adam.
  What Satan meant for evil God can bring out good. In the depths of the effects of sin God is still at work providing ways to overcome our evil and fallen heart. The questions are appropriately asked, “What is wrong with our world?” Why do wars persist? How can we live in peace?
        The effects of sin will continue until the reign of Jesus Christ and Satan is judged and bound. But much is revealed about how the world has changed from how it was first created. We know that God is not finished yet. He has a plan.

Pastor Dale

Sermon Nuggets Tues March 27

Verses Gen 4:1-51 Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “With the help of the LORD I have brought forth a man.” 2 Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.
   Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. 4 And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.


Original Sin
  In the previous chapter we read not only about the first sin and the fall of man, but some of the curse and the hope that God gives to conquer sin. It was prophesied that an offspring of the woman would crush the serpent. Perhaps that is one of the reasons Eve was so excited about the baby. This is a gift from God, an offspring of a woman. Perhaps she had her hopes he would take away evil when Cain was born.
  What we found out instead was the place original sin plays itself out beginning with the first born of mankind. Original sin means not only the first sin, but it means that all humans ever born right from the beginning of time have been sinners. We are under the judgement of God in that all will face death and we are also under the curse of the world affected because of the original sin.
       People ask about the bad weather and natural tragedies from draught to plagues, to hurricanes and earthquakes. The Bible tells us the sun shines and the just and the unjust, meaning there is something we all experience both the grace of God even if people act out in evil ways and the traumas and tragedies of this life even if people act in good ways.
Rom 5:12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned— In the Old Testament, King David tells us “In sin did my mother conceive me.” He was the last son of Jesse and it didn’t speak about the immorality of his biological parents, but rather pointing to the fact we are born into a world of sin- we are victims of it’s affect.
       The concept of original sin bothers some people, but I do not know why because everyone if given the same choices that Eve and Adam had would do the same thing. Frankly we all have been disobedient to God. No one can claim they have lived a sinless life. So the scripture applied is correct. “All of sinned and come short of the gospel of Christ” We are all in need of salvation and all are effected by the fall in separation from a Holy and righteous God.  Ish tells us there is none that is good no not one.” All our righteousness before a holy God is as filthy rags.
         So in this chapter we see two offspring of Eve and Adam. The firstborn is called Cain and she celebrates life by saying I have received a man from the Lord. Her delight is recorded in the Bible. Her pain is not, for she did suffer in childbirth as predicted in the previous chapter. Then she conceives again and Abel is the other offspring.
Some people have proposed the idea that it is society that makes people corrupt. If kids were left to their natural inclinations they would be good. You  have to be taught how to hate, and hurt others. The world would be a better place if we didn‘t have other people influencing out thinking. If our social circumstances and upbringing was right, if we had good playmates then the world would be a perfect place.
       Cain did not go wrong through the influence of neighborhood boys. There were no drinking crowds and rowdy companions that lead him into sin. Although no parent is perfect, the Scriptures are full of examples of Godly kings who had sons who were particularly wicked and evil. And likewise there were some examples of men who were evil whose sons and daughters followed God.
            Sin has its effect on all the people of the world. We are all Adam’s offspring.

Pastor Dale

Sermon Nuggets Weds March 28

Verses- Gen 4:  3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. 4 And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

Sin Offerings
          We see that the worship of Cain and Abel was revealed in two different offerings.
Cain had an offering of fruit and Abel presented before God a blood sacrifice. Some commentaries want to make a point of the difference of attitude and other sacrifice. I think both are important to understand the prophecies of God.
When we talk about worship, primarily we think of the worship service. Worship is more than just getting together to read Bible passages, sing songs, pray, listen to somebody preach, or have communion. True worship comes from the heart. It is an expression of adoration. Worship can take place in church, but just because we’re here in church doesn’t necessarily mean we’re worshiping. If it’s not coming out of the heart and head, then it’s just a ritual — and ritual, without the corresponding heart-feeling, has never satisfied God. God looks upon the human heart and can cut through all of our acting and pretending to see what we’re like down deep.
          Could it be that God was not pleased with Cain’s offering solely because he looked into Cain’s heart and saw that his worship was done grudgingly and out of superficial motives?
In November of 1995, Paul Harvey told this story: The Butterball Turkey Company set up a hotline to answer consumer questions about preparing holiday turkeys.
          One woman called to inquire about cooking a turkey that had been in her freezer for twenty-three years. The operator told her it might be safe if the freezer had been kept below zero degrees the entire time. But she warned her that, even if it were safe, the flavor had probably deteriorated, and she wouldn’t recommend eating it. The caller replied, "That’s what we thought. So we’ll just give it to the church."
           True worship comes out of a desire to please God, to show one’s gratitude to God, to show one’s love for God. True worship comes from the heart.
            There is another way to identify an attitude. Cain does not give the best or first of his produce, but Abel does. The first took from his bounty, the second from the best and first of his flock. Heb 11:4 “By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.”
Some might prefer the offering of fruit or flowers over bloody sacrifice, so messy and repulsive. But let’s not also miss the prophetic point. Abel’s sacrifice involved blood and therefore testified to the death of a substitute. He was coming to God as a sinner in need of forgiveness. Cain came on the products of his own works. When God killed animals in the Garden and then clothed Adam and Eve with their skins God was showing that because sin means death, innocent victims must die in order that sinners might be pardoned. The sacrifices pointed forward to Jesus. When Abel came with the offering of blood he believed God and was looking forward to the provision of the deliverer.
The offering of Cain represented all the beautiful things of this world that God has given to us and which you and I would like to offer back to Him
     . There are lots of churches that come with offerings of men without relying of the conditions God wants. Today's church does whatever it can to attract new people and as many as it can. Some churches do not even preach gospel because it may offend people. I know of one BGC pastor that admitted he doesn’t speak about sin because people want something positive when they come to church. Preaching on sin can be negative and judgmental. He doesn’t speak about judgement because he doesn’t want to instill fear in his people, but love.
God loved us so much he wants us to know about sin and judgement. Christ took the judgment of death in order that we might have peace. But if we come to God on our own offerings of good works and sincere hearts and are sincerely wrong then we are no better than Cain.  The first cause of Cain's problem was he came to God as he wanted, not as God required. It is possible for us to offer our works to God, but only after we have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ by accepting his perfect sacrifice to cleanse us from unrighteousness. We do that as a step of faith and commitment our lives to Christ and believing and receiving him into our lives by an act of the will.
           Our offerings to God are received in the form of money, as well as service and worship. Many give talents, as well as time and treasure. But if we haven’t first come before God calling on Christ to forgive our sins we have come with the wrong offerings. Jesus says I am the way the truth and the life and no man comes unto the Father but by me. We must come with the offerings that are well pleasing unto God. Rom 15:15-16
          The grace God gave me to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.”

Pastor Dale

Sermon Nuggets Thurs March 29

Verses- Gen 4: 6 Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”
 8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

God’s Warnings
         It was true with Adam and Eve. It was true with Cain and Able. There were warnings before sin needed to be committed. Adam and Eve knew taking the forbidden fruit would have adverse consequences. Likewise God warned Cain before he committed the sin of murder what answer can do. He had a warning also. Sin is personified as a wild animal lurking at the door ready to pounce on it’s victim. Sin is temporarily under control, but dangerously ready to attack us when we least expect it. To master the beasts and not allow sin to grow further one has to do what is right.
         All of us are enticed by our own evil desires. James tells us that after sin is conceived in our hearts it gives birth to sin and sin give birth to death. Yet we learn that by God’s grace we do not have to remain enslaved to our evil desires. With His help we can resist temptation.
         I am impressed that God did not turn his back on Cain, but gave him the plan whereby he finds acceptance. God initiated the relationship and called Cain to Himself. Is that true today? Are there people who have disobeyed and wandered from God? God is not rejecting you, but calling you to Himself to know Him, to find his love and power and peace, but there is one way. It is the way of faith expressed by obedience.
         The fault was not outside of Cain with his anger. It was something that could be changed. We tend to blame others for our troubles, although others can be a factor, the true cause is mostly within us. “If you do what is right will you not be accepted?” Asked God. If Cain had been admonished to do the right it was because the right had been made known to him. Yet he rejected the right not for lack of knowledge but lack of humility and faith, and obedience.
         George Martin tells the following true story of a fellow who wrote a nasty letter to his father. George told his co worker not to send it because it was written in a fit a anger, but this man sealed it and gave it to him to mail. George Martin simply put it into his pocket and kept it for a couple of days. Sure enough when he arrived to work after the weekend the man came to him and said, “I wish I had never sent that note. I’d give 50 dollars to get it back.” Mr. Martin reached into his pocket and returned it, and declined the money.
           So often what we do in anger or hurt comes back to haunt us if we would only wait and think about our actions. That is what God wants us to do. He knows that such emotions can overtake us at the time and we do something stupid. We often get warning from God because he knows the damage that sin does.
           Someone pictures sin as a swimmer in a rapids of large river, miles up stream for mammoth waterfall. The swimmer can easily get out of the water but as the rapids get rougher and he gets closer to the falls it becomes more and more difficult to be free of the currents and the force of the water. The safest and best time to resist temptation is before it is too strong or powerful to resist. The rising doubt or evil thought quickly becomes in when we dwell on it and allow it to take up residence in our hearts.
         I Jn 3:12-13 “Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother's were righteous. Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.”
         Eve had been talked into her sin. Cain could not be talked out of his, even by God himself
Why did Abel have to die? Luke 11:50-51 Jesus says, “Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed” God declares war on murders and abusers and those in their evil plot against the innocent, but like so much in the Old Testament Abel is called a prophet, meaning his life and death are foretelling something that God is doing. The death of the innocent at the hands of the evil one will be played out by God himself in the form of one who was sinless and killed on a cross.

Pastor Dale


Sermon Nuggets Fri March 30

Verses- Gen 4: 8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
 9 Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”
   “I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
 10 The LORD said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. 11 Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.”
 13 Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is more than I can bear. 14 Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.”

Sin’s Outcome
          God’s guidelines for our behavior are there to protect us. Think about it: think of something named as a sin in the Bible. Doesn’t matter what it is? A person will always be safer and better off if they follow God’s laws for mankind. Obedience is commanded for our own good. God’s rules for our behavior are not things we must do to earn our salvation or rules to obey because of some arbitrary decision made by a vengeful Creator, they are there to protect us, to make our lives easier and the sooner we stop thinking of God’s rules as ruining our lives and see them as things that make our lives easier the better off we’ll be.
          One is killed and one is lives. What we consider the worse of sins was the first of sins recorded after the human couple was driven from the garden.
Now the question posed to Cain was similar to the one given to Adam in the previous chapter. Here God asks “Where is your brother?” God asked Adam, “where are you? “ Adam identified his hiding place. Cain did not.
         He said in essence, “How do I know where my brother is? I am not responsible for him.”. Adam pointed the finger the other way trying to divert responsibility from himself to his wife, and she to the serpent. Confession is hard. The most difficult words are, “I was wrong. I did it. I sinned.”
          Did you think God didn’t know the whereabouts of Abel? Of course He did. He is asking, not because he didn’t know, but  he wanted a confession. As parents we might well know what happened to the cookies, but we ask our child what happened. “I don’t know.” “Did you take them?” No. Evidence might be all over the child’s face and hands, but lying comes naturally.
            God reveals to Cain the truth- He did do it. Abel’s blood cries out from the field. This is the way of saying the victim is crying and I heard his cries. But instead of intervening at that time, God waited and watched as the first murder occurred just as he watched when the murder of Jesus occurred. Murder turns to lies and cover up.
          Cain was allowed to live, but it was the life that is typical of sin. He lived out of fellowship with God with his family and from others. He could not make a living any longer from farming. The land would not cooperate with Cain from that day on. He was a wanderer in fear of his life and in fear of revenge and guilt for his sin. His life was not as he wanted, now in the fellowship of God without Abel, but worse than before.
           Edward Hale published a story in 1863 right during the civil war called “The Man without a country: It was about an US Army officer Philip Nolan who had been involved in the revolutionary war treachery of Aaron Burr. At his trial he was asked if he wished to say anything in his defense to show that he had always been faithful to the United States. But he cried out “Damn the United States. I wish I may ever hear of the United States Again”.
          The judge decided to take Philip Nolans request seriously. So instead of sentencing him to death for his treason, which he had every right to do, he sentenced him to be imprisoned at sea on government vessels with instructions to the officers that no one was permitted to have him hear the name or receive any information about his country. In this fashion many years go by. He passes form ship to ship, always being transferred just before the one on which he has been traveling returns to the US port
  As last he dies at sea but not before a naval officer broke orders and told him about America and its remarkable growth and prosperity during the 25 years. Noland’s last words were that no one ever loved his country as much as he.
         A man without a country. This was the outcome of Cain’s sin. As far as we know there was no change of heart.
           There seemed to be a progressive curse on the land of Cannan. In history we know it was once flowing with milk and honey but has had countless wars and invasions. The land shorn of its forest resulted in topsoil eroded. The rainwater flows away. It has turned into desert land in an increasing among. Where of the giant civilizations of Babylon and Assyria and Nineveh and the cities of Baalbek and Jeresh are now desolate. Sin brings a curse even on the ground. And God made Cain know that.
             Later the Bible speaks of the way of Cain. It means that although Cain’s case is a sorry one it is sorrier when people follow in Cain’s ways. If you are alike in Cain’s way you have rejected the way of salvation and warning. He had rejected God’s sacrifice gift of his son Jesus. Yet look at the outcomes. Abel is mentioned as well as a prophet. One who does what is right. Here is the death as an innocent victim, but also acclaimed by God in glory. There is the judgment when God will avenge his death, just like the death of Jesus Christ. He has a testimony for all of mankind to follow.
           By faith he was commended as a righteous man, who God spoke well of his offering and by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead. (Heb 11:4).
           The final judgment those in Cain’s way, those who remain in sin are banned from the country of God and excluded forever from His presence. That is the eternal curse for all sin that has not been cleaned by Christ and faith in Him.

Pastor Dale

Paradise Lost- Genesis 3

Sermon Nuggets Mon March 19-

Verses Gen 3

Paradise Lost

     In 1667 John Milton wrote a classic called Paradise Lost. It has been called the greatest piece of literature in the English language. It is a 12 book series. Ultimately it is an epic poem reflecting on the story of Adam and Eve. He introduced the subject of the civil war in heaven and how it is played out on earth. It is the story of mankind who had paradise and lost it due to sin. It is also the story of the conflict between good and evil and how paradise is reclaimed through the sacrifice of our Savior.

     This civil war is carried out within the hearts of each one of us. It is a spiritual battle that has not ended in Genesis. It did not even end at the resurrection. I thought when I became a believer in Jesus Christ and received the Holy Spirit this battle against sin was over. Not so. The penalty of sin was paid. I am free from that. But the process of dealing with temptation, deceit, suffering, illness, jealousy, pride, and lust plagues us in our world which lost paradise.

        I had gotten an e-mail from Carroll and Bernice VanAnda who took a trip from Japan to the Philippines, where they served before. They brought their friends gifts and left clothing for so many are in poverty. They gave the workers at the guesthouse a $12 tip. They acted like was a million dollars. They gave another friend some clothes for his wife and children, and it was his 4 year old daughter's birthday. He took a dress and tooth brush for her to use as a birthday gift and was thrilled to death. The gardener at the guest house brought home some soap and shampoo. His wife was so happy she cried Bernice asks, “Do we Americans take a lot for granted?”

            As we concluded Chapter 2 of Genesis we see that Adam and Eve had everything they needed. That is what it was paradise. But as we read the 3rd chapter we see that even though they had all they needed they didn’t have it all. They wanted the one thing they couldn’t have.

        I’m afraid American advertisers play into the plan of the devil to convince us that we need it all, the latest gadget, shampoo, car, appliance, the house, etc The sad part about all this is that when we are kept from having it all we concentrate on what is denied. We stop enjoying what we have. We ponder what we are forbidden. What is forbidden or denied becomes the focus or our lives.

        After God created the perfect world and provided the protective garden, sin is introduced. In this chapter Satan is introduced. Death is witnessed. Relationships spiritually and emotionally are broken. Evil has not only entered into our world, but into our hearts.

       This is a sad chapter, but it is not without hope.

Pastor Dale

Sermon Nuggets Tues March 20-

Verses- Gen 3:1-6 ¹ Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

 ² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ³ but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

 ⁴ “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. ⁵ “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

 ⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. ⁷ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Sin begins with Temptation

            Not many people decide they are going to willfully do something wrong. Mostly, we are lead into it by temptation. The temptation that came in Eden was through the serpent described as the most crafty. Apparently he had intelligence. There must have been some communication ability, like Dr. Doolittle, with the animals, at this point. But there was no question the serpent was the incarnate Devil, Satan himself who is identified in other portions of the Bible. Rev 20:2 identifies that ancient serpent the devil, or Satan. This is the introduction of Satan into man’s history.

          Satan does not come with horns and hoofs and pitchforks, he comes as a good friend. He comes like one who has our best interests in mind. Satan wanted Eve to question whether God was holding out on them by not giving what was rightfully theirs. He wanted them to believe that the serpent had their best interests at heart. That is never true. When you are tempted it always comes from Satan and it is not for our best interests, never. It is only for our fall and our hurt and our destruction. He has no love, only hate. His hatred toward God is so intense he will take as many people to hell with him as he can. If it is deception, or ignorance, or confusion, or lying, or hurt, or pain, or pleasure, or apathy Satan will do what he can to hide the truth, distort the truth, confront the truth,  or ignore the truth. He is the Father of lies.

            First he calls to question God’s authority by asking if this really what God said. He causes doubt to the word of God. Eve’s answer shows she clearly understood God’s commandment. Then she quoted what God said. That is the best way to withstand temptation.

            However Satan does not give up. His statement then contradicts the word. He bluntly tells them that God is not telling them the truth. He knows our desires, and so he pushes Eve by telling her words that appeals to her desires. “You will not die. In fact the reason God his keeping you from that tree is that you will be like gods.” His statement was also partial truth, for Adam and Eve did discover good and evil. But they were not more like God, they became more like Satan.

            Satan is still using the same "bag of tricks. He takes different approaches but it is always the same goal: trust yourself rather than the promise. He may try to keep us from reading and studying the Word or He may seek to distort the Word. But the goal is the same: trust ourselves or something other than God's Word. Here's some examples you might have heard, “I know God says we should not commit adultery, but how can it be wrong when it feels so good?” “I know God wants me to forgive but you don't know what they did!” “I know God says sex is for one man and one woman in marriage but He gave us these homosexual desires!” “Everyone is doing it”  ”If you want real freedom do what you want.” Then you find yourself trapped. “If you want pleasure you only are young once, enjoy yourself.” And it is pleasant for awhile until the sweetness makes you sick and you are worse off than controlled by your lustful desires.

            The devil did in his encounter with Jesus. The devil tries to get Jesus to give in to His hunger, His vanity, His insecurity. He tries to cast doubt on God's promise but Jesus does not fall for it. Each time . . .every time He stands on the promise of God.

            But there was another inward temptation for Eve. The woman "saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes." The proverbial "forbidden fruit"! We want what we can't have. Eve was tempted; The pattern of sin was simple Eve heard, She thought, she saw, took, ate, and gave.

            This is also reminiscent of the temptation in the book of I John For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the yes and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the world.”  She gazed on the fruit and saw it pleasing to the eye. She wanted to taste of it, which was the temptation of the flesh and thought she would be wise with leads to the pride of life.

            Now be aware, the Lord does not tempt anyone (James 1:13) God may provide testing which is different.  God uses testing to reveal or strength; Satan uses temptations to cause falling or destruction.  

            Be aware that to be tempted is not sin. It is the attractive door that requires us to open it up that leads to sin. It is a tool of Satan.

Pastor Dale

Sermon Nuggets Weds March 21 

Verses- Gen 3:  ⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. ⁷ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Sin is displayed with Disobedience

            Although sin begins with the temptation it is not the sin. It is yielding to the temptation and disobeying God. That is the sin.

            Eve desired to gain wisdom, so she disobeyed God and ate of the forbidden fruit and gave some to husband. Many sins occur with temptations from others. Many will lead others astray.

            With disobedience comes shame. This is implied when they noticed they were naked. They were no longer comfortable with each other. They felt compelled to hide from each other and hide from God.

        The book of Genesis is not saying that the nakedness of the man and woman was inherently bad; it's saying that up until now, it's just been no big deal, because there's been no shame or guilt in the human race. But now, after sin, after rebellion, there is bound to be shame, guilt, awareness of being "fallen"--and the man and the woman can no longer live in openness, before God or before one another. They have to "cover up"; and that's just what they do. They sew together leaves to make crude clothing.

 They have been "laid bare" before God in a very literal sense; we too are "laid bare" before God in a more figurative sense when we sin. The knowledge of what we have done, the awareness of our own guiltiness--we can't stand before God, or before other people, for that matter, with that kind of burden! We have to do something--and the easiest thing to do is to "cover it up."     

            The word naked is also used in the Bible to express the ideas of poverty,  desolation, or moral bankruptcy. So they chose to disobey God. This act of rebellion marked the entrance of sin into the world.

            The Christian has no choice, therefore, but to engage in a kind of spiritual warfare against his own natural tendency to disobey God. He should aim to be as obedient to God's will as Christ was when He "became obedient to the point of death"  (Phil. 2:8).

            When they heard sound of Lord God “walking” in garden in cool of day they hid from Lord among trees “Where are you?”

Adam replied, “I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.”

“Have you eaten from the tree?”

Then comes more sin.  “The woman you put here, whom you gave me.” Adam does what most red bloodied American men do-blame their wives. Then indirectly he blames God. It is as if he is saying, “She made me; but remember God she was your idea to begin with. You were the one who gave her too me. I’m a victim.

            Accepting responsibility is very hard. We want to avoid the pain of wounded pride and shattered ego. We insist that the primary reason for our sinful action lies with others people or circumstances. It is very difficult to admit our sin and confess that, “I am responsible. I was wrong.” All of us should say that. Few do.

            Look at all the various lawsuits. Observe all the people who are victims many  learn not to take responsibility for their own actions or neglect. I am glad that tobacco companies are being called to task for their lies, for their abuse on mankind through promotion of cigarettes, pipes and cigars not to mention chewing tobacco. They need to be held accountable to entice young people into smoking as well as adding addictive ingredients to make smoking harder to stop. But one must be mystified that the smoker must take responsibility also. As long as I remember there were warnings clear and loud that tobacco was bad for your health. Some of the earliest sermons I remember as a young person were the evils of smoking and drinking .“Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, don’t defile it with such unhealthy and addictive substances.”

            Somewhere down the line someone has to say “It’s me, It’s me, oh Lord, standing in the need of prayer. I am the one who was disobedient. I have sinned. I have disobeyed you.”

Pastor Dale

Sermon Nuggets Thurs March 22 

Verses- Gen 3: ¹⁰ He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”

 ¹¹ And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”

 ¹² The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

 ¹³ Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”

   The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

 ¹⁴ So the LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,

   “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly
   and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 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.”

 ¹⁶ To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”

 ¹⁷ To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life.
¹⁸ It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field.
¹⁹ By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground,  since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”

Sin results in Consequences

The consequences of sin are real! Some might think God is not serious about his judgments. The promises of God are kept whether they be blessings or curses. Satan wants us to think, God made the law, but he really isn’t going to enforce it. Lots of people get away with breaking God’s commands. To teach a child to avoid a certain behavior, you have to teach the child that the consequences are real--punishment will be given! It is the knowledge of a reasonable spanking, or lost privileges that prompts obedience, or correction of behavior.

            With every sin there will be payback time. The result was quite different than Adam and Eve expected. Instead of gaining superior knowledge that made them equal with God, they gained awareness or knowledge of their guilt, shame, and condemnation. There are consequences for sin and especially this experience of disobedience caused all of creation to be affected. Life was never the same as God intended because this world is out of step with God’s perfect plan.

            The immediate consequence of the fall was death, symbolized by their loss of fellowship with God. For the first time, Adam and Eve experienced fear in the presence of the Lord God; and they hid when He approached.

            Serpent initiated temptation that led to human sin and his judgment is the most severe. Dust, the symbol of death, would be his food and he would crawl on his belly in abject misery as long as he lived. Snakes are generally unpleasant and frequent enemies of humans; but notice that with every curse there is an element of grace. God allowed him to live. 

            But there would be enmity between you and woman and offspring and hers. Many are not fond of snakes. Most women fall in the category of staying away from them as far as possible. My mother would not even go into a reptile house at the zoo. If there were snakes on the television she would turn the station. Whenever the rational voice would seek to persuade her that she was in no danger, her theology pointed to this passage which ended discussions at our home. The Bible says it. I believe it. No more discussion about snakes.

            A woman’s curse also included an increase of pain in childbearing; Many have said if men had to give birth instead of women each family would stop with one child. Perhaps that is true. But the very means of joy also becomes the most difficult time of pain in a woman’s life.

            God added to Eve, the desire will be for the husband; he will rule over you. The very point at which she receives her greatest sense of fulfillment in life according to OT conventions will also be a point of suffering. But there is grace noted as well, for since it will be through her pain and childbirth that God will provide salvation for the world.

            Eve’s relationship with her husband has been marred as well because of sin. To love and to cherish has degenerated into desire and domination. The passage is not prescriptive, but descriptive. It explains not how it should be, but why it is. It should not be man works by the sweat of his brow. It should not be that women have pain, but that does explain how it happened.

            Then Adam faced his consequence. He listened to Eve instead of God. Not only would their relationship with each other be affected, so would his work be affected. Now the ground was cursed and growing and sowing, planting and harvesting would not be easy jobs. Farming is hard work today and it was hard work after Eden was closed. All of work, though a blessing has with it tough times. There is not such thing as a perfect job.

            All of creation was in disarray. There were no beasts of prey, no blight of insect. Now there would be. No thorns on roses; no drought, floods, and shriveling heat to threaten man’s efforts to grow food. There were no computers to cause grief and tv shows to make our brains mush. There was a blessing to work, but there are elements of difficulty and hardship to make life work and often just subsist.

            Because of their unbelief and rebellion, they were driven from the garden that God had provided as their home. Physical death, with the decay of the body was not the original design. We do not know how long they were in Eden before the fall. There had never been a tired wrinkle in his face or gray hair, or decayed tooth, never a pain or headache.      

            Adam and Eve did not sin simply as private persons, but as the representatives of all members of the human race. Their sin is the sin of all; and all persons receive from them a corrupt nature. It is this nature that stands behind all personal violations of the Lord's commandments. For this reason, the fall of Adam is the fall of the human race.

Pastor Dale    

                       

Sermon Nuggets Fri March 23

Verses- 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.”

²¹ The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. ²² And the LORD God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” ²³ So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. ²⁴ After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

Conclusions about Sin.  

            Now God had to do something because of sin. In addition to the consequences there is now added work of the Lord. The Lord made garments of skins for Adam and wife and clothed them. I believe this is an act of mercy and grace. Before this time no one killed animals. Surely Adam and Eve were horrified when the animal was killed. The animals were friends of the humans. This must have been like seeing the family pet killed and then being asked to wear their skin. What God was teaching Adam and Eve was the horrible consequence of sin. God stated that when they ate of the fruit they would die. So the animal now dies as a temporary substitute. Even in His mercy God must deal sin. Sin costs. In this case innocent animals were sacrificed to "cover" the first couple for sin.

            The grace of God also was demonstrated in provisions for mankind. He does not leave him without Godly presence. There was separation from the intimacy of God, but there is the involvement of God’s work in the lives of mankind.

            There is pain, but there is the blessing of children. There is labor of work, but there is the blessing of the fruit of one’s labor. There is enmity with the serpent but notice the 15th verse. There is the prophecy of the plan of God to send Jesus Christ to conquer that serpent once and for all.  This called the protevangelism, or the first gospel. Christ came to defeat the works of Satan. Satan did strike Jesus heal at the cross and suffering and death, but by the resurrection Christ presents a striking blow to his head and destroys his power from the believers who trust in Christ.

            Dear friends, in sin there are two options. Continue in sin, consequences, and self which leads to a downward spiral, or turn to Christ and but lifted from the power of Satan. You might be asking, What can I do about sin?

            First confess it. Own up to it. Don’t cover up and hide, but come with your guilt before the God of the Universe and say with honest and humbled heart what each of us have to say. Lord, I have sinned. Do not keep the distance from our Lord, but that is the first step to admit it. Don’t blame your parents, your circumstances, your church, other Christians, or friends. Let the Lord know and come to understand you have been disobedient to the Lord and are in need of forgiveness and fellowship.

            Second, If you've been driven away from God, driven away from his church, driven away from the joy of this fellowship, by something "deep and dark," something embarrassing, you believe--don't be afraid to come out into his light! The light of the Lord Jesus Christ doesn't ridicule, or point fingers, or draw attention to your weaknesses; the light of Christ heals and forgives. This is called repentance. Turn from sin.

            One Christian psychiatrist was telling of a man who came with problems of feeling apart form God and almost losing his faith and not having a desire to pray. The psychiatrist interrupted him by saying” Truthfully, I‘m not very interested in your symptoms” Lets get to the root of your spiritual fears- tell me about your besetting sins” The man was silent and looked blankly at the doctor. “Do you have any pictures of your family in your wallet?” Then he laid them on the desk in front of him. Suddenly, the man covered his face and began to weep. He blurted out the story of infidelity. Having indulged in sins that made him ashamed to face his family and his church and lost fellowship with the Lord. Later, as he confessed his wrongdoing to God and asked his wife to forgive him, his soul was flooded with peace and his nagging fear was relieved.

        Only God can forgive us our sins. He has promised to do so. He desired to reinstate us to his fellowship that the rest of the book tells us how he reveals his love and offers a way that sin can be covered in the Old Testament and then cleansed completely in the new testament. Only God can pick up your sins and cast them away. The bronze serpent raised up by Moses in the wilderness serves as a symbol of the saving power of Christ on the cross (John 3:14). By His crucifixion and resurrection, Christ has bruised the head of the serpent (Gen. 3:15).

            Conclusions: Seek the truth of God’s word above anything else that tells you otherwise. Anything else is a lie. 2. Accept responsibility for your own actions. Stop blaming and own up to your choices, your decisions and your sin. 3.Respond to the One who offers you a way out. The message of the Gospel is simple: "your life is a mess because of sin and there is only one who can fix it: His name is Jesus."

Pastor Dale