I bet
a lot of people think God is going a “poor” job of running things (feel free to
insert whatever expletive you want). Truth be known, I bet you have had a
similar thought in your lifetime too. In fact, this truth goes for those
claiming to be atheists (perhaps this thought was a step on their journey to
rejecting a belief in God), those who are agnostic (perhaps this thought keeps
them from trusting in God), and even many Christians. Yep, you read that correctly,
even many Christians too.
Yet I
will assert that if you are thinking this, or something similar, then you
really do not know God’s Story as well as He would like you to know it… So, let
us get back to exploring God’s Story together.
If
you had someone read Genesis 2:4-3:24 out loud to you, your ears undoubtedly
heard a major shift in Genesis 3:1. Yet the shift was not simply that a serpent
entered the narrative. No, the shift was from the use of YHWH God to simply god
in the text. Not only was this shift on the tongue of the serpent…but on the lips
of Eve as well.
Eve,
who was in a covenant relationship with God, shockingly bought into the
distorted view of God put forth by the serpent…started by the omission of the
word YHWH when referring to God. When the serpent used the distant,
non-covenant word for “god,” it put forth a deity who was distant and
uninvolved – perhaps even uncaring. And Eve took the bait. Sadly many take the
same bait today – but I am ahead of myself.
Eve
taking the bait is clear as she too calls YHWH God merely god. But she goes
further. Not only does Eve not correct the serpent’s words in Genesis 3:1,
which is a total trashing of YHWH God’s generous provision in Genesis 2:16-17,
she also distorts what YHWH God said. On the lips of Eve are words YHWH God never
said, “neither shall you touch it, lest you die.” Again, as far as we know, YHWH
God said no such thing. The serpent jumped on this continued distortion of God,
twisted things a bit more, and the rest of humanity – in fact all of creation –
have felt the brunt of the next decision for millennia.
I
like the words of Gordon Wenham as he says of Eve’s comment, “The
creator’s generosity is not being given its full due, and he is being painted
as a little harsh and repressive, forbidding the tree even to be touched. Indeed,
the way “lest you die” follows “touch” suggests that not just eating it but
touching it may be lethal.[1]
After
Eve, and then Adam, ate of the fruit, the gig was up. God’s Story says their
eyes were opened, and among other things, they hid from “god.” However, who is
it that shows up in Genesis 3:8? Yep, it is YHWH God once again (remember the
20x YHWH God is in act two as compared to the four times god is used here). This
shift back to YHWH God is significant.
In
my sanctified imagination I cannot help but wonder if Adam & Eve were
hiding from “god” because since they did not immediately die, they thought He
was coming to finish them off. Yet the text says it was YHWH God who came
looking for them.
You
may scoff at such a notion. But let me ask you. When you are caught in sin
(whatever it may be), do you run to God immediately, or do you hide it? Do you
run to the Body of Christ on earth (The Church), or do you isolate yourself from community and
cover it up? Answer truthfully…because if you do not, you will not be able to
appropriate the beauty of God’s Story.
You
see, what is so amazing about God’s Story, and learning about God based on who
the Bible says He is, is that the God of the Bible is not much like what people
expect. I think many Christians cower from God in fear. I think many Christians
are afraid and ashamed of what they have done and are wondering how God could possibly
love them. Oh He may have loved me in the past…but I have crossed the line this
time… Whenever you think thoughts like that, you are thinking of a god, and not
YHWH God.
I
say this because what we see in Genesis 3:8 is that, even in the midst of their
rebellion, YHWH God moves toward Adam and Eve. Can you imagine that? The
Creator of everything, longing to be with the crowning point of His creation so
much that He seeks them out while they are hiding from Him – in fear and
rebellion.
There
is much more that could be said about act two of Genesis. I am not sure I will
get to it before moving onto the next chapter in “The Story.” My goodness, I expected to do a short post per chapter highlighting something. Well...
But I want to
leave you with this encouragement; before you reject God…or hide from Him in
fear…make sure you know which God you are rejecting and/or hiding from. Is it a
god formed from a variety of readings and experiences? Or is it YHWH God, who reveals Himself in the Bible (and Jesus - but that is later), who is
at work undoing the effects of sin on His creation – which includes you reading
this right now.
[1] Gordon J. Wenham, Genesis 1–15, vol. 1, Word Biblical
Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1998), 73.
No comments:
Post a Comment