Grace For The Journey

  When we read the account of the horrific fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, we may not give the proper attention to the exchange recorded in Genesis 3:8-10 between God and Adam.  Here is what the Bible records about that conversation, “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. But the Lord God called to the man, ‘Where are you?’ He answered, ‘I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.’”

We’re anxious to “get to the good part” about God’s plan to redeem man and restore him to fellowship with Him, so it’s easy to skim past one of the saddest moments ever recorded in the Bible.

The one who was formed by God

And made for God

Was now trying to hide from God.

Adam and Eve were created . . .

To walk with God,

Talk with God,

And

Rejoice in God.

They were created to find

Purpose in His presence;

Meaning in His majesty;

Significance in His sovereignty;

Identity in His immutability.

Now they crouch, trembling in the brush . . . and in their hiding they are denying their humanity.  Made for intimate relationship with the Creator of the universe, they are now on the run from Him.

Before Adam and Eve committed their act of defiance and disobedience, their hearts filled with delight in the presence of God; after they sinned, their hearts filled with dread at the sound of God walking in the Garden.

They now find themselves

At the beginning of a drama

That will be played out

Until Jesus returns,

A story marked

By “unholy hiding”

From our holy God.

So . . . where in your life today do you find yourself hiding from God?  Where have you been hiding from those who love you most?

Life is not to be lived in the shadows; it is to be lived in the light, and that light shines brilliantly through the truths of the Gospel.  You see, God knows you.  He knows you fully; He has created you and He knows you; He is familiar with all your ways; before a word is on your tongue He knows it fully (Psalm 139:1-4) . . . and yet He still loves you.

There is no hiding from the One who knows everything and sees everything.  And only a clear view of the Gospel can help us to come out from behind the bushes without fear of rejection or removal from the presence of God.

The Bible says in Psalm 139:7-10, “Where can I go from your Spirit?  Where can I flee from your presence?  If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.  If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”

The Gospel makes it clear that Jesus was the One who would take our place and pay the penalty for our sin.  The Gospel also makes it clear that Jesus was removed from the presence of His Father during the darkest time in the history of the world: the day when the Light of the world was spit upon, scourged, and nailed to a cruel cross.  And because Jesus took our place on that cross – rejected by God and removed from His presence – all those who are in Christ need never fear rejection or removal from the presence of God ever again.

God loves you!  He accepts you!  God is for you (Romans 8:31), so it doesn’t matter who is against you . . . which means you can stop any kind of “unholy hiding” from Him and from those who matter most in your life.

Think about the last time you went into hiding.  You could hear His voice, couldn’t you?  Of course you could!  God did not leave Adam and Even in their hiding and He will not leave you either.  God is in the business of pursuing rebels on the run – not to crush them but to restore them – and that includes you.

Always remember . . .

God is not pleased with you

Because of your performance.

God delights in you

Because of the perfect

Performance of your Prince,

Who lived and died

And was raised from the dead

So that you could stop hiding

In shadows and begin living

In the warm sunlight

Of God’s unwavering love,

Which is expressed

In the truths of the Gospel.

If you will pause for a moment and sit still long enough, you just might hear the sound of God walking in your garden, calling out to you, “Where are you?”  Come out from behind the bushes of unbelief and your unholy hiding.  Go to Him.  Run to Him!  And you will find that, while you are still a long way off, He will come running to you, His arms outstretched and nail-scarred hands held open, just waiting to take you into His loving, healing, eternal embrace.

This is God’s Word For Today … This Is Grace For The Journey

Rest and Rejoice in this eternal truth!

Pastor Terry

Ephesians 4:7 – “But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.”

Hebrews 4:16 – “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”