Choices for Us All
Opening Prayer
Loving Father, may Your Holy Spirit guide me today so that I choose well and wisely to follow Your ways.
Read Genesis 3:1-13
[1] Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” [2] The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, [3] but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'” [4] “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. [5] “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” [6] When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. [7] Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. [8] Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. [9] But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?” [10] He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” [11] And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” [12] The man said, “The woman you put here with me-she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” [13] Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.
Reflect
Why do you think the serpent's temptation was so strong?There is a great danger that the familiarity of the tale disguises the misery of what takes place as we read about the evil serpent, Adam and Eve, and the tempting fruit. God, in his grace, has given us a story which can be presented in cartoon form to small children but the significance of the events is profound and disastrous for humankind. Consider this talking snake. Whether we decide to take the chapter as somehow rooted in history, or we see it as God’s eternal truth in parable form, this evil character must represent something deeper and darker (see Rev. 12:9). At a point in history, our race–our relatives–chose to disobey their creator, to ignore his plan for their well-being, and to engage with evil. The evil was beyond Adam and Eve’s full understanding (and ours, thankfully), but they knew they were choosing to do wrong. Had I been there in that garden, would I have decided differently? Alas, the evidence of my own life is not hopeful. What about yours?
Apply
Pray today to seek the power of the Holy Spirit, so that you can reject evil and choose new life in Christ.
Closing prayer
O Lord, I want to do right every day in every way. I can’t do it by myself. I need Your loving help.
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