Author Archives: ilmaarts

JOHN 8 WHEN ONE IS A SLAVE TO SIN

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January 12

JOHN 8

31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slaveto sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.” – John 8:31-38

JOHN 8 WHEN ONE IS A SLAVE TO SIN

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

If you believe the Lord Jesus Christ, you will obey him

There is no wavering between wickedness and sin

When one is a slave to sin, he puts himself first before God

He only thinks of gratifying himself and giving in to the world

He is not free because he is bonded with unrighteousness

The truth cannot penetrate his heart because of unfaithfulness.

John chapter 8 begins when the Pharisees and Scribes brought a woman caught in adultery to Jesus. They wanted to trick the Lord into saying something that is unlawful so they could justify putting him to death. They were so threatened by how much authority and following Jesus had. It is interesting how they studied so much Scriptures and yet didn’t truly understand it and missed out that they actually have the Messiah in front of them. Jesus pointed out why they didn’t understand the truth. Their father was the devil as he explains in verses 39-47.

In verse 31, Jesus laid down one of the requirements of being his follower. They have to abide by the word. Obedience is essential in being a disciple. Notice that it didn’t require knowledge, but obedience and love. Most of the time, knowledge becomes an open door to sin. If that desire to acquire knowledge becomes more than the hunger to be intimate with the Lord, it will bring about idols which will enslave us to sin. The pursuit of knowledge becomes the motivation to seek it instead of the desire to deepen our intimacy with God and strengthen our faith. It skews our perspective of the Lord and ourselves. Instead of glorifying God, we actually want God to glorify us. By granting us such knowledge and adding it to our accolades, we get to be admired and lifted up. It sounds evil, but this is how the devil works. He is subtle and smooth in his ways of convincing us not to worship God. We don’t even notice it because he does it so cleverly.

The American bible society translates the word “slaves” as “servants” and refers to someone who was owned or controlled by someone else. Slaves of rich masters had all kinds of opportunities that they wouldn’t be able to have on their own. But slaves had no freedom and masters could do whatever they pleased with them.

REFLECTION

·       What would a slave to sin look like in our world today? What are they preoccupied with?

JAMES 1 HOW SIN IS CONCEIVED

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January 11

JAMES 1

14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. 18 Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.19 Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. – James 1:14-21

JAMES 1 HOW SIN IS CONCEIVED

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

A person is naturally sinful and always thinks of himself

His heart longs for things that wants to satisfy his flesh

He is tempted and lured to cater to his desires or whims

Then sin begins its conceptions when he gives in

It then turns into an obsession to listen to its cravings

Which leads to spiritual death and keeps him wanting.

It is so clear in this chapter how James gives us a depiction of sin. Prior to the following verses, he mentions that sin doesn’t come from God because God never tempts us to sin. There is no evil in God at all. But because of our inherited sinful nature, sin actually comes from the human heart.

James presents how sin starts from its conception. Just like a woman carrying a baby in her womb, it first began when she had union with her husband and it produced a fetus, then conception began. Let’s use this fetus as a symbol of that union. When God created us, he made us like him, just as our parents passed on their own DNA to us. How infants would look is determined by the genes that the baby inherited from his/her parents. As humans, we have God’s DNA which is righteousness, but the devil changed that DNA to evil when he tempted the first humans and they became sinful or unrighteous. So, in each human being, we are inherently righteous because that is our make from God, but we were corrupted by evil, so we became tarnished with sin. Humans naturally want wickedness but they are also spiritually longing to be righteous because God has placed that in every human heart. We were made for God not for the devil. Without Christ, we will likely be more like the devil. When a child has more inherited looks or traits from one parent, those characteristics become predominant in him/her. Because there is this natural evil in every human being, we are predisposed to sin. We naturally follow the flesh and its cravings. James explains to us that because of such a tendency to sin, we will prefer to do it rather than go against it. So, he exposes to us the conception of sin so that as Christians we will be able to recognize the beginnings of its origin. When we are aware of our sinfulness, we can nip it in the bud when we are enticed to give in. Otherwise, we will fail to resist it and it will lead to spiritual death.

REFLECTION

·       How can we nip sin in the bud before it destroys us?

MARK 7 WHERE EVIL COMES FROM

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January 10

MARK 7

14 And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: 15 There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”17 And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual

immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” – Mark 7:20-23

MARK 7 WHERE EVIL COMES FROM

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Nothing that comes from outside of man is wicked

It is not food that he eats nor any outward impact

But it is from inside him that makes him tempted

His desires for covetousness lead to defilement

The clamor for self-gratification is the path to sin

This leads to deceit, envy, adultery and sensuality

It is what is in his heart that is the source of evil

Unless he comes to Christ, he won’t beat the devil.

It is easy for us to point our fingers to outside forces when we are tempted to sin. The book of Mark explains to us where evil comes from. It may be difficult to understand that we are the culprit of sin, but let’s go back to the garden of Eden. Before the fall of Adam and Even, humans are sinless. They walked with God daily. There was no evil in paradise. Everything was perfect, including man’s relationship with God. When the serpent came about, everything changed. Their disobedience to God began the advent of sin. Because Adam gave away his dominion over all things to the serpent, he became sinful. Since Adam is our first parent, we inherited that sinful nature.

In this chapter, Mark narrates the time when the Pharisees questioned Jesus regarding the Jewish tradition of washing hands before eating. The Scribes and Pharisees questioned Jesus why his disciples weren’t following this custom. Jeus pointed out how they put more emphasis on following traditions rather than God’s commandments. He rebuked them in verse 6 by quoting Isaiah’s prophecy which says “‘This people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”

Jesus pointed out the bigger issue. It is their hearts that are the source of their uncleanliness. It is in the deepest recesses of their hearts that leads them to be tempted to disobey the law of the Lord. Following their flesh which is sinful is what truly defiles them, not any other outside forces.

REFLECTION

  • If man’s heart is the source of evil, how can one react lovingly to abuse since it is outside of us?

1 JOHN 1 TO THINK ONE IS SINLESS IS A LIE

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January 9

1 JOHN 1

5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. – 1 John 1:5-9

1 JOHN 1 TO THINK ONE IS SINLESS IS A LIE

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

Because we have inherited sin from Adam and Eve

All human beings are by nature sinful and evil

If we claim that we are sinless, we are believing a lie

The truth is that we are all wicked and sinners

We become deceived when we believe these lies

Our minds get darkened and our hearts turn hard

But God gave us a solution to get out of such darkness

He gave Jesus so we can turn to him & become righteous.

The biggest lie that  a human being can believe is that they are sinless. Most false religions teach that there is a way to achieve that state of purity or sinlessness. Let us look into the concept of original sin in some religions. According to modernreformation.org these are some of their beliefs: The Roman Catholics believe that the original sin doesn’t have much implications on their relationship with God. Original sin is merely a deprivation of holiness, a stain or deformity which can be resolved if they go to confession to a priest and they are absolved of such sins after doing penance for it. Freedom of the will is emphasized. The Reformed and Lutherans believe that since Adam’s fall, all human beings are conceived and born in sin and inclined to sin. We sin because we are sinners. The guilt of Adam has been passed down to us. In Islam, original sin is completely denied. They are all born innocent. In Hinduism, there is no original or inherent sin. Sin is ignorance about ultimate reality. Sin is intentional wrong action which causes them to accumulate karma that prevents them from escaping ignorance and illusion. In Judaism, instead of original sin, they call it evil inclination. Rabbis teaches that they must fight their evil inclination and that they are responsible to God for their actions. They are to avoid sin by studying the Torah. In Scientology, humankind is basically good and our survival depends on our own actions and unity with the universe. The Jehovah’s witness believes that Adam and Eve were created perfect and not inclined to error. When they choose to sin, they damage their perfect nature and affect all future generations. The consequences of sin are guilt, sickness and death. Wow, isn’t that a lot of varying interpretations about original sin and the concept of sin?

REFLECTION

  • What have you realized after hearing of the different concepts of sin in different religions?

1 JOHN 3 WHEN SINNING IS A HABIT

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January 8

1 JOHN 3

 6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. 7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. 8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’sseed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. 10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. – 1 John 3:6-10

1 JOHN 3 WHEN SINNING IS A HABIT

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

The child of God desires to please only Him

He abides in Him and doesn’t make a habit of sin

The person who has been born again seeks the truth

The godly obeys God and allows Scriptures to take root

The believer doesn’t listen to his cravings but resist it

A lover of God doesn’t participate in any of the devil’s tactics

A Christian wears his new creation in Christ which is righteous

He isn’t unsure and switching between his old and new nature.

In these following verses, John reveals to us the manifestation of the presence of God in our lives. In John 14:15, he brings us the true meaning of loving God which is to obey Him. Paul reiterates this concept of walking in the Spirit in Galatians 5. He says that if you walk by the Spirit, you will not gratify the desires of the flesh because the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh. They oppose each other and the Spirit keeps you from doing the things you want to do. Instead, you bear the fruits of the Spirit which is peace, love, joy, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control. Now, in these following verses John explains the reason why a person would keep on sinning and making a habit of it. He explains that anyone who makes a practice of constantly following their old nature will do what it pleases instead of doing what God requires from them.

In verse 8, John exposes the culprit of this habitual sinning. They are children of the devil. They do not believe in the Son of God whom God has given to humanity to break from this old nature. Now, can a Christian be living his old nature and claim that he is a child of God? A true believer is not double-minded or deceived. His loyalty is to God alone. Those who practice sinning are loyal to themselves, not to God. Their idols are their appetites, pleasures and cravings. They do not and cannot please God since they are opposed to what they were made for. They were created in God’s image so that they can glorify God by becoming more and more like Christ as they mature in their faith.

REFLECTION

  • What does it mean when someone who claims they’re Christian habitually sins?

JAMES 4 THE SINS OF BOASTING AND NOT DOING WHAT’S RIGHT

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January 7

JAMES 4

13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— 14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. – James 4:13-16

JAMES 4 THE SINS OF BOASTING & NOT DOING WHAT’S RIGHT

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

As believers, we are called to humility and God-dependence

Boasting is indicative of arrogance and self-reliance

When one brags about his achievements and talents

He is actually removing God out of the picture

When one boast, he denies that God is Creator of all things

He cannot claim credit for anything since God made everything

Arrogance is a form of defiance against God’s provision

Boasting is defying God’s gift and is called self promotion.

What is the common factor between boasting and arrogance? They both are rooted in pride.  In Psalm 10:4, the psalmist says “In the pride of his facethe wicked does not seek him;
all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”  In Proverbs 16:18 Solomon says that pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. From these verses, we can define pride as an extreme love for oneself that he cannot recognize God. Another commentator defines it as not seeing ourselves as God sees us. It is also elevating oneself if not equal with God, even better. James gives us a very clear example of the sins of boasting and arrogance. It doesn’t seem outright evil to plan something and assume that things will go as one thinks as verse 13 indicates. He points out that such planning without humility and God’s counsel, the proud man will fail. Why? Because he removed God out of the picture. It is only his thoughts, his plans and his effort that counts. It is a form of idolatry. The idol is the “self.”

So, what is the antidote for pride? Colossians 3:12 says, “Therefore, as God`s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” 1Peter 5:6 says, “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” Let God boast about you just as he boasted to the devil how righteous Job was. C.S Lewis once wrote, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.” The same way John the Baptist says “He must increase and I must decrease.”

Another sin that James discusses here is the sin of failing to do what is right. In other words, as Christians, we are not just hearers of the word but also doers. He reiterates this in chapter 1:22,25 says But, don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.  If you do what the perfect law says and do not forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

REFLECTION

  • How is Galatians 6:4 a different kind of pride as discussed here by James?

JAMES 4 CRITICAL & WAVERING MINDS LEAD TO SIN

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January 6

JAMES 4

6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor? – James 4:6-12

JAMES 4 CRITICAL & WAVERING MINDS LEAD TO SIN

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When a believer thinks highly of himself, he will find fault

It is his way of lifting himself up and putting others down

He will think and speak evil of others when he is critical

It leads to conflict and all kinds of division with others

A wavering mind cannot decide to whom it will stay faithful

It believes two opposing forces which makes them unstable

In all their ways, they are hesitant and doubtful

They don’t commit since they are very disloyal.

In the first book of James, he commands the believers to not waver. He then describes a double-minded or wavering person as someone whose loyalty is divided. He cannot make up his mind and James compares them to the wave of the sea that is very unsettled because it is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord according to James. No grace or blessing from the Lord is the consequence of the sin of wavering. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are double-minded in everything they do. They are committing adultery to God because they do not love the Lord their God with all their mind, heart, soul and strength. They are making sure that they get the best of both worlds. God is a jealous God and will not put up with unfaithfulness. In verse 8, James exhorts the double-minded man to purify their hearts. His antidote against the wavering mind is to humble themselves before God and obey his law.

In verse 11, he exhorts the believers not to speak evil of others or to judge them. Why do you think James cautions us to speak evil of others? Because it is against the law of love. In 1 Corinthians 13, it says that “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful, 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” If we walk in love, we will not speak ill of others or judge them wrongly or harshly, but in love bear with one another.

REFLECTION

  • How prevalent are wavering and critical minds in our world today?

JAMES 4 WORLDLY PASSIONS LEAD TO SIN

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January 5

JAMES 4

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passionsare at war within you? 2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. 4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? – James 4:1-5

JAMES 4 WORLDLY PASSIONS LEAD TO SIN

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When we desire earthly things, we open doors to sin

The devil prowls to keep us away from Him

The Lord God made us in his own image

So that we look more and more like Him

We were created for worshiping only Him

When we pursue worldly things, it leads to sin.

The book of James exposes the many causes of sin. In these following verses, he identifies the sources of quarrels and fights which in itself are sins. He points out that passions and desires make us do things that lead to quarrels and fights. Passions and desire can be good if it is going to bring glory to the Lord, but if they are things that are worldly, it will definitely open doors to sin. In verse 4, James mentions adultery as friendship with the world. Many bible verses especially in the book of Hosea, spiritual adultery is synonymous to idolatry. God is steadfast and faithful and he expects his people to also be devoted to him alone because he is a jealous God, wanting our loyalty and service to him alone. He won’t settle for less or won’t be pleased if we are seeking worldly pleasures instead of his love for us. James uses very strong language as an enemy of God if we are hedonistic or pleasure seekers. In verse 5, God yearns jealously for the desire that he has put in our hearts which is to long for him alone. When we have idols that we place prior to our devotion to Him, he hates that because we are hurting ourselves when we do that.

Covetousness is also another source of such sins. When we want to possess what we do not have or own, we resort to doing anything in our power to get that desire or want. That is covetousness. That will lead to other sins such as murder as he talks about in verse 2.

He also identifies in verse 3 that selfishness and pride also lead to conflicts. When a believer is not humble enough to ask God for something good for him, pride is clearly the reason for such self-sufficiency. When we are independent and self-reliant, we discount the need to ask for help from a higher source. We think we can take care of things. This mindset clearly removes God in the picture who is the source of all help and wisdom.

REFLECTION

·       Cite instances when a good passion or desire can easily turn into an idol that God hates?

GENESIS 3 BANISHED FROM GOD’S PRESENCE

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January 4

GENESIS 3

20 The man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. 21 And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.22 Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—” 23 therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. 24 He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. – Genesis 3:20-24

GENESIS 3 BANISHED FROM GOD’S PRESENCE

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When we rebel and go against God’s design for man

We will experience feelings of guilt and shame

Our design is to be in constant relationship with the Lord

Sin drives us out of that purpose since we are choosing the world

Sow only what is true and you will feel God’s presence

If you believe lies, you’ll be banished and experience his absence.

The ultimate aftermath of the sin of Adam and Eve is their banishment from the presence of God and from all that he provided for them in the garden of Eden. How perfect their lives were before the fall. They had no idea what hunger, pain, illness, rejection, envy, greed or loneliness were because they walked with the Lord daily in that garden. Things have drastically changed after their sin. They now feel the separation from the paradise where they used to have God’s presence. They are now introduced to rejection and pain resulting from God’s absence. To add to those damages, they now have to toil the earth to provide for their needs. It used to be easy for them because God gave them an environment where they had everything they needed. Sin opened up all kinds of doors to the world of evil.

God made sure that the garden was guarded. The serpent has corrupted their minds and they now have exposed the garden to something that wasn’t in God’s original plan. The next thing God did was to place a cherubim at the east side of the garden. In Ezekiel 10:18 the cherubim were the watchers. God placed them there so that they could guard the tree of life which was preserved for what God intended it to be.

Barnhouse comments “Any angel of the lowest rank could have dealt with Adam. The flaming sword was pointed against Satan to keep him from destroying the way of access to the altar, which God had set up.”

Despite all the consequences of their sin, God still showed compassion to them when he made garments of skin to cover their nakedness. There had to be an animal killed to get that skin to cover them. It foreshadows how God covers their shame with the skin from an animal, just as Jesus, the Lamb of God, would die to cover the sins of the whole world.

REFLECTION

·       Cite instances how sin banishes us from God’s presence? How is it similar to the banishment of Adam and Eve?

GENESIS 3 CONSEQUENCES OF SIN

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January 3

GENESIS 3

14 The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock
and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. 15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”16 To the woman he said, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be for your husband,
and he shall rule over you.”17 And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you,‘ You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

                                                                                  – Genesis 3:14-19

GENESIS 3 CONSEQUENCES OF SIN

A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses

When people go against God’s plan and will

He must expect for the consequences of that sin

God will not tolerate any insolence against him

He will surely experience results from that defiance.

We now witness in the book of Genesis the consequences of the original sin of Adam and Eve. The serpent was the first that got the curse from God. The serpent will now crawl on his belly and eat dust. You wonder if the serpent had legs or feet before the fall. I think that the idea of crawling on the ground and eating dust is indicative of defeat and lowly life. Some commentaries say that the dust on the ground symbolizes defeat. The devil thinks highly of himself, so without the feet or legs, he has no height or power to crush anyone. God also placed a separation from the woman since it was Eve that he preyed on and it is also from a woman that the Son of God will be born. God sets boundaries between those who belong to him through Christ and those who belong to the world. Satan will never have victory over the Son of God.

The consequence of sin on the woman is two-fold. The first is pain in childbirth and in raising children. The second is to desire to control her husband but she will be overruled by him. No wonder most mothers are the ones experiencing labor pains and also the struggle of raising children who will not go against her. She is the nurturer, so she will be the one who will suffer the hardships of raising her children.

The aftermath of sin brought this curse on the man: he will be forbidden to eat from the tree of life. In other words, he won’t just get nourishment easily as he did before he sinned. He will have to work till the ground that he was made from. He will struggle to put food on his table because of his disobedience.

Both Adam and Eve took for granted how they had it all so easy before they disobeyed God.

REFLECTION

  • Cite instances when these curses on the man, woman and the devil manifest today in our

  • lives.