Let’s be careful not to repeat the Fall of Man

I feel like I’m watching an ongoing rerun of the story of Adam and Eve, and the Fall of Man.

I have this image in my head that there are many seemingly important issues calling out for our attention and devotion, which are not from God, and are not part of God’s will for those who claim to be in relationship with God.  I see many people fully engaged in these issues, even Christians.  We all have a choice what to focus our attention on.  It doesn’t feel to me that these issues actually warrant the attention, time, and resources of the Christian community.

The message of the story of Adam and Eve is how humankind, initially in relationship with their Creator, turns away from God and towards other things which are not meant to have our attention; things that were not intended for our consumption - things that ultimately lead to humankind's separation from God.

  

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Is not the story of Adam and Eve the story of all of us?  Who can say they haven’t turned their focus away from God to other things they imagine are necessary, or important, or desirable?  I can attest that it is hard to remain focused on the small subset of things which have importance in the Kingdom of God. And I do believe that God has called His people to a specific small set of core activities.

Enticed to turn away from God

Temptations surround us, perhaps more so today, than ever in human history.  I’m not too concerned about those things which quickly and temporarily catch my attention.  After all, I am still bound to this suit of flesh, and until I leave it, there will always be some tension and conflict between the flesh and the spirit, just as Paul described in Romans 8:1-17.  We all have our own minds, and they can lead us astray at times.  Thankfully, God has left His Holy Spirit to guide us, if we understand this, and maintain awareness that God’s spirit is with us (John 16:13).

What is most important is to be alert to things which not only draw our attention away from God and from His plans for us - but which keep our attention, where we find ourselves dwelling on matters which have little or nothing to do with the Kingdom of God.  It seems there are many of these distractions today, perhaps more than the usual suspects (1 John 2:16).

We’re all subject to the winds and storms of the culture and society we live in - how do those of us who claim Christian belief deal with them?  Do we allow these storms to distract us from our Christian mission?  Do we decide to participate in these storms, or like Jesus in the midst of a storm, do we remain at rest, secure in our relationship with God?  Do we react like the rest of the world does, or do we respond as Jesus would?  Do we see today’s storms as an opportunity to share the love of God, and the message of Jesus with others in need, or do we get caught up in these storms where we look and behave no differently than anyone else?  If we’re not mindful of the lessons in God’s written word, we can find ourselves in the same situation as Adam and Eve - turning our attention and focus away from God, and pursuing something else which tempts our minds.

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Consider some of the things out there right now - things quite a few people seem very interested in dwelling on, and investing thought and time on:

• Do the controversies around the 2020 United States Presidential election have anything to do with our role in the Kingdom of God?  No.
• Does hoping and praying for the return of President Trump have anything to do with our role in the Kingdom of God? No.
• Does protesting a distorted version of Critical Race Theory have anything to do with our role in the Kingdom of God?  No.
• Does lambasting causes like BLM have anything to do with our role in the Kingdom of God?  No.
• Does hanging on every new word from so-called prophets have anything to do with our role in the Kingdom of God?  No.
• Does listening to the toxic voices of those seeking followers and riches, vying for our attention, saying things that feel good, have anything to do with our role in the Kingdom of God? No.
• Does that trending new show on Netflix have anything to do with our role in the Kingdom of God? No.

These and many other enticing distractions are nothing more than a type of forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden.  We have a choice to make, just like Adam and Eve did:  either believe what God says, or choose to ignore what God says and go our own way - enticed by something which isn’t of God, but something we see as important, and that we REALLY need to invest in.  

Our choice is the same as Adam’s choice

The story of Adam and Eve really is a story of life and death - there’s a path which leads to life (spiritual life) and a path which leads to death (spiritual death).  Turning away from God today is no different than when Adam and Eve ignored God’s words, and turned away from God.  As we notice the myriad of voices and issues calling out to us, are we keeping our focus on God, and being reminded of our calling as Christians?

God has declared to us in His written word, the way which leads to life.  Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount is always good to read, and it’s interesting that the passage which talks about the narrow path leading to life (Matthew 7:13-14) comes just before a warning about false prophets and trees bearing either good or bad fruit (Matthew 7:15-20).  And following right after that, is the section on building your house on a rock vs. on sand (Matthew 7:24-27).  Human history, from the very beginning indicates that the human mind will always struggle maintaining focus on the truth of God.  We need to heed the words of Jesus, and stay on the narrow path, watching out for voices declaring false notions, and ensuring we’re not adding sand to the rock foundation we started our Christian journey on.  To be clear, sand represents all those things we create dependencies on which are not meant to be foundational to living out our Christian calling.

Are we imaging Adam or imaging Christ?

Who do we look like if we turn away from God and run to the manufactured issues of the kingdom of man?  Do we reflect Adam or do we reflect Jesus Christ?  Disbelieving God’s word, and turning our attention to what we believe is important seems a lot like what Adam and Eve did.  I can understand that people lacking knowledge about God, and about the words of Jesus, would be fairly likely to engage in, and commit to, all sorts of ideas, causes and activities conjured up by the minds of humankind.  But what about those who claim to know Jesus - shouldn’t they know better?  It seems like a lot of professing Christians behave quite a bit like the rest of society.  That doesn’t seem right to me.

• Does promoting misinformation reflect Jesus?
• Does committing time and resources to a political party reflect Jesus?
• Does promoting public policies to retain positions of power and privilege in society reflect Jesus?
• Does grouping together as “us” and constructing negative views of “them” reflect Jesus?

Do we believe what we say we believe?  Do we know what God has declared, so that we conduct ourselves in a way which honors our Creator? Are we aware of God’s presence with us?  Are we intentionally listening for the quiet voice of the Holy Spirit to keep us on the straight and narrow?  Or are we allowing our own minds to convince us that other things are more important than God’s plan?

Two Fruit Trees in the Garden

In the Garden of Eden, there are two fruit trees described by name.  One of these trees was declared off limits to humans.  If it was off limits to Adam and Eve at the very beginning, is it something we should be focusing our attention on, and tempting ourselves to consume?  Should we not heed God’s warning, especially given that we have numerous stories from the Bible which help us understand what happens to God’s people when they disbelieve and are disobedient?  Is it our calling as Christians to discern good and evil, and invest the time we’ve been given to stamp out evil and establish - forcibly if necessary, what we think is good?  

Like Adam and Eve, we live in the Garden and Eden and are free to choose, but with a warning.  Doesn’t it make sense to keep focused on God, and believe what He says, and when He says to avoid a particular tree, and invites us to join Him in the Tree of Life, to do exactly that?

It seems as if from every direction, there are voices calling out, “Look here, look here!  This is important!”  Are any of these voices really worth our attention - that is, if we believe what we say we are?  If we say we are Christians, can we not just behave as if we believe we are filled with God’s Holy Spirit, and yield ourselves to be salt and light, allowing the fruit of the Spirit to be produced in our lives, and loving others as we love ourselves, while we keep our eyes on God, the focus of our love?  To myself, and anyone seeking God, I say let us not repeat the story of the Fall of Man, and instead believe God at His word.  His way is the way to go.