The Devil Made Me Do It

“They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, ‘Where are you?’ He said, ‘I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.’ And He said, ‘Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?’ The man said, ‘The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate.’ Then the Lord God said to the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’ And the woman said, ‘The serpent deceived me, and I ate,’” (Genesis 3:8-13, NASB).

How do we handle guilt? Mankind has tried to avoid dealing with this painful emotion for as long as humanity has existed. It all began in the Garden of Eden after Adam and Eve disobeyed God, and we’ve been using their faulty methods in an attempt to silence guilt ever since.

Adam and Eve’s first reaction was to cover up rather than “fess up,” but nothing can conceal sin from God.

Next, they attempted to hide from the Lord. Have we ever found ourselves avoiding prayer and time in the Scriptures because we don’t want to feel convicted?

Then they refused to take personal responsibility and tried shifting the blame to others. But we’re each responsible before God for our actions, regardless of the circumstances or who else is involved.

Fully aware of Adam and Eve’s guilt, the Lord came to them and asked several questions designed to bring them face-to-face with their sin. And this is still the only way to deal with our failures. We must come to the Lord in confession and repentance so we can receive the forgiveness and cleansing Christ purchased for us on the cross.

Jeff