- Sin starts when we Disregard God’s Word (Gen 3:1-6)
- Sin brings shame we try to Disguise (Gen 3:7)
- Sin causes us to Disengage from God (Gen 3:8-10)
- Sin makes us want to Deflect guilt (Gen 3:11-13)
Step 1. Doubt the Authenticity of God’s Word (Gen 3:1-3)
Step 2. Deny the Accuracy of God’s Word (Gen 3:4-5)
Step 3. Disobey the Authority of God’s Word (Gen 3:6)
Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANK
Hint: Highlight blanks above for answers!
-
00:00-00:31
Today begins our sermon series heading into Easter and just make a note we are working on having a Good Friday service here. Plans are in the works for that at seven o'clock to assemble and discuss the the cross of Jesus Christ and what that means. So just kind of mark that down we will get you more details I promise you when I get them. For right now we've been talking with the school about getting those things arranged.
00:33-00:39
And I hope that you've been handing out those invitation cards that Sammy so lovingly made.
00:39-00:53
If you've been handing those out, we wanna invite any of your unchurched friends, you have any friends or family, coworkers that don't go to church, maybe they don't have a church home, maybe some of you know that don't know the Lord, bring them to hear the good news of Jesus Christ, right?
00:54-00:58
Because Jesus is first, right?
00:58-00:59
It's like right on our guitar, right?
00:59-01:00
Jesus is first.
01:03-01:08
Open up your Bibles with me to Genesis chapter 3.
01:10-01:27
The title of today's message is "Enter Sin." Several years ago, I was at the gym exercising and had a good, hard workout.
01:28-01:33
I did my cardio, did my weights, and all of a sudden, I didn't feel very well.
01:35-01:37
And I couldn't even hardly stand.
01:38-01:40
I was sick to my stomach.
01:40-01:44
And I thought, well, maybe I just blew a gasket working out so hard.
01:44-01:46
And like, surely not.
01:46-01:48
Yeah, surely that's a possibility.
01:48-01:52
And my wife was actually in another part of the gym.
01:54-01:56
I went and pounded on the lady's locker room door.
01:56-02:01
and she kind of dragged me out of there and we went to the emergency room.
02:01-02:06
At this point, I could barely stand, I could barely keep my eyes open, again, getting just sicker and sicker.
02:07-02:13
When you go into the emergency room like that, here's a little tip for you, you get to go right in, okay?
02:13-02:21
When you come in with your wife like dragging you and you're just like, they brought a wheelchair up and they took me back, I got a bed immediately.
02:22-02:28
And all, things were kind of fuzzy at that point, obviously, But there were a lot of doctors and nurses buzzing around.
02:29-02:31
And nobody could figure out what was going on.
02:32-02:33
They're like, what's the matter with this guy?
02:33-02:36
I mean, he looks healthy and young.
02:38-02:44
And the one doctor called me hairy, for what that's worth.
02:46-02:47
It must be a medical thing.
02:48-02:50
But right, Alicia, is that a medical thing?
02:50-02:51
OK, no.
02:51-02:51
Sorry.
02:51-02:51
OK.
02:53-02:55
But they couldn't figure out what was going on.
02:55-03:00
I remember as I was kind of like fading in and out of consciousness, he said, can you think of anything?
03:00-03:10
And I said, well, between the doorway where the weights are and where the lockers are, I said, I thought maybe I smelled gas, but.
03:11-03:13
And they were like, oh.
03:14-03:25
Well, they did a blood gas test on me, you know how that works, they stick a needle the size of a McDonald's straw in your wrist to get blood out.
03:26-03:27
Ask me how that felt.
03:29-03:31
It hurt, OK?
03:31-03:32
A lot.
03:32-03:38
Well, the doctor came back in grinning ear to ear.
03:40-03:43
I mean, it was like he just won on the prices right or something.
03:43-03:45
Just came in grinning ear to ear.
03:45-03:48
He goes, you have carbon monoxide poisoning.
03:49-03:51
I'm like, and this is good news, why?
03:52-03:54
Well, do you know why it was good news?
03:56-03:57
Well, it's still alive.
03:58-04:01
We're still debating whether that was good news or not.
04:01-04:08
But it was good news because he was saying we found the problem.
04:09-04:10
So why is that good news?
04:11-04:15
Because since we knew what the problem was, what else did we know?
04:16-04:17
How to fix it, right?
04:18-04:20
See, that was the problem when I first went up.
04:20-04:21
They didn't know what the problem was.
04:21-04:22
They didn't know how to fix it.
04:22-04:23
Does he need medicine?
04:23-04:25
Does he need oxygen?
04:25-04:27
Does he need an IV of something?
04:27-04:28
They had no idea.
04:28-04:33
But when they knew what the problem was, they knew how to fix it.
04:34-04:39
And you see, that's why we're starting in Genesis chapter three, leading up to Easter.
04:40-04:41
You're like, well, let's talk about Jesus.
04:41-04:43
And let's talk about the cross.
04:43-04:45
And let's talk about the resurrection.
04:45-04:47
And we will.
04:48-04:49
But we can't start there.
04:52-05:03
Because if we just start there and say 2,000 years ago a man who claimed to be God died on a cross, what does that have to do with me?
05:04-05:05
And why did he do that?
05:06-05:08
What's the significance of the resurrection?
05:08-05:22
Well, just like that doctor was rejoicing to know what the problem was so he knew how to fix it, there's a sense in which we need to dig deep and discover what our problem is so we can see how God fixed it.
05:22-05:30
You know, evolution teaches that man is getting better and better and better and better.
05:31-05:44
As time goes on, man is becoming more complex and, you know, man should be getting better and better, but the Bible says man actually started out at his best, and then things got really bad.
05:47-05:54
Would you observe that something is really messed up globally?
05:55-05:55
Could you say that?
05:56-05:57
Could you step back and look at the world?
05:57-05:59
Would you agree with me to say, "You know what?
06:00-06:10
Something is really messed up." Interpretation by voting, how many people would say, "Yeah, I would say something is really messed up in the world." All right, everybody, things are messed up.
06:12-06:19
With wars and famines and disease and tragedies and disasters and something's messed up.
06:22-06:24
But let's let's zoom in a little bit.
06:26-06:31
Can you also observe that there's something messed up in here personally?
06:31-06:35
And I don't just mean it me, I know something's messed up in here personally.
06:36-06:37
But what about in your heart?
06:39-06:40
Can you say, you know what?
06:42-06:44
I think something's messed up in here.
06:45-06:48
Can we agree on that again by vote?
06:49-06:50
But we don't vote here. We're voting this morning.
06:50-06:52
Can we see that there's something messed up in here?
06:53-06:54
There is, isn't there?
06:55-06:59
Now, here's the thing, people people don't argue that there's a problem.
07:02-07:11
Right, we could do this, Paul, we could get out, we could get out to the mall, we could down to the air, but we could go anywhere and ask people that question.
07:11-07:13
Do you think things are messed up in the world?
07:13-07:15
Do you think sometimes maybe you're a little messed up?
07:16-07:17
Everybody's going to agree to that, right?
07:18-07:20
But here's what people don't agree on.
07:20-07:23
What people don't agree on is what the solution is.
07:25-07:27
There's a problem, how do we fix it?
07:31-07:33
Well, how do we fix things personally?
07:35-07:44
Sadly, too many people are looking at the problem in here and say, "Here's how we fix it." I just have a little list here if you wanna jot these things down.
07:44-07:48
Here's some things people, some solutions people have come up with to try to fix the problem.
07:49-07:50
Some people say it's psychology.
07:51-07:55
If we could just get you to maybe think a little differently, dig deep into your past, psychology.
07:56-07:57
Some people say it's religion.
07:58-07:59
You know, just get religious.
07:59-08:00
Just get religious.
08:00-08:05
And that'll help take care of this personal, messed up problem that I have in my heart.
08:08-08:09
Some people say it's finding yourself.
08:10-08:17
I'd tie that into psychology, but if people say, you need to find yourself, you need to discover what's best for yourself.
08:19-08:20
Know who you really are.
08:22-08:24
For some people, it's meditation.
08:24-08:25
For some people, it's medication.
08:27-08:36
I'm not bashing medication or the medical field, but I would caution that sometimes people run to that too often, too soon, too easy, too undiagnosed.
08:37-08:44
That there's a real problem going on in here, but we try to mask it over with medication.
08:46-08:57
Sometimes medication is necessary, but it has become a problem when that becomes viewed as the solution to our problems.
08:57-08:59
And for some people, it's counseling.
09:00-09:15
Well, the problem with these solutions them are working. Because it's like putting a band-aid on cancer. So what's the answer?
09:16-09:31
Well, let's look at our Bibles here. Genesis chapter 1. You know, Genesis 1 and 2 talks about how God created. Day 1, the light. Day 2, the skies, the heavens. Day 3, the land, of vegetation. Day four, he created the sun, moon and stars.
09:32-09:34
Day five, he created the water animals and the birds.
09:34-09:36
Day six, he created the land animals.
09:37-09:48
And when you go through Genesis chapter one, you see, you know, verse four, verse 10, verse 12, verse 18, verse 21, verse 25, over and over and over.
09:48-09:50
God says it was good.
09:51-09:52
He created and he said, that's good.
09:53-09:54
He created something else.
09:54-09:55
This is good.
09:55-09:55
He created something else.
09:56-09:56
This is good.
09:57-09:59
And then the pinnacle of God's creation, do you know what it is?
10:00-10:04
The pinnacle of God's creation on day six, he created man.
10:05-10:06
And why is man the pinnacle?
10:06-10:11
Because man is the only thing on this earth that was made in God's image.
10:11-10:18
God made man special out of the dust, breathed the breath of life into his nostrils in God's image.
10:18-10:21
And verse thirty one, what did God say after he created man?
10:22-10:24
This is not just good.
10:25-10:27
What does your Bible say?
10:28-10:28
Very good.
10:31-10:39
Right, so the Bible says God created everything and he goes, good, good, good, good, very good. And I would say, OK, well, then what's the problem?
10:41-10:49
What happened? Because I'm surrounded by a room full of people here that are saying things aren't very good anymore.
10:50-10:51
So what happened?
10:52-10:54
Well, we're going to see what exactly happened.
10:54-10:57
And as we go through this text, I don't want to just state the facts.
10:57-10:59
I don't want anybody to leave here going, well, that was interesting.
11:00-11:01
Yes, yes, yes. Interesting.
11:01-11:03
Interesting little factoids and nuggets.
11:05-11:12
We need to personalize this, because, listen, this is how this is how sin started.
11:14-11:16
But this is also how sin continues.
11:18-11:20
And you're going to see a definite pattern here, you ready?
11:20-11:27
First of all, number one on your outline, sin starts when we disregard God's word.
11:29-11:32
Sin starts when we disregard God's word.
11:33-11:37
Now, to get the context here, look at chapter two, verses 17 and 18.
11:38-11:42
You know, when God created, he made these two special trees in the Garden of Eden.
11:42-11:45
There was the tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
11:47-11:49
But look back to chapter 2, verse 16.
11:50-12:16
It says, "The Lord God commanded the man, saying, 'You may surely eat of every tree in the garden, 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.'" Now, interestingly, in the Hebrew, what this literally says, God says, "When you eat of this tree dying, you will die.
12:19-12:20
What is death?
12:20-12:21
Well, death is separation.
12:24-12:28
When you go to the funeral home and you see the body in the casket, there's death.
12:28-12:31
The spirit is separated from the body.
12:34-12:38
But death is not only that kind of separation, it's also spiritual separation.
12:39-12:42
separation between man and God.
12:43-12:48
It's the brokenness of fellowship between man and between God.
12:50-13:00
But we're going to see here as we go through this passage, and I'm sure many of you are familiar with this story, but when Adam ate from this tree, he didn't just drop over dead.
13:01-13:02
Dying, you will die.
13:02-13:03
This began a process.
13:05-13:15
God said, "You will start to die, "and it will end with death." That's why from the moment you're born, you're on your way out.
13:17-13:25
You're like, "That's really morbid, but is that true?" From the moment you're born, the clock is ticking until you're on your way out.
13:28-13:44
And some of us are experiencing the, I guess, the first-hand subjective experience of that, The growing old, the sicknesses and the health issues and we're wearing out.
13:45-13:47
Dying you will die.
13:48-13:56
It will bring separation, but it will also start a process that's ultimately going to end in your physical death.
13:58-13:59
Oh, I have a question.
14:01-14:02
Maybe you've asked this.
14:02-14:12
If God didn't want Adam and Eve to eat off that tree, then why did He put the tree there in the first place?
14:12-14:12
Have you ever asked that?
14:14-14:16
Why did He put that tree there in the first place?
14:16-14:21
Well, the reason He put that tree in the garden was because God gave man free will.
14:23-14:24
God gave man free will.
14:25-14:36
Now, if there were no opportunity for man to disobey God, couldn't you just see the adversary coming before God?
14:37-14:40
Well, sure they obey you.
14:40-14:41
Sure they believe in you.
14:41-14:44
Sure they do everything you want them to do because they don't have any other choice.
14:45-14:46
They just can't.
14:47-14:56
So God, you created these people to have a love relationship with, but they really don't have a choice but to have a love relationship with you because they can't really reject you.
14:59-16:11
God in his graciousness and giving us free will gave Adam and Eve a choice. You can obey me, but you also have the option of disobeying me. So sin starts when we disregard God's Word. Well, how does that work? We'll jot this down next on your outline, then we're going to get into the text, but it starts with step one, doubt the authenticity of God's Word. Doubt the authenticity of God's Word. It says, "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?" And the woman said to "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 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.'" So going through the text here, it says, "The serpent." Who is the serpent?
16:12-16:16
Well, we find out in Revelation chapter 12, verse 9, this is the devil.
16:18-16:23
Interestingly, this is the first question in the Bible. Did you know that?
16:24-16:26
Genesis 1 and 2, you won't find any questions.
16:26-16:30
It's just declarative. God did this, God did this, God did this.
16:31-16:34
No questions until the enemy shows up.
16:37-16:39
And this is Satan's first step.
16:39-16:42
Understand that his tactics are still the same.
16:43-16:44
They worked on Adam and Eve.
16:45-16:48
He's still using them today. Why? Because they still work.
16:49-16:52
But you see his first step? Did God really say that?
16:53-16:55
Did God actually say that?
16:56-17:01
But you notice, Satan, he's such a liar.
17:03-17:10
"You shall not eat of any tree in the garden." Heave, doesn't that sound awfully restrictive?
17:11-17:12
Did God really say that?
17:12-17:16
Did God really say, "I put all these trees here, but I don't want you eating off of any of them"?
17:17-17:18
Did God really say that?
17:20-17:28
Well, Eve's response seems to reflect that she's starting to go down the road with the serpent already.
17:28-17:29
Did you see that?
17:29-17:41
She said, "Well, we can eat off the trees, but God said if the tree in the midst of the Garden. Don't eat that one.
17:41-17:44
And middle of verse three, neither shall you touch it.
17:49-17:54
Adding a sense of legalism there, did God say don't touch the tree?
17:54-18:00
No. But he was already starting to get on this restrictive mindset, don't eat off any tree.
18:01-18:05
Well, he didn't say that, but there is this tree that we're not even supposed to touch.
18:07-18:11
Doubting the authenticity of God's Word opens the door to destruction.
18:15-18:20
And sadly today, liberal churches everywhere continue this presumptuous questioning.
18:24-18:25
Did God really say that?
18:26-18:27
Is that what the Bible actually says?
18:29-18:34
I mean, black and white, it really appears that it says one thing, but is that really what it says?
18:38-18:42
I just recently had a discussion with a person on this very issue.
18:43-18:44
Does the Bible really say that?
18:44-19:00
And I said, "Look, you know the side I'm going to err on every time is if that's what the Bible appears to say, then that's what it appears to say." You know, instead of looking at it and saying, "Well, that's what it says, but I'm going to do a little interpretive gymnastics and make it say something else." Bad idea.
19:02-19:04
Did God really say that?
19:04-19:07
And ironically, Genesis itself is under the biggest attack.
19:09-19:10
But you've got to watch out for step one.
19:10-19:15
When you start to doubt the authenticity of God's Word, that opens the door to destruction.
19:15-19:19
Step two, deny the accuracy of God's Word.
19:19-19:21
Deny the accuracy of God's Word.
19:21-19:22
Look at verses four and five.
19:23-19:28
But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die.
19:31-19:41
For God knows that when you eat of it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." So this is step two.
19:41-19:42
First of all, we cast the shadow of doubt.
19:42-19:43
Did God really say that?
19:44-19:50
And then Satan just comes right at her with an, "Oh, he, no, he didn't say that." No, no, no, no, no.
19:50-19:51
You're surely not going to die.
19:51-19:54
Flat out contradiction of God's Word.
19:56-19:58
Here again, Satan with the lie.
19:58-19:59
God's holding out on you.
19:59-20:01
Do you see that?
20:01-20:03
God's holding out on you, Eve.
20:04-20:09
God doesn't want you to eat off of that tree because God is a glory hound.
20:11-20:13
And He doesn't want you to be like Him.
20:13-20:16
God knows that if you eat off that tree, you're going to be like Him.
20:17-20:24
That's why He put the restriction on that, making God sound, again, so restrictive, so unloving.
20:24-20:25
It's the lie of the devil.
20:29-20:31
Well, Satan left a part out, as he does.
20:33-20:35
God is incorruptible.
20:36-20:37
Man is not.
20:37-21:07
I think it was John MacArthur that said, you know, concerning this passage, "God knows good and evil, true, and man, for meeting off this tree, will know good and evil." I believe it was John MacArthur that said, "God knows good and evil like a sunbeam shining on sewage." Unaffected. Knowledge of, but unaffected. But man knows evil like someone drowning in sewage.
21:09-21:16
And if you're not settled by faith in the authority of God's Word, you've opened yourself up to anything goes.
21:18-21:33
If you're not settled on the authority to say, "Yes, this is what God said. Yes, this is what God meant by that." that when that shadow of doubt comes in, that's going to lead to step three, disobey the authority of God's word.
21:35-21:36
Look at verse six.
21:36-21:39
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food.
21:40-21:51
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.
21:53-21:58
And he ate. Just like to remind you here that dwelling.
22:01-22:06
On sin. Dwelling on temptation to sin.
22:09-22:13
Eventually is going to make you give in to sin, big caution here.
22:15-22:16
Because you see in the text.
22:18-22:21
I know hindsight is 20/20, what should Eve have done here?
22:22-22:23
What should she have done?
22:25-22:31
The minute that Satan showed up and said, did God really say, she should have just said, yes, that's what he said, and walked away.
22:31-22:32
It's a settled deal.
22:33-22:34
God loves us.
22:34-22:34
He created us.
22:35-22:36
He has our best interests in mind.
22:37-22:39
Get behind me, Satan, right?
22:40-22:44
But in verse 6, it seems that she was dwelling.
22:45-22:47
So she looked at the tree.
22:47-22:49
Well, it does look good.
22:51-22:52
says it was a delight to the eyes.
22:53-22:53
You know that.
22:55-23:04
Not only does that food look tasty, I could just sit back and just really look at that, that's just an aesthetically appealing tree and she's thinking about it and looking at it.
23:04-23:06
And well.
23:08-23:10
I should desire this tree because.
23:12-23:13
It will make me wise.
23:16-23:21
The quicker and harder you say no to sin, the more likely you're going to mean no.
23:22-23:28
The quicker and harder you say no to sin, the more likely you're going to mean no.
23:30-23:39
And all I can tell you is that's been the experience of my life when I've been tempted to sin, the quicker and harder I say no, I'm not going to do that.
23:43-23:48
Because of my relationship with Jesus Christ, because of who he says I am, I'm not going to do that.
23:48-23:50
The quicker and harder I do that.
23:52-24:00
The easier it is to deal with that temptation, but I can also tell you in my life when I start entertaining the thoughts, you know.
24:02-24:05
Does the Bible really say that that's such a bad thing?
24:05-24:14
Well, the more we dwell on it, the easier it is to start to make excuses to do it.
24:15-24:19
Right. So don't dwell, but apparently.
24:21-24:28
Eve dwelt on it and Adam was with her, by the way, I think a lot of people leave that out like, oh, yeah, we're in all this trouble because of Eve and Eve this and Eve.
24:28-24:29
Well, Adam was with her.
24:31-24:32
And they disobeyed.
24:33-24:34
They bought the lie.
24:34-24:35
Something is in it for me.
24:36-24:37
And so it goes.
24:39-24:41
Sin at its very root.
24:42-24:43
Is selfishness.
24:45-24:46
Write that down.
24:48-24:55
Sin is selfishness, just write that phrase down, don't worry about the very root thing said is selfishness.
24:56-24:57
That's just all there is to it.
24:59-25:02
Sin is always what's in it for me.
25:02-25:03
What's going to make me happy?
25:04-25:05
What's the advantage for me?
25:06-25:08
Do you know what's in the middle of the word sin?
25:09-25:13
I, I, I, I, I want this.
25:13-25:14
I want to be happy.
25:14-25:16
I, I think I deserve this.
25:16-25:20
I. That is the that is the source of sin.
25:23-25:30
When it's no longer what is God's will, but when it becomes what is my will.
25:32-25:35
When it's not what does God want for me, it's what do I want for me?
25:36-25:37
What's good for me?
25:37-25:38
What's going to help me out?
25:43-25:45
Can you identify a time in your life when you walk this path?
25:46-25:47
Can you?
25:48-25:51
I'm sure if you think for a couple of seconds.
25:53-26:02
There's a time in your life that you were faced with a temptation that the first thing you thought was, well, does the Bible really address that?
26:04-26:08
And then maybe you were convinced, no, you know what the Bible doesn't really say.
26:10-26:15
And then you dwell on it, you think it over and you end up saying, I'm going to do what I want to do anyways.
26:17-26:18
So sin starts.
26:20-26:29
When we disregard God's word, secondly, sin bring shame that we try to disguise, look at verse seven.
26:31-26:33
It says, then the eyes of both were opened.
26:35-26:37
And they knew that they were naked.
26:41-26:46
And they said fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.
26:47-26:53
So as soon as they disobeyed the Lord, what was the first thing that they noticed?
26:53-26:54
What does your Bible say?
26:54-26:56
What was the first thing they noticed?
26:58-27:01
Go ahead, you can say it in church, they were naked.
27:02-27:07
See, we're kind of embarrassed to even say that that was the first thing that they noticed.
27:09-27:12
There's a there's a certain shame.
27:15-27:17
That's tied into sexuality.
27:19-27:19
Because of sin.
27:21-27:31
And don't ask me to perfectly articulate this or, you know, I can't give you some kind of a systematic explanation, I can't do it, but I can tell you this.
27:32-27:41
There is a certain shame that ties into sin, or ties into sexuality, excuse me, a certain shame that ties into sexuality because of sin.
27:42-27:44
Does anyone need convinced of this?
27:48-27:54
Could you say that looking out in this world today, pick up a newspaper, turn on the news, look on the Internet?
27:56-27:59
This whole sexual perversion thing is completely out of control.
28:00-28:02
That is directly tied into sin somehow.
28:04-28:06
Because the first thing Adam and Eve noticed was that they were naked.
28:08-28:14
You know, look at all the pornography, all the perversions, all the lewd acts.
28:15-28:30
I just, I read last night about this teacher getting in trouble Because two third graders were engaged in a sexual act and the teacher was unaware of it.
28:31-28:32
Third graders.
28:37-28:39
I mean, doesn't that shock you?
28:40-28:42
It does and it doesn't, right?
28:44-28:46
This is the effect of sin.
28:49-29:01
And now the only two people on the earth who just moments before this were naked and innocent sense that they need to cover themselves from each other.
29:03-29:04
Something seriously went wrong.
29:06-29:07
So what do they do?
29:09-29:10
Well, they decide we need to make underwear.
29:12-29:16
Right. They make themselves underpants.
29:18-29:20
Out of what? What does your Bible say?
29:23-29:25
What does your Bible say, they made underpants out of what?
29:27-29:30
Big leaves. Now.
29:32-29:37
I'm not a seamstress, what do you call a male seamstress, is it still seamstress or is there like a.
29:38-29:40
A tailor, I'm not a tailor.
29:42-29:46
Thank you, Mark. I should have known that I'm not a tailor.
29:49-29:52
You'd have to ask somebody that knows a lot more about these things than me.
29:53-29:58
But how long do you think a pair of britches made out of fig leaves is going to last?
29:59-30:00
Really? How long?
30:01-30:02
Not long?
30:03-30:04
Can we put a time on that?
30:05-30:06
How long do you think it's going to last?
30:07-30:09
What happens to the leaves in your yard after a while?
30:11-30:13
They get dry and they get crunchy.
30:17-30:19
How long does a pair of britches made out of fig leaves last?
30:20-30:24
Well, I just imagine until they get crispy and then Adam or Eve sit down.
30:25-30:26
It's like...
30:27-30:31
Well, it's kind of humorous, but understand this.
30:33-30:36
Man's attempts to cover shame are always like that, right?
30:37-30:42
Man's attempts to cover up shame are always futile, but sin always makes us want to try.
30:42-30:43
We'll cover it.
30:44-30:44
We'll fix it.
30:45-30:45
I can fix this.
30:47-30:49
Something seriously went wrong here, but let's cover it up.
30:50-30:51
Let's not deal with it.
30:51-30:52
Let's just cover it up.
30:54-30:55
That'll be our solution.
30:57-31:05
That's why today pornography is hidden in the drawer or on the computer.
31:06-31:12
That's why emails and texts are hidden from my parents, from my spouse.
31:14-31:17
That's why my little secret substance, I keep hidden.
31:17-31:21
I keep it stashed somewhere because I don't want people to find it.
31:21-31:24
We still walk down this same path today.
31:26-31:27
Hide the shame.
31:27-31:28
Cover it up.
31:28-31:29
Let's hide it.
31:30-31:32
What sin are you trying to cover up?
31:33-31:39
I'd like to remind you that your cover-up is as effective as leafy britches.
31:42-31:43
Please don't quote me on that.
31:48-31:49
Sin brings shame, we try to disguise.
31:51-31:54
Number three, sin causes us to disengage from God.
31:56-31:58
Sin causes us to disengage from God.
31:58-31:59
Look at verse eight.
31:59-32:03
And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day.
32:03-32:16
And the man and his wife, so sad, hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, Where are you?
32:20-32:21
Do you think God didn't know where he was?
32:24-32:26
Adams, like Grand Champion of hide and seek.
32:29-32:31
Do you really think that's what was going on here?
32:32-32:34
God wasn't looking for information.
32:34-32:35
God never is.
32:35-32:35
Right?
32:36-32:37
He wasn't looking for information.
32:37-32:38
What was he looking for?
32:39-32:40
He was looking for a confession.
32:41-32:42
Adam, where are you?
32:43-32:44
Where are you?
32:52-32:56
And he said, "I heard the sound of you in the garden.
32:56-32:58
And this is so sad.
32:58-32:59
And I was afraid.
33:03-33:04
I was afraid.
33:06-33:07
Because I was naked.
33:09-33:10
And I hid myself.
33:13-33:23
God created man to have this perfect love relationship with and now with the entrance of sin into the world, what was man reduced to?
33:25-33:26
I am afraid of you, God.
33:27-33:28
I'm afraid of you.
33:30-33:36
Sin causes us to disengage from God, the perfect fellowship was broken to the point of hiding.
33:38-33:39
Sin makes us do crazy things.
33:40-33:43
The craziest thing that sin makes us do, though, by far.
33:45-33:46
Is what it makes us run from God.
33:49-33:52
The guilt makes us scared of a holy God.
33:53-33:54
This is wrong.
33:54-33:57
I know it's wrong, but I'm under so much conviction.
33:59-34:01
That's why many people just stop going to church.
34:03-34:10
It's the conviction so great and we come and we sing songs to God and we get God's Word and I got sin in my life and I'm just going to quit going to church.
34:11-34:19
Instead of, I need this God that they're talking about, I need this God that they're worshiping, I need this God whose presence I feel in the church.
34:20-34:22
Instead it's, I can't be around those people.
34:24-34:29
I can't be in that place because God's presence is there.
34:31-34:33
Running from God instead of running to God.
34:37-34:38
This happens so many times over.
34:38-34:45
I think of one person many years ago, I invited to church who came for a couple weeks and then stopped coming.
34:45-34:46
I ran into her again.
34:46-34:49
I said, "Hey, I haven't seen you in church." I'll never forget what she said.
34:51-34:57
I appreciate her honesty, but she said, I can't go to church and live the kind of life I want to live.
35:02-35:05
And it was like it hit the nail on the head.
35:07-35:12
If you'd rather choose sin, then you're not going to want to be around God.
35:13-35:16
Adam was the first person to experience that.
35:16-35:19
Sin makes me, or causes us rather, to disengage from God.
35:21-35:26
And finally, sin makes us want to deflect guilt, verses 11 through 13.
35:29-35:54
God asks his second question, he says, "Well, where are you?" His second question, again, God's looking for a confession, "Who told you that you were naked?" God's third question, "Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" Again, we put ourselves in the story, we're so holy.
35:57-36:03
But I imagine most of us would probably, probably, excuse me, respond to God in a very similar way.
36:08-36:09
Look at Adam's response.
36:11-36:25
The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, "she gave me fruit of the tree and I ate." Now, do you see what happened here?
36:27-36:36
At this point in history, how many people, other persons I should say, how many other persons did Adam know?
36:38-36:40
He knew two other persons in all of existence.
36:41-36:45
He knew Eve and he knew God.
36:46-37:07
So when Adam was confronted with a sin, he blamed every other person that he knew for his problem. Did you see that? He says, "The woman that you gave me." Who was he ultimately blaming? He's blaming God.
37:07-37:08
Right?
37:09-37:10
See what Adam said?
37:10-37:11
Adam was like, "You know what, God?
37:14-37:20
Back before you put me to sleep and took one of the ribs, things were, you know, things were pretty good around here.
37:20-37:22
I'm, you know, I'm not criticizing.
37:22-37:23
I'm just saying.
37:24-37:26
I'm just saying things were okay.
37:26-37:27
And then Eve came along.
37:27-37:28
I'm just saying.
37:31-37:38
You know, ever since Eve came along, things haven't been as, you know, things weren't like tight like they were before.
37:39-37:41
And he was audibly blaming God.
37:42-37:42
You put her here.
37:45-37:46
The woman that you gave me.
37:47-37:47
Wow.
37:48-37:49
Wow.
37:51-37:52
Does that sound familiar?
37:52-37:55
We live in a day when nobody's responsible for their actions.
37:55-37:56
Do you notice that?
37:57-37:58
It's not my fault.
37:59-38:00
It's not my fault.
38:01-38:06
Yes, I've done horrible things and I act horrible ways and I say terrible things, but it's not my fault.
38:06-38:07
It is how I was raised.
38:08-38:09
It's part of my culture.
38:09-38:10
It's not my fault I have an illness.
38:12-38:13
It's not my fault I have an addiction.
38:15-38:17
Or we, like Adam, blame God.
38:17-38:18
You know what, this is just the way I was made.
38:19-38:21
You know, God made me this way, that's just how I am.
38:23-38:25
Totally skipping over everything that Genesis three is teaching.
38:27-38:28
Sin makes us want to deflect guilt.
38:29-38:41
We're going to stop there in our text, but at this point you might be asking, "Well, what does all of this have to do with me?" We're going to talk more about this next week, but understand this.
38:41-38:43
Adam's sin affects the whole human race.
38:44-38:45
This is why we're getting into this.
38:46-38:53
Actually Romans 5, 12 tells us that Adam brought sin and death into the world.
38:56-38:58
And it affects the whole human race.
38:58-39:01
In fact, it's passed down from generation to generation.
39:02-39:06
We are all born dead and dying.
39:08-39:16
You are born and I am born, we're born with a sin nature, we're born with a tendency to do wrong, to do what we want to be selfish.
39:19-39:23
Rather than to honor God and put other people ahead of ourselves, we're born with that nature, don't believe me.
39:27-39:35
After church, get with one of these families that have these little kids running around and go hang out with them for the afternoon.
39:37-39:38
And you're going to see.
39:41-39:42
Sin isn't taught to children.
39:44-39:53
I have two children, I never sat down with them and said, you know what, you're going to get far in life if you lie, sneak and cheat, you're going to get real far.
39:53-39:56
Never taught them instinctively.
39:56-40:01
They know even my seven year old who doesn't talk.
40:03-40:08
I'll catch him sometimes getting into something he shouldn't, but he's always looking over his shoulder to see if I'm watching.
40:09-40:10
I didn't teach him that.
40:12-40:13
We're born with a sin nature.
40:14-40:17
You got it from your parents who got it from their parents.
40:18-40:21
In fact, Romans eight tells us that the whole world is under a curse.
40:22-40:23
You might say, well, wait a second.
40:23-40:24
Timeout question in the back.
40:24-40:26
Yes, yes. I have a question.
40:26-40:28
Why don't I get the same choice Adam and Eve did?
40:29-40:35
Right. Why is it that when I was born, I didn't get to be in my own little garden of Eden and God put two trees there for me.
40:35-40:36
Why didn't I get the choice?
40:39-40:40
Look, it's just the way it is.
40:41-40:41
That's all I got to tell you.
40:42-40:42
That's just the way it is.
40:43-40:49
God created the first man and the first woman, and they were representative of the entire human race.
40:52-40:56
So, yes, we sin because we were still, so to speak, in the loins of Adam.
40:59-41:03
His transgression brought sin down, we inherited it.
41:04-41:06
There's nothing we can do about that.
41:09-41:19
We were born with a sin nature, a self-centered, prideful disposition that lives in this pattern that we just saw in Genesis chapter three, and we can redefine it.
41:19-41:20
We can ignore it.
41:21-41:23
We can just learn to deny guilt.
41:23-41:25
That's what a lot of people advocate.
41:25-41:26
Now, did you know that?
41:27-41:30
Just try not to feel guilty or just keep doing stuff enough.
41:30-41:38
You know, whatever makes you feel guilty, just keep doing it until you don't feel guilty anymore. The problem remains.
41:41-41:47
The problem remains because there's only one thing that can fix it.
41:50-41:51
And that's forgiveness.
41:53-41:58
Our problem fundamentally is by nature we are dead.
42:01-42:03
Dead in our trespasses, we covered that in Colossians, didn't we?
42:04-42:07
There's only one thing that can fix death, and what's that?
42:08-42:08
Life.
42:10-42:10
Life.
42:14-42:26
So next week we're going to continue in this passage and we're going to see the consequences that sin has brought specific curses on a world of sin and death.
42:29-42:32
Now we could leave here and you would walk out of there saying, "Wow, where's the hope?
42:34-42:41
Where's the hope?" Well, the first step is to properly diagnose the problem.
42:43-42:43
That's the first step.
42:45-42:46
You've got to properly diagnose the problem.
42:48-42:50
You have a sin nature.
42:51-42:56
You were born with a bent toward sin that you inherited from great-grandfather Adam.
42:59-43:01
So not only identify, but you have to personalize it.
43:02-43:04
Some people are going to walk out of here this morning going, "You know what?
43:05-43:06
That preacher was right.
43:06-43:13
People are messed up in this world." Instead of saying, "I'm affected too.
43:15-43:16
I have a sin problem.
43:17-43:18
I was born with a sin nature.
43:21-43:32
Only when we diagnose the problem and personalize it, only then can we see and embrace the solution that God has graciously provided.
43:35-43:36
Many of you have done that.
43:37-43:41
And I ask you to continue to pray for the people that come and have not done that.
43:45-44:00
When you get to Genesis chapter 3, you know, up until this point in the Bible, what we have seen of God is power, creativity, and holiness.
44:03-44:38
But now we have the opportunity to see another side of God's character as we talk about as mercy and grace. Next week we'll continue in this passage, but let's get the right diagnosis, okay? Let's stop with the excuses, let's stop with the relabeling, and let's see it from God's perspective. Only then will the cross of Jesus Christ, really.
44:42-44:44
You'll be able to understand the glory.
44:47-44:48
That's in that atoning ministry.
44:49-44:51
We bow your heads and pray with me, please.
44:56-44:57
Our father in heaven.
45:05-45:10
God, you know the burden that's on my heart to even share a message like this.
45:10-45:12
I hate to leave things hanging.
45:12-45:15
And I know a lot of people in here know the rest of the story.
45:17-45:19
But your word is very clear.
45:23-45:26
That our problem is not our environment, our problems from inside.
45:29-45:33
And that's why we can't use the things in our environment to fix the problem.
45:33-45:37
A solution has to come from the inside out, but we can't do that.
45:41-45:52
I pray, God, as we look at this pattern of sin, it just more and more makes us want to run to our heavenly father, say, God, you're the only one in the universe that can do inside out ministry.
45:52-45:54
You're the only one, God, that can.
45:55-45:56
They can change me.
45:58-45:59
They can give me life.
46:01-46:02
You're the only one.
46:07-46:16
Father, I thank you that you've given us this account in your Word so that we can properly diagnose.
46:19-46:32
And as we continue in our series over the next couple of weeks, Father, I pray that we would passionately embrace the cure.
46:38-46:42
We praise you for the grace that you've poured on us in Jesus Christ.
46:44-46:45
It's in His name that we pray.
46:46-46:46
Amen.
Small Group Questions (Whole Group):
Read Genesis 3:1-13
Breakout Questions:
Pray for one another.