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Word from Scotland
by Sandy Shaw
Having spent time in Genesis Chapters 1,2, we move on to Chapter 3.
At the end of Chapter 2, we saw that what God had created and made was good and very good - exceedingly good. Man is placed in a perfect environment. There is no sin - no disease - no death - no pain - no corruption - no pollution - there is no struggle for survival.
Everything is good and pure and wholesome.
Now we could not say that of our world today. There is something terribly wrong. It is out of order. Something has been lost - destroyed. People do say that things are out of control - well that is not completely accurate and true.
God is in control. Jesus Christ, the Saviour and Lord and King is very much in control. Those who belong to Him need to be reminded of that time and time again. But there are not many who would say that out world is in good shape.
What we have today is NOT the way it was created and made. I trust we all see that clearly. Even our birth into this world is painful. Surely a good and loving God would not have planned that.
There is bloodshed and warfare which is becoming more and more threatening - so that man could obliterate this world in a few minutes. He won't - and we need to know that too.
And - we die - God never planned for cemeteries and undertakers. This is not a perfect world, and there is much evil in it.
Evil was not always in the world, and evil did not begin with man.
Man was persuaded to join in a conspiracy. It came from the outside and got inside. It is not something physical - but spiritual and moral - and we can only blame our choices.
Man chose to become involved. We are now reading of the drama of what went wrong.
When we read Chapter 3 are we not reading about ourselves? Can you see yourself in this passage? We are reading about things we do which we are not supposed to do.
This Chapter is like a mirror, and that may be why many do not like it. When we look into the Word of God we see ourselves.
Man has tried to make this a fairy story - and no wonder - because in less than 50 words the human race has been tied up in slavery - slavery to SIN.
We know from these verses and from the Book of Revelation that that old serpent the devil can adopt any disguise he like, and he usually comes dressed up.
And, he is so plausible - even when he approached Jesus in the wilderness. You must be hungry - go on feed yourself - turn these stones into bread. And why not go on and feed the hungry millions - then you will be acclaimed by the world.
Whatever this was that approached Eve - we do know that it was Satan disguised - and it was shining. The word can be translated - "the shining one".
Satan had been deceived himself - and now he seeks to deceive others.
If you want to know how he came into being - read Isaiah Chapter 14 verses 12 to 15 and Ezekiel Chapter 28 verses 11 to 19. "I will be like the Most High - I will become like God - He is not going to be above me." Yes, even angels can say that at times, and they have to be cast out of the presence of God.
But why did he go for the woman? Well - she is on her own - and we have seen that it is not good for anyone to be on their own - and he tries to get the woman to lead the man - and that is something we are having to face today. It is NOT progress!
“Our loving and compassionate God – protect us from those who would attack, and from these attacks when they come. Shield us from the onslaught of the enemy. Rescue us when we sense we are in spiritual danger – in Jesus Name.” Amen.
Alexander 'Sandy' Shaw is pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship in Nairn, Scotland. Nairn is 17 miles east of Inverness - on the Moray Firth Coast - not far from the Loch Ness Monster!
Gifted as a Biblical teacher, Sandy is firmly committed to making sure that his teachings are firmly grounded in the Word.
Sandy has a weekly radio talk which can be heard via the Internet on Saturday at 11:40am, New Orleans time, at wsho.com.
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