Back to Genesis
The longer I live, the more I see of the human story in the first 3 chapters of Genesis.
This passage of Scripture tells us how the universe came to exist, who we are, why we’re here, and why we act the way we do. I encourage you to read it again.
Time, space and matter had a beginning. This is something scientists agree on (just not how it happened). The Bible tells us it was created, by someone outside of time, space and matter. A supremely powerful and eternal being. God.
Beyond creating the vastness of the universe, God created us in His image, in His likeness, to reflect His glory, to love Him and to serve Him. And this arrangement brings complete fulfillment and joy.
But something tragic happened. Instead of serving Him as God, we wanted to be like Him, to be His equal. This happened at the temptation of the being that first wanted this, Satan.
Instead of obeying God, we rebelled, and sin entered the human race. We are all sinful, from birth. We all have natural inclinations to want everything our way.
But look farther into the story.
Notice the reaction of Adam and Eve when they broke God’s commandment.
First, they hid from Him. Then they blamed others for their decision.
Isn’t that what we do today? We don’t want to confess our wrongdoing, so we cover it up. We hide it.
And then we have plenty of excuses for why it wasn’t really our fault.
But look again at what Adam and Eve said in response to being confronted about their sin.
The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” Genesis 3: 12-13
Both ultimately blamed God for their choice. “It wasn’t my fault. They made me do it. And You put them here.”
So many of our problems today are because we have elevated ourselves beyond our rightful place. We want things we shouldn’t, and that God has told us not to do. But we choose them, because ultimately, we want to be in charge.
When the consequences come, we cover our tracks, then blame others.
Just like in the Garden of Eden.
A lot of things may be different about our world today, but a great many of them are still the same. Looking at the world through the Genesis 1-3 lens, things tend to make a good bit more sense.
There really isn’t much new under the sun. And understanding how it all began can help us to solve our issues in the present.