Creation
We’ve taken a couple of weeks to establish some foundational facts about God. In the words of Colossians 1:16-17 (NIV), "For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together."
Everything, including our human existence, finds its origin in God. Genesis 1:1 (NIV) says, "In the beginning God created...." We were uniquely created by God and for God’s glory. God put his own image within us. His desire was that we might live for his pleasure. His pleasure was that we exalt him through our intellect, our emotions and feelings, our physical bodies, our moral choices, consciences, relationships, and our worship.
Choices
In the beginning things were very simple. There was one choice laid before mankind. Genesis 2:16-17 (NIV) tells us that God said, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden (including the tree of life); but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
But when they were presented with the choice of knowing good and evil, with the choice of gaining life or surely dying, Adam and Eve chose to know evil and to know death. And that, my friends, is our problem. We are not infatuated with living for God’sglory orwith enjoying the life that God created us to enjoy. No, we're infatuated with knowing good and evil. We're drawn to the darkness. The thought of sinning against God doesn’t scare us as it should.Sin lures us. It captivates us,it tempts us, and it enslaves us.
For Adam and Eve, and for all of us, we are deceived into thinking that sinning against God is somehow good for us. We thinkthat disobedience will be as pleasurable as it looks and that knowing evil will make us wiser than following God’s will. But sin isn’t good. Disobedience does not bring joy. Doing evil does not bring wisdom. There isn’t any life in the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It is just as God said, there is only death!
Do you know what God’s assessment of our sinful choices is? Romans 3:10-18 (NIV) says, "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. Their throats are open graves, their tongues practice deceit. The poison of vipers is on their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know. There is no fear of God before their eyes."
Consequences
Because of our sin, death entered God’s good and perfect creation. Death is the ultimate and final consequence for our sin. Romans 6:23 (NIV) says, "For the wages of sin is death..." In Genesis 4 we find the story of Cain and Abel who were the sons of Adam and Eve. Abel was a shepherd who worked the flocks. Cain was a farmer who worked the ground.
Genesis 4:3-14 (NIV) tells the story. "In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. Then the LORD said to Cain, 'Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 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 master it.' "
"Now Cain said to his brother Abel, 'Let's go out to the field.' And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. Then the LORD said to Cain, 'Where is your brother Abel?' 'I don't know,' he replied. 'Am I my brother's keeper?' "
"The LORD said, 'What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground. Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.' "
"Cain said to the LORD, 'My punishment is more than I can bear. 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.' "
Cain put himself under God’s curse by choosing evil. Because of his sin he was hidden from God’s presence. He became restless, dissatisfied, and anxious. Because of his sin he faced the reality of death. Cain said, "My punishment is more than I can bear." Have you ever looked at your life and felt just like Cain? The truth here is that the consequences of sin are far more than any one of us can bear alone. We’ve gotten ourselves in a real mess. This is a mess that we cannot fix, no matter how hard we try to fix it. Romans 3:23 (NIV) says, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
Where are you? Where is your brother?
So where does this bring us this morning? In Genesis 3:9 (NIV) right after Adam and Eve had sinned, the Lord God called out to them in the garden, "Where are you?" Why don’t you just take a few moments and think about that question. Where are you?
Really, do you feel close to God? Do you feel, right now, that you are standing in his presence? Do you sense his approval? Do you feel that God accepts you? Do you believe that the way you are living your life is pleasing to God? Do you feel valued by God? Loved by God? Treasured by God? Do you fear God? Are you seeking him with all your heart, mind, body, and soul? And what about your life? Are you doing good? Do you have peace? Do you have joy? Have you found deep contentment? Beneath it all, beneath that smiling church face are you really happy? Are you in control of your life? Are you mastering sin, or being mastered by sin?
In Genesis 4:9 (NIV) God asks Cain, “Where is your brother?" Is there pain in your relationships? In your marriage? In your family? Are you bitter? Are you struggling to forgive someone? Are you filled with jealousy and envy? Are you depressed and sad or feeling alone and rejected? Are you angry about someone?
We are very much in tune with the consequences of sin. And the ultimate consequence is your death and my death. Our failing health and our impending deathis because of sin. We didn’t just fall under God’s curse. We chose curse over blessing, death over life, and knowing evil over living good. You did it yesterday, you did it today, and you will sin again tomorrow. We are evil. None of us is righteous. I'll bet no on ein this room would describe herself as evil. We’d describe other people as being evil, but certainly not ourselves. We often consider ourselves righteous.
If you don’t understand that no one is righteous, not the pope, not the pastor, and not even you, you’ll never appreciate what God has done for you. It is critical that you understand how justified God would be in destroying us all. In Isaiah 64:5-7 (NIV) Isaiah asks, "How then can we be saved? All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and made us waste away because of our sins."
No one is righteous.
Any patience that God shows toward us, andthe fact that he allows us continue in our sin day after day is completely an act of mercy on his part. Adam and Eve deserved death. Cain and Able deserved death. You and I deserve death. In his holiness and perfection God is completely offended by our sins. Even our most righteous acts are like filthy rags. There is no place for any boasting by any of us. The self-righteous person boasts, but only out of ignorance. God’s not impressed with us. We are far more impressed with ourselves than God will ever be with us.
In Luke 18:9-14 (NIV) Jesus tells a parable. "To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable:'Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men— robbers, evildoers, adulterers— or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."
Humility is knowing the correct answer to the first quiz questions ever given to mankind, "Where are you?" and "Where is your brother?" To both questions our answer is, "Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner. Lord, I continually fall short of your glory. Lord, my righteousness is like filthy rags. Lord, my punishment is more than I can bear. Lord, I tremble at the mere thought of standing in your holy presence."
We deserve nothing. God owes us nothing. So perhaps now, and only now, can you begin to appreciate this idea of God showing grace and mercy, or blessing us. In his mercy, God has chosen not to leave us in our well-deserved consequences of sin. If you ever muster up the courage to read your Bible from cover to cover, you will see a most disturbing pattern.
Grace
The biblical pattern goes something like this: grace...sin....mercy....promise. In his grace God does something great, like creation! But then man sins. But then God responds by showing mercy. And then he promises redemption andrestoration. The biblical pattern is that God never gives up. Instead, God covenants with us. He reaches out to us in our sin and rebellion to offer us hope. He makes a way. When Adam and Eve sinned God spared them. He sacrificed an animal, took its skin, and covered them in their nakedness and shame. And in Genesis 3:15 hepromises that Adam and Eve’s offspring will crush the head of Satan.
When Cain killed his brother Abel, and Cain complained about his punishment the Bible says in Genesis 4:15 (NIV) that, "...the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him." The Lord promised Cain life. In Genesis 6:5-7 (NIV) it says,"The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of heart was only evil all the time. The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. So the Lord said, 'I will wipe mankind, whom I created, from the face of the earth— men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air— for I am grieved that I have made them.' "
But then Genesis 6:8 (NIV) says, "But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord." The Lord commands Noah to build an ark and promises to spare Noah and his family. God floods the entire earth, wiping out every living creature and man. ButaboutNoah in Genesis 9:11-15 (NIV) God says, "I establish my covenant with you:Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said,'This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come:I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind.' "
ToAbram in Genesis 12:1-3 (NIV) God says, "Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you." Despite his sin and disobedience this promise would be reaffirmed throughout Abraham’s life. It would be reaffirmed to his son Isaac, then Jacob, and then Joseph.
When you move out of Genesis into Exodus, Godrenews his covenant with Moses and ultimately with the nation of Israel. Later on God would raise up judges, then kings, and then prophets to reaffirm his covenant relationship with his people.
Covenant
A covenant always has at least two parties. In this case there is God and there is man. A covenant always contains a promise. In this case it is God promising blessing to his people. A covenant always contains a pledge. In this case it is God’s people pledging to trust God and to serve him only. But if anything, the Old Testament chronicles the history of God’s undying faithfulness to his people despitehis people’s outright rebellion. Yet again, we see this pattern: grace...sin...mercy...promise.God never gives up on his people. He created us for relationship, for his pleasure, and for his glory.
In 2 Timothy 2:13 (NIV) there is this incredible affirmation of God’s faithfulness. It says, "if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself." This verse is not suggesting that we forgo any pledge or vow we make before God. It is, however, reminding us that God is fundamentally faithful. He is merciful and just.
2 Peter 3:8-12 (NIV) says, "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming..."
God’s grace isn’t a license to sin. His faithfulness isn’t to be taken for granted. God’s gifts of mercy are intended to lead us to repentance and to lead us back into his presence. Quite undeservedly, despite our sin, God refuses to give up on us.
Now what I really want you to think about as we look forward to this special music, and as we look forward to our time of communion, and as we look forward to next week's message, is how once again, in Christ, God’s made a way for us to return to him. He made a covenant with us through Jesus.