Day two, or January the second. Does God really
mean what he says? Our thought today is rooted
in Genesis chapter three, verse four. You will
not certainly die, the snake said to the woman.
Now the big picture surrounding this verse. After
such a promising start, it all goes rotten very
quickly, because man and woman decide that they
know better than God who created them. There
is only one thing that they are told not to do,
and so they do it. Isn't that just like people
today? They could have eaten from any tree in
the garden, but choose to eat from the prohibited
one. This results in being evicted from the Garden
of Eden. and is usually referred to as the fall
of mankind, when they slip from the perfect state
God intended for them. Following their exit from
their garden home, Adam and Eve, names that literally
mean man and woman, begin a family by having
two sons called Cain and Abel. They have learned
the hard way that God really does mean what he
says. It has cost them a beautiful home in a
fabulous garden that can never be retrieved.
Perhaps they'll believe God next time. And now
our action step for today. Discipline seems to
be slipping out of vogue in our 21st century
society. We regularly hear children being told,
this is your last chance, over and over again.
Even in airports we hear public announcements
for the final call for flight so -and -so, and
this is repeated several times, so that final
becomes meaningless, and we only react when we
hear that it's the last and final call. So it's
not surprising that people can develop a very
sceptical view of statements in the Bible that
seem categorical and final. God told Eve that
she would die if she ate the fruit from the tree.
Later, when she gets a second opinion, that she
may have misunderstood or misheard, she is easily
persuaded. Unlike everyone else, God always means
what he says. The Bible is full of wonderful
advice and promises, and they are all for our
benefit. Take God at his word. and enjoy life
to the full.