The First Man – Adam
Central Thought: Let him that thinks he stands take heed lest he falls.
Text: Genesis 3:1-24; 1:26-31
Adam was the first man on earth and the only human being that was not born of any parent, but was created an adult by God.
Adam had the rare opportunity of sharing an intimate personal relationship with God. God gave him complete freedom in the garden he was placed, with the responsibility to tend and care for it. Adam was told to avoid one tree which was the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This instruction was simple enough to obey, but he failed. This failure has brought sorrow and pain to the world till today.
In this study, we shall examine the responsibility given to Adam by God and how Adam failed in it.
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In what privileged position did God place Adam? Genesis 1:26-31; 2:15-25
Adam at creation was made in the image and likeness of God, to be a reflection of God’s Glory. He was given the potential to be sinless and eternal, just like he was opportune to know God personally and make valuable contribution to the work of creation. Simply put, Adam was placed at the pinnacle of creation.
He was given dominion over all that was created as God delegated some of His authority to Adam. God entrusted all that He created into his hands and expected him to take responsibility of the environment and all other creatures. Adam was given the privilege of giving names to all that God created and God did not argue or disagree on any name he gave to any creature as He accepted the names for all as Adam called them.
Adam was also given the responsibility of taking care of the garden with an only command not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. He was given the right to choose whether to obey or disobey this simple instruction. God gave Adam a wife as a companion and a help meet. Thus it can be rightly said that Adam was placed in a very highly privileged position by God.
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What made man fall? Genesis 3:1-6; 1 John 2:15-17
In Genesis 3:6 we read, “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.” Satan made Eve to doubt God’s goodness; by making her feel that God was stingy and selfish for not wanting her to share God’s knowledge of good and evil. He made her to forget all that God had given her and made here focus on the one thing she could not have. Eve ate of the fruit and also gave her husband to eat. He ate the fruit without reminding her of the instruction given to them by God. Whatever sin one commits starts from the heart, thus it is characterized by three attitudes: the lust of the flesh, which is the desire to satisfy the flesh; the lust of the eyes, which is craving and accumulating things; and the pride of life, which is obsession with one’s status or importance. These are the areas the devil tempted Eve in and is still tempting us in today. Like Eve, many today focus on what they are yet to have, forgetting the many things God has given them; in the process, they expose themselves to numerous temptations.
The Bible makes us to understand that Adam was not deceived but Eve was, 1 Timothy 2:14. In the light of this, we should be careful to help strengthen our brethren who may be weaker that we are by not exposing them to the devil.
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Examine Adam and Eve’s defense after the fall. Genesis 3:12-13
One would have expected Adam and Eve to own up their disobedience and beg God for forgiveness of their sin. Instead, when God asked Adam about his sin, he blamed God indirectly and Eve directly by saying, “the woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat”, Genesis 3:12. Eve on her part also blamed the serpent for her failure. Just like Adam and Eve did, we find it very easy to excuse our sins by blaming someone else or circumstances instead of accepting our failure and asking for forgiveness. God knows the truth and He holds every one of us responsible for our actions. We should learn to admit our sin and repent and apologize for it and not try to get away with it by blaming somebody else for our wrong deed.
Adam and Eve’s defense or response to God’s query was that of self justification because each of them tried to pass the bulk instead of accepting that they have failed in their responsibility.
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Contrast Adam’s life with that of Christ. Romans 5:14-21; 1 Corinthians 15:45-48
Through Adam, sin entered into the world and consequently, death followed. But in Christ, righteousness came into the world with life eternal which was lost at the fall of man. Adam separated us from God and made us alien to GOD’s kingdom, but Christ reconciled us back to Him and made us citizens of His kingdom.
We are all born into Adam’s physical family that is linked to sin and death. We all reap the result of Adam’s sin and have therefore inherited guilt, the tendency to sin and God’s punishment. In Christ, we have forgiveness for condemnation, His righteousness is imputed on us and our sins are taken away. He offers us the opportunity to be born into His spiritual family that starts with forgiveness and leads on to eternal life with Him.
Daily Living Application:
Satan tempted man; man sinned by disobeying God’s instruction and caused the downfall of the entire human race. That moment of small rebellion robbed man of his original authority over creation. This caused something large, beautiful and freely given to man, to be shattered. God’s perfect plan in creation suffered a setback as a result of man’s disobedience. Thus man was separated from God by his desire to act on his own.
Satan succeeded to cause the fall of man through deception and his purpose and method has not changed and cannot change. Let us therefore take heed. However, God’s plan of redemption was fulfilled in Christ Jesus, the Lord.
Memory Verse:
Romans 5:19 – “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by the one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.”