Much could be said about the nature and form of the Genesis 3:1-7 revelation. The purpose of this study is to note the lessons related to obedience.
In today's lesson it is easy to "get off" the subject: what about the serpent?; explain the serpent talking; what was the forbidden fruit?; was the fruit an apple?; why did God place the tree in the garden? Keep the focus of this particular lesson on obedience.
The basic lesson about God is this: "In the God-human relationship, God is not the deceiver. Satan is the deceiver." In every situation, the presentation of a matter can either obscure truth or underscore truth. Especially in deception, it is important to appear that truth is being underscored rather than obscured. Attempts to deceive never begin with this statement: "You are being lied to in order to deceive you and keep you from recognizing truth." The objective of deception is to disarm suspicion and thereby make the person to be deceived more gullible.
From the beginning of the Bible and from the beginning of the God-human relationship, God is presented as a positive force. Humans had nothing to fear from God. God is the source of human blessings and caring protection. God is dependable, not a deceiver.
God from the beginning sought the human's best interest. Just as a human often does with his or her child, God sought to protect not to deceive. Deception seeks to exploit. God did not seek to exploit.
God planted the garden that was home to the first couple (Genesis 2:8). God placed man in that garden He prepared for man's home (Genesis 2:8). In that garden God caused every tree to grow that was pleasant to look at and good for food (Genesis 2:9). In this garden also was planted [by God] the tree of knowledge of good and evil [it was pleasant to look at and could be used as food]. Adam was given a choice: "That is the one tree whose fruit you must not eat. If you do eat its fruit, its fruit will kill you" (Genesis 3:17).
The tree of knowledge of good and evil was not out of place in the garden. It was pleasant to look at and "good" for food as was the other trees. While God sought to protect humans, God did not deprive humans of choice. They would value their existence and their relationship with God because they chose to value both, not because they were forced--without a choice--into the existence and relationship. The consequence of rebellion was clear and understood.
Later Eve was asked, "Has God said not to eat any fruit in this garden?" Eve answered truthfully: "If we eat the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, we will die" (Genesis 3:3).
Often we entertain thoughts we never considered when we permit someone else to focus our attention.
Next Eve was disarmed for deception! "God is lying to you! You will not die if you eat that fruit! All that will happen is that you will be as wise as God! You will see good and evil just like God does!" (Genesis 3:5). The result of the deception: Eve "sees" this tree as she has not considered before. Before, the tree was a symbol of destructive danger. Now, as she examines the tree in a manner she did not look at it previously, she "sees" something that can make her wise [as if there was virtue in knowing everything], that it is pleasant to look at [it was not covered with foreboding appearance of death], and that was good for food [as if she was hungry and had no food available].
The deceiver cast God in a different light. Though experience verified God was the source of goodness and blessing, the deceiver caused one of the first humans to look at God with suspicion and doubt. It is God's character to be a God of grace and mercy. The deceiver caused Eve to look at these character traits of God with suspicion and doubt rather then seeing them as strengths. The result: Eve considers the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil from a different perspective. Because of the deceiver, she does not "see" it as danger but as opportunity. It no longer appears as something threatening, but as something desirable.
Though God provided for all her physical needs in the garden, she was convinced something was missing. Before she had the knowledge of evil, she was convinced there was significant value in knowing evil. She knew good, and it was a blessing. Why would not knowing evil also be a valued blessing?
She did not "see" the tree from eyes of need, but from eyes of desire. From the eyes of desire, the knowledge of evil was not a threatening reality.
When destructive knowledge is acquired, "unknowing" is never an option. Once the destructiveness of nuclear energy was known, the world could not "unknow" it. Now the worst of humans covet opportunity to possess that destructive power for selfish ambitions. Every generation seems determined to rediscover the horrors of war. Concerns that provoke war seem so virtuous before war begins. However, the reality of war after it begins never ceases to be ugly, expensive, destructive, and incredibly painful. It is amazing how quickly that which appears to be virtuous in the "before" becomes destructively ugly in the "after."
When innocence is destroyed, there is no reverse--once innocence ceases to exist, there is no "going back". "Knowing" is not always good. For example, a child who is sexually abused "knows" things he or she should not know, and his or her life likely will be hurt or cursed for as long as he or she lives because of that knowledge.
The Bible begins by quickly introducing us to the Solution which is the source of all good [God], the problem [sin or evil], and the responsibility of choice each person must make between good and evil. It reveals the root difficulty people face in personal choices between good and evil. It verifies such choices are filled with significant, ongoing consequences. Because of Eve's choice, she heard the man who rejoiced in her presentation to him by declaring she was "bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh" (Genesis 2:23) disavow her as "the woman You gave me" (Genesis 3:12). She saw one of her son's kill another of her sons [in his same devotion to selfishness as her decision at the tree]. She suffered in child birth, and she witnessed her husband struggle in his work as never before. The problem escalated to such an extent that today we cannot even imagine a world without evil in it [and even question the desirability of such an existence].
It is truly amazing to note the many things this story so briefly introduced Israel to: (1) the character of God; (2) the character of the deceiver; (3) the origin of evil in human life; (4) the importance of being responsible; (5) the power of choice; (6) the consequence of choice; (6) the continuing power of influence; (7) the central problem in the God-human alienation; (8) the fundamental nature of the problem God had to resolve if He was to restore a relationship of blessing with humans; (9) the human need to return to God. The consequences of Eve's decision were much more far-reaching than Eve considered at the moment of temptation. That is commonly true with temptation.
God is not responsible for the problem. Human choice based on human selfishness is responsible for the problem. Consider James 1:12-18.
Whether one holds God responsible for the problem of evil's existence in human existence or whether one holds humans responsible for the problem of evil in human existence will govern the focus and use of human life in that person. The deception that evil posed no bad consequences for humans introduced the tragedy of evil into human existence. The deception that God is responsible for the existence of evil in human life continues the influence of evil in human existence.
You are asked to thoughtfully consider the following insights. First, grace and mercy are not acts God merely performs. Grace and mercy are a part of God's being. These qualities reflect His being, not just His behavior.
God did not begin being a God of grace and mercy at Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. God always has been a God of grace and mercy. That is who He is, not merely how He behaves. However, never think God's mercy and grace (a) represent divine weakness or (b) mean God is indifferent to rebellion. There is a vast difference between God's willingness to forgive a genuinely penitent human and a human seeking to deceive and exploit God's kindness.
God gives a self-description to Moses in Exodus 34:6, 7 "Then the Lord passed by in front of him [Moses] and proclaimed, 'The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.'"
God responds in an incredible manner to the human who recognizes evil for what it is and recognizes God for Who He is. However, God also holds humans responsible for the choices they made. The influence of evil continues to live and reaches much further than most humans realize.
God's declaration of His nature does not "fit" many of the common concepts held about God today. While He declares He is compassionate and gracious, we say He is harsh and judgmental. While He says He is hard to anger, we say He is easy to anger. While He says He overflows with mercy and truth, we say He is quick to seek justice. While He says He is forgiving, we say He is exacting. While He does not ignore the responsibility and the influence of the deliberately rebellious, He is approachable by the penitent.
Today, even among those dedicated to godliness, people are more likely to view God as harshly judgmental than desiring to be merciful. We are more likely primarily to be influenced by human impressions of God rather than God's self-declaration of His character.
In keeping with His nature, second, God showed the restraint of mercy [He expressed His grace when Adam and Eve did not die]. Third, sin was revealed to be much more than an act. When we reduce the problem of evil to a set of human acts, we invite evil's deception. The problem of evil is internal and has its origin in our selfishness. It manifests itself in an attitude of distrust of God. Yet, fourth, He held both Adam and Eve accountable for deliberate rebellion. And, fifth, the consequences of their deliberate rebellion was far reaching.
Amazingly, we humans are not impressed with God's self-restraint when horrible human decisions unleashed the forces of evil in human existence. Often we are blind to God's kindness in that situation and choose instead to focus only on what we consider to be God's harshness. We refuse to see human rebellion. We see only a "reactionary" God.
Because we have a pitiful view of God, we fail to recognize sin for what it is. Sin is not and must not be reduced to a human catalogue of behaviors. If that is the view of sin, godliness is produced by "correct" human behavior. Rather, sin is primarily an attitude of selfishness that expresses itself in selfish behavior. The core problem is addressed only when that attitude is addressed.
To fail to realize the far reaching influence of evil is to yet again be deceived by evil.
In one simple, beginning story, God revealed His nature, sin's nature, human responsibility, the human dilemma in the conflict between good and evil, and the continuing influence of evil. Obedience is more than the issue of acts. It is equally an issue of hearts.
Have your students acknowledge the lessons we should learn from this first act of human rebellion.
For Thought and Discussion
The core understanding is that temptation relies on deception. Deception counts on disarming a person's system of warning and suspicion. Deception is commonly successful by having a person consider a matter differently. Thus, for example, that which is dangerous and deadly is seen to be harmless.
Though Adam and Eve suffered severe consequences for their rebellion, they did not cease existence.
Link to Student Guide
Lesson 3