"God Lied to You" Sermon: Genesis 3:1-7 (manuscript)

“God Lied to You”

[Genesis 3:1-7]

YouTube March 1, 2020

            We are now in the Lenten season – a time set aside by the Church of forty days – not including Sundays – prior to Holy Week, when we specifically contemplate the sinfulness of sin.  So, we will take a few weeks off from Isaiah to look at sin and our response to it – beginning at the beginning.

            “Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made.”

            God created humans and all that exists, and God put Adam and Eve in a garden to care for it and to care for each other.  And God told them that they could eat from every tree of the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

“And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of 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’” (Genesis 2:16-17, ESV).

The demon-possessed serpent sought out Eve at a time when she was alone to tempt her, by getting her to doubt.  He spoke to her in Hebrew – or Dutch – depending on your tradition – the serpent spoke, and he told Eve:

First, God is unreasonable.

“He said to the woman, ‘Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?’”

“Eve, did God actually say to you that you are not allowed to eat out of any of the trees in the garden?  Is God being so unreasonable as to block you from all the fruit on earth?  Is God that selfish?”

The demon possessing the serpent knew very well that God has not said that they were not allowed to eat of any of the trees.  He knew that God had told them that they could eat from every tree in the entire garden – except for that one.  There was only one tree that God told them they were not allowed to eat from.

In our denomination, the Reformed Church in America, the demon is guiding some to ask if God is unreasonable:

“Did God really say we should not have sexual relations with anyone?”

“Did God really say we should never show love to another person?”

“Did God really say that marriage is a bad thing?”

“Did God really say that no one who is gifted to serve should be ordained in any of the offices of the Church?”

Neither Eve, nor we, should pull the answer out of our hats – look to the unchanging Word of God:  of course, God is not unreasonable!  That is not what He said.

“And the woman said to the serpent, ‘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”’.”

Eve told the serpent, “No!  God is not unreasonable.  God said we could eat from every tree in the garden except for this one.  God said we are not to eat of the fruit of this tree – nor are we to touch it – lest we die.”

Much has been made about Eve’s saying that they were not to touch it, but it is not something we will examine here.

The Psalmist tells us, “Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!

“Why should the nations say, ‘Where is their God?’

“Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases” (Psalm 115:1-3, ESV).

And Daniel records,  “At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’” (Daniel 4:34-35, ESV).

No, our God is not unreasonable.  He is not selfish.  He is the God Who created us and gives us life and breath and everything we ever have and enjoy – including salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ (cf., Acts 17:25).

Second, God lied to you.

“But the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’”

“Oh, poor, poor, Eve.  I have been around the block.  I have lived on this earth for several more days than you have.  God lied to you!  If you eat the fruit of the knowledge of the tree of good and evil, you will become like God.  You will understand good and evil.  You will be competition to God.  He doesn’t want you to reach your full potential.  He doesn’t want to share everything that is with you.”

Doubt sown.

“I know that God is greater than I am, so I could be greater than I am.  Would God really try to keep me from having my best life now?  Are Oprah, and Jerry and Terry Savelle – and many others – right in saying that God doesn’t want us bound by rules.  He wants us to imagine what we want and what we want to be and then go forth in faith and take it, because it is ours.  Is this a test?  Did God lie to me so I would reach out in faith and take the fruit and eat it and become a higher power?” [cf. https://elevatechristiannetwork.com/terry-savelle-foy-achieve-dreams/]

The author of Hebrews tells us, “So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath,  so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us” (Hebrews 6:17-18, ESV).

The serpent lied.  And we know the serpent lied, because God cannot lie.

But the doubt was sown, and Eve didn’t take long to think it over, and she bought the serpent’s lie:

“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, 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, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.”

And if your response is to say, “But, ah-hah!  They didn’t die!”

That depends on the meaning of “die,” doesn’t it.

Paul explains, “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind” (Ephesians 2:1-3, ESV).

“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come” (Romans 5:12-14, ESV).

Paul is clear – even though humans do die – the more important understanding in this context is that all mere humans became spiritually dead by the sin of our first parents.  God did not lie.  When our first parents sinned against God, the died spiritually and passed on that spiritual death to all their mere human descendants. 

            And John tells us:

            “This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us” (I John 1:5-10, ESV).

            Third, our sin is rooted in pride.

            The serpent told Eve that God lied – that God didn’t want to share all that He is with humans – and if she ate of the fruit, she would become like God – she would be on a higher plane – more like God.

            Though it’s all tied up together in one ball – Eve did not sin just as she bit the fruit --- no, the sin began in pride, when she believes the lie of the serpent and exalts herself above God – believing that she deserves to be like God – she deserves to have the knowledge of good and evil.  She is going to bring herself up to the level of God.  And she sees the fruit is beautiful, and she plucks it from the tree – as a fist raised to God – and she bites in and she gives it to Adam, who submits, and eats as well.

            And the inevitable fall from pride – from sin – the guilt and embarrassment – they realize they are naked and cover their nakedness with leaves.

Like Babylon:

            “How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low!  You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High’” (Isaiah 14:12-14, ESV).

            Every time we sin, we allow the root of pride to grow, and we raise our fist at God and say that we will put ourselves above the law – above God – because we know better,  God has been unreasonable to us – God has lied to us – be we will take what is ours and triumph!

            And if we’re honest with ourselves – every time we sin – we end up naked and ashamed – wanting to cover ourselves and hide from God.

            Is there any hope for men and women like us – men and women like Adam and Eve?

            After God cursed the serpent, Adam, and Eve, we read, “The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them” (Genesis 3:20-21, ESV).

            We are not explicitly told, but there is good reason to infer that Adam and Eve repented and were saved by faith alone in the Savior Who was promised even in God’s cursing.  We see that God sacrificed animals, shed their blood, and then covered Adam and Eve with their skins.  (And Abel and Seth surely were believers.)

            The author of Hebrews tells us, “So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood” (Hebrews 13:12, ESV).

            Jesus lived and died – shedding His blood – sanctifying – making holy – everyone who will repent and believe in Him – through His blood.  Jesus – God the Son – was sacrificed – His blood was shed – so God could cover us with it and forgive us for every sin we ever commit.

            “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9, ESV).

            God is not unreasonable to withhold one thing and give us everything else in all of Creation.  Let us show Him our love through our faith and obedience to Him.

            God does not lie.  It is impossible for God to lie because He is light and there is no darkness in Him.  Lying is opposed to God’s character and Being.  Let us strive after holiness through the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit – as He makes us like His Son, Jesus.

            When we are tempted to sin – when we are tempted to say that God is wrong – that we know better than the clear Word of God – let us recognize our pride and sin and deny them , because everything God has said is for our good and to His Glory – and we don’t have to understand every “why” to know what it means to be faithful to our God and Savior.

            Let us pray:

            Almighty God, we thank You that You always provided the Way to be reconciled to You.  For before the foundations of the world, the Son was ordained to be our Savior.  You created everything that is, and all occurs to Your Glory.  Help us to look to the Holy Spirit when we are tempted that He would lead us to faith and obedience, and away from our pride and sin.  Grow us into the Image of Your Son and help us to better understand the sinfulness of sin in this season of reflection.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.