(What you are about to read is a selection from a retreat I spoke about a year ago. It is a continuation from Part 1 (The Dawn of Creation) and Part 2 (The Separation). It is based on the discussion of our connection with God and comes from Genesis 3:7-24)
I don’t know how it happened; the Bible says that their eyes were opened. I honestly do not know what that looks like. The point is that they understood they did something very wrong. They did something so wrong that they ran and hid from God when they heard Him coming.
Hide from God.
Can you imagine the desperation that they felt in their hearts when for the first time they felt guilt, remorse, panic, dread, and so many other emotions?
Hide from God?
They were so overwhelmed by these new emotions and feelings that they had no idea what to do with them. As they wrestle with all of this, they hear footsteps. More of these fearful emotions flood over them…
Hide from God!
They run and find refuge somewhere, but God is the worst person to play hide and seek with. He knew, and yet, He came. He didn’t leave them out there; He went to them to make certain that they knew what had happened. They had never experienced God like this, God the disciplinarian. I don’t know if they understood the weight of what had just happened. They knew it was a serious problem, but it would soon come to a time that they would have to experience the full brunt of what they had done. Not only would life on earth change, but the relationship with God would be forever changed…
…for them…
…for all mankind…
…forever.
While they dealt with dread, He dealt with great sorrow. His perfect creation fell. Separated to a relationship He never intended. Broken, shattered, crushed, and wrecked the beauty of the free will that He gave man had become the breaking point the enemy attacked and gained victory over. He was forced to drive them away from Himself, forced to become unplugged from them, forced to divorce Himself from them.
God…broken hearted.
The desperation of mankind as they were forced to leave perfection by partaking of the fruit as well as being driven out of the garden had to be unexplainable. Everything was new, but in a horrible empty way. Instead of just gathering food that was in abundance all around them, they had to search for food. They had to learn to plant and grow food, learn to water it, learn to fend off predatory animals, find shelter from weather. Everything that seemed so simple to them and to us now, was not simple because now they had to figure it out for themselves.
How lonely and desperate they must have felt. If only we could re-do everything. If only we hadn’t listened to that blasted serpent. If only we had known then what we know now, why would anyone want to do this to us anyway? Their children would never know God the same way they did. Mankind would grow and spread all across this earth, but no one would experience God the same as they did. The way God designed mankind for, the way we were supposed to be connected. Desperation to rekindle the connection filled the heart of mankind. A desperation to fill the void, but this desperation is one that mankind could not fill on their own, how could they ever reconnect to God?
Man began to try to find ways to fill this void, but how? Many attempts have been made to fill that void over the centuries; there is only One who can fill. The desperation to fill that void began thousands of years ago when the fruit was eaten; many still suffer from it now. The beauty is that the wonderful God that we serve made a plan. An elaborate plan and the only way to fix the broken relationship was to become broken Himself.
Over to you…
1. The connection was broken, try to imagine what that must have felt like and explain as best you can.
2. What thoughts do you think went through Adam and Eve’s mind as they left the garden? Have you ever felt that way?
3. What are your thoughts so far? Have you ever felt desperation? Hopeless?
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