Hello Everyone,
I pray that you all have had a blessed week. I am overwhelmed by the power of God this morning. He is so awesome and so faithful despite our sins. I have shared so many of my own pitfalls, disappointments, and mishaps with you through this blog. So, when I consider all the times He has saved me from myself, all I can do is worship Him. All I have to offer is my praise and that isn't enough! (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)
As we come towards the end of our journey with Eve, I am excited to know that God is merciful. I could not imagine what my personal life would be like if I received what I truly deserved for my sins. We look at Eve with such condemnation, but we are Eve. We are daily, walking in our blessings, our Garden of Eden and yet sinning. If we praise God for no other reason, we should at least praise Him because He is a just God and His mercies are new every morning! (Psalms 25:8-14)
We left off with Eve trusting God's plan despite the obvious appearance of circumstances. As I shared before, I empathize with Eve, because I have lost so many children myself. However, while Eve lost Abel to death, she lost Cain to sin. My own personal complication with these events is the possibility of losing my teenage son to sin. The repercussions of sin are lasting. We can see that through Cain's legacy. Nevertheless, they are all according to God's plan (Ephesians 1:11, Romans 8:28). How would we know the wages of sin if not for the examples of those who experienced it before us. Additionally, these experiences undoubtedly bring us closer to our Savior. The great part about it all is that God's grace is sufficient to sustain us through it all (2 Corinthians 12:9).
Resources
Genesis 4:25
25 And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and named him Seth, "For God has appointed another seed for me instead of Abel, whom Cain killed." 26 And as for Seth, to him also as son was born; and he named him E'nosh. Then men began to call on the name of the Lord.
mercy - leniency and compassion shown; a disposition to be kind and forgiving; alleviation of distress
Lesson
In preparing for this lesson, I was really stricken by the definition of mercy. I normally review definitions of words when preparing a lesson, but this definition was different. The definition of mercy was lengthy and very descriptive. I shortened it to convey the most poignant points. The most obvious descriptive points of mercy are exclaimed in the first part, to be lenient and compassionate. However, the alleviation of distress is what is most pertinent. God not only is lenient and compassionate, He alleviates the distress through redemption.
I can only imagine Eve's state of destitution towards the end of this portion of the journey. She disobeys God, encourages her husband to disobey God, she is then cursed by God, evicted out of her home, and then her son kills his brother and is banished by God. That is a lot to absorb.
This is relative to us on so many levels. We have experienced hardship, pitfalls, struggles, and despair all in one time period. Even if it is as simple as losing your car keys, forgetting your umbrella on a rainy day, breaking the heel of your shoe, getting a flat tire, and being reamed by your boss all in one day. We have all been there in some form or fashion. But God! God is able to keep us (Jude 1:24-25).
God is a god of redemption and restoration. Eve had once tasted paradise, but God promised her that her offspring would eventually destroy her enemy (Spangler & Syswerda 2006). Though we all fall short of the glory of God, we are redeemed in Him (Romans 3:23). Our redeemer lives in Christ Jesus!
With rest of hope, Eve remembers the voice of God and the promises He gave to her (Spangler & Syswerda 2006). God is always with us, even through the pitfalls. He keeps His promises (Deuteronomy 7:9). He is able to do exceedingly and abundantly above all (Ephesians 3:20-21).
Within the tragic denouement of this story lay one tiny ray of hope for Eve (Mathews 1990). The ray of hope is in Jesus Christ which God exclaims in Genesis 3:15. The language is a bit ambiguous, but God promises to put enmity between the woman and the enemy of our souls through a seed (Allen, House, & Radmacher 1999). God promises hope in Christ, Jesus, the seed. This Seed of the woman is the Promised Messiah of Israel (Allen, House, & Radmacher 1999).
God doesn't write tragedies, He promised the defeat of Satan and his power over the world (Mathews 1990). Eve's life is not a tragedy. Our lives are not tragedies. These stories are stories of redemption in Christ Jesus (Isaiah 47:4)!
Application
In your quiet time with God this week, meditate on Psalms 19:14; post it on your wall, tape it to your rear view mirror, save it on your monitor at work, or hang it on your cubicle wall, etc. Think of all the times Christ has redeemed you in your life. Remember that your story is not a tragedy. Remember that God's mercies are a gateway to Christ's redemption. We are restored in Christ Jesus! Our redeemer lives!
I pray that you all have been influenced and affected by the journey of Eve. She has so much to offer us in our own walks with Christ. Be encouraged!
Have a blessed week!
Be blessed,
T. Carter
References
All bible verses were extracted from the New King James version of the Bible. YouVersion (2013).
Allen Th.D., Ronald B., House Th.D., J.D., H. Wayne, & Radmacher, Th. D., Earl D. (1999). Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee
Mathews, Alice (1990). A Woman God Can Use. Discovery House Publishing. Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Spangler, Ann & Syswerda, Jean (2006). Women of the Bible. Zondervan Publishing. Grand Rapids, Michigan.
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