Advent Day 3: Adam and Eve

Day Three: Adam and Eve

“What if.”

I used to imagine what it would be like if Adam and Eve hadn’t sinned. What if they had NOT taken a bite of that fruit. What if they had NOT listened to the lies of the snake. I distinctly remember feeling upset knowing how much beauty and glory must have been in that garden and wondering why she HAD to eat that one fruit. Of all the wonderful things. Couldn’t she have just said, “NO.” ?

I also remember the time I realized that had they resisted the temptation, had their children, and the children after them...all the way down to me...had all those generations resisted the temptation, I would have failed.

In our reading of this story, we must be careful not to judge too harshly. Deceit comes in the appearance of beautiful fruit. And the lies sound good when we have already decided on what we want. That one out-of reach, off limits thing makes all of the other blessings in life fade.  

Also, judging our first father and mother makes us ask the question “What if.” And that is a question that looks backwards. But God points forward and says, “I Promise.” Adam and Eve didn’t have to wait long in their darkness before God promised Light. He loved them. They were made in His image and He loved them beyond what they could see.

In love, He disciplined them.

In love, he protected them by sending them out of the garden.

In love, He told the snake:

“I will put enmity between you and the woman,

   and between your offspring[e] and her offspring;

he shall bruise your head,

   and you shall bruise his heel.”

That may not seem like a promise to you, but this was the first spark in the now-dark world.

From this point forward, man will do wrong. He will work. He will fight and kill and lie and cheat. Man will seek his own way and his own glory as the curse is passed from generation to generation. Be prepared for some pretty wicked stories as we progress through history.

But from this point onward, man will also wait for that One who will crush the head of the Serpent and bring light to his darkened heart. Watch for those sparks of hope. They are always there, even in the darkest of night.

Something was lost in their relationship with God when Adam and Eve sinned. Something broke. But know this, always remember this: the light did not leave them. God did not leave them. And he will never leave you.