Hidden in Eden’s forest

I have been once again in the third chapter of Genesis this morning and in prayer, I feel that The Lord gave me some powerful insights.

Now… the enemy came in a time when Adam and Eve did not sense the presence of God. He’s very good at picking times when we are not singing in church or praying at an altar or feeling the presence of God. He comes in times when the human spirit does not retain God. ( Rom 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;)

Gen 3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

Gen 3:7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

Gen 3:8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

Gen 3:9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?

Gen 3:10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

The main thing I want to bring forth today is the timing between verses 7 and verses 8. At times, in scripture one verse can be written minutes, hours, days or years between verses. Ecclesiastes tells us that a wise man discerns both the timing and the purpose.

That being said and knowing that God is “omnipresent” – or “ever present” or “always present” – this is very important to the timing of what happened here. I believe personally that before the fall, God was just a heartbeat away and always within earshot of Adam and Eve. All they had to do was whisper and He would answer.

After the sin we see a separation. The sin didn’t make God deaf. It didn’t make Him run away. It didn’t make Him stupid or naïve. It didn’t make Him no longer care. It didn’t make Him hate. Sin doesn’t change the immutable characteristics or virtues of God change.

Sin changes us. It makes us deaf. It makes us run. It makes us very stupid. It causes us to lose the ability to care. It makes us hate. It changes the immutability or the virtues of our soul. We are living in a fleshly body that still… even after salvation can be “shaped in iniquity.” Depending on which potter’s hands we put ourselves into.

Sin opens our eyes to the world and causes fleshly reactions to the problems, the crisis, the storms, the poverty… and mostly… it opens our eyes to the frailty of our fellow man. For the first time… Adam was going to hide himself from his wife and he WANTED her to hide herself from him. When a man sins, he cannot bear to look at another person without judgment and criticism. That breeds misery, anger, guilt and a mirror to one’s own sin.

Sin also does something else that causes us to “steal” from God. It keeps us busy. It keeps us from our calling. It keeps us from our destiny. It keeps us from our maker.

Now look again at verse 7. Immediately after the fruit had been bitten into, the matrix of sin was opened and birthed in man. As they digested, the infection began to become a part of their bodies. Also… Immediately after that first bite, God didn’t come down and slap that fruit out of their hands. He didn’t reach down their throats and take the fruit out before digestion. He didn’t Heimlich maneuver them as they choked on the sin. He was there… but He didn’t speak. He didn’t rebuke. He didn’t scream or shout or chastise. He was silent.

He was waiting for an apology. He was waiting for a confession. He waited with a broken heart for His creation to “fess up.” And as He waited, they ran farther from Him.

They hid themselves in the forests of Eden and opened up a clothing store. The time between the initiation of sin and of the “cool of the day” may have been a longer time than we realize, knowing that God is LONG suffering. The “cool of the day” might have even meant a change of seasons – or could represent a changing of the hearts of Adam and Eve.

In any event, they sewed leaves together and made aprons. They had never done this before and I’m sure as with any business “startup” it was most likely a lesson in frustration. It may have taken quite a while for them to realize HOW to cover their sin, and when they had perfected it, they most likely realized that they were still very much “out of place” as a couple dying in a garden that would never die.

They took leaves from the beauty of Eden – but taking and putting on the perfection externally could not cover or change the sin inside. (Another message, another time). The thing I see today is the message of just one of the things sin caused.

It caused them to become VERY busy. Sin steals your time with God. It makes you busy doing the mundane and the impractical to keep your journey moving. Sin creates a market for things that are not of God – and the supply and demand that sin creates are very tiring elements. It’s like a hamster on a wheel or getting to the next level of “Donkey Kong.” You think it’s so important and life changing. But it’s not. It IS, though, life altering. That supply and demand for what sin creates can keep you busy… all your life. All that wasted time.

Did you hear me?

All that wasted time … sewing and inventing and perfecting. Occupying in a profession that they were not called to. Perfection surrounding them and never being able to appreciate or enjoy one moment of it. (Mat 6:27 “Can any of you add a single hour to your life by worrying?)

Oh, there are some things in this life that are not sin and that are NOT unto death that can also be great time wasters, but today I am dealing with sin. Sin steals the very life within you – and tries to make you too busy covering it… so, you cannot get to God who is the only one who can reverse that curse.

Whether it’s anger or malice or worrying or lust or gossip or backbiting. It keeps you busy, keeps you from God and alienates you from those around you. The moment you sin… He comes looking for you and waits for you to face Him and confess. He may follow a long time waiting for your confession.

The bad news is that God DOES have a timetable and will eventually confront you. I always find it a better policy to find Him first.

Mat 21:44 Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken. If the stone falls on anyone, it will crush that person.”

Want to have more time? Want to feel beautiful in the midst of perfection? Want to quit “wasting” time on sin’s supply and demand?

Get off the wheel my fellow hamsters. Run to God. Run to His arms. Start all over again.

1Jn 2:1 My dear children, I’m writing this to you so that you will not sin. Yet, if anyone does sin, we have Jesus Christ, who has God’s full approval. He speaks on our behalf when we come into the presence of the Father.