Category: Newsletter

Introduction

Adam disobeyed God but he was not forever cast away. God continued to show His love unto Him by reconciling him unto Himself. This love of God for man supersedes that for His Angels because when His angels sinned, they were not forgiven (Jud 1: 6). This reckless love of God for man is further discussed in this piece of writing.

The Origin of Sin

The scripture below does not directly account for how the devil fell but it is symbolic of him. In reference to the King of Babylon, it is written:

“How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High” (Isa 14:12-14)

The devil was cast down from heaven because of his pride and rebelliousness. He wanted to be like God and occupy His throne. A throne that is exclusively and unreservedly meant to be occupied by God in Heaven. It was this same pride and the desire to be like God that caused the fall of Adam (Gen 3:3-4) and the king of Tyre (Eze 28:15-18).

The Sin and Adam

 Many a time, we hastily accuse Adam over the sin which we could equally have done. Sin was in the world before Adam committed one because Lucifer had already fallen.

Again, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was already present in the garden before the creation of Adam. The name of the tree suggests that evil was already in the world before Adam did evil. It is said:

“And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Gen 2:16-17).

This means that before Adam was put in the Garden of Eden, sin was present with him. Also, death was in the world before the fall of Adam because God told them that if they eat of the forbidden tree, they shall surely die (Gen 3:3-4). The truth is that death did not yet have the power to get a hold on them until they sinned.

Thus, “You shall surely die” is an indication that death had already been introduced into the world (Gen 3:17, 2:4) by virtue of the sin of the devil. The `death` here is the separation of man from God, the physical death was also implied.

Moreover, the instruction from God, “though shall not eat” means that they had the inherent desire to lust after it (sin) or to eat from the tree. The tree was standing right before their eyes but they were dead to it until the devil went to them.

Defeated by Lust

Adam and his wife knew of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. They had seen its fruits but were never enticed to eat from it until the devil aroused their lust. One thing the enemy did to make them fall was to entice them with lust. Lust was dormant in Adam but it was activated by the enemy. The devil made the fruit to be good to look at and appeared good for food (Gen 3: 3-6) so they ate it. Adam and his wife could not control their lust. As James write:

“Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death (Jas 1:13-15).

Adam and Eve were drawn away by their own lust and were deceived. Their lust was activated to uncontrollable levels until they sinned, and then death took dominion over them and their descendants.

All human beings are born with innocence but not without lust. It is the environment (i.e. the desire to have all, TV programs, songs we listen to, things we look at, social interactions, and others) that activates and elevates our lust to dangerous or unacceptable heights. Even the biological consequences in our lives are as a result of long term interactions with the physical environment by a member or some members in our family lines.

Adam and his wife were not different from us in their dealings with the command of God. They sinned because they could not control the lust of their eyes and their flesh but God still loved them. He offered a propitiatory sacrifice to cover their shame and to redeem and restore them to their original relationship with Him (Gen 3: 21)

Conclusion

Adam and Eve sinned because they were driven away and enticed by their lust for the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The enemy knew that he could make them fall by arousing their lust and sustaining it to abnormal levels. We must, therefore, endeavor to control our lust before it brings shame on us.

Prayer: Dear Lord, help us to control our lust. In the name of Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen!

Introduction

This edition of our newsletter continues our series on the reckless love of God to mankind. The kind of love that beats the human mind. It was this love of Christ Jesus that made Him most criticized by the Jews. Relationship of Christ with sinners is discussed in this piece.

All have sinned

According to Paul, all human beings became sinners because of the sin of the first man, Adam (Rom 5:12). Sin was imputed to all people who had not even sinned in the manner of Adam. Because of the sin of Adam, death exercised authority over all human race until the time of Moses (Rom 5:14). All people, both Jews, and Gentiles were all under sin (Rom Rom 3:9). It is further written that:

“There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one” (Rom 3:10-12, Psa 14:1-3).

The above was the condition of man before the incarnation of Christ. Humans were completely sinful, and they were under a curse. But Christ Jesus came at the appointed time and died to redeem those that were under the curse of the law (Gal 4:4-5). It is the Christ who delivered us from so great a death and does deliver. We trust that He will still deliver us (2Co 1:10). He loves sinners unconditionally and non-judgmentally because He was not sent into the world to condemn it but to save it (Joh 3:17).

Jesus eats with sinners

 Today, Believers shun sinners because they are seen as unclean people. Jesus never avoided sinners. He welcomed them and sought opportunities to introduce His Kingdom to them. He dined with the rejected, the socially despised and excluded people. When the Scribes and the Pharisees noticed that Christ Jesus was eating with sinners, they asked His disciples why would Jesus eat with them (Mat 2:11, Mar 2:16). They complained and said “..This man receives sinners, and eats with them (Luk 15:2). Are we ready to welcome the despised in our societies and eat with them?

Sinners unto repentance

The truth remains that Christ Jesus does not have a mission on earth without sinners. As the Scribes and Pharisees complained about His positive attitude and love toward sinners, He made them understand that they do not understand the scriptures. He contended with them, that, those who are whole do not need a physician but the sick does (Mat 9:12). He referred them to the Old Testament writings and said:

“But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice (Hos 6:6): for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Mat 9:13, Mar 2:7).

Jesus did not come to save the righteous but sinners unto repentance (Mar 2:17). The Lord cannot be merciful and still throw away sinners, because He says it emphatically that:  “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (Joh 6:37). If you do not sin, you may hurry and cast stones at sinners (Joh 6:37).

Stretching hands unto sinners

Many of us who vehemently reject sinners are more sinful than the sinners themselves. The Gentiles (sinners) seek after God while the self-righteous people are furious with Christ for welcoming them. It is evident:

“But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation, I will anger you. “But Esaias is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me. But to Israel he saith, All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people” (Rom 10:19-21).

If you think that you have been abandoned by God because of your sins, then you do not know God. Because of the gracious love of the Lord, we are not destroyed. And His compassion does not fail (Lam 3:22-23). He shall not stop pursuing us in our sins until we return to Him in repentance.

Conclusion

Sin is an abomination to God but He does not despise sinners. He invites and welcomes them to Himself because His mission is to the lost souls but not the righteous.

Prayer: Dear Lord, teach our hearts to learn and to practice the kind of love you demonstrated towards us. In the great name of Christ Jesus, our Lord. AMEN!