As the result of his sin, a fourfold judgment came upon mankind. There was first of all a judgment upon the serpent.
Genesis 3:14 "And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life."
Upon the animal world about us is this judgment of God.
Apostle Paul, writing of it in the eighth chapter of Romans, says,
Romans 8:19:20 "For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of Him who hath subjected the same in hope."
Creation is waiting.
" .. for the manifestation of the sons of God."
Creation is like a veiled statue today.
When the sons of God have removed the outward covering of this flesh, creation also will be unveiled.
What a glorious day that will be!
"vanity" means "failure, decay, something that is perishable."
"Not willingly" means not of its own will, but because of Him who subjected it on the basis of hope.
King Solomon, who was quite a pessimist wrote:
"All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again" (Ecclesiastes 1:7).
There is a weary round of repetition. The rivers run into the sea, and the Lord has quite a hydraulic pump that pumps the water right out of the ocean, and with His good transportation system, the wind moves the clouds across the dry land, and here comes the rain again. It fills the rivers, and the rivers run into the sea. There is a monotony about nature.
Nature is waiting for the promised manifestation, the unveiling.
"Creation was subjected to vanity" because God made it that way.
The curse of sin came upon man in Adam’s disobedience, but the physical world also came under the curse.
Remember that God said to Adam,
"Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread …" (Genesis 3:18–19).
While there is this judgment resting upon the serpent, beyond the serpent there was another one - Satan,
and we read that there was a judgment to come upon him:
Revelation 12:9 "And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
And still another judgment was pronounced - this was upon woman.
God said that in sorrow she would bring forth children, but He also said:
Genesis 3:15 "And I will put enmity between thee (the serpent) and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."
Lets go to Bethlehem and look at the event that transpired there.
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight
For Christ is
born of Mary
And gathered all above
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love
O morning stars together
Proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God the King
And Peace to men on earth
How silently,
how silently
The wondrous gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of His heaven.
No ear may his His coming,
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive him still,
The dear Christ enters in.
O holy Child
of Bethlehem
Descend to us, we pray
Cast out our sin and enter in
Be born to us today
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell
O come to us, abide with us
Our Lord Emmanuel.
Amen.
In
the little village of Bethlehem
There lay a child one day
And the sky was bright
With a holy light
O'er the place where Jesus lay.
Alleluia
O how the angels sang!
Alleluia
How it rang!
And the sky was bright
With a holy light
'Twas the birthday of a King.
Humble
birthplace
But O
How much God gave to us that day!
From the manger bed what a path has led
What a perfect holy way.
Alleluia
O how the angels sang!
Alleluia
How it rang!
And the sky was bright
With a Holy light
'Twas the birthday of a King.
That is God’s work,
not man’s:
Matthew 1:23 "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us."
Now let us go to Golgotha and see the bruising of the woman’s Seed.
That is God’s work,
not man’s:
There was a transaction between God the Father and God the Son when He bore the penalty for the sins of the whole world.
Judgment came upon woman and upon this earth, and today the whole creation is travailing in pain, waiting
for a deliverance that is coming through the redemption that is in Christ.
Then we find that a fourth judgment came, and it was upon man.
Listen as God speaks to man:
Genesis 3:19
"In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the
ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for
dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return."
Whether we consider man laboring with a crude implement of the Stone Age or see him laboring under the tensions and pressures of this push-button civilization, it is still true that it is by the sweat of his face that he eats bread.
It is God’s judgment upon man.
This then is the human story.
It is a sad story - the sob of the city and the sigh of the countryside. We find life filled with irritations, annoyances, disappointments, and resentments. Men’s hearts are filled with frustrations, tensions, and complexes which can often lead a person to some high bridge or building and the plunge to death.
It is a story of broken homes, hungry children, and neglected old people.
The lullaby of Broadway is a theme in which the drunkard, the harlot, and the thief weave their way into our homes.
The light of liberty is gone out.
Bitterness and anger and wrath are in the hearts of men and woman, boys and girls; envy and hatred are among nations, and strife and gossip are in the house of God.
Such is the human story.
Scripture says:
2 Timothy 3:2–5 "For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof."
That sadly is where we are today!
But that, Thank God, is not the final chapter.
It is true that
"by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin,"
but it is also true that
Romans 5:18 "As by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life"
There stands a cross between us and the Garden of Eden. That cross is not an ambulance sent to a wreck!
Our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the spotless Lamb of God slain before the foundation of the world.
The cross is not God’s second best; it is His very best.
God closes the record of man’s fall with this verse:
Genesis 3:24 "So He drove out the man; and He placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life."
The cherubim were not to block the way, but God was saying in effect,
"In spite of man’s sin, I will keep the way of life open for him."
John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
One
day when heaven was filled with His praises,
One day when sin was as black as could be,
Jesus came forth to be born of a virgin,
Dwelt among men, my example is He!
Refrain:
Living, He loved me; dying, He saved me;
Buried, He carried my sins far away;
Rising, He justified freely forever:
One day He's coming— oh, glorious day!
One day they led Him up Calvary's mountain,
One day they nailed Him to die on the tree;
Suffering anguish, despised and rejected,
Bearing our sins, my Redeemer is He!
One day they left Him alone in the garden,
One day He rested, from suffering free;
Angels came down o'er His tomb to keep vigil;
Hope of the hopeless, my Saviour is He!
One day the grave could conceal Him no longer,
One day the stone rolled away from the door;
Then He arose, over death He has conquered;
Now is ascended, my Lord evermore!
One day the trumpet will sound for His coming,
One day the skies with His glory will shine;
Wonderful day, my beloved ones bringing;
Glorious Saviour, this Jesus is mine!
"Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification" (Romans 4:25).
Matthew Henry put it like this:
"In Christ’s death He paid our debt; in His resurrection He took out our acquittance."
God justifies those who believe in the death and resurrection of Christ.
How wonderful this is!
Have you gone that far with God dear reader?
Do you believe Him?
Will you not make a decision to trust Him today
There
is forgiveness, God doth say,
Thro' the blood,
Thro' the blood;
Both sin and guilt are put away,
Thro' the blood, Thro' the blood:
And sinners fitted for the sky,
Yes, unto God Himself bro't nigh,
Made meet to dwell with Christ on high,
Thro' the blood, Thro' the blood!
'Tis not your work puts sin away,
But the blood, But the blood;
Nor is it gold, God's Word doth say,
But the blood, But the blood:
Yes, 'tis the blood, the precious blood
Of Christ, the chosen Lamb of God,
That clears away sin's heavy load:
Precious blood, Precious blood!
You may be washed as
white as snow
In the blood, In the blood;
And then to glory bright will go,
Thro' the blood, Thro' the blood:
So come to Christ; O come today!
That you may praise— yes, praise for aye,
The Lamb who washed your sins away
In His blood, In His blood!
Thousands of souls in
heav'n will be,
Thro' the blood, Thro' the blood,
Praising the Lamb, who on the tree
Shed His blood, Shed His blood:
All white and pure, all glorious fair,
They praise the Lamb, whose joy they share;
Oh, happy throng! will you be there
Thro' the blood, Thro' the blood?
Thanks: Sermonaudio.com
Amen!
And before the curtain goes down on man’s little day, God lets us hear the strains of the finale, a mighty crescendo of praise -
Revelation 5:9–10 "And they sung a new song, saying … Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth."
Although guilt came upon man, today
Listen to God’s assurance found in
Romans 8:33–34 "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us."
There is now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus - because Jesus died, arose from the dead, and today is at the right hand of God where He ever lives to make intercession for us.
Apostle Paul asks the question,
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?"
Back in the Garden of Eden man was separated from God.
But now we can have the comfort and security of knowing that nothing can separate us from His love.
Romans 8:38–39 "For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Today we have gained more in Christ than we lost in Adam. Praise God!
In Christ we have hope, salvation, deliverance, and security.
IN HIM redeeming grace;
IN HIM my daily manna, IN HIM my hiding place.
IN HIM there is atonement, IN HIM eternal life;
IN HIM a full salvation, IN HIM an end of strife
Chorus.
IN HIM! ... IN HIM! ...
THERE'S FULLNESS OF BLESSING IN HIS SERVICE SWEET;
IN HIM! ... IN HIM! ...
I AM IN HIM COMPLETE.
IN HIM I now am resting; The half I cannot tell
Of all the priceless blessings which make my heart to swell
With thankful adoration, As day by day I find
HIS peace and grace sufficient to keep both heart and mind.
But when I see thee, JESUS, When face to face we meet -
Then in Thine own dear image It will be far more sweet,
Oh then I'll sing my praises For all I found in Thee;
And give to HIM the glory Who has redeemed me.
Sankey's Sacred Songs Solos 858.
Played by Caryl. This is my most favorite hymn and it has kept me of a sound mind through many trials of my faith. I learned it when I was very young and today I can truly praise our Lord for all His marvelous unmerited favor that He has poured into my life.
Please allow me to encourage you today to occupy yourself with our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen!
Reply to Caryl@cherith.co.za.
THIS PAGE UPDATED: 26-9-2010.