Tuesday, August 13, 2019

According To The Eternal Purpose Which He Purposed In Christ Jesus Our Lord: - Part 2405

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)

"... who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began!" (II Timothy 1:9)

There have been many questions about scriptural genealogies. We find these accounts in both the old and new testaments. In the first, we understand the first man to be Adam. In the first book of the Old Testament, Genesis, we learn that Adam had a vested interest in Eve -- for she was bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh.

But God had a much greater interest in Adam insomuch as Adam’s creation was the created works of His own hand. In this context, Adam was the earthly image of God’s spiritual form. A perfect image or as some might surmise, a priceless work of art. However, in the beginning Adam was lifeless. So God breathed into Adam the breath of life, resulting in Adam being called “a living soul."

(As an aside, please note that a living soul can become a dead soul for God has said, “that the soul that sins it shall surely die.”)

As we also know from reading Genesis, Adam and Eve sinned and were subsequently put out of the Garden of Eden. Prior to their expulsion from the Garden, God announced that certain curses would now befall them. Curses that in God's perfect garden had not befallen them before. At the same time, God issued a promise, “that the Seed of a woman would bruise the serpent head.”

The serpent alluded to here is satan who had deceived them to do things which were contrary to God’s instructions. This included eating from either of the two trees that were in the midst of the Garden of Eden.

But Eve was deceived by the serpent. And Adam? Well, he point blankly ignored God’s instruction. This is what the scriptures refer to as wilful sin - sins which carried consequences. Until this time, Adam and Eve were perfect ... Adam created in the image of God. Indeed, the couple was perfect right up until the lying deceitful serpent showed up. The serpent (satan) has been tagged by God as the father of all lies. As a consequence, sin slithered into the midst of the Garden.

We also read in Genesis that Adam and Eve initially had two sons. One son was named Cain and the second son Abel. Their personalities totally differed, yet they were the offspring of two perfectly created earthly images of God’s visible spiritual form. At least they were perfect in the Garden. But now they were outside the Garden with a promise “that the seed of a woman would bruise the serpent head.” We realize now that this seed was Christ.

Still, Adam and Eve had two sons. The conduct of Adam and Eve’s offspring was far from being perfect. We see this when we read that Cain rose up and slew his brother Abel. This resulted in Adam and Eve having to confront the stark reality of death. And that Cain, their son was a murderer. The small family was now being thrust into situations where they had never experienced these types of emotions. After all, the Garden of Eden was perfect. (Comfort can be found in I Corinthians 15)

Later, Adam and Eve begat another son who they named Seth. Remember earlier that Eve was told that the seed of a woman would bruise the serpent head. Well, God had implanted into Eve’s seed bank a promised seed -- a seed that was not to be one of Adam and Eve’s natural seed. No instead, this seed of promise was to be a new seed -- a different blood line (the seed of promise being Christ),

So when Seth was born it is recorded “that men then began to call upon the NAME of the LORD.” The Promised Seed had now passed into Seth along with Eve’s natural seed which had brought forth Seth. So, it is here that the journey begins - until the promised seed Jesus who is and was the Christ is born. The promised seed journey is recorded in Matthew 1 and Luke 3.

The point here is that from Adam and Eve THREE seeds came forth. Each seed brought forth different personalities -- different because sin had contaminated the seed. There is a purpose in the scriptural New Testament example -- when JESUS said let the little children come to Me and do not forbid children to come to Me.

You see, there is a purpose for each and every one of us -- a God-designed purpose wherein we aspire to become like Jesus, and fulfill His mission for our life. It's easy to look back and see what happened to the offspring of Adam and Eve, but are we asking ourselves -- what has our Lord God and Saviour purposed for our own lives?

Today, is a blank page. Let's write the Lord's blessings all over it and so much so, that the world that is in darkness and lost desires the Jesus that dwells within. Yes, become that city on the hill for Jesus. Time is short.

Stand in the offering plate. 

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