The Cure for our Humanness
I discovered something fascinating recently that perhaps I had always known- I just had never given a conscious thought to. If you are a Christian you believe that God created the first humans, Adam and Eve. If you are at all familiar with this story, you know that the basis of it is sin and deception…
Let me repeat that incase you missed the depth of it…
The very first story of the very first humans that inhabited the planet included sin and deception.
Like, woah.
In Genesis 2:16 God told Adam not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Fast-forward to chapter 3… Eve ate from the tree. If that wasn’t bad enough, she then convinced Adam to eat from the tree, then they lied about it, shifted the blame around and hid from God. Literally. They heard God coming through the garden and hid behind a tree… As if God wouldn’t be able to find them. To add to all of this, there was a talking snake. #truestory
When I first really delved into this story, I was perturbed with God. Why was he so controlling? Then it dawned on me, God didn’t give them the command not to eat from the tree to be mean or to be controlling. God gave the command because he wanted to protect Adam and Eve. God gave the command out of everlasting, ridiculously unfathomable, unconditional, perfect love. God knew the ramifications and consequences that would come of eating of the tree. He wanted to protect Adam and Eve from the fall that he knew would come.
#lightbulbmoment
Reading this story I couldn’t help but begin to look at my own life. How many times have I messed up? How many times have I told a ‘lil teeeeny-tiny lie or tried to hide from a situation all because I felt shameful of my actions or choices and fearful of the consequences? (That was a rhetorical question.) From little things to save face and make sure I still “appear” to have the perfect little life, (because we all do it) to really big things that have actually broken me to pieces.
It’s so easy to look back on situations and say I should have listened to God. I should have listened to the teachings I know are true and right. I should have listened to my gut, my mother, my husband, my brother, my sister… But I didn’t. If you know me at all you know I was blessed with a cute little stubborn streak. Not only is it a stubborn streak but it’s also an independent one. In layman’s terms… “I don’t need your help or your advice and I got this on my own… THANK-YOU-VERY-MUCH!” All of this inflated ego has really ever gotten me was alone and broken because let’s face it, sometimes left to our own devices… We suck. Not all the time, but mostly.
God gave us the cure for our humanness.
Because I am a human being. Because I’m not perfect. Because sometimes I suck.
God gave us a cure that has literally saved us.
Clothing for the journey. A cover for our wrongs.
He came in the form of a man. He was tempted in every way imaginable. He lived a sinless life.
His name is Jesus.
He’s pretty much the best thing of all creation, in the History of Ever.
