As we draw our discussion of the original sin to a close, this devotional reading looks at the extent God went to in order to keep Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden. Then we tie up our thoughts on sin and God’s redemption.
Nuggets
- God set up a guard at the gate of the Garden of Eden.
- Satan still leaves out the death and destruction part of sinning, and he sure knows about it now if he didn’t then.
- Sin is not accidental.
- Yes, God allowed sin to happen even though it is totally against His nature.
Genesis 3 is a packed chapter. We found lots of nuggets that shows us God’s love for us even when we disobey Him.
Let’s see if we can wrap up our discussion in this devotion.
Let's Put It into Context
To read devotions in the Creating Everything theme, click the button below.
Devotions in the Celebrating Creation’s Story series
Cherubim as a Guard
“After sending them out, the LORD God stationed mighty cherubim to the east of the Garden of Eden. And he placed a flaming sword that flashed back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life” (Gen. 3: 24 NLT)
God set up a guard at the gate of the Garden of Eden.
This is the first time we see an angel in Genesis. And not just any angel, but a cherubim.
We may think that Adam and Eve had to be physically forced from the Garden of Eden. Bevan agreed. Not only why would they not embrace change, but also why would they want to leave a good thing behind?
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In the sermon The Plan of Redemption Exhibited at Eden, whoever wrote it didn’t think so. Remember that, if God had already seen Adam’s request for salvation in verse 20, his relationship with God had already been restored. He was back in God’s good graces.
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What I don’t agree with Bevan on is that Adam and Eve could have returned anytime they wanted, cherubim or not. Wrong.
Humans will not defeat God. Humans will not overpower one of Hod’s angels, especially the cherubim.
But Adam and Eve couldn’t stay in the Garden. The Garden was of earth. Humankind has to aspire to Heaven.
Thomas made an interesting observation. He wrote, “The tree of life was there in the garden within possible reach, and if man had conquered instead of being conquered, no cherubim could have prevented his tasting of this ambrosial fruit and so entering into life.”
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But Thomas, as Bullock thought of the tree, believed the cherubim guarding the tree was figurative. Murphy disagreed, believing it was real.
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The creatures in Revelation 4: 6-8 have been identified by some as the cherubim, a special order of angels, which represents God’s presence.
“… And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight. And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within …” (Rev. 4: 6-8 ESV).
When a distinction is made, most angels are identified as cherubim. “Then I looked, and behold, on the expanse that was over the heads of the cherubim there appeared above them something like a sapphire, in appearance like a throne” (Ezek. 10: 1 ESV).
I am inclined to think the cherubim guard significant places, and the living creatures are a distant cousin of the cherubim but are more mobile.
But making a definitive decision is above my pay grade.
What it is after is the fulfillment of the law. “The person who sins is the one who will die. The child will not be punished for the parent’s sins, and the parent will not be punished for the child’s sins. Righteous people will be rewarded for their own righteous behavior, and wicked people will be punished for their own wickedness” (Ezek. 18: 20 NLT).
Only allowing our sins to be cleansed through the sacrifice of Jesus can we eat of the tree of life and gain eternal life.
And isn’t that a blessing in this whole sad tale? Jesus wants to return us to God’s presence.
Another blessing is the description of the sword. “… And he placed a flaming sword that flashed back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life” (Gen. 3: 24 NLT).
It was written in The Plan of Redemption Exhibited at Eden that means that the sword was turning back on itself. The cherubim was not focused on punishing Adam and Eve. He was focused on maintaining the purity of the Garden.
Don’t gloss over the fact that God didn’t destroy the Garden of Eden. He didn’t chop down the tree of life. He didn’t burn the place to the ground.
God kept the Garden of Eden intact. Remember this was Heaven on earth – the Tabernacle.
God just put it off limits.
For a while.
“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few” (Mt. 7: 13-14 NLT).
God’s promised Messiah has provided a path back to fellowship with God. He has thrown open the gate of Heaven so that we may access the tree of life.
Making the Connections #1
I keep saying that God is trying to get us back to Eden. Thomas had some issue with that. He wrote,
“Eden was but a garden, primitive, narrow, and circumscribed, suited for a life of simple innocence with little expansion or development of capacity and power. But redemption introduces us to a noble city with its complicated claims, its vast possibilities, and its myriad grandeurs. Leaving metaphor aside, God in Christ is calling us to a life full of large and noble and varied activity.”
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Is God trying to get us back to the Garden of Eden. Well, yes and no.
Yes, God wants to get us back to that character and innocence that Adam and Eve displayed in the Garden. He wants the relationship and the access back.
No, once we die, God will have a different place for us. We will be in New Jerusalem.
Making the Connections #2
Satan still leaves out the death and destruction part of sinning, and he sure knows about it now if he didn’t then.
The sales pitch is still, “Make your own decisions in this life. Eat, drink, and be merry. You aren’t going to die — you’ll live forever. Be a god.”
Well, yes, we are all going to live forever. It is the location that is important.
Are we going to live in Paradise with God or the fiery depths of hell with Satan?
We get to choose.
Making the Connections #3
Sin is not accidental.
God always knew humankind would sin. He wouldn’t have set up the Plan of Salvation before He created us if He didn’t know that.
Ooo, baby. Did we fall into the plan! “But I did find this: God created people to be virtuous, but they have each turned to follow their own downward path” (Ecc. 7: 29 NLT).
Brown argued that man was made for sin. God, being omniscient, knew that Adam and Eve would choose sin over perfection. Therefore, He made our bodies to withstand the toil and suffering.
Brown further argued that this was the best. He wrote,
“Had he remained in Eden the highest interest of heaven in man’s career would have been lost; and more would have been lost, the highest, fullest, most absolute manifestation of God. Him, redemption alone could fully declare. If man comes forth into full manhood through that perverse exercise of his freedom, which leaves human nature suppliant for redemption under peril of imminent death, God, in redeeming man from the penalties and fruits of that perverseness, reveals Himself most fully as God.
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Okay. That is a fancy way of saying what I always say. We wouldn’t know the extent of God’s love if we hadn’t sinned. He couldn’t honor Jesus as our Savior if there was no reason for Him to sacrifice Himself for us.
Brown really nailed it when he says that redemption has components of discipline and education. We have to know God and what He wants of us — and then we have to choose to do it.
Making the Connections #4
Alexander reminded us that this wasn’t the only time Adam and Eve would be tempted to sin. The conflict of the two wills was now present and would be in all humans.
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It was the couple’s new normal. It is our normal.
The difference is that the promise has now been fulfilled when it was just a promise to Adam and Eve (Gen. 3: 15). Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer.
Making the Connections #5
God is still a loving God even though He takes us out of our comfort zones and from what is familiar as a result of sin. Regardless of our opinion of the punishment, God is lovingly correcting us.
I don’t think I’ve heard it stated the way Hughes did. He wrote, “The habitation of innocency is no place for sinners.”
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We think of Adam and Eve as innocents in the Garden of Eden. But that innocence was tarnished after the sin.
Imperfect humans could no longer live in the purity of the Garden.
It’s that habitation that is interesting. We can look at habitation a couple of ways.
It is a lodging or dwelling. That talks about physical location. If we equate innocence with purity, that means sin shouldn’t be in the building.
It is a state or process. That leads us to the spiritual aspect.
We can’t become complacent, or sin might overtake us. (I almost didn’t use that word because we still have a choice, but our choice is so bombarded that we can do almost anything but.)
We talked about the world outside of the Garden being corrupt. That is the lodging or dwelling. Sin isn’t really a process, but it is a state. It is our normal state since humankind became sinful creatures.
Making the Connections #6
Yes, God allowed sin to happen even though it is totally against His nature.
Why? We talked way back in Genesis 1 that God created the universe to honor His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. We were made to worship Him and God.
We talked about God couldn’t show His love for us until He really showed it. We had to see how much He was willing to give up when we were totally not worth it.
“But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners” (Rom. 5: 8 NLT).
We just have to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior.
How Do We Apply This?
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
Searching for and Seeking God
Hearing His Word (Rom. 10: 17)
Reading His Word (Rev. 1: 3)
Praying to Him (Heb. 4: 16)
Studying His Word (Ac. 17: 11)
Meditating on His Word (Ps. 1: 1-2)
Memorizing His Word (Ps. 119: 11)
Father God. You loved us enough to give us choice as to whether we would obey You. You allowed sin in this word in order to show us how much You loved us. You sent Your Son to die in our place so that we might be restored to You. You still give us the choice as to whether we would obey You. Thank You for Your love. Amen.
What do you think?
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