I began the new year with the goal to read the whole Bible once through. Interestingly, before the year, I had been reading in Romans and had been stuck in chapters 6-8, attempting to sort out and understand the deep theology there. When I started Genesis, right from the start, I noticed a strong correlation with The Fall and Paul’s discussion of the law and the righteousness thereof. I believe a comparison of the two demonstrate at a minimum, a similarity, if not an equivalence of the law or commandments of God to the fruit of tree of good and evil. Both are necessary so that sin might be recognized as sin and so that we may learn to hate sin.

Let’s start at the creation of man.

Genesis 2:25: “The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.” This is emphasized because they had not yet partaken of the fruit, and did not know good from evil. This does not mean that Adam and Eve were incapable of committing sin, only that if they did so, they would be doing it in ignorance and without the knowledge of what sin is.
However, ignorance of the sinfulness of an act does not make the act not a sin. In Numbers 15:22-25 we see of the offerings that were to be made for unintentional sins. They were still wrong, albeit a lesser wrong than purposeful actions against God. Even Paul recognized that he “acted in ignorance and unbelief” and as a result considered himself the worst of the sinners. 1 Timothy 1:13-15.

Thus, ignorant sin is still sin.

This is similar to the time prior to the law of Moses. In Romans 7, Paul speaks of the law and the ignorance before the law. Verse 7 says, “Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, ‘You shall not covet.’” In other words, he would have continued in ignorance had it not been for the law.

Adam and Eve were naked and felt no shame, because they did not know good from evil. Genesis 2:25. However, once their eyes were opened, i.e., once they recognized the law, they felt shame and realized they were naked and sewed fig leaves to cover their nakedness. Genesis 3:6.
We go on through Genesis 2:16: “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”

Let’s compare this passage with Romans 7:8 “But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart for the law, sin was dead. Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.”

There is a lot here.

First, the way God commanded Adam is not typical of God’s commands. In the OT we see God giving the ten commandments, and almost all begin with “You shall” or “You shall not.” All are direct commands, specifically saying to do or not to do. None give specific consequences for violating each of these.

In Genesis regarding the tree, however, He says “you must not” followed by the resulting consequence, not “if” you eat of the fruit, but “when” you eat of the fruit. I’ve compared multiple English-language versions of this passage and there is no “if,” only “when,” as though God was planning on it. Indeed, an all-knowing God was planning on it and knew exactly what would happen.

Don’t get me wrong here, there was a commandment and it was violated by Adam and Eve. Make no mistake about that. However, it was God’s plan that they violate this commandment; the need for a Savior was apparent right from the start. If they had not violated this commandment, they would not know good from evil.

This is what Paul explained in Romans 7:13 “Did that which is good (the commandment), then become death to me? By no means! Nevertheless, in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it used what is good to bring about my death, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.” (emphasis added).

In other words, there was sin prior to the commandment, however, it was ignorant sin. After the commandment, sin became “utterly sinful,” thus it was no longer ignorant – it was to be recognized, abhorred, and hated. Indeed, this is one of the laws specific purposes. “The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase.” Romans 5:20

Take note here as well, sin used “what is good,” to bring about death. The commandment is good, just as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is good! Indeed, everything that God creates is good! Sin would have never been “utterly sinful” had it not been for the recognition that sin is sin; thus, it was necessary for the partaking of the fruit, as it was necessary for the commandment to arise that we not covet.

However, the law, the mere knowledge of what is good and evil, is not enough for us to hate and avoid sin, for we are weak, we are of the flesh. “For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin.” Romans 7:14

Let’s continue through Genesis. Eve bore Cain and Abel, and Abel kept flocks and Cain “worked the soil.” Genesis 4:2. Both brought offerings before God, but the offering from Cain was not acceptable. Feeling downcast because of his insufficient offering, his actions, God spoke to Cain saying, “Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.” (emphasis added).

Note the command from God at the end of this line – similar to the language forbidding partaking of the fruit “you must not eat” and “you must master it.”

However, Paul makes it clear that we alone can never master sin, indeed, sin is our master without Christ. “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing…So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave (opposite of a master) to the law of sin.” Romans 7:18-25

So what are we to do? The law is good, however, like tree the knowledge of good and evil, it has only revealed my utter sinfulness, sinfulness which I cannot master, though it is commanded of God. As Paul concludes in verse 25, “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Indeed, we cannot save ourselves, we continue to be slaves of sin and cannot work ourselves out of our sinful nature.

Clearly, we cannot master sin or live perfectly, which is why God provided a savior. There has only been one who has mastered sin, the only one who lived a perfect life.

Paul goes on: “For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

Further, the “former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.” Hebrews 7:18-19 (parenthetical in original). “Therefore, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” Hebrews 7:25.

In short, God wants us to hate our sin. While I am no master of theology or preacher of any kind, I do not believe there is a biblical basis for the belief among many Christians that if Adam had just not eaten of the fruit, everything would have been perfect and we would all have been living according to God’s original plan. God knows how we will respond and he doesn’t need a “plan B.” I just don’t think the Bible proposes that and I think an all-knowing God knew exactly what He was doing and knew exactly how man would respond, indeed, how he planned man to respond. He gave the law, and the knowledge of the law (or of good and evil) so that sin could become “utterly sinful” and hated by us; so that we could see the evil and the good and choose the good. However, like Paul who exclaimed what a “wretched man” he was due to his sins, we need to have a similar disdain for our sins rather than continuing to “nibble on the nastiness of this world.” The Fall was necessary, as was the law, however, neither bring us to salvation or allow us to master the flesh. It is only through Christ that we are saved and it is only through Christ that we can overcome the flesh. As Christ has overcome the world, everyone who loves him and believes in him overcomes the world. 1 John 5:3-5.

Do what you know to be true and right. Don’t let your fears and doubts stop you from progressing and acting on what you know to be true. Don’t let the dark overshadow your light and don’t put a basket over the truth you know. Speak the truth. Speak boldly.

A long while back friend posted on social media that the only persecution Christians get these days is that someone wishes them “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas.” My initial reaction was to chuckle, and then to feel a little offended. Indeed, I am grateful we don’t live in a day and age where biblical persecution exists. I don’t have to worry about getting crucified, stoned, or physically tortured for my beliefs (in this country anyway). Additionally, at least in this country, I think there has been a realization that imminent death is not quite as effective as before; people might actually sympathize with the decedent and such cruel actions might actually give credence to the beliefs of that individual.

However, that is not to say that Christians in this country don’t endure persecution, it’s just a different kind. Frankly, the persecution that Christians suffer in this country is significantly more subtle, attacking only one belief at a time, almost indirectly, as if to weaken each individual principal, without ever directly going to the core. You are unlikely to have a friend or peer mock one’s belief in Jesus Christ directly on social media. However, they’ll poke at something he may have taught, or some principle that does not fit with the lifestyle they’ve chosen. For example, while it is unlikely for someone to mock another for being a Christian, the same individual will find no difficulty in mocking, humiliating, or verbally assaulting someone for believing in traditional marriage, saving one’s self for marriage, believing in the sanctity of life, donating money to their church, or virtually any individual belief that runs with traditional Christianity, leaving only a hollow shell of Christianity left untouched. Indeed, those on social media will likely treat those beliefs, if not the individual him/herself, as a pariah, unworthy of existence, not because he or she is a “Christian,” but because he or she actually acts or believes like one.

This is not to say that some Christians don’t probably deserve a slice of humble pie. For example, there are many self-identified Christians who neither walk the walk nor talk the talk, but for some reason throw the title in your face as if saying a little prayer makes them better than everyone else. As a Christian there are beliefs that I hold dear: that Jesus Christ is the Lord and that he died for my sins. No work, no refraining from sin, nothing I can individually do will ever save me; Christ saved me and he continues to save me and helps me to sin less, and live a life more closely to the way he lived. Those “Christians” who utilize social media to harass or condemn others are failing to realize their own Christian principles. I can’t help but think of a bumper sticker: “don’t judge me because I sin differently than you.”

It’s true. We are all sinners. We are all imperfect, stupid, and wicked. But who did Jesus Christ break bread with? Who did he spend his time with? He didn’t hang out with the Pharisees because they were really good at keeping the letter of the law. Further, Jesus Christ did not come to condemn the world, but to save it. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:17, NIV. What did he tell us about “casting the first stone?” To those artificial Christians judging the world and those around them, they should first look at getting that “beam” out of their own eye removed. Luke 6:42.

So what’s the point of this? The point is that as a Christian, I will do my best never to judge you, regardless of your belief system. I know I’m not perfect and Jesus Christ himself told me that I was not to judge. “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.” Matthew 7:2. I have plenty of beams in my own eye that I need to work on.

However, I would ask the same of you, whoever you are. I won’t mock your beliefs, I won’t mock your choices, and please don’t mock mine. Please don’t preach to me what a Christian should be in this day and age, or mock my traditional beliefs. I don’t care what choices you have made, I will be your brother, I will serve you, I will help you and be there for you, and I will respect you enough not to decry you for your beliefs and actions, and hope that you will do the same for me. None of us are perfect, but we are all in this together.

So I thought I’d make my first post something light-hearted and simple, something that wasn’t overly complex or too thought/discussion-provoking; you know, like the purpose of life… or something.

Ok, so just maybe it is a little too deep for my return to “da interweb,”  but it has been a constant thought in my mind over the last several years, and something I am sure is in the minds of almost every human being. It’s not a topic that can be easily approached and there is certainly no definitive answer either. Frankly, I don’t think even a single question, or even a hundred questions, could adequately address the topics or thoughts that come to mind when one thinks of the “purpose of life.”

So I’ll start with a stupid analogy.

If you knew, if you absolutely knew with 100% certainty that any brand-new car you just bought was going to be totalled in less than ten years, how much would you be willing to spend on that vehicle? How much time would you spend “pimping your ride?” So I know that term is “old school,” but seriously, how much time and money would you invest into it? Would you buy a top-of-the-line sound system, some mounted TVs, leather interior, butt warmers, and the works? Could you see yourself spending $100K on a ride that you know will be absolutely worthless in ten years, and maybe worthless tomorrow? And to you smart a’s who say “yeah, but I’d have it insured,” for this hypothetical, there is no insurance. Whatever you invest into that car will be gone. You may enjoy it for a time, but you don’t know how long that time will be… you only know that it will end.

Another absurd hypothetical:

How much money would you be willing to put into the stock market if you knew, you knew with an absolute certainty, that the stock market would crash and anything and everything you put into it would be worthless when that happens. You don’t necessarily know when it will happen, but you know that at some point during your lifetime it will happen and everything that is in market will be lost; whoever has money in the market at that time, will lose it all. How much would you be willing to venture?

To bring these absurd hypotheticals to a point: what is the one thing about your life that is 100% certain. What is the one thing, you know will happen to you, your family, and everyone you know. What is the one guarantee that we have in this life?

Death.

Yes, I know it’s morbid, but it’s true. It is the one certain event that will occur. You may hope you’ll strike it rich. You may hope to win the lottery. You may want to live in a good neighborhood and take month-long vacations from work. You know you will die. You don’t know when, you don’t know where or how, but you know it will happen. This is the one guarantee we all have in this life.

So that begs the next question: what should you invest in?

Think about it.

Seriously. Take a moment, pause, stop reading, and think about it. What would be a wise investment given the fact that you will die, given the fact that this life is temporary.

There’s not an easy answer, to say the least. You need food, shelter, clothing, and yes, you need money. If you lack any of these, then your lifespan here probably won’t last too long, and your enjoyment would be similarly non-existant. Thus, there has to be some investment there.

However, I think the easiest way to look at this question would be to address it from the point of view as if you were already dead, but you were still in existence. Whether you believe in an afterlife or not, for purposes of this hypoethical, I want you to imagine yourself looking back on your life. Would you look back and say, “wow, I am sure glad I bought that Mercedes, that was a sweet ride.” Would you say, “man, I am glad I invested 60 hours of every week at work?” Would you look back and be glad that you dismissed many of your old friends and mixed with the social circles so you could surround yourself with “the elite?”

I doubt it.

The things you purchase will rust, break down, and be tossed away. The “elite” that you surrounded yourself will forget you when you’re gone; their attention was as much of an investment as yours.

So what is the one thing you can do, the one thing you can share, the one thing you can invest in so that you’ll look back on your life and will feel pleased with the outcome?

Love.

Yeah, you probably saw that coming. And yes, it sounds cheesy and cliche. However, it’s true. Now, when I say love, I don’t mean stupid, valueless, corrupted hippy “love.” I also do not mean getting up on a pulpit and demanding love while you condemn, look down on, and judge others for having values different than yours. I mean non-judgmental, pure, unadulterated acts of love, service, spending-time, caring for others, and training those around us and our children to do the same. And I don’t just mean “love” in an idealistic, theoretical form either. Showing love, compassion, caring, selflessness… charity: this is love.

This is the one thing that I have no doubt, no doubt that if it is done, if it is shown, if it is exercised, the impact will never fade away. The life that you help improve will impact lives around it. Sure you could spend that extra hundred bucks you have on a mediocre car stereo that will be gone in five years. However, spending that money to buy food for a hungry family in need or to help out a neighbor will go a lot further. The love that you show will be shared with others.

One of my favorite scriptures is James 1:27, which reads, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” (NIV) In this single verse the core of religion, the core of Christianity is emphasized: loving and caring for others, while trying to avoid the stains of the world. Or put in another way using the words of our Savior, when asked to identify the greatest commandment, he replied that “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind… And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” We love God by loving our neighbors.

Again, love.

Love God, love righteousness, love others regardless of their circumstances and their sins. We are all sinners, we are all stupid, we are all lacking. We would hope that God would forgive us our trespasses and show compassion and love to us, let’s do the same to everyone.