Topic: The Doctrine of Man
Sub-topic: The Fall of Man
Lesson Topic: The Consequences of Violating God’s Order
Date: August 2, 2024
Recap
· Our entire view of the Bible, of Christianity stands or falls on our view and interpretation of the fall of man.
· Satan still uses the tactics he used against Eve today
· He attacks us where we are weak
· Your weakness should never be your secret.
· James 5:13-15 helps us understand this statement. Please pause and read the verses. Listening to this video for clarity: https://youtu.be/cgmj-1wuMrQ
· Satan’s was calculated in his approach and upset the balance God had built with man.
· We were designed to receive in our spirit, consider with our mind, respond with our emotions and choose with our will
· Clearly, the 1st human pair sinned since they failed to call upon the faculties of the SPIRIT and considered the appeal of Satan with their minds, then responded with their emotions and finally chose to violate God’s commandment by a deliberate act of the will.
· The result of this violation was:
o Darkened intelligence
o Deadened emotion and
o A degraded will
Lesson Development
THE RESULT OF VIOLATING GOD’S ORDER
Adam was given God’s principles for successful living. The moment he rejected the principles given to him by the sovereign Lord, his creator, serious conflicts arose with his personality.
Adam was given freedom and boundary and was assigned lordship over creation within the limit.
As depicted in the diagram above, Adam pushed his freedom beyond the boundary and exercised the lordship over creation without limit.
Certainly, these actions resulted in conflicts in his personality.
Personality? Yes!
The personality is embedded in the non-material aspect of man.
This is man’s self-consciousness and self-determination that enables him to make choices, that is to exercise his free agency.
Let us take a moment to explore the conflicts in Adam’s personality
· His spirit died: “for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” Genesis 2:17
· Let us explore this to gain a deeper understanding of what happened.
· The spirit within man died… the faculties of the spirit are
· Conscience
· Sensitivity
· Creativity
· Motivation
· Insight
· Comprehension
· This takes us back to the statement made earlier… Adam’s intelligence became darkened.
· His spirit died, preventing him from receiving in his spirit from the spirit of God.
· The conflicts in Adam’s personality started… his spirit died.
o This is like being disconnected from the life-giving flow
o Having no power, data or internet connection
o This must have been a hyper-sad reality
Mankind considered the appeal of Satan with his God-given mind and was plunged into deep darkness.
o Today we continue to experience the result of this violation.
2… He ran away from God: Genesis 3:8- “And Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord.
We tend to want the best of both worlds but soon realise that we cannot handle the realities.
Now that Adam pushed his freedom the boundary and his dominion of creation beyond the limit given, he found that he was no longer comfortable in the presence of his God, his friend.
· Do you struggle with similar tendencies?
· Have you been running away from God?
Thirdly, the result of the violating God’s order is that-
Fear became a strong motivation.
Genesis 3:10…”and he said, I heard thy voice in the garden and was afraid”
Man’s experience of using his will against God resulted in a deep awareness of guilt. This, in turn, produced a strong sense of personal responsibility before God.
The way we respond to guilt determines our entire present and future.
We should understand that the human system was not made to carry guilt. Therefore, a man attempted to compensate for the offence or rationalise it.
Let us consider some ways in which men attempt to deal with the deep sense of guilt within each of us due to Adam
· Incomplete repentance
· Religious compensation
· Determined self-effort
· Re-evaluation of convictions
· Denial of the absolute standards of scripture
· Rejection leads to loss
· The search for a substitute
1. Incomplete repentance
We might want to determine what repentance is.
What is not repentance?
To help us arrive at a definition, let’s first look at examples of incomplete or counterfeit repentance. Identifying what repentance is not might help us better determine what repentance is.
1. Repentance is not a guilty feeling
Saul felt guilty, upon being caught, for disobeying God’s command to wipe out the Amalekites, but he didn’t repent, and he lost his kingdom. (1 Sam 15:24–25). Judas felt guilty for betraying the Lord Jesus, but he didn’t repent, and he took his own life. Matt 27:3–5
2. Repentance is not confession
In the examples mentioned, Saul and Judas acknowledged that they had sinned. Both confessed the truth without, in the end, making self-justification, but neither demonstrated repentance, and God whets his sword against them.
3. Repentance is not a feeling of grief, regret, or sorrow
The apostle Paul once wrote a letter that led its readers to grieve over sin.
In a follow-up letter, Paul commented that grief is not the same as repentance. However, godly grief will produce the fruit of repentance. Worldly grief produces only death (2 Cor 7:8–11)
Grief or sorrow alone does not mean a person has repented.
Case in point: Esau grieved over his loss of blessing, likely regretting many choices that led him to that place, but despite his tears, he never found repentance (Heb. 12:15–17; Gen 27:30–41.)
4. Repentance is not a liturgical act
Religious ceremony is often an appropriate expression or sign of repentance, but it is not the same as repentance.
Similarly, repentance in the Bible is often accompanied by outward, visible acts of voluntary humiliation, such as wearing sackcloth or putting dust on one’s head.
But those visible acts of humiliation can be performed without repentance taking place.
“Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? … to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?” (Isa 58:5).
5. Repentance is not a mere state of mind or heart
In Luke 3:8, we can see John the Baptist preached about repentance, encouraging individuals to bear fruits thereof. He further provided examples of particular people with obvious behaviours that demonstrate behaviours that would highlight the fruits of repentance. Continue reading Luke 3:10-14.
Please note that John the Baptist did not send them off to cultivate an inner affection or attitude alone; he sent them off to obey the will of God from the heart.
Therefore, while repentance is not a merely outward formality and must involve the heart, it does not stay in the heart and must be expressed in outward behaviour. (Joel 2:12–14)
If repentance is not a mere feeling or state of mind, a verbal confession, or a liturgical act, then what is it?
Repentance is to change mind, heart, and action by turning away from sin and self and returning to God, that is, the right relationship with God.
Evangelical repentance consists of
o a true sense of one's own guilt and sinfulness.
o an apprehension of God's mercy in Christ.
o an actual hatred of sin (Psalms 119:128; Job 42:5 Job 42:6; 2 Cor. 7:10) and turning from it to God; and
o a persistent endeavour after a holy life walking with God in the way of his commandments.
· The true penitent is conscious
o of guilt (Psalms 51:4 Psalms 51:9),
o of pollution (Psalms 51:5 Psalms 51:7 Psalms 51:10), and
o of helplessness (51:11; Psalms 109:21; Psalms 109:22.
· Thus, he apprehends himself to be just what God has always seen him to be and declares him to be
Incomplete repentance occurs when a person attempts to remove feelings of guilt by being sorry for the consequences of the sin but not for the sin itself.
As a parent and educator, I witness counterfeit repentance, which is incomplete repentance. Children say they have repented of an action, but they are only concerned about escaping the consequences associated with the action. They will apologise because they do not want to lose opportunities like play time, screen time, or whatever they enjoy.
Where are you at?
Have you ever truly repented? Are you a Christian just because you are afraid of going to hell, or is it because you value getting back into the right relationship with God?
Pause. Think. Act.
With Auntie Nats
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