Need for the Gospel

Introduction

Gospel “Good News”

Message of Salvation taught through the Scriptures

Beautiful story of redemption throughout History of God’s plan and actions to redeem sinful creation through His Son Jesus Christ.

God Created and Loves us

God created us the way He wanted.

We were created with a need to be with God.

God loves us.

What happened? Did God make a mistake? Why are we not in right relationship with Him?

Sin is the reason we need the Gospel.

Entrance of Sin

Narrative text

Moses is writing this book for the Israelites coming out of slavery into the Promise land.

Characters

Serpent (Spiritual being)

Genesis 3:1 (ESV)

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”

Shrewd - crafty adj., marked by skill in deception

Satan - Adversary

Revelation 20:2 (ESV)

2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,

As the text unfolds we will see that the serpent is going to seek to deceive the woman he is talking to.

Eve and Adam with her.

Deception

Genesis 3:1–5 (ESV)

1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” 4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Causes questions or doubt.

“Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” (vs. 1)

Satan is very intelligent and knows exactly what he is saying and who he is speaking to.

Are you sure God said this.

God did not forbid eating from the trees in the garden, but the one tree in the middle of the garden

Genesis 2:16–17 (ESV)

16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

Her responds

“And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” (vs. 3)

Interpretation tip: Careful of to much speculation. The author, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, chose to add or withhold information/details in the text with the purpose if including what is needed to get the point across.

Did she hear the command from God and added for personal protection? Did she only hear it from Adam and he added do not even touch it?

Serpent’s response - Lies

Genesis 3:4–5 (ESV)

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

Lie one - “You will not surly Die.”

God lied to you. You will not die, but actually have a better or fuller life.

Lie two - “You will be like God.”

“As long as the mind holds to God’s truth, Satan cannot win; but once the mind doubts God’s Word, there is room for the devil’s lies to move in. Satan questioned God’s Word (v. 1), denied God’s Word (v. 4), and then substituted his own lies (v. 5). Note that Satan seeks to undermine our faith in the goodness of God—he suggested to Eve that God was “holding out on them” by keeping them from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. When we question God’s goodness and doubt His love, we are playing right into the hands of Satan. Satan made the temptation sound wonderful by making an offer: “You will be like God!” Satan himself had wanted to be “like the Most High” (Isa. 14:14), and centuries later he offered Christ “all the kingdoms of the world” if He would worship him (Matt. 4:8).” (Wiersbe, Warren W. Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the Old Testament. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1993. Print.)

Choice

Genesis 3:6 (ESV)

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

They decided to trust the serpent over God and ate the fruit that God commanded them to abstain from.

Adam was with Eve and knew where the fruit was from and he willingly ate also.

Act of Sin

Thought of Sin

Genesis 3:6 (ESV)

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

“The history of every temptation, and of every sin, is the same; the outward object of attraction, the inward commotion of mind, the increase and triumph of passionate desire; ending in the degradation, slavery, and ruin of the soul (Jam 1:15; 1 Jn 2:16).” (Jamieson, Robert, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown. Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. Vol. 1. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997. Print.)

Attitude for Sin

Genesis 3:6 (ESV)

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

Delight

taʾăwâ, n.c., longing, wish, yearning; sighing, craving. 21× (Lexham Analytical Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible (תַּאֲוָה))

“tn The Hebrew word תַּאֲוָה (ta’avah, translated “attractive” here) actually means “desirable.” This term and the later term נֶחְמָד (nekhmad, “desirable”) are synonyms. sn Attractive (Heb “desirable”) … desirable. These are different words in Hebrew. The verbal roots for both of these forms appear in Deut 5:21 in the prohibition against coveting. Strong desires usually lead to taking.” (Biblical Studies Press. The NET Bible. Second Edition. Denmark: Thomas Nelson, 2019. Print.)

Deuteronomy 5:21 (ESV)

21 “ ‘And you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’

Eve coveted/desired the fruit of the tree.

Action of Sin

Genesis 3:6 (ESV)

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

Desire - to be desirable v. — to be worth having or seeking or achieving.

Wise

“The quest for wisdom can follow the wrong course, as indeed it does here. No one can become like God by disobeying God. It is that simple. The Book of Proverbs stresses that obtaining wisdom begins with the fear of God that is evidenced through obedience to his word. Here, in seeking wisdom, Eve disobeys God and ends up afraid of God.” (Biblical Studies Press. The NET Bible. Second Edition. Denmark: Thomas Nelson, 2019. Print.)

“knowing good and evil This does not refer only to the ability to choose between right and wrong. If the man and woman did not already possess this ability, the original command would have been meaningless. Rather, knowing good and evil refers to divine wisdom, which corresponds with the idea of becoming like God or the gods (elohim in Hebrew).” (Barry, John D. et al. Faithlife Study Bible. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016. Print.)

Proverbs 1:7 (ESV)

7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

1 John 2:15–17 (ESV)

15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

These three things is what we and they were tempted by.

Consequence of Sin

Romans 5:12–14 (ESV)

12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— 13 for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. 14 Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.

Sin came into the World through this act of disobedience and the affects of sin are now in the world and our lives.

Affect of Sin

Sin affects everything it touches

Sin

“Human activity that is contrary to God’s will.” (The Lexham Bible Dictionary)

Hebrew - “ḥṭʾ, v., miss (a mark); wrong, offend, sin, be culpable; bear the loss” (The Lexham Analytical Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible 2017: n. pag. Print.)

Greek - “to act contrary to the will and law of God—‘to sin, to engage in wrongdoing, sin.’” (Louw, Nida)

Sin is not only a violation of God’s Law deserving punishment, but is a disease that affects everything.

Jesus came to deal with Sin

Guilt - innocent

Sinful - forgiven

Sinner - Saint

Selfishness - Godliness

Pain/hurt - Comfort

Disease - healing

Death - life

Broken - Not functioning as intended

Genesis 3:7 (ESV)

7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.

Sin affected them and affects us.

Eyes were Opened

Guilt - they understood the impact of their actions. They felt the weight of their guilt.

Naked - Shame

“to be ashamed v., to be or become characterized by feelings of shame, guilt, embarrassment, or remorse.” (The Lexham Analytical Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible 2017: n. pag. Print.)

Genesis 2:25 (ESV)

25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

Were not Ashamed. (2:25) Now wanted to cover up.

Fear

“to fear (dread) v., to be afraid or scared of; be frightened of.” (The Lexham Analytical Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible 2017: n. pag. Print.)

Afraid of God (vs. 8, 10)

Broken relationship with God

Genesis 3:8–11 (ESV)

8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” 11 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”

Their relationship with God was broken from an intimate relationship to a fearful relationship.

“You will surly die” (2:15)

Die - separation of or from.

Spiritual separation is a separation of Humans from God. Think about a computer unplugged or rose cut from the bush.

Our souls crave and need God, but in Sin we are cut off from Him.

Broken Relationships with Each other

Genesis 3:12–19 (ESV)

12 The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” 14 The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. 15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” 16 To the woman he said, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you.” 17 And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Our relationships with our fellow human beings are broken in sin.

Blame others for our actions (12-13)

Relationship between Men and Women are affected. (16)

What we see in Scripture and all of history is the affect of Sin in our lives, the lives of others and in our world. Pain, suffering, violence, abuse, hatred, war, and the like are the results of Sin in the world and our sinful choices and actions. Gen 3-11 is a text showing the affects of sin and the spiral downward of society living in sin to the point that the thoughts and attitudes of the heart were only evil all the time. (Gen 6:5)

Application

Sin came into the World through the disobedience of Mankind and Sin brings death. (Rom 5:12)

Sin has broken us, our relationship with God, and our fellow man.

Our sin is why we need the Gospel.