Does it Agree with the Bible?

introduction

There are variations of a couple of phrases that have caused problems for humankind for a very long time :”I just feel like....”, and “Well, I think...”. These statements are necessarily the problem, but what follows is usually the culprit. These statements have usually resulted in justifying actions that include immoral, illegal and unethical actions.

God created us to be emotional and rational beings, shaped both by thinking and feeling. This is good since God gave us these qualities before sin entered the world. But very soon after the creation, sin arrived and our thinking and rationing changed. As a result, some people have allowed emotions to take the primary mode of thought. This has taken them away from rational, consistent thinking and led them away from what is best. Other people have followed faulty reasoning and thus drifted from the truth. There are some who believe God gave us these distorted emotions and thoughts.

The reality of sin should remind us that we cannot trust our natural feelings and thinking. If we want to know and experience the best-what is right and truthful-we must follow the standards God gives us in His Word. God never contradicts Himself; therefore, we must submit both our feelings and thinking to the scrutiny of God’s Word if we want to live the life God desires for us.

Moses wrote the first 5 books of the Bible. While we don’t know how Moses recieved the information about the creation which predated his life, he could have heard about it from God Himself. Moses had face to face conversations often (Ex. 33:11). Also, Jesus referred to Moses as being the author of the books.

The second chapter of Genesis focused on the creation of God. It looks, primarily, at the two human beings He created, the perfect habitat he created for them and the perfect relationship between them and God.

We discover more about God, His intentions for humanity, His interaction with humans, and His instructions regarding what they should and shouldn’t do. In chapter 3, doubting God’s intentions and disobeying His instructions can lead to disastrous and deadly consequences.

Even though trying to figure out God’s will for us takes time, we have to begin with what He said to us through the Bible. And unlike our feelings and emotions, it does not change or conform to the ever changing culture.

Don’t Question God’s Word.

Genesis 3:1 CSB

Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?”

As most of you probably know, in chapter 2, Genesis describes the creation of man and the responsibilities he had in the garden. He was to work it and watch over it. God also gave him food to eat but there was one rule Adam had. He was not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Eventually God made a companion for Adam...Eve.

Why did God put the tree in the garden?

God put the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden to give Adam and Eve a choice to obey Him or disobey Him. If God had not given Adam and Eve the choice, they would have essentially been robots, simply doing what they were programmed to do. God created Adam and Eve to be “free” beings, able to make decisions, able to choose between good and evil. In order for Adam and Eve to truly be free, they had to have a choice.

There was nothing essentially evil about the tree or the fruit of the tree. It is unlikely that the fruit, in and of itself, gave Adam and Eve any further knowledge. That is, the physical fruit may have contained some vitamin C and some beneficial fiber, but it was not spiritually nutritious.

God did not want Adam and Eve to sin. God knew ahead of time what the results of sin would be. God knew that Adam and Eve would sin and would thereby bring evil, suffering, and death into the world. Why, then, did God allow Satan to tempt Adam and Eve? God allowed Satan to tempt Adam and Eve to force them to make the choice. Adam and Eve chose, of their own free will, to disobey God and eat the forbidden fruit.

The tone of the story changed dramatically when the serpent arrived. Many scholars have pondered who the serpent was. Everything God created was good, but now a tempter has appeared. The traditional view is that the serpent is satan in disguise. The connection between the serpent and the devil is clearly affirmed in Revelation 12:9 and 20:2.

It didn’t seem to alarm the two that an animal was speaking to them. It’s unknown why this is but maybe animals could speak before sin entered the world. We also need to remember that the serpent was part of God’s very good creation too, but it was the agent by which the humans were deceived and gave into temptation. Satan can influence the thoughts and words of humans.

Matt 16:23 (This was when Peter was influenced by Satan and Jesus rebuked him by saying “Get behind me Satan!”

He also possessed Judas (John 13:27). So it is possible that Satan possessed or influenced the serpent to confuse the humans and turn them away from God.

Either way, the identity of the serpent isn’t whats important. The words he spoke were more significant because they prompted the action that continues to affect humanity today.

He approached Eve with a suggestion, he wasn’t seeking information. He wanted to deceive her to turn away from the Lord who loved her and wanted the best for her.

It started with him referring to God. Earlier, the garden account emphasized God’s covenant name, the “Lord God”. Here, Satan omitted Lord because he had no covenant relationship with him.

He planted the seeds when he said “Did God really say....?” We must remember that God said they were free to eat from every tree , but the serpent reversed the order of God’s words but also distorted them by making a positive a negative: “You can’t eat from any tree in the garden.”

Maybe he posed this question in such a way to cause her to question what she was told. He wasn’t seeking clarification because he knew exactly what was said. He was trying to discredit Good by raising questions about the integrity of His words.

God holds all authority, and His words are an extension of His authority. Scripture us God’s Word to us, and thus it carries God’s authority. We must recognize and submit to the authority of God’s Word if we want to discern His voice and know His will. We can always question God’s Word , however, without questioning its truthfulness and trustworthiness.

Don’t Alter God’s Word

Genesis 3:2–3 CSB

The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’ ”

God originally told Adam about the rules and provisions that were provided. So when Eve was created, Adam surely told her what God had told him. Satan may have used this as a way to confuse her and making her uncertain since God didn’t tell her directly.

When she replied to the serpent, she left out “any” and “freely”, she failed to acknowledge God’s gracious and abundant provision. By removing words of God, it was a small step in the direction that the serpent wanted her to go.

What else did Eve do when responding to the serpent? She referred to God as just that, not the Lord God, following the serpent’s lead.

Now, both Adam and Eve were innocent and had not experienced deception or sin, but this didn’t remove the consequences of what would happen. Both Eve and Adam knew what God had said and made the choice to disobey.

One thing Even did do while conversing with the serpent was that she added to God’s Word. She stated that they could not even touch it. God never said this. By adding this restriction, it made God’s prohibition sound especially severe. She was making it sound almost ridiculously restrictive. Then she again altered His words by removing “certainly”. By doing this, it effectively removes the certainty of the consequences. Almost like minimizing the repercussions.

With all this, she didn’t seem to question God up to this point. She still trusted Him, but this would soon change.

Don’t Contradict God’s Word

Genesis 3:4–6 CSB

“No! You will certainly not die,” the serpent said to the woman. “In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” The woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.

The serpent didn’t intend to correct Eve’s understanding, but he did want to challenge her trust in God by causing her to question God’s integrity. Here he blatantly denied God’s Word. He didn’t explicitly say that God was wrong, his denial insinuated that God wouldn’t hold the woman accountable for disobeying God’s command. Thus she had a choice to make: Would she believe God or the serpent?

This happens today too! Satan has infiltrated every aspect of our lives and not only convinced people that God doesn’t exist, but for others he has caused them to question and deny that there are consequences for their sinful actions.

The serpent went on to present God as the antagonist by acting like he had some insight to God’s motives. That God possessed something that he didn’t want humans to possess. Setting his trap, he began to influence her to think of God as the adversary.

She would have her eyes opened, she would have an understanding of thing she previously lacked. Having this awareness isn’t necessarily a bad thing. But whether this refers to eyesight or insight, only God has the authority to give it or to withhold it.

The serpent then noted the benefit of the woman’s eyes being opened: she would know good and evil. This was true, God did say this but Satan made the results of disobeying God a benefit. It did not consider the consequences just what they would receive. Further, if they went through with eating this fruit, they would be like God.

Isaiah spoke of a powerful ruler whose downfall came about because he wanted to “make himself like the Most High.” Isaiah 14:12-15.

The serpent made God as as opponent who possessed something that valuable and was holding out on the humans.

There was nothing left for the serpent to say. The seed was planted and the decision was weighing on her mind. It seems that a little time had passed because when she was speaking about the tree in the middle of the garden as if she was somewhere else, but then she was near it.

The woman looked and saw several qualities that made the tree valuable.

First, it was good for food. She saw it as something that would be okay to eat for sustenance.

Second, it was delightful to look at. It wasn’t moldy, or not ripe enough.

Remember, all the other trees in the garden possessed these same qualities. They were all made by God and were good for food. This tree though, had a different allure to it.

Thirdly, it was desirable for obtaining knowledge. She made a judgment call based on what the serpent told her about the knowledge she lacked.

This fruit appealed to her body, eyes and mind. Her desires were not wrong-she hadn’t sinned yet.

Things went from evaluating the tree to eating its fruit. What began by questioning God’s Word soon moved to disobeying it. This was the culmination of the serpent’s plan-to encourage Eve to believe him rather than God and then to act contrary to what God commanded.

Next thing you know, she gave it to her husband. There are a few questions that arise from this;

There is no suggestion that Adam came along after Eve had eaten, so he must have been there to witness her actions. Based on the original Hebrew, there is reason to believe that Adam was present during the conversation with the serpent. But Adam was not deceived (1 Timothy 2:14). He did this without being tricked, he did it willingly and deliberately. Which is worse? Because of his disobedience, “sin entered the world” (Rom. 5:12) and impacted everything and everyone throughout of the world’s history.

So, when considering if God is speaking to you in some way, if you are truly trying to hear the voice of God, go to the source. Go to His word and don’t add or take away from it. Understand His will for you and remember the serious consequences of sin.