Before we dig into Joseph (our first pit dweller), I want to prove to you that the enemy is out to keep you from Jesus. He twists Scripture just enough to get us to believe the lies. His all-time favorite saying is, “Did God really say?”
Please open your Bible and read Genesis 2:8-9.
God caused trees to grow out of the ground. What are the two things that the trees were good for? ____________________________________________________________
The trees were good for eating and were beautiful to look at. God satisfied man with His fantastic creation through bellies and eyes.
Circle the correct answer: Did you notice anything in the above Scripture that spoke about touching the trees?
Yes
No
Keep your answer in mind, as we will circle back to it in a bit.
Now read Genesis 2:15-17.
God lovingly places the man in the garden of Eden. Prior to his placement, the trees were wonderfully planted and grew. God prepared everything the man would need for nourishment. As the man was being placed in the garden, God commanded him regarding what trees were for consumption and what tree was off limits.
Fill in the blanks:
And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are ________ to eat from any tree of the garden, but you must _____ eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will __________ die.”
From the beginning of time, God has given His children free will. He instructed the man on what tree to eat from and what tree to avoid. Notice He said, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden”. After stating the freedom, He clearly told of the consequence of not following His command. God will always instruct us in our ways, but He will not force us. He loves us so deeply and dearly, and He desires the same kind of love in return.
Have you ever tried to force someone to love you? If so, briefly record the circumstances and results below.
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Forced love is not real love. It never has been and never will be.
Read Genesis 2:20-25.
The Lord recognizes that the man, Adam, was alone. He knew prior to the creation that relationships are essential. He lovingly created the woman, Eve. He did not create her to be second best. He did not create her to be Adam’s subordinate. God created Eve with great love for her and for Adam.
Fill in the blank.
Genesis 2:20b: but for the man, no ___________ was found corresponding to him.
In our society, we view the word “helper” to mean an assistant. As a former teacher, I had a classroom helper each day. The classroom helper assisted me in tasks I needed, such as sharpening pencils, taking notes to the office, passing out papers, etc. We often view a helper as second best, not having the same standing as the one being helped.
The Hebrew word for helper is Ezer. Ezer is used 21 times in the Old Testament. It refers to Eve 2 times, the powerful nations that Israel calls on for help when they are being attacked or threatened to be attacked, and 16 times as God our help.
God does not work for us; He comes alongside us when we are in need. It is with love He does this, not any idea or thought or subordinacy.
In his book Man and Woman: One in Christ, Philip Paynes states it this way:
“The noun used her [ezer] throughout the Old Testament does not suggest ‘helper’ as in ‘servant’, but help, savior, rescuer, protector as in ‘God is our help’. In no other occurrence in the Old Testament does this refer to an inferior, but always a superior or an equal …’help’ expresses that the woman is a help/strength who rescues or saves man.”
God did not create the woman to be the man’s servant. He created her to serve with the man. That’s a huge difference! God’s love for women is as strong as His love for men. Many would like us to believe otherwise. Thankfully, God’s truths trump man’s truths a million times over.
Notice that God gave the man commands regarding the garden of Eden prior to bringing the woman to life.
Continue forward in Genesis and read 3:1-10.
And then there was the fall. I pointed out that God gave the man garden commands before offering the woman as his ezer. Does this mean that the man did not communicate God’s desires to the woman? I mean, come on, we all know men struggle with communication! Maybe he thought he told her but didn’t. He could have sworn he told her as he was watching a game on TV. A story as old as time!
All joking aside, the man most certainly communicated God’s commands to the woman. Everything in the garden of Eden was perfect. The relationship between the two was surely beautiful and wonderful. Think about it-God walked with the couple throughout the garden often. Imagine the conversations they had. There had to be laughter, love, joking, as well as serious talk. The three must have had such great fellowship.
Just for fun, describe a scene between the three.
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The fall was just as much the man’s fault as it was the woman’s. Genesis 3:1 describes the serpent (the enemy) as the most cunning.
The Oxford Dictionary defines cunning as “having or showing skill in achieving one’s end by deceit or evasion”.
The enemy knew exactly what he was doing. He was well aware that if he used a sprinkling of truth mixed with a sprinkling of a lie, he would have the couple eating out of his hands, literally.
Write the question the enemy poses to the couple at the end of 3:1.
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Did God really say…
Did God really say that you had to be true to your marriage if you no longer feel love?
Did God really say you can’t live with your partner if you aren’t married?
Did God really say that we need to look to Him in all things? Shouldn’t we be able to rely on ourselves?
Did God really say that we are to serve others over ourselves?
Write out a few that come to your mind.
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Reread verses 2:16-17 and compare it to verses 3:2-3. What difference do you see?
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Yep! God never said the couple couldn’t touch the tree. The woman certainly knew God’s command. She walked with Him in the garden for goodness sakes! She let her guard down and allowed the presence of evil to swoon her.
Proverbs 4:23
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. (NIV)
Can you think of a time when you let your guard down and quickly fell out of step with God’s decrees? It can happen in the blink of an eye. We must continuously guard our hearts and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us. I have found that praying for discernment and leading really helps in my day-to-day connections with others.
Reread Genesis 2:17 and Genesis 3:4.
The enemy blatantly lied to the woman, and she fell for it. Sadly, how often do we do the same? We get caught up in a person’s words and perceived care for us, and we fall right into their trap. It can happen in the snap of a finger. One minute we are walking with God, and the next we are being wooed by the enemy. He tricks us with word changes, guilt, shame, and self-absorption.
We see in Genesis 3:4-7 the woman and the man don’t think twice about tasting the fruit. The allure of wisdom sunk it’s teeth into their pride and they sunk their teeth into the fruit. And everything changed. One bite led to shame. It led to wanting to hide from God. Imagine how they must of kicked themselves. Do you think the phrase, “if only” ran through their minds? Do you think they made excuses, blamed the other? I’m certain we can all identify with the gut pain a wrong decision causes, especially when we know that God told us to do otherwise.
We will explore this more when we discuss throwing ourselves into pits.
Yes, the enemy wants to pull us from Jesus’ love. He wants us to feel like we are not lovable, and, in fact, we don’t deserve His love. Lies. Jesus has loved all of us from the beginning of time. Nothing can, or ever will, separate us from the love of God (Romans 8:38-39).
Let’s end today by taking in what God did after the couple tasted the fruit.
Read Genesis 3:8-10.
God knew that the couple had taken a bite of the fruit. He knew they listened to the enemy and chose his lies over God’s truths.
God showed up anyway. Think about that. He didn’t abandon them. He walked where He knew they would walk. He still wanted to be with them. He still wants to be with us. No amount of shame from our pasts (or presents) will cause Him to leave us. His love is forever. The pain you suffered when you were thrown into a pit does not mean you are not loved. You are loved yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
As you go about your day, hold your head up high. You are marked by His love forever.
💗,Marci
