King James Bible Study – “And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” – Mark 8:34
Date: Saturday, January 02, 2021
Chapters: Genesis 3-5
Message: What’s In The Heart
Hello My Friend,
Innocence, or purity, is not something that stays with us very long, sin just comes natural to us, even a one year old will give you that sly look when they know they are about to do something they know is wrong. We could blame parenting as to why so many people are living sinful lives, but they are really not the problem. A child that grew up in a godly family could end up a drug addict, and yet, a child that grew up with a drug addict could end up a preacher. While parenting, or rather the lack of, does play a key roll in how we value life and the choices we make, it all comes down to each person and what is in their heart, [Luke 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.]
[the evil treasure of his heart] There are two types of evil, there is natural evil, which are things that came from the fall of man, like death. And there is wicked evil, this is the type of evil that does comes straight from the devil, like murder. As we know, God’s most precious creation is man, and yes, God did create the devil too, he was actually an archangel, and we know him as Lucifer, [Isaiah 14:12]. You see, there is something that we all need to be aware of that God has given both man and the angels, and that is freewill. Lucifer was not content to be one of God’s most highest rank of the angels, in fact, he wanted to be God, and he convinced a third of the angels to side with him, so that he could take the throne. Of course, that did not happen, God prevailed over Him, and cast him and the angels down to earth, [Revelation 12:7-17]. What better way to get revenge on God, even though he had to get permission from God to even do this, than to put a wedge between God and His most precious creation than to take away the innocence of man. And it all began with the serpent.
[Genesis 3:1-6 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 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.]
[Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast] Subtle; Sly in design; artful; cunning; insinuating. This was not your ordinary looking snake, he was a creature of beauty. That is how the devil always deceives us, he tempts us with his beauty, which really is a visage. Eve trusted him enough to have conversations with him, and must have been talking to him for a while, he had to have watched her eyeing the tree for quite some time. [then your eyes shall be opened,] Oh, their eyes would be open all right, the second they bit into that fruit their innocence was gone, they knew what sin was for the first time. Now, that was the devils heart that wanted to be as gods, he knows there is only one living God, his creator. It was Eve’s heart that desired the one thing that was forbidden, and as for Adam, his heart was his Eve. Now, God knew exactly what happened, He was going to test them to see if they would admit their fault, and they failed miserably.
[Genesis 3:8-13 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. 9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? 10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. 11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? 12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. 13 And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.]
[Hast thou eaten of the tree,] God always asks us if we committed the sin, fully knowing that we are guilty. He does this so that we can make the conscious decision ourselves to admit that we have sinned. So, instead of admitting their guilt, Adam blamed Eve, and even went as far as saying that God was partially to blame because He gave her to him. Then Eve went and blamed the serpent for conning her into taking the fruit off the tree to begin with. Until we admit that we are a sinner, God will not save us from death. Oh, and who was among them when God was talking to them, the serpent. Right then and there, God gave the punishment to all of them.
[Genesis 3:14-17,21-23 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: 15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. 16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. 17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them. 22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: 23 Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.]
[and between thy seed and her seed;] God declared the seed of the woman (man) and the seed of the serpent (devil) as enemies, they would forever despise one another. Keep in mind that the devil cannot produce, he does not have children, it is those who are not believers and actually think like him that Jesus calls children of the devil, [John 8:44]. [it shall bruise thy head,] This is of course, Jesus, who would be the seed sent through a woman to bruise Satan’s head, meaning destroy him when Jesus became incarnate and suffered and died. [the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.] The most amazing thing about God is that even though He knows we are sinners, that does not stop Him from loving us and taking care of us. Yes, we must face those natural evils, but He will never leave nor forsake those who are true believers, and He knows that by our faith in His Son, [Hebrews 3:15].
[to know good and evil:] Right then and there innocence was gone, the natural tendency to commit sin was inevitable because their eyes were now open to what evil is. Being innocent until proven guilty does not work here, we are all guilty of sin, and the punishment is death. It is Jesus Christ who breaks that curse though our faith in Him, [Romans 3:22-24 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: 23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:]
I do not care what you believe, every person born wants God in their lives, it is their hearts that change as God loses respect for their halfhearted efforts. When God told Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply that is what exactly what they did. In fact, they had several children, and their children had children. Now, by human comprehension this sounds horrible to think that we are all just brothers and sisters. We must understand that during this time God created them to populate the earth, and since they had all of the twenty-three genes that make up our DNA, this was possible without the genetic side effect that happens today. The Bible tells us of two of their children, Cain and Able, by the way, Cain is an example of religion, while Able is an example of faith.
[Genesis 4:1-7 And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. 2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. 4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. 6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.]
[But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect.] There will be many that tell you that the reason God did not accept his offering was because it was not a blood offering. I disagree with that as the Law later stated that if a person did not have an animal to sacrifice for their atonement, grain would be accepted, [Leviticus 5:11] God simply did not respect his offering because he just did it out of obligation as it was not the first of his crop. [and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.] Let me tell you, sin is right there constantly knocking at the door when our heart is not right with God. Cain was not really interested in living the way God wanted him to live, he just wanted all the blessings from God, and that is what He has no respect for. So, instead of taking what God said to him and improving the matter, he made things worse, he became envious of Able and killed him. Once again, God fully knowing what was going on, went to Cain and asked him where his brother was.
[Genesis 4:9-15,25-26 And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper? 10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. 11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; 12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. 13 And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. 15 And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. 25 And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. 26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.]
[And the LORD set a mark upon Cain,] We often wonder why those who hurt us live long lives and seem to get away with what they have done. The truth is, their living is their punishment. While we may not see it, they go through so much more pain than we ever will. And on top of that, there is no end to their suffering, when they die, they end up in hell. They can pretend to be all religious, believing in God, and working in false churches, but God knows their heart, [Matthew 7:22-23] [then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.] Remember, we must personally call on Christ to save us or He will not, [Romans 10:9-10 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.]
God does not want us to come to Him out of obligation, or just to get out of hell, He wants us to come to Him willingly, and when we do, we will give Him our very best, and He will accept it. It really is sad to think of all the people born and only a fraction of them called upon the name of the LORD. Chapter five gives an account of all the son born from Seth, well, Enos actually who became what we know as the sons or children of God.
[Genesis 5:1-3,6,9,12,15,18,21,24-25,28-29,32 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him; 2 Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created. 3 And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth: 6 And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos: 9 And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan: 12 And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel: 15 And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared: 18 And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch: 21 And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: 24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. 25 And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech: 28 And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son: 29 And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed. 32 And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.]
[and begat a son in his own likeness,] This is an interesting fact because we are all created in the likeness and image of Adam, meaning we were also created with the same sinful nature and come short of being perfect and whole as when God first created Adam. Now, there is a last Adam, the one who makes us perfect through our faith in Him, who we become the likeness of the second we accept Him as our Saviour, [I Corinthians 15:45-49 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. 46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. 47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. 48 As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.]
Jesus Christ Magnified: [Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You for giving me life, and for the life that You have given me. While I do not always understand the trials and tribulations that You place before me as I walk the path You have chosen for me, I do understand that I am Your precious child through my faith in Your Son, and the devil cannot touch my soul because it belongs to Christ. I do want to live my life to please You, I want to value life by living it guided by Your Word, and walking side by side with Jesus. Lord, give me Your power to love life, no matter where You place me, give me Your strength to sustain my life by being a witness and testimony of how living a moral and just life leads to Your Son. And keep my eyes on Your Son that I might not be tempted to turn to lusts of the evils of this world. I pray this in Your name, Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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