This is where some people will start thinking that I’ve gone off the deep end…
Fools rush in where angels fear to tread… 1Corinthians tells us that God chose the “foolish”… So I am in good company!
In Genesis 2 we found that God created, and wants us to be creative. We found Man and Woman in the ideal environment. Perfect in every way. Because there was no knowledge of evil. In other words no experience of problems and difficulties.
When man planted a seed it grew just like it was supposed to… There was no drought. There were no diseases. There were no weeds to challenge the plant for nutrients. The food didn’t make him sick. The food didn’t make Eve fat.
One tree was kept from mankind.
So, of course, someone had to bring up the idea that God was ripping them off…
First reason It’s only one thing BUT it’s the BEST thing.
Second reason He’s keeping you from your full potential.
Third reason There isn’t any consequence.
Yes I played into the stereotype by inserting a picture of an apple.
No one knows for sure what that particular “fruit” that may have been. We will not debate the issue today… But let’s assume that it wasn’t the “best”. Everything that God created was “Good”. He never claimed any of his creation to be better. It wasn’t even a necessity. Man could have lived and prospered without it.
Most of the world seems to have bought into the philosophy that we can be gods, ourselves, if we just have the right information… This information is found in secrets. If we know these secrets we will rise in our potential until we become _______.
No consequences? At least the negative ones?
Food seems to be a built in sermon illustration for the consequences of sin in this world.
What happened to food at the eating of the forbidden fruit?We got exactly what Satan offered Eve… the knowledge of evil, along with the good.
Before those little nibbles were taken… mankind could have put extra scoops of Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia on top an extra thick slice of chocolate cake with nothing but praise to God for the wonders of cake and ice cream… Afterwards we get what we have now the experience of the evil with the good. Calories! Fats! Sugars! Gluten!
As we get farther from the fall of mankind we notice more and more of these negative consequences. Many of these can be attributed to (or at least aggravated by ) the food we eat.
Between me and my wife alone, I count these as consequences to Adam and Eve’s choice:
Before these nibbles the first couple had freewill, the ability to use one’s will without consequence. Adam planted a tomato he got a tomato. Afterward Adam would plant a tomato and ALSO get weeds, insects, hurt back, sunburn.
Likewise, we are able to make choices… but, they come at a price… Even our good choices. Just think about eating less red meat. Eat more fish the MDs tell us. We do and then they tell us to limit our intake of fish! Why? Because it has PCBs and Mercury.
Chicken: Good and Good for You! Right. Just make sure you prepare it correctly so that it is cooked all the way through, don’t let it touch other parts of the meal so they don’t make you sick from cross contamination. Clean and sanitized everything and yourself after preparation.
Yes, Satan was right… we would know the experience of Good and Evil together. Where he was wrong was that it doesn’t make us Godlike. Nor does it bring us the fullness of human potential.
Every meal should remind us the consequences of sin.
Just like our food… sin may taste good at first bite, but it has very real and lasting consequences.
One little bite ended the Free Lunch Program.
Soli Deo Gloria,
Pastor Douglas the Smoke’ N Goat
