Mankind Judged

The Days Before the flood

The flood was so significant that Jesus used its lessons to teach about His second coming.

• Eating and Drinking
• Note that there was no mention of God in their lives, just carnal things.
• Mat 24:37-44 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking,  marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill: the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore, be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
• Phil 3:17-19 Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample. (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)
• Marrying and Giving in Marriage
• Some people believe that the godly line of Seth began to marry with the blood line of Cain. Others believe that this refers to angels who left their place and took the daughters of men. 
• Gen 6:1-2 And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. They had forgotten God's judgment of Adam, Eve, and Cain.
• Jude 1:6 And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.
• 2 Peter 2:4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness[b] to be held for judgment;
• 2 Pet 3:3-7 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep. all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:  Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:  But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
• Buying, Selling, Planting, and Building
• Jesus expanded the comparison with the days immediately preceding His coming by including the days of Lot.
• Luke 17:26-30 And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.  They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.  Likewise, also as it was in the days of Lot: they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.
• They knew not; So Shall also the Coming of the Son of Man Be.
• Mat 24:39 (KJV) And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 
• People have been saying that Jesus is coming for years, yet the Bible says:
• Mat 24:27 For as the lightning cometh out of the cast, and shineth even unto the west so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
• The same extreme Wickedness
• Today's wickedness is like it was in the days of Noah
• There will be no advanced notice of Jesus' coming.
•  Matthew 24:36-37 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
• 2 Timothy 3:1-4 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—
• Noah Prepared
• There were probably many jokes about Noah as he built the ark, but when the flood came he and his family were safe inside. 
• Those on the outside were destroyed
• Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith.
• As Jesus said:
•  Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.  What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?  If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”

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Righteous Family Preserved

The Righteous Family Preserved

Faith and Obedience Required

• While God made a way of escape for Noah, He required obedient faith.
• God gave Noah specific instructions on how the ark was to be built.
•  Gen 6:14-16 Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. A window shalt thou make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it.
• Ark Features
• 1 Door
• 3 floors
• 450 feet long
• 45 feet high
• 75 feet wide
• Gen 7:1 And the LORD said unto Noah, come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.
• God even told Noah how many and what type of animals to take.
• Gen 7:2 Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female.

One Plan of Escape

• God has never spared those who were disobedient to His word. 
• Because of Adam and Eve's sin, they had to leave the garden.
• Because of Cain's sin, a mark was upon him, and he was banished from the presence of the Lord.
• 1 Pet 3:20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
• 2 Pet 2:5 And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly:
• God has said,
• Gen 6:3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man...

The Place of Safety

• One week before the flood, God led Noah. the animals and his family into the ark.
• God closed the door.
• Gen 7:15-16 And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. 16 And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.
• The rains came for 40 days; the water stayed at a level for 110 days.
• At the end of 150 days the ark rested upon the mountains of Ararat.
• After 40 days, Noah opened the window and sent out a raven and a dove.

Noah Receives a Promise

• One of the first things that Noah did upon leaving the ark was to build an altar upon which he offered burnt offerings to the Lord.
• This was not the end of God's communication with Noah.
• God told Noah and his family to multiply and fill the earth.
• He said from that time forward animals would fear humans and could be used for food.
• Gern 9:1-4 And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon al! the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered. Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have, I given you all things. But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof. shall ye not eat.
• Before this time only plants were eaten. 
• Gen 2:8-9 And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
• Remember death was a result of sin. That included the death of animals. 
• God also instituted human government
• Gen 9:9-13 And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. And I will establish my covenant with you, neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there anymore be a flood to destroy the earth. 12 And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.

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the orgin of languages & The beginning of Nations

The Origin of Languages & The Beginning of Nations

After the Flood

After the flood, God commanded Noah and his sons to replenish the earth. In fulfilling this command, the human race was to spread out gradually over the face of the entire earth to repopulate it. Once again, however, the overwhelming majority of humanity disobeyed the voice of God. Instead of spreading out over the earth, they located in one specific area and decided to stay there and build a city.

The Tower of Babel

"'And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar. And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth" (Genesis 11:1-4).

• The Self-Centeredness of the People
• Let us notice the self-centeredness of these people and their disregard for God's commandment. He wanted them to Scatter over the whole earth to replenish it, but they wanted to build a city and a tower as a center of humanity to prevent themselves from scattering! In other words, their desire was exactly the opposite of God's Word.
• Different Languages Introduced
• Up to this time, everyone on the earth spoke the same language. Essentially, there was only one nation upon the face of the earth. This made the people's goal of constructing a great city all the more possible.
• But the Lord observed their disobedience and said, "Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language: and this they begin to do; and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech' (Genesis 11:6-7).
• By introducing different languages among the people, the Lord stopped their sinful effort. They could no longer communicate sufficiently to complete such an ambitious project, and they began to spread over the face of the earth, each person finding his place with those with whom he could talk.
• The Judgment of God in Dispersing the People
• The judgment of God caused the origin of languages and the beginning of nations. As a result, the earth was repopulated by the descendants of Noah as follows:
• Shem's Sons
• Shem's sons were Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram. 
• Some of the nations that sprang from these sons were the Persians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Hebrews, Lydians, and Syrians. 
• They settled in Assyria, Syria, Persia, northern Arabia, and Mesopotamia.
• Ham's Sons
• Ham's sons were Cush, Mizraim, Phut, and Canaan. 
• Some of the nations to spring from these men were the Ethiopians, Egyptians, Libyans, and Canaanites. 
• Ham's descendants settled in Africa and Arabia.
• Japheth's Sons
• Japheth's sons were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.
• From them came the Russians, Germans, Britons, Scythians, Medes, Ionians, Athenians, Iberians, and Thracians. 
• They settled in Asia Minor, Caucasia, and Europe.

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From the Fall to the Flood

Adam and Eve outside the Garden

• In their new state of consciousness of good and evil, Adam and Eve began their life outside the Garden of Eden. Existence was quite different from before. Previously, in the peace of the garden, the first man and woman had been charged with dressing and keeping a true paradise. Now Adam was hewing out a living by the sweat of his brow, battling unendingly against weeds and briars.
• Eve discovered the truth of God's Word. He had said, "I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children'' (Genesis 3:16). The first child that Eve brought into the world was a son named Cain. She said, 1 have gotten a man from the LORD'" (Genesis 4:1). Then Eve gave birth to another son, Abel. The wording here seems to suggest that the two boys may have been twins. In the other places in the Bible it also says that the man knew his wife and she conceived. Here it says, "and again she bare his brother".

The Difference Between the two brothers

• As often happens with brothers in the same family, these two were quite different. Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiler of the ground. According to Genesis 4:3-7, there were also spiritual differences between these two men.

Worship Taught

Adam and Eve had obviously taught their sons about God's existence and about the need to worship Him and to offer sacrifices to Him. As time passed by, Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. Abel also brought an offering of the firstborn of his flock.

Sacrifice Accepted and Rejected

• The Lord accepted Abel's offering but not that of Cain. This disturbed Cain, and he became angry. 
• The Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 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. Genesis 4:6-7
• In His mercy and willingness to forgive Cain's error, the Lord appealed to him. He told Cain that his offering could be accepted as well as that of Abel if he, too, would do the right thing. The only thing that would prevent Cain from doing right would be sin.

 Blood Sacrifice, a Requirement

• What was wrong with Cain's offering? Cain's offering did not include a blood sacrifice. He had brough an offering of fruit of the ground. From the very first, God's plan called for a blood sacrifice. 
• In the garden, God had slain animals in order to provide skins to cover the nakedness of Adam and Eve. (See Genesis 3:21.) In other words. for sins to be covered, blood had to be shed. 
• Jesus Christ is the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8)
• The reason God chose a blood sacrifice is that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). 
• Without the shedding of blood, sins cannot be remitted (Hebrews 9:22). 
• Adam must have given taught his sons or Abel would not have known what to bring. We do know that Cain brought an improper sacrifice.
• Early in Scripture we see that sincerity alone does not put a person in right standing with God. The one thing God will honor is obedient faith, it is not enough to do what we think is right or the best we know how. We must do what God commands.
• Abel obeyed God out of faith. Hebrews 11:4 says, "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Caln, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh!"

The Punishment of Disobedience

• Sadly, Cain did not accept God's offer to try again but instead murdered his brother, Abel.
• The Lord, who sees and knows all things, asked, "Where is Abel thy brother?""
• Cain lied, "I know not; am I my brother's keeper?'"
• Then God pronounced the penalty for Cain's sin: "What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; 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!"
• Scientists have discovered that DNA, which is in blood, gives off a vibration. This could be what is referred to as " the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground".
• Cain replied, "My punishment is greater than I can bear. 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 everyone that findeth me shall slay me" (Genesis 4:13-14).
• The Lord answered, therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold" (Genesis 4:15). Then the Lord set a mark on Cain to prevent anyone who found him from killing him.
• God still was showing mercy to Cain by setting a mark to prevent anyone from killing him. 
• As a result of his sins of murder and refusal to obey God, Cain left the Lord's presence and went to live in the lonely land of Nod on the east of Eden.

Men Who Walked with God

• Seth
• Adam and Eve had more children, but it was not until she gave birth to a son whom they named Seth that Eve said, "For God hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew'' (Genesis 4:25). 
• It was in the days of Seth, who was evidently a godly man with a desire to serve God as Abel had, that people began to call upon the name of the Lord (Genesis 4:26).
• Enoch
• One of the most interesting men to live in the Book of Genesis was Enoch. He loved God and was obedient to Him. The Bible says, "'And Enoch walked with God; and he was not; for God took him' (Genesis 5:24). 
• Hebrews 11:5 offers further information on this unusual event: "By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God!"
• Noah
• In the days of Enoch's great-grandson, Noah, God saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth and that every imagination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually. They were so wicked and lawless that God was grieved for making them. 
• He said, "I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them'" (Genesis 6:7).
• There was one man, however, who found grace in the eyes of the Lord: Noah. While others thought continually about evil things and practiced all kinds of wickedness, Noah believed in God and obeyed Him.
• Hebrews 11:7 puts it this way: "By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."

What did Abel, Seth, Enoch, and Noah have in common? Obedient faith. They believed God and obeyed Him. From the beginning, faith has been God's requirement. As Hebrews 11:6 points out, "Without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."

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The First Judgement

 After the sin of Adam and Eve, God pronounced judgement. This came in the form of four curses and the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. 

1. The Curse on the Devil
• The first curse was on the serpent, the devil. 
• 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:
• The serpent had allowed the devil to use his body. See this article on snakes. https://answersingenesis.org/reptiles/legless-snakes/
2. Curse on the Woman
• The second curse was on the woman. 
• Genesis 3:16 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.
• This means that at one time childbearing would not have been so difficult. This is also where God placed the man over women. This does not mean that men are to be mean, hateful, or cruel. 
• Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
• Colossians 3:18 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.
• Colossians 3:19 Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.
• It is noted that husbands should love their wives as Christ loved the church. Recall the depth of Jesus' love for the church, to the extent that He endured a brutal death on the cross for it. Likewise, wives are called to submit to their husbands' leadership.
3. Curse on the Land
• The third curse was upon the land. 
• Genesis 3:17-18 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; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
• The curse rendered the cultivation of food more challenging. However, work itself was not a curse; from the outset, the man and woman were tasked with tending to the garden and the animals.
4. Curse on the Man
• The fourth curse was on the man, Adam. 
• 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.
• The curse foretold a fate of mortality, proclaiming that all would one day turn to dust. It further stated that humans must toil diligently simply to sustain life.

Amidst the curses, not everything was lost. God provided a glimmer of hope, promising a savior who would ultimately defeat the devil. 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. One thing that is interesting to note about this scripture is that women don't have seed they have eggs. To say that from the seed of woman would come anything is to say that she would be the vessel from which God would send forth the deliver. We now know that is how God did it.  Luke 1:35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. Later Jesus was crucified on the cross.  Matthew 27:33 And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull,

Mark 15:22 And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull.

John 19:17 And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha:

It is recounted that God proclaimed Jesus would crush the serpent's head, while the serpent would bruise Jesus' heel. Symbolically, placing a cross into a skull represents the crushing of the serpent's head. Similarly, driving nails through Jesus' heels would be akin to the prophesied bruising.

God showed mercy to Adam and Eve by instructing them on how to cover their sin. They hid themselves due to the shame of nakedness, which was a result of sin. To address this, God fashioned garments for them from animal skins, marking the first death. Genesis 3:21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them Hebrews 9:22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. The animal's death involved the shedding of blood, symbolizing the initial act of sacrifice.

Lastly, Adam and Eve is driven from the only home that they had ever knew. Genesis 3:22-24 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: Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. 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. They were now separated from God. Cherubims prevented them from accessing the Tree of Life. Man has been trying in various was to get back to that tree ever since. Jesus in the only way. John 14:6

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. We must except Jesus in order to get back to the tree of life. That tree is now in Heaven. 

Revelation 22:13-15 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.

The "I" in the above verse is Jesus. 

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The Fall of Man

Adam and Eve lived happily in the garden for a period of time. No one knows exactly how long they lived in the garden. However, most of us have heard about the fateful day when Eve was deceived. Let's look at the fateful events of that day. 

Eve apparently had gone near the Tree of Knowledge of Good and evil. The devil saw his opportunity to pervert the people that God had so lovingly created. 

  Genesis 3:1-7 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?  And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 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. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 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. 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. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

The first thing that I notice is that Eve did not really know or comprehend the words of God. She added to what he had said by saying "neither shall ye touch it". She also weakened what he said by saying, "lest ye die." Lest means that it is possible, but not a certainty. When you turn to the New Testament, we see Paul's writing.  1 Timothy 2:13-14 For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. 

Now let's compare what Satan said to what God said. 

Satan's words: Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

God's Words:  And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Satan started with the negative. God started with a positive. Satan likes to point out that you are missing out on something. God shows what you the things that you do have. 

This tactic works well with those who don't really know the word of God for themselves. This is why we are commanded in 2 Timothy 2:15

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Satan also attacked God's motives. He made it seem like God was withholding good from Adam and Eve.  "And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 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."

Adam messed up by not doing a good job of explaining the Word of God to Eve. She was deceived for lack of knowledge. The sad part is Adam knew that eating of that tree was in disobedience to God's Word. Consider these scriptures:

Romans 5:12-19 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:(For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) Therefore 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.  For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

Thankfully, Jesus came to Save us from our sins. 

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Adam and Eve

On the 6th day of Creation, God created Adam and Eve. They were placed in the Garden of Eden to tend and care for the garden and the animals. They both were innocent. Sin had not yet entered the world. 

God had planted a wonderful garden. It was full of all kinds of good plants that produced good things to eat. He also put two interesting trees in the garden.  We can read about this in Genesis 2:9 where it says, "And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil."

There were also rivers in the garden.  Genesis 2: 10-14: And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.  And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.

God did not leave Adam and Eve without any rules. At this time, they only had one rule. It was a very simple yet profound rule. This rule can be found in Genesis 2:16-17. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

God also gave man free will. He did not want man to be like a robot. He wanted to have joyful fellowship. God gave man the power to choice to obey him or to choice disobedience. 

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Creation Week

(From Genesis chapter 1)

Day 1

God said, "Let there be light" and there was light. He then divided the light from the darkness. Even from the beginning, God made a distinction between light and darkness. 

Day 2

God divided the waters from the waters. In other words, he put in the firmament (sky). This means that at one time there was water above the sky. 

Day 3

On this day God caused the water on earth to be gathered together so that dry land could appear. At this time God gave boundaries to the water. "And marked for it My [appointed] boundary And set bars and doors [defining the shorelines], And said, ‘This far you shall come, but no farther. And here your proud waves shall stop’?" Job 38:10-11

Day 4

This rest of the solar system was created on this day. God created the sun, moon, stars, and what we now call planets. However, he even had a purpose for creating all of this. In Genesis 1:14-18 it says, "Then God said, “Let there be light-bearers (sun, moon, stars) in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be useful for signs (tokens) [of God’s provident care], and for marking seasons, days, and years;  and let them be useful as lights in the expanse of the heavens to provide light on the earth”; and it was so, [just as He commanded]. God made the two great lights—the greater light (the sun) to rule the day, and the lesser light (the moon) to rule the night; He made the [galaxies of] stars also [that is, all the amazing wonders in the heavens].  God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to provide light upon the earth, to rule over the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good and He affirmed and sustained it." 

Day 5

This day saw the fish and birds being created. Then God said, “Let the waters swarm and abundantly produce living creatures, and let birds soar above the earth [k]in the open expanse of the heavens.”  God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind; and God saw that it was good and He affirmed and sustained it.  And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”

Day 6

This day was very busy. On this day all the other animals on earth were created. After God had created the various animals that live on land, he made man in his own image. Humans did not come from animals. To teach such is to degrade humans. When you teach that humans are just highly evolved animals, the results are going to be that humans start behaving worse than most animals. We are to be an image bearer of God Almighty.  

At this time the animals and the humans ate plants. There was no death. All was good. 

Day 7

God Blessed and Sanctified this day.  So the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts (inhabitants). And by the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested (ceased) on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. So God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it [as His own, that is, set it apart as holy from other days], because in it He rested from all His work which He had created and done. Genesis 2:1-3

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In the Beginning

In the Beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth. 

This literal creation was done in 7 literal days with God resting on the 7th day as an example for us to follow.  One of the 10 commandments tells us to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. 

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.

Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:

But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 

For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

Exodus 20:8-11

This commandment is just as relevant now as it was then. The Israelites had a problem remembering their creator. We have a problem remembering that our creator made the earth just as he said that he did. We have allowed the Theory of Evolution to be taught as fact to our children and then we wonder why they are leaving the faith. 

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 Introduction to the Old Testament

Time Periods

In the Old Testament there are 4 major time periods. These 4 time periods span a time period of around 3600 years. 

1. Innocence
2. Conscience
3. The Patriarchs
4. Law and Prophets

1. The time of Innocence was the time that Adam and Eve lived in the garden of Eden. 

2. The time of the Conscience spans the time from the fall of man to Abraham.

3. The time of the Patriarchs goes from Abraham to Moses.

4. The time of the Law and Prophets goes from Moses to Abraham. 

Every event in the Old Testament can be placed into one of these 4 big time periods.  Knowing these time periods can help us to organize everything that we are learning into a logical order. 

Books of the Old Testament

There are 36 books in the Old Testament. They are organized into the books of the law, history, poetry, and prophecy. 

Inspired by God

• But understand this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of or comes from one’s own [personal or special] interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.  2 Peter 1:20-21 
• All Scripture is God-breathed [given by divine inspiration] and is profitable for instruction, for conviction [of sin], for correction [of error and restoration to obedience], for training in righteousness [learning to live in conformity to God’s will, both publicly and privately—behaving honorably with personal integrity and moral courage]; II Timothy 3:16
• You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, so that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I am commanding you. Deuteronomy 4:2
• Every word of God is tested and refined [like silver]; He is a shield to those who trust and take refuge in Him. Do not add to His words, Or He will reprove you, and you will be found a liar. Proverbs 30:6
• I testify and warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book [its predictions, consolations, and admonitions]: if anyone adds [anything] to them, God will add to him the plagues (afflictions, calamities) which are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away from or distorts the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away [from that one] his share from the tree of life and from the holy city (new Jerusalem), which are written in this book. Revelation 22:19

All of God's word is from God Almighty. All of it is useful for us to learn. None of it should be altered, changed, or taken out of context. All of it should be studied as the true word of God. 

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