The Beginning of Sin

Genesis 3:1–7 NIV

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.

Introduction

Is the world good?

What is really wrong with the world?

God’s good creation destroys mankind

Perfect marital harmony is gone

Rather than walking in fellowship with God, mankind blasphemes and rejects him

Some suggestions with solutions

Environment

Scientific advance

Powerful people

Revolution

Politics

Ignorance

Education

Genesis 3 gives us the answer to this question?

Sin Deceives (vv. 1-6)

She believed a lie about God’s Command (vv. 1-3)

Genesis 3:1–3 NIV

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.’ ”

Event

The serpent depersonalizes God from Lord God to just God

Starting with the ch. 2 account, God’s personal, relational name is used by the narrator – “Yahweh God”

When Satan speaks of him, he drops the personal name and only uses the title.

Eve follows along

The serpent portrays God's command as restrictive rather than generous.

Satan: “You must not eat from any tree in the garden”

God: “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”

Eve defends but alters God’s command

Eve remembers a less generous command

Eve: “may eat fruit from the trees”

God “free to eat from any tree”

Eve leaves the tree unnamed

Eve: “Tree that is in the middle of the garden”

God: “Tree of the knowledge of good and evil”

Eve exaggerates the extent of the command

Eve: “must not eat… and you must not touch it”

God: “must not eat”

Eve minimizes the certainty of punishment

Eve: [ESV] “lest you die”

God: “You will surely die”

Implication

Eve and the serpent subtly misrepresent the goodness of God throughout their discussion. Rather than seeing the generous kindness of God on display all around her, Eve hints at a stingy, selfish God.

She Believed a Lie about Sin’s Consequences (vv. 4-5)

Genesis 3:4–5 NIV

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.”

Event

The serpent starts with a bold lie: “You will not certainly die!”

The serpent relies on the truth to deceive Eve about the consequences of sin

v. 4 “You will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

v. 22 “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil.”

The serpent doesn’t lie about what will happen, but uses Eve’s pride to make her think that what will happen is good.

Gen 3:5 “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.””

Gen 3:22 “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.””

The serpent never tells Eve to take the fruit, he simply undermines God’s command and waits for her to respond to her wrong view of God

Implication

Eve’s sin is one of faithlessness. What God says is bad for her, she believes is good for her.

She Believed a Lie about Happiness (v. 6)

Event

Genesis 3:6 NIV

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.

Eve fills in the blanks that Satan leaves.

Her desire for the fruit begins in the heart with her appetite and affection.

The appeal of sin follows a familiar pattern.

1 John 2:16 NIV

16 For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.

Lust of the flesh – “good for food”

Lust of the eyes – “pleasing to the eye”

Pride of life – "desirable for gaining wisdom”

Sin today follows these same patterns

Our sin begins in our heart – our desire

God has given these desires for our good

No desire no reproduction

No desire no food

It is when we seek to fulfill desires in ways God has not ordained them to be filled that we sin.

Adam joins with her in her sin.

Adam himself is not deceived

1 Tim 2:14 “14 And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner.”

Rather than being deceived, he is a traitor, giving his loyalty to Eve rather than the creator.

Implication

Eve’s problem was an incorrect view of God which resulted in an incorrect view of herself

Sin Condemns (v.7)

Genesis 3:7 NIV

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.

Is this an example of how (not) to resist temptation or something more?

Little details foreshadowing big events (COVID)

Adam and Eve’s sin brings condemnation to all

1 Cor 15:22 “22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.”

Ps 51:5 “5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.”

Eph 2:3 “3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.”

The story of the fall leaves us without hope.

We do not have an external problem to be delivered from

We are internally corrupted and alienated from our creator

The rest of the OT charts this corruption in stark clarity

Cain

Flood

Babel

A parallel passage shows us our hope.

The Savior Delivers

Jesus life gives us two parallel accounts of temptation

Jesus is Tempted in the Wilderness

Much like Gen 3 is not given as a bad example of how to fight sin; Jesus temptation in the wilderness is not merely a good example of how to fight it.

The Tempter targets Jesus’ desires just like Eve’s

Lust of the eyes

Mt 4:8-9 “8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.””

The Tempter shows Jesus what can be his if he just does what Satan wants him to

Lust of the flesh

Mt 4:3 “3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.””

Jesus is led by the Spirit to fast (v. 1). He will turn nothing into bread soon, but not against the Spirit’s leading and the will of the father.

Pride of life

Mt 4:6 “6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’””

The Tempter calls Jesus to reveal his glory to the people at the temple – saving himself from suffering

The Tempter misuses the Word of God in his temptation of Jesus

Jesus faces a distortion of the Word of God and responds with the Word of God

Mt 4:4 “4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’””

Mt 4:7 “7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’””

Mt 4:10 “10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’””

Jesus is obedient in the wilderness while humanity is disobedient in perfect bliss.

Jesus is Tested in the Garden

Eve faces temptation with her ally. Jesus his test alone.

Gen 3:6 “She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.”

Mt 26:40 “40 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter.”

Eve’s temptation comes when she is in perfect bliss. Jesus’s test comes when he is in agony.

Mt 26:37 “37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled.”

Eve replaces God’s will with her own. Jesus is commited to God’s will over his own.

Mt 26:42 “42 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.””

Conclusion

Satan and your flesh conspire together to question the goodness of God.

All of your sin is fundamentally a rejection of the goodness of God, where you declare that he is withholding good from you.

Jesus submits himself to the will of God even though such submission places him in the path of God’s wrath on the sin of the world.

Look to Jesus as the one who demonstrates trust in the goodness of God and is himself the supreme demonstration of the goodness of God.

It is only when we are united with Christ in his death and resurrection that we can hope to resist temptation as he did.