I am starting a new series this morning using Genesis 3 as the scriptural basis for the messages The theme of the series is “Updating The Garden of Eden to the Contemporary World.” In this series I want us to see that today we face many of the challenges and options faced by Adam Eve.
Text: “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:4 NIV).
Here are the Promises of Satan.
Penalties won’t come true
Your eyes will be opened
You will be like God
You will know good and evil
Now here is God’s promise.
Genesis 3:15 NIV And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
The promise of Genesis 3:15 was fulfilled with the coming of Jesus of Nazareth, God’s Son.
Scripture Reading:
Genesis 3:1-10 NIV [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.”
Introduction
I am starting a new series this morning using Genesis 3 as the scriptural basis for the messages The theme of the series is “Updating The Garden of Eden to the Contemporary World.” In this series I want us to see that today we face many of the challenges and options faced by Adam Eve.
Let me tell you of the experience of a young lady who had a roach problem. She had tried to get rid of the roaches in her apartment for weeks. It seemed that two roaches replaced every one she killed. One evening while watching television, she saw an advertisement for a new method guaranteed to eliminate the insects she battled every day.
She found the product on Amazon and ordered it. In only a few days, she got her miracle product. Eagerly she unwrapped the package then stood astonished as her eyes fell on two one-inch pieces of board. Here’s what the instructions said: “Place the roach in the middle of the bottom board, then firmly press down on the roach with the top board.”
What the young woman received was not at all what she had expected. She had been duped by misleading advertising, an experience known all too well by some of us here this morning. But misleading advertisements or false promises are not new. They have been around since the beginning of time. They started when the serpent, identified later in scripture as Satan, made false promises to Eve. The serpent had no concern for Eve’s well-being. She was only a tool in the ongoing battle by Satan to lure people away from fellowship with God.
The title of this sermon is “False Promises”
Text: “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:4 NIV).
I. Here are the Promises of Satan.
- Penalties won’t come true
- Your eyes will be opened
- You will be like God
- You will know good and evil
“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman…..
Most of us obey rules and regulations because we understand they are for our benefit. For example, at a crosswalk there are flashing signs telling us when it is safe to walk and when it is unsafe. We obey those signs because we do not want to be hit by a car and be injured or killed.
Occasionally, as we wait for the light to change, someone will walk out into the street. Cars slow down; some even stop. Our minds begin to tell us we don’t have to obey the Walk and Don’t Walk signs either. We conclude that the cars will stop for us anyway. A matter of personal safety becomes nothing more than a game of chicken to see who will stop first, the cars or the pedestrians.
Once the penalty of disobedience is removed, it is easier to disobey the rules. Satan’s promise to Eve was that there would be no penalty for eating from the tree that God had prohibited them from eating.
B. Another promise was “Your eyes will be opened.”
The same promise is made today. Those striving to live a Christian life are continually inundated with promises of a more authentic existence. The path of Christian living is often cluttered with claims of discovering a deeper, more fulfilling life. The appeals of drugs, alcohol, and sex are widely known. We are told to use them as the way to know what life is really like. Some people use power, money, or authority to make themselves feel important at the expense of others.
The promise is the same. “Think of yourself first; use other people; eat, drink, and be merry; then your eyes will be open to what life is about.
C. Another promise is “You will be like God”. This promise is an appeal to the ego.
All of us feel a little uncomfortable with ourselves. There are always those who are more talented or more attractive than us. Satan promises that by ignoring God, Eve will be “like God” she will be like the one who cares for her and her husband, she will be like the one who fellowships with them each evening. Equality with God was the promise, and for Eve that was something to be grasped.
D. Another promise: You will know good and evil.
In the original Hebrew this is not just knowing good as opposed to evil. Rather, it's about understanding the full range of human experience, from the very best to the very worst."
In essence Satan was saying to Eve, “not only will you not die from eating the forbidden fruit, you will end up being just like God. You will know all there is to know”
Well we know that the price for this promised transformation was disobedience to God.
II. There is a process leading to sin.
Genesis 3:6 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.
When you read this verse you see only the defiant, rebellious act of disobedience. Yet disobedience does not happen from nothing, something has to trigger it. Disobedience doesn’t just spring up fully developed with nothing to support it. Disobedience is the end result of a process. Here's the process.
A. Satan planted a seed of doubt in Eve’s mind, doubts about God and about His care for her.
Genesis 3:5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
B. The seed of doubts sprouted, and a plant of disbelief sprang up.
The plant of disbelief was fertilized by the false promises of the serpent and watered by Eve’s own observations.
The tree offered her food; the food was pleasant to the eye, and eating it appealed to her pride—she would be like God.
Genesis 3:[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,...
C. The plant of doubt then produced fruit and that fruit was the fruit of disobedience.
The process was complete. Eve bought into the false promises of Satan with her disobedience to God.
….she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
III. What were the results of disobedience?
- Personal shame.
- Altered relationships.
- Broken fellowship.
What Eve and Adam got was something very different than the promise to be like God and to know all things.
A. Personal shame.
Adam and Eve looked at themselves and were embarrassed. They wanted to hide themselves, so they made fig-leaf coverings to hide behind.
[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.
B. Altered relationships.
C. Broken fellowship. Their relationship with God was changed.
Instead of being like God, Adam and Eve were now frightened by his presence. Instead of having fellowship with God, Adam and Eve hid from him.
Genesis 3:8-10 NIV [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.”
Their disobedience had cost them the joyful presence of the one who called them into being and who sustained them day by day.
In one act of disobedience, Adam and Eve changed forever their relationship to themselves, to others, and to God. Satan had promised more than he could deliver. His promises had been false. Adam and Eve had only been tools in Satan's war with God.
IV. That war continues today.
What is that war all about?
Satan, once a powerful angel named Lucifer, rebelled against God out of pride, desiring to be like the Most High. This rebellion led to his expulsion from heaven and his transformation into the adversary of God.
Isaiah 14:12-15 NKJV [12] “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! [13] For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; [14] I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’ [15] Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit.
Satan's primary goal is to undermine God's plan for humanity and to tempt people away from God's love and obedience. He seeks to deceive and corrupt humans, leading them to sin and ultimately separation from God.
This conflict is often seen as a cosmic battle between good and evil, with humanity caught in the middle.
A. Private lives.
The war continues in our private lives as we repeat the struggles of Adam and Eve. Will we believe God and live in obedience to his commands, or will we believe the Devil and disobey? Daily this is the question we face in our family lives, in our business lives, in our political lives, in our spiritual lives. At its core is the single question of obedience to God or believing the false promises of Satan.
B. Public lives.
In our public lives, the question is the same. Will we seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, or will we go after other things?
Our world is full of voices, there are those who attempt to reduce the nature of God's kingdom to a political system. Others declare that the work of God is dependent on preserving a particular type of economy. Patriotism is often elevated to a religious-like status
Yet God’s kingdom has survived and thrived under dictators as well as democracy. It has survived monarchies and anarchy. The sun has set on many empires, but the sun has yet to go down on the kingdom of God and his Son, our Savior.
As Christians we hear the false promises of our public life, and we must declare that our first allegiance is obedience to our God. To do any less would result in the same tragedy that disobedience brought to Adam and Eve.
Conclusion
Thankfully, the Scripture does not end in tragedy for the disobedient, Adam and Eve, or you and me. "Despite the initial sin of Adam and Eve, the biblical narrative offers hope for reconciliation between God and humanity. This restored relationship has the potential to heal divisions among people and bring inner peace. That reconciliation and restored relationship come through Jesus Christ.
We talked about Satan’s promises now here is God’s promise.
Genesis 3:15 NIV And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
The promise of Genesis 3:15 was fulfilled with the coming of Jesus of Nazareth, God’s Son.
Genesis 3:15, often referred to as the "protoevangelium" (meaning "first gospel"). This passage is a promise of Jesus' victory over Satan through His crucifixion and resurrection. The "crushing of the head" symbolizes Satan's ultimate defeat, while the "bruising of the heel" represents Jesus' temporary suffering and death.
Through faith in Jesus we become God’s children. Through faith in Jesus disobedience can be forgiven. Through faith in Jesus our hopelessness can turn to hope for the present and for eternity.
Prayer
Lord, thank you for the gift of your promises. All throughout the Bible, you reveal your heart's desires for us, and one of those desires is that we would seek to know you more deeply. Help me to keep my eyes fixed on you and my steps so closely behind the leading of your Spirit that I never have to question where you are leading me.
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