Wednesday, April 18, 2018

It's Not My Fault

Wednesday, April 18, 2018
The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”  “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied.  “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat.  God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’”  “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman.  “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”  The woman was convinced.  She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her.  So she took some of the fruit and ate it.  Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too.  At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness.  So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves.  When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden.  So they hid from the Lord God among the trees.  Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”  He replied, “I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid.  I was afraid because I was naked.”  “Who told you that you were naked?” the Lord God asked.  “Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?”  The man replied, “It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it.”  Then the Lord God asked the woman, “What have you done?”  “The serpent deceived me,” she replied. “That’s why I ate it.”  Genesis 3:1-13(NLT)
Fight or flight are not the only weapons of response to attack in the human arsenal; there is always deflect which is what Adam and Eve did first.  Adam deflected guilt for his sin towards Eve; Eve kicked the can down the road to the serpent.  After all, why suffer accountability when you can blame someone else?  And so it goes!
Humans, even little humans caught with their pudgy little hands in the cookie jar, have always denied responsibility.  It is a mark of insecurity and immaturity to always find an excuse for what we have done  wrong.  Just like politicians put spin on an event in order to cast themselves as if standing on higher ground, so all people play that game in everyday life.
Even our legal system, based upon Judeo-Christian values and ancient ethical systems of justice, has developed such intricacies of proving/disavowing guilt or innocence over the past two centuries, the loopholes make it almost impossible to arrive at reasonable doubt or outright acquittal any more.  We are not only a society of don’t ask-don’t tell, we have become a people of vague shadow and nothing but questions.  The whole idea of absolute truth has become laughable in 21st century culture.  Is it any wonder the Scriptures are held up to scrutiny by people who haven’t even read the Bible, much less thought deeply over its claims?  We, as a species, are working hard at letting ourselves off the hook with God by reason of mental disease or defect – somebody else dropped us on our collective head when we weren’t looking, so it’s not our fault; case dismissed!
But none of that excuses anything when it comes to our accountability before God.  Holy Scripture doesn’t stumble over that one:
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.  Romans 3:23(NLT)
For You Today
A Thought to Live By:
A person might begin to disbelieve that air exists, or is necessary for life.  That’s completely illogical, given the history of biological existance of every human and mamal ever to draw breath.  And neither does the strong conviction that oxygen is a myth change the reality that it will still fill your lungs and carry life through your body. 
In the same way, a person’s belief or disbelief in God, and that God has prior claims on our life, will mean nothing to the reality that He IS…and He DOES hold us accountable for the way we live.
You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day. 

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com

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