When we see a sin sick world, with it's depravity, greed, violence corruption, lusts of the flesh and spirit, powerful people doing evil, unclean acts we dare not speak of, what happens to our thoughts, our heart?
Do we say: what a wicked world, dont they know how wrong it all is? Stop this madness! JUDGEMENTALISM
Do we say: oh this is horrible, get me out of here Jesus, asap. ESCAPISM
Do we say; well they've made their choices, what will be will be? FATALISM
Or, do we say: No matter how bad it is, no matter the depth of rebellion, depravity and anger on display, I have a saviour who can, does and will do something about it all who can save to the uttermost those who come to God through Jesus? (Hebrews 7v25) OPTIMISM
Share the joyful, powerful gospel. Do it convincingly, freshly, willingly, freely, care freely.
The Gospel is the only cure for the rampant sin of a fallen world. This world and those in it are condemned already. It is reserved for judgment. We're on a rescue mission. (Romans 1)
God can save LGBTQ, prostitutes, adulterers, murderers, witches, the agnostic, wife and husband beaters, disobedient children, gang members, the weak, the lost, the addict, the poor, the religiously proud and financially independent. Anyone. Me, you and the next person you meet. Such were some of us! 1cor 6v11
People are thirsting for something, anything, to make themselves feel better, be it intimacy, spirituality, acceptance, a comfortable life, a dangerous and exciting life, power and position. And it has always been so. The heart of the issue is the issue of the heart. Not sin, not lack of repentance, not rejection of Christians or church (that just indicates the heart condition.)
'The man you are with is not your husband ' John 4. 'does any man condemn you? Neither do i.' John 8v10,11. 'We aught to judge ourselves ( i.e. our brother and sister in unrepented sin), We do not judge the world, the people outside Christianity , that is for God to sort out.' 1 cor 5v12, 13.
'WHO are you to judge? Who are YOU to judge? Who are you to JUDGE? When you do you condemn yourself. You have no excuse or get out clause for judging others, because you have done the very same things.' Romans 2
Fellow believer and reader; 'acknowledge, judge, grieve over your own sin first , receive once again the renewal of your spirit and His gracious acceptance of a repentant and humble heart, be filled with the joy of HIS salvation, then you will teach sinners the way and be converted to Jesus.' Psalm 51v9-13
THE INNOCENT LAMB: explaining to children about the cross and why their sin was placed on Jesus in a horrific way.
Something I've never had the pleasure of doing is sharing the gospel with children, or explaining the cross. I don't suppose many (Jewish) parents would have taken along their kids to a torture spectacle so not many kids would know what a crucifixion was. It was pretty brutal. (Compare this to the coliseums where the Greeks would have a family day out and enjoy the spectacle, the atmosphere, the entertainment of seeing men fight to the death or mauled by wild animals. Similar to 'cage fighting ' or dog fights today . Very violent and disturbing. (Genesis 6 😢)) To some degree we and God protect our children from the horrors of life and death. On Palm Sunday there weren't any lifeless bloodied bodies on the crosses outside of the city so the children were encouraged to sing "hosanna to the son of david' (Matthew 21, v 15,16) at this feast time and as Jesus entered. Party time! Only a few days later with a beaten, bruised, flagellated, nailed and thorn torn flesh, the good parents were not going to watch Jesus again but chose hide their kids from these horrors. In fact at Passover they had to remain indoors until 'they were passed over' by the angel of death, as retold about them exiting Egypt. Witnessing violence isnt good for any child, and is often traumatic and damaging. Something to be delicate and sensitive about.
So how would I talk about the cross to children? How to convey a child's disobedience to parents with it being necessary to put a man on a cross for it?
I think the way God had already provided an explanation for the violence of the cross was through temple sacrifices and scripture reading. The children would have witnessed this as they went to the temple 3 times a year for festivals, seen the animals in cages ready to be put under the knife for the shedding of blood. Blood would have been put on their ears and doorposts at passover, just as it would this Passion week 2000 years ago as Jesus was crucified, just as it had been since the first Passover millennia before Jesus. It would have been explained to the children where the blood came from. They then might have asked questions as inquisitive children often do (why why why why mummy?) about death, suffering, innocence, need, guilt, payment, sacrifice, forgiveness, thoughts and feelings about death etc. We can help children understand God has placed such a sober assessment on all and any disobedience (sin) that if we understand in our conscience our personal guilt, not merely to those human parents we got angry or displeased, but towards God himself who gives all life, that he requires the shedding of blood (and a substitutionary death) for sin , provided in the doves, the sheep, the calves, the goats etc prepared for their final day in the temple.
These animals are innocent of sin but represent the goodness and innocent nature of Jesus as he was prepared himself for the sacrifice for sin on our behalf, in our place, the cross.
"Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin" Hebrews 9v22 . I would hope good Jewish parents would have over and over every year and on the Sabbath taught and explained to their children both through the scriptures and through the temple worship and the sacrificial system, and at Passover in particular, what was going on in the temple, so the children could connect death of innocent animals with payment for every persons sin ( their parents could say that "Jesus died for my sin too, my sin requires a sacrifice as God has said in jis word"), the offerings to God for forgiveness of sin.
Animals are an easy way to connect with children's emotions and convictions ("innocent animals shouldn't have to die mummy!"), caring for pets and loving birds, zoos, livestock etc. Whether the children can understand and conceptualise why an animal has to die is difficult to know and only God can reveal this truth to them (why did God chose this, and only this, way for an offering for sin??) , but if they can connect animals, death and payment/offering for sin and God's way of providing a clean conscience and forgiveness of sin, they will be able to transfer that idea to Jesus, meek and mild who bounces children on his knees and blesses them. The lamb of God, who didn't cry out or avoid his own death. A willing person. Behold the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. The story of Abraham and Isaac would also be a good way of teaching them not mere forgiveness of but a payment for sin, of how it happens, and God provided "himself a lamb for the offering " Genesis 22v8. Also explain the animal skins God clothed Adam and Eve with for both a death to cloth their nakedness and an evidence God will remind us through the warmth of clothing and covering from shame he made a good and necessary sacrifice for them.
"This a very nuanced topic. So bear with me as i speak at length. I will go to the scriptures first so we can read them for ourselves and not rely on someone else to tell us what they believe it says.
Genesis 2:16-18 [16]And the LORD God commanded THE MAN, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: [17]But of the tree of the knowledge [Hebrew: awareness in sense of 'not ignorant of'] of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. [18]And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
Firstly, we are not told that 'they' knew or didn't know right from wrong, just that when they did eat from the tree they would die. Nor does it say that eating from it would allow them to know right from wrong. Secondly, God spoke this to THE MAN ONLY, as the woman was yet uncreated. Whether Adam told his wife what God had told him we dont know precisely what he said, but he told her fairly accurately what God had told him. This hints at the issue, that men should both speak complete, accurate truth and protect their woman, women should trust their man, and male and female should be unified in thought and word, with mutual care and trust. The woman should trust the man when he says something for her good and protection, and the man should trust the woman to ask him for help or to dialogue decisions and situations together and check what he thinks he said. Truth should be verified by a second source. 'God, did you say this to Adam?' if you can indulge my imagination, an error correction method built into human communication, God being the source of perfect truth.
Thirdly, they both knew GOOD. They lived in a perfect garden which had repeatedly been declared as good by God (Genesis 1v4, 10, 12, 18,21, 25, 31, ch 2v9) before the fall.
And they knew what wasn't good: Genesis 2v18 [18]And the LORD God said, It IS NOT GOOD that the MAN SHOULD BE ALONE; I will make him an help meet for him.
So 'they' both had a very good awareness of GOOD, and a limited understanding of what wasn't GOOD, but no exposure for EVE of what wasn't good. She had not ever experienced being alone (as Adam had) as the only one of her kind. (Adam didn't like it I'm assuming here, as he would have the same response as God did to him being alone.) Aloneness as not being good reflects the need for each other as male and female, and also solitary living isnt evil but rather 'not good': it's less than ideal and far from a complete human experience. We need others to be fully human. Humanity flourishes in good community and good communication with each other.
Personally I want to know only good and never see, hear be aware of or experience evil or loneliness. Unfortunately thats the world we live in right now, where evil is ever pervasive in ourselves, our neighbours, our institutions and the nations. Loneliness is on the increase, and even encouraged by bad government policy, social norms and personal choices or circumstances. Who wants to live in a world where we both have evil, know evil and are left on our own to deal with it? Not me. Yet we are aware of evil, we cannot stay ignorant and unaware of temptation to sin crouching at every step in life. We have to deal with this awareness in the present time.
Before the temptation, Adam and Eve were BLISSFULLY unaware, and I mean blissfully in the fullest sense, and ignorant of the evil that was already present in the world (the fallen, corrupted angel Lucifer) and heading their way in the form of a deceptive lying serpent.
So, for me the question isn't "did they know right from wrong?".but: "DID THEY EXPERIENCE (i.e. were they subjected to, exposed to aware of) RIGHT+GOOD AND WRONG+NOT GOOD?"
To me the answer is a obvious and merciful NO:; They only knew GOOD and NOT GOOD (less than ideal, less than complete.) EVIL and bad they did not know.
Again I ask, who wants to know and experience evil?!
Genesis 3:2--7 [2]And the woman said unto the serpent, WE may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: [3]But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, NEITHER SHALL YE TOUCH it, lest ye die. [4]And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: [5]For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then YOUR EYES SHALL BE OPENED, AND YE SHALL BE AS GODS, knowing good and evil. [6]And when the woman saw that the tree was GOOD FOR FOOD, and that it was PLEASANT TO THE EYES, and a tree to be desired TO MAKE ONE WISE, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto HER HUSBAND WITH HER; and he did eat. [7]And the eyes of THEM BOTH were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
v1 When temptation was introduced in the garden, the serpent spoke to THE WOMAN ONLY. Adam, as far as we know, was either passively listening but present with her, or at a distance beyond hearing, say 50 yards away.
As an aside, I wonder if Adam, which I mentioned above, would have experienced incompleteness and a less than ideal life on his own without the yet formed Eve, when he saw her ashamed, and different, he had somehow lost her to evil. He was still without sin, she had become separated spiritually and communally from a husband who knew no shame and the God who could not look on sin 'unclothed' i.e. on display. Did Adam chose to sin out of a desire to be reunited with the wife that suddenly had lost her innocence and looked different to him? Was there a rekindled aloneness and incompleteness to sway his choice? Its a possibility. No words are recorded by either Adam or Eve in the handover of fruit, as though Adam or Eve did not need to say anything to each other. Love has no bounds. Thet both wanted to be together completely.
Before the temptation what they experienced was GOOD and right. After the temptation they immediately experienced EVIL, in that they realised they were ashamed of their nakedness. Before they felt no shame but enjoyed being innocent and unworried by their appearance to God, themselves or others.
Genesis 2:25 [25]And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed. Genesis 3:10 [10]And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
Ask yourself, are you openly or secretly ashamed of how you appear (physically or spiritually/personally) to yourself, God and others? What if every thought word and deed in your life was suddenly revealed to everyone, including your partner, children or parents?
The shame of the fall lives on, yet we long to be known for who we are (creatures of infinite worth and eternal destiny, full of longings for goodness and love ans purpose) and to take away all the shame in us ans others (whether we feel this guilt or fear for our future because of it or not). Only the work of Jesus and faith in his crucifixion can do that. Jesus died,on a wooden torture and penal death device called the cross of Calvary, as a naked, unashamed, guiltless and fearless divine and perfect man so he could take away our wretched sin stained covering, shame, guilt and fear. God bless you if you sense thats true and that's you. Turn to the creator of this world, Jesus the son of God, and trust Him that He is well able to do what you cannot do for yourself."
#joy#isaac_watts#grace We are saved by grace through faith. Grace: charis, God's goodness, benevolence, towards those who haven't earned it or can expect it. The root word of charis is chairo meaning joy, cheer gladness (Be of good cheer thy sins are forgiven thee Matthew 9v2, not the same word but forgiveness should lead to cheer.) When we receive God's Grace by repentance towards God and placing our faith in Jesus alone, it both gives God great joy, the angels joy and ourselves joy inexpressible.
Joy and thankfulness are key attributes of those who are Christ's, those who have been born of God. Non Christians and many professing Christians are often joyless, because they have no change of heart, no lightness for the spirit of heaviness, and no peace, joy and thankfulness at all they have been given in Jesus and all the transgressions under the law that have been blotted out. "The law came by Moses, but grace and truth by Jesus Christ."
"Joy to the world the lord has come! Let earth receive her king."
The #first_words_of_Jesus It is far better and actually A MUST, to seek God, and then he will clearly speak to us what he wants us to be occupied with.
Have you ever looked at your life and thought there was a missing piece? The bible in Galatians chapter 5 verses 22 and 23 describes what life should look like. If you are able to spot the missing piece, does that resonate with your life?
The story of the rich man, Abraham and Lazarus (Luke chapter 16)
This seems very relevant today in this society where the rich- poor divide is growing exponentially.
Luke 16:24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on ME, and send LAZARUS, that HE may dip the tip of HIS finger in water, and cool MY tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
Even when the rich man was dead, in the direst of places, a place of unchanging torment, HE was focused on Lazarus serving HIS needs, was only concerned about HIS pain , HIS priorities, HIS relationship with Abraham. There was a sense of a spirit of jealousy, the poor man over there isn't thirsty, isnt in pain any more. 'Why does he get to be pain free, Father Abe, why does he get to be thirst free and I get left here in torment? This isnt making sense! 'I'm too polite to ask you to do it, Abraham, your a respectable, rich guy yourself just like me, you know the things I need and how to get them. You had slaves and servants, you know how this works, the power dynamics, you're the man in charge. Just tell him I'm to come! 'Can't you send him, Lazarus of all people the silly beggar who sat with dogs rather than the influential, you know the ex poor man? He's easily influenced to do things. I've done it before myself. Have a word with him, pretty please.'
Its that dependent relationship where the other person lives rent free in your head and you can't stop thinking about him and how your needs can be met by them. Feed me! give me a Drink!
No interest in Lazarus, who is now promoted into the arms of Father Abraham's presence, not interested in Lazarus's good fortune to be rich, healthy and wise and well connected, sitting with the right people, how God had blessed him now. No. The real thing to focus on, in the Rich Man's puny logic, was the negativity, the thirst, the distance he felt from everyone else. Nothing good to say about Lazarus's change of luck or praise the Lord for how good He had been to Lazarus. What about me myself and l? Have they forgotten me?! Its me, the ex rich man who had the fancy wife and social status . Mr generous, always right , doing good, apart from the poor beggar on his doorstep. Neighbours if you like, in the same apartment block . But i loved God!!!
Friends, pause at this spot right now and think about this: if there's someone living rent free in your head and you cant stop thinking about him/her, not in a good way to help them mind you, but how they need you and they can feed you, if you are expecting someone else to serve your needs, to quench your thirst and don't care about their needs, their hunger, watch out, because judgment is coming, and it won't be pleasant..
Hell is real right now for someone you probably know, and the torment also resides in some people's headspace in this world.
Liars display the truth even when they are lying. "Really?" you may ask.
Even when people are lying, the truth is being revealed by The Truth. I have an inbuilt lying detector called the Spirit of Truth who leads me into ALL truth. You cannot hide the truth from The Truth.
The CrackedPot Christian
From the Kris Reece channel
#peace #false_peace
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The CrackedPot Christian
A message to Christians: Our sin sick world
#sinners #fallenworld #fallen_world #thirsty
#conqueringchrist
When we see a sin sick world, with it's depravity, greed, violence corruption, lusts of the flesh and spirit, powerful people doing evil, unclean acts we dare not speak of, what happens to our thoughts, our heart?
Do we say: what a wicked world, dont they know how wrong it all is? Stop this madness! JUDGEMENTALISM
Do we say: oh this is horrible, get me out of here Jesus, asap. ESCAPISM
Do we say; well they've made their choices, what will be will be? FATALISM
Or, do we say: No matter how bad it is, no matter the depth of rebellion, depravity and anger on display, I have a saviour who can, does and will do something about it all who can save to the uttermost those who come to God through Jesus? (Hebrews 7v25) OPTIMISM
Share the joyful, powerful gospel.
Do it convincingly, freshly, willingly, freely, care freely.
The Gospel is the only cure for the rampant sin of a fallen world.
This world and those in it are condemned already. It is reserved for judgment. We're on a rescue mission.
(Romans 1)
God can save LGBTQ, prostitutes, adulterers, murderers, witches, the agnostic, wife and husband beaters, disobedient children, gang members, the weak, the lost, the addict, the poor, the religiously proud and financially independent.
Anyone. Me, you and the next person you meet. Such were some of us! 1cor 6v11
People are thirsting for something, anything, to make themselves feel better, be it intimacy, spirituality, acceptance, a comfortable life, a dangerous and exciting life, power and position.
And it has always been so.
The heart of the issue is the issue of the heart.
Not sin, not lack of repentance, not rejection of Christians or church (that just indicates the heart condition.)
'The man you are with is not your husband ' John 4.
'does any man condemn you? Neither do i.' John 8v10,11.
'We aught to judge ourselves ( i.e. our brother and sister in unrepented sin), We do not judge the world, the people outside Christianity , that is for God to sort out.' 1 cor 5v12, 13.
'WHO are you to judge?
Who are YOU to judge?
Who are you to JUDGE?
When you do you condemn yourself. You have no excuse or get out clause for judging others, because you have done the very same things.'
Romans 2
Fellow believer and reader;
'acknowledge, judge, grieve over your own sin first , receive once again the renewal of your spirit and His gracious acceptance of a repentant and humble heart, be filled with the joy of HIS salvation, then you will teach sinners the way and be converted to Jesus.'
Psalm 51v9-13
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The CrackedPot Christian
THE INNOCENT LAMB: explaining to children about the cross and why their sin was placed on Jesus in a horrific way.
Something I've never had the pleasure of doing is sharing the gospel with children, or explaining the cross.
I don't suppose many (Jewish) parents would have taken along their kids to a torture spectacle so not many kids would know what a crucifixion was.
It was pretty brutal. (Compare this to the coliseums where the Greeks would have a family day out and enjoy the spectacle, the atmosphere, the entertainment of seeing men fight to the death or mauled by wild animals. Similar to 'cage fighting ' or dog fights today . Very violent and disturbing. (Genesis 6 😢))
To some degree we and God protect our children from the horrors of life and death. On Palm Sunday there weren't any lifeless bloodied bodies on the crosses outside of the city so the children were encouraged to sing "hosanna to the son of david' (Matthew 21, v 15,16) at this feast time and as Jesus entered. Party time!
Only a few days later with a beaten, bruised, flagellated, nailed and thorn torn flesh, the good parents were not going to watch Jesus again but chose hide their kids from these horrors. In fact at Passover they had to remain indoors until 'they were passed over' by the angel of death, as retold about them exiting Egypt.
Witnessing violence isnt good for any child, and is often traumatic and damaging. Something to be delicate and sensitive about.
So how would I talk about the cross to children? How to convey a child's disobedience to parents with it being necessary to put a man on a cross for it?
I think the way God had already provided an explanation for the violence of the cross was through temple sacrifices and scripture reading.
The children would have witnessed this as they went to the temple 3 times a year for festivals, seen the animals in cages ready to be put under the knife for the shedding of blood. Blood would have been put on their ears and doorposts at passover, just as it would this Passion week 2000 years ago as Jesus was crucified, just as it had been since the first Passover millennia before Jesus.
It would have been explained to the children where the blood came from. They then might have asked questions as inquisitive children often do (why why why why mummy?) about death, suffering, innocence, need, guilt, payment, sacrifice, forgiveness, thoughts and feelings about death etc.
We can help children understand God has placed such a sober assessment on all and any disobedience (sin) that if we understand in our conscience our personal guilt, not merely to those human parents we got angry or displeased, but towards God himself who gives all life, that he requires the shedding of blood (and a substitutionary death) for sin , provided in the doves, the sheep, the calves, the goats etc prepared for their final day in the temple.
These animals are innocent of sin but represent the goodness and innocent nature of Jesus as he was prepared himself for the sacrifice for sin on our behalf, in our place, the cross.
"Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin" Hebrews 9v22 .
I would hope good Jewish parents would have over and over every year and on the Sabbath taught and explained to their children both through the scriptures and through the temple worship and the sacrificial system, and at Passover in particular, what was going on in the temple, so the children could connect death of innocent animals with payment for every persons sin ( their parents could say that "Jesus died for my sin too, my sin requires a sacrifice as God has said in jis word"), the offerings to God for forgiveness of sin.
Animals are an easy way to connect with children's emotions and convictions ("innocent animals shouldn't have to die mummy!"), caring for pets and loving birds, zoos, livestock etc.
Whether the children can understand and conceptualise why an animal has to die is difficult to know and only God can reveal this truth to them (why did God chose this, and only this, way for an offering for sin??) , but if they can connect animals, death and payment/offering for sin and God's way of providing a clean conscience and forgiveness of sin, they will be able to transfer that idea to Jesus, meek and mild who bounces children on his knees and blesses them.
The lamb of God, who didn't cry out or avoid his own death. A willing person. Behold the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.
The story of Abraham and Isaac would also be a good way of teaching them not mere forgiveness of but a payment for sin, of how it happens, and God provided "himself a lamb for the offering " Genesis 22v8.
Also explain the animal skins God clothed Adam and Eve with for both a death to cloth their nakedness and an evidence God will remind us through the warmth of clothing and covering from shame he made a good and necessary sacrifice for them.
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The CrackedPot Christian
Do you admire this man?
Ive listened to D.P. many times, and he has an air of authority. When you look closer his theology is places is both errant and damaging.
Do check it out.
https://youtu.be/wlWWiAMwpsk?si=3ZhnP...
#derekprince #derek_prince #deliverance #demonic
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The CrackedPot Christian
'Do you , and did Adam and Eve, know right from wrong?'
This video below gave me pause to think on the subject of good and evil.
youtube.com/shorts/HoGFeTpcCy...
#originalsin #adamandeve #gardenofeden #loneliness #perfectworld #firsttemptation
So I hope you find what's written below in response to it an encouraging reminder that God is good and we should feel no shame if we are in Christ. God bless the reader!
"This a very nuanced topic. So bear with me as i speak at length. I will go to the scriptures first so we can read them for ourselves and not rely on someone else to tell us what they believe it says.
Genesis 2:16-18
[16]And the LORD God commanded THE MAN, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
[17]But of the tree of the knowledge [Hebrew: awareness in sense of 'not ignorant of'] of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
[18]And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
Firstly, we are not told that 'they' knew or didn't know right from wrong, just that when they did eat from the tree they would die. Nor does it say that eating from it would allow them to know right from wrong.
Secondly, God spoke this to THE MAN ONLY, as the woman was yet uncreated. Whether Adam told his wife what God had told him we dont know precisely what he said, but he told her fairly accurately what God had told him. This hints at the issue, that men should both speak complete, accurate truth and protect their woman, women should trust their man, and male and female should be unified in thought and word, with mutual care and trust. The woman should trust the man when he says something for her good and protection, and the man should trust the woman to ask him for help or to dialogue decisions and situations together and check what he thinks he said. Truth should be verified by a second source. 'God, did you say this to Adam?' if you can indulge my imagination, an error correction method built into human communication, God being the source of perfect truth.
Thirdly, they both knew GOOD. They lived in a perfect garden which had repeatedly been declared as good by God (Genesis 1v4, 10, 12, 18,21, 25, 31, ch 2v9) before the fall.
And they knew what wasn't good:
Genesis 2v18
[18]And the LORD God said, It IS NOT GOOD that the MAN SHOULD BE ALONE; I will make him an help meet for him.
So 'they' both had a very good awareness of GOOD, and a limited understanding of what wasn't GOOD, but no exposure for EVE of what wasn't good. She had not ever experienced being alone (as Adam had) as the only one of her kind. (Adam didn't like it I'm assuming here, as he would have the same response as God did to him being alone.)
Aloneness as not being good reflects the need for each other as male and female, and also solitary living isnt evil but rather 'not good': it's less than ideal and far from a complete human experience. We need others to be fully human. Humanity flourishes in good community and good communication with each other.
Personally I want to know only good and never see, hear be aware of or experience evil or loneliness. Unfortunately thats the world we live in right now, where evil is ever pervasive in ourselves, our neighbours, our institutions and the nations. Loneliness is on the increase, and even encouraged by bad government policy, social norms and personal choices or circumstances. Who wants to live in a world where we both have evil, know evil and are left on our own to deal with it? Not me.
Yet we are aware of evil, we cannot stay ignorant and unaware of temptation to sin crouching at every step in life. We have to deal with this awareness in the present time.
Before the temptation, Adam and Eve were BLISSFULLY unaware, and I mean blissfully in the fullest sense, and ignorant of the evil that was already present in the world (the fallen, corrupted angel Lucifer) and heading their way in the form of a deceptive lying serpent.
So, for me the question isn't "did they know right from wrong?".but:
"DID THEY EXPERIENCE (i.e. were they subjected to, exposed to aware of) RIGHT+GOOD AND WRONG+NOT GOOD?"
To me the answer is a obvious and merciful NO:; They only knew GOOD and NOT GOOD (less than ideal, less than complete.)
EVIL and bad they did not know.
Again I ask, who wants to know and experience evil?!
Genesis 3:2--7
[2]And the woman said unto the serpent, WE may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
[3]But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, NEITHER SHALL YE TOUCH it, lest ye die.
[4]And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
[5]For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then YOUR EYES SHALL BE OPENED, AND YE SHALL BE AS GODS, knowing good and evil.
[6]And when the woman saw that the tree was GOOD FOR FOOD, and that it was PLEASANT TO THE EYES, and a tree to be desired TO MAKE ONE WISE, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto HER HUSBAND WITH HER; and he did eat.
[7]And the eyes of THEM BOTH were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
v1 When temptation was introduced in the garden, the serpent spoke to THE WOMAN ONLY. Adam, as far as we know, was either passively listening but present with her, or at a distance beyond hearing, say 50 yards away.
As an aside, I wonder if Adam, which I mentioned above, would have experienced incompleteness and a less than ideal life on his own without the yet formed Eve, when he saw her ashamed, and different, he had somehow lost her to evil. He was still without sin, she had become separated spiritually and communally from a husband who knew no shame and the God who could not look on sin 'unclothed' i.e. on display.
Did Adam chose to sin out of a desire to be reunited with the wife that suddenly had lost her innocence and looked different to him? Was there a rekindled aloneness and incompleteness to sway his choice?
Its a possibility.
No words are recorded by either Adam or Eve in the handover of fruit, as though Adam or Eve did not need to say anything to each other. Love has no bounds. Thet both wanted to be together completely.
Before the temptation what they experienced was GOOD and right.
After the temptation they immediately experienced EVIL, in that they realised they were ashamed of their nakedness.
Before they felt no shame but enjoyed being innocent and unworried by their appearance to God, themselves or others.
Genesis 2:25
[25]And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
Genesis 3:10
[10]And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
Ask yourself, are you openly or secretly ashamed of how you appear (physically or spiritually/personally) to yourself, God and others? What if every thought word and deed in your life was suddenly revealed to everyone, including your partner, children or parents?
The shame of the fall lives on, yet we long to be known for who we are (creatures of infinite worth and eternal destiny, full of longings for goodness and love ans purpose) and to take away all the shame in us ans others (whether we feel this guilt or fear for our future because of it or not).
Only the work of Jesus and faith in his crucifixion can do that.
Jesus died,on a wooden torture and penal death device called the cross of Calvary, as a naked, unashamed, guiltless and fearless divine and perfect man so he could take away our wretched sin stained covering, shame, guilt and fear.
God bless you if you sense thats true and that's you. Turn to the creator of this world, Jesus the son of God, and trust Him that He is well able to do what you cannot do for yourself."
1 month ago (edited) | [YT] | 0
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The CrackedPot Christian
#joy #isaac_watts #grace
We are saved by grace through faith.
Grace: charis, God's goodness, benevolence, towards those who haven't earned it or can expect it.
The root word of charis is chairo meaning joy, cheer gladness (Be of good cheer thy sins are forgiven thee Matthew 9v2, not the same word but forgiveness should lead to cheer.)
When we receive God's Grace by repentance towards God and placing our faith in Jesus alone, it both gives God great joy, the angels joy and ourselves joy inexpressible.
Joy and thankfulness are key attributes of those who are Christ's, those who have been born of God. Non Christians and many professing Christians are often joyless, because they have no change of heart, no lightness for the spirit of heaviness, and no peace, joy and thankfulness at all they have been given in Jesus and all the transgressions under the law that have been blotted out.
"The law came by Moses, but grace and truth by Jesus Christ."
"Joy to the world the lord has come! Let earth receive her king."
4 months ago | [YT] | 0
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The CrackedPot Christian
The #first_words_of_Jesus
It is far better and actually A MUST, to seek God, and then he will clearly speak to us what he wants us to be occupied with.
https://biblehub.com/sermons/auth/spurgeon/the_first_recorded_words_of_jesus.htm
https://likeananchor.com/2016/04/23/christs-first-words/
4 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 0
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The CrackedPot Christian
#missing_piece #love #fruit_of_the_spirit
Have you ever looked at your life and thought there was a missing piece?
The bible in Galatians chapter 5 verses 22 and 23 describes what life should look like.
If you are able to spot the missing piece, does that resonate with your life?
Love to you all.
5 months ago | [YT] | 2
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The CrackedPot Christian
#Lazarus #Luke_16 #Rich_man #judgement #lakeoffire #jealousy #torment #jesusarmy
The story of the rich man, Abraham and Lazarus
(Luke chapter 16)
This seems very relevant today in this society where the rich- poor divide is growing exponentially.
Luke 16:24
And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on ME, and send LAZARUS, that HE may dip the tip of HIS finger in water, and cool MY tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
Even when the rich man was dead, in the direst of places, a place of unchanging torment, HE was focused on Lazarus serving HIS needs, was only concerned about HIS pain , HIS priorities, HIS relationship with Abraham. There was a sense of a spirit of jealousy, the poor man over there isn't thirsty, isnt in pain any more.
'Why does he get to be pain free, Father Abe, why does he get to be thirst free and I get left here in torment? This isnt making sense!
'I'm too polite to ask you to do it, Abraham, your a respectable, rich guy yourself just like me, you know the things I need and how to get them. You had slaves and servants, you know how this works, the power dynamics, you're the man in charge. Just tell him I'm to come!
'Can't you send him, Lazarus of all people the silly beggar who sat with dogs rather than the influential, you know the ex poor man? He's easily influenced to do things. I've done it before myself. Have a word with him, pretty please.'
Its that dependent relationship where the other person lives rent free in your head and you can't stop thinking about him and how your needs can be met by them. Feed me! give me a Drink!
No interest in Lazarus, who is now promoted into the arms of Father Abraham's presence, not interested in Lazarus's good fortune to be rich, healthy and wise and well connected, sitting with the right people, how God had blessed him now.
No. The real thing to focus on, in the Rich Man's puny logic, was the negativity, the thirst, the distance he felt from everyone else. Nothing good to say about Lazarus's change of luck or praise the Lord for how good He had been to Lazarus. What about me myself and l? Have they forgotten me?! Its me, the ex rich man who had the fancy wife and social status . Mr generous, always right , doing good, apart from the poor beggar on his doorstep. Neighbours if you like, in the same apartment block . But i loved God!!!
Friends, pause at this spot right now and think about this:
if there's someone living rent free in your head and you cant stop thinking about him/her, not in a good way to help them mind you, but how they need you and they can feed you, if you are expecting someone else to serve your needs, to quench your thirst and don't care about their needs, their hunger, watch out, because judgment is coming, and it won't be pleasant..
Hell is real right now for someone you probably know, and the torment also resides in some people's headspace in this world.
5 months ago | [YT] | 0
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The CrackedPot Christian
#narcissist #lie_detector
Did you know I can detect lies people tell me?
Liars display the truth even when they are lying.
"Really?" you may ask.
Even when people are lying, the truth is being revealed by The Truth.
I have an inbuilt lying detector called the Spirit of Truth who leads me into ALL truth.
You cannot hide the truth from The Truth.
5 months ago | [YT] | 1
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