In the Garden, the enemy planted this accusing question into the hearts of humanity, “Did God really say?”
What was God’s response to this accusation?
Key scriptures in this episode:
📕 Genesis 3:1
📕 Genesis 1:26
📕 Genesis 3:15
📕 John 1:1-5
📕 John 1:14
Transcript
Today, we are going to take a “Posture of Peace” by crushing this common peace stealer, accusation. Posture, is a short audible fist bump to remind you God is with you in everything. Together, we’re going to be emboldened to take a daily Posture of perfect peace.
In Genesis 3:1, it says this. “Now the serpent was more crafty than any wild animal that the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, ‘did God really say you must not eat from any tree in the garden?” Now, I spoke recently about peace stealing offense, and I wanna talk today about another common peace stealer, accusation. Lies and accusations. That is really all our enemy satan has to try to use against us. The Bible says in John 8:44 that he is the father of lies. And in Revelation 12:10, it says he is the accuser of God’s people. And way back in the garden in Genesis 3, an accusing question was planted in the hearts of humanity. Did God really say? And humanity has been questioning God’s word, his promises, his goodness, his very nature ever since. Now, when we carry an accusation against God’s nature, we actually carry an accusation against ourselves.
Remember, Genesis 1:26 tells us God’s primary purpose when He says, “Let us make man, male and female, in our image and likeness.” And when we question God’s nature, when we question His word, we find ourselves living a lie. We find ourselves in an identity crisis, living outside of our true selves. If we can’t trust who God is, if we can’t trust what he said, we can’t trust who he made. We can’t trust His plan or his purpose for us, especially his primary purpose for us, which is to make us in his image and likeness for his nature to become our nature. This wasn’t a flippant question that the enemy asked. This was a seed of accusation that he intended to plant deep in the hearts of humanity to steal our peace with God. Satan doesn’t want you sad, anxious, depressed. He wants you dead. And he knows that your life is sourced through your relationship with your Heavenly Father. So this question he asks, did God really say, was his way of trying to cause relational death between you and your heavenly father. Because without relationship with God, there is no purpose. And without purpose, there’s no reason to live.
As humans, we instinctively know this, and that is why so many try outside of God to try to create their own purpose through worldly success, worldly causes, accumulating finance and wealth, but purpose outside of that Genesis 1:26 is so short lived. It can never replace the abundant life that we have in relationship with the three: Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit. Now, what was God’s response to all of this? How did God respond to that accusing question, did God really say? Some will be short-sighted and they’ll look at this and they’ll say, “Well, He kicked Adam and Eve out of the garden. He punished them. He cursed them.” No, no, no. God, in his loving kindness, protected Adam and Eve from their own self-destruction by taking them out of the garden, because if they stayed, they would have eaten from the tree of life and lived forever in their sin, separated from God, and in perpetual relational death. But God had different plans. So let’s go back to Genesis 3 and let’s go to verse 15 where God curses not Adam and Eve, but the serpent, the enemy, by prophesying a Messiah, a Redeemer. God says this to the serpent, he says, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your offspring and her offspring. He shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel.”
Now let’s go to John 1 and I’m going to read John 1:1-5. “In the beginning was the word.” This is all about Jesus. “In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him. And without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.” Let’s skip down to verse 14, “And the word became flesh and dwelt among us. And we have seen his glory, glory as of the only son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” How did God respond to the accusing question, did God really say? He sent his word, Jesus, in bodily form to dwell among us, to demonstrate his nature. Everything Jesus did here on Earth revealed the heart of the Father towards us, reminding humanity of their worth, their authority, their purpose. Genesis 3:15, God says this to the serpent, “Who you father is going to nip at humanity’s heels, but who I father is going to crush your head.” Who is your father? Now, if you’re questioning, did God really say? If you’re holding questions in your heart like, does He really love me? Does He really want me healed? Is He really good? Is He really faithful even in this hard circumstance, even in this painful situation? I wanna encourage you to look to Jesus.
Father God held nothing back when He sent his word, his son. Our relationship with God is restored through Jesus forever. We became sons and daughters. We walk in newness of life and fullness in Christ. So remember this today, no matter the circumstance that you may be facing, it’s just a nip at your heel, but you through accepting Jesus as your savior, living in restored relationship with your Heavenly Father filled with the Holy Spirit, you have crushed your enemy’s head.