Some may wonder how did man get like this? Where did all of mans desires come from? Well first we must understand that God made man from the beginning of all creation. We must also understand the fall of man. Lets see what the Bible says about the fall of man. First look at Genesis 1:27 it says: Then God said, Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. Now look at Genesis 2:8 it says Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. And the Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the groundtrees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field. Look at verse 16 it says And the Lord God commanded the man, You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die. Look at Genesis 3:1 it says Now the serpent(trickster, deceiver) was more crafty than any of the wild animals of the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, Did God really say, You must not eat from any tree in the garden? The woman said to the serpent, We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden ,but God did say, You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die. You will not surely die, the serpent (trickster, deceiver) said to the woman. For God know that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened (unsealed, establish), and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. Now look at verse 6 it says When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, (unsealed, establish), and they realize they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. So one must ask, are we doing what Eve did in the garden, doing what is pleasing to the eye and desirable for oneself, or are we doing the will of God? Look at 1Chronicles 29:17 it says I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things have I given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you. O Lord, God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Israel, keep this desire in the hearts of your people forever, and keep their hearts loyal to you. Now look at 1Timothy 6:6 it says But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. In the sight of God, who gives life to everything, and of Christ Jesus, who while testifying before Pontius Plate made the good confession, I Charge you to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which God will bring about in his own timeGod, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever, Amen Look at James 4:1 it says What causes fights and quarrels among you? Dont they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but dont get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. Now look at 1Peter 2:11 it says Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. Look at 1John 2:15 it says Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the worldthe cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and doescomes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever. In closing look at 1Corinthians it says Everything is permissiblebut not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissiblebut not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others. Love Always,
Your Sister in Christ,
Mellody Davis |
