What God Really Says :: Genesis 3:1-21
I love reading the book of Genesis. I marvel at all that God did with his Word ... How he spoke and it was done ... how he created the paradise of delight ... the place where heaven and earth meet.
It is amazing and astonishing to look at and hear about God’s wonderful, gracious love and care for us, for the world, and for all of creation, of how his word provided peace ... of how his word nourished us and provided for us ... of how we never had to worry about freezing or roasting to death ... of how we had it made in the shade, all because of what he really said in the Word.
It is also astonishing how quickly it was gone ... with just a word of what everyone thinks God did say. Why would the serpent twist what God did say? How could Adam and Eve be so foolish and stupid by adding to what God did say? Why would they listen to even one word of that shady snake? How could they toss it all away for a lie? And why would they doubt for even one second how good they really had it?
I know we like to think like the woman, saying the devil made me do it.
I know we like to point fingers at our wives and say the woman you gave me ... well, she gave it to me, so I might as well live it up!
Yet ... I know better than to say I wouldn’t have done it. Do you?
When asked, Did God really say ... we struggle. We stutter and sputter, blurting out, I think what he said was ... fill in your word.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, it is amazing what a word of God can do for you ... has done for you ... and will do for you.
So on this first Sunday in Lent, we will begin hearing a series of Words over the next few weeks that reveal just how amazing God’s good word really is. Just how powerful and life-changing and refreshing and nourishing it really is.
LET US HEAR WHAT GOD REALLY SAID.
We like to think Satan isn’t real. We like to think that we too could overcome the temptations to turn rocks into bread when we think we need it most, that the angels will protect us so well we will never even stub a toe, that all this wonderful west central Missouri land could be ours if we just take a bow.
Fact is, the temptations of the world alone are overwhelming.
Satan’s are much stronger.
It seems that truth is too often lost in translation in our gospel reading from Matthew chapter 4. To most of the world, it is certainly lost in our Old Testament reading from Genesis chapter 3. That deceptive serpent is a formidable foe casting doubt on the first words of God. He is more crafty than all the beasts of the field (Gen 3:1). Although he can no longer accuse us in heaven, as he did with our brother Job (1:9), his activity on earth will continue until Christ comes again in glory as he whispers in our ear ... Did God really say (Gen 3:1)?
1. Did God really say, the subtle serpent whispered, that you shall not eat of any tree in the garden?
When you don’t know how to answer that question, you really should be ashamed of yourself. You do know how to answer, don’t you?
Our English word “the devil” is a transliteration of the Greek word “ὁ διάβολος,” which is a translation of the Hebrew word “הַשָּׂטָן.” They all mean the adversary, the enemy, the opponent, the accuser, or literally the Satan. In the book of Job, he stood before the Lord and did what he does best ... he lied and accused, he stands against us. This question stands against us.
Jesus calls that slanderous serpent a murderer, a liar, and the father of lies ... There is no truth in him (Jn 8:44). Even more descriptively, he is called Beelzebul (Matt 10:25), which means the lord of filth.
This isn’t just hyperbole ... or should I say, an exaggeration. The eternal fire was prepared for the devil and his angels (Mt 25:41). Until they meet their fate, they lie in wait, looking for someone to devour (1 Pet 5:8). They do it in part by whispering in your ear something like, Did God really say?
Didn’t God say that if you just give your heart to Jesus, everything will be fine?
Didn’t God say that you just need to have faith in yourselves?
Didn’t God say that you can have your best life now?
Didn’t God say ...
No. No. No.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, we must beware and be on guard! Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light (2 Cor 11:14). His questions seem harmless. But they aren’t. He wants you to think that he is good, that he is truthful, that he loves you, and that he has your best interests in mind.
But our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Eph 6:12). They challenge us constantly, casting doubt on every word of God. The tactics Satan used in the garden are still his tactics today.
Didn’t God say, the law is no longer binding in your life because of Jesus?
Didn't God say it is not good to be a single parent, therefore abortion is ok?
Didn't God say, talking about other people's sins is necessary to deter us from doing the same thing?
No, No, No!
When we skip Bible study and worship, when we convince ourselves that our lives are more important, before you know it, Satan has us questioning every little jot and tittle about God and his Word. Next thing you know, you hear the whisper: Did God really say you need to be a Christian to go to heaven?
His subtle twists and contradictions will have your head spinning faster than the sting of even one of the 40 lashes Jesus faced as part of his punishment for your sin. His promises to you are unbelievably believable!
See, your eyes will be opened, Satan whispers. You will know good and evil. Don’t you want to know what’s REALLY good?
And sure enough, the eyes of both of them were opened. And they didn’t drop dead on the spot. And they realized how good they really had it before their fall. The sudden shame became overwhelming, as they tried to cover their nakedness and hide in the shadows from the good word that continues to call to them anyway. Satan’s lies and our distortion of God’s word have been killing us ever since.
This is why you will return to the dust (Gen 3:20). For the wages of sin is death.
But God didn’t create us to die. He created us to live.
2. So hear what God really says to you today: You are forgiven, now and forever.
That’s God tells us through saint Paul today, behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation (2 Cor 6:1-3). It is now because God’s first promise proclaimed in the Garden (Gen 3:15) has been fulfilled through the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. God has crushed the head of the serpent.
Jesus was born of the woman for this reason. Jesus fulfilled the first promise in the Garden. The serpent did, in fact, bruise our Lord’s heel, and Jesus did, in fact, crush the serpent’s head (Gen 3:15).
First, Jesus lived a life without sin. He overcame all of the assaults and temptations of the devil, the world, and our flesh. He heard Satan’s lies and rebuked him with the truth. He did this for you.
The serpent then struck the son of the woman, tempting him in the wilderness and driving him to the cross to face the sting of death. There our Lord was despised, crushed, and pierced ... all for our transgressions (Isa 53:3-5). The chastisement for our sins was placed upon Him. God poured out all of his wrath for your sin upon Jesus on the cross. Your sin was then buried with Jesus. And your sin has been silenced forever.
God actually said that.
I, yes I, am he who blots out your transgressions (Isa 43:25). This is true not just for you and me, it is true for the entire world. For just as sweat and pain and death came through the man and woman, so too does life and peace come through the life, death, and resurrection of Christ (1 Cor 15:21).
God actually said that!
You no longer belong to the old man and woman. In baptism you died and were buried with Christ, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life (Rom 6:4).
God actually said that!
And now because you confess that Jesus is Lord and believe God raised him from the dead, he invites you to receive the Lord’s Supper, which really is the body and blood of Christ given and shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins (Matt 26:28). God actually says that, too.
So do this often!
Through these means of grace, our Lord strengthens your faith through every word that comes from the mouth of God. These true words of God give you life and salvation. And because of them we know why we should sing ...
Jesus, crucified for me, is my life, my hope’s foundation, and my glory and salvation! (LSB 422)
Although the world doubts God’s every word, yet God’s Word stays true to you, for you, through you. Through his word he nourishes and refreshes you constantly. Through his word he strengthens your faith in Christ. You are his people; chosen and holy (1 Pet 2:9-10). Embrace this true word to you, for you.
That’s what God really says ... in Jesus’ name.