2 Corinthians 11:3 “But I fear that somehow your pure and undivided
devotion to Christ will be corrupt, just as Eve was deceived by the
cunning ways of the serpent. 4 You happily put up with what ever
anyone tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one
we preach, or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received,
or a different kind of gospel than the one you believe.”
2 Corinthians states ….JUST AS EVE WAS DECEIVED BY THE CUNNING
WAYS OF THE SERPENT….
Genesis 3: 1-7 “1 The serpent was the shrewdest of all 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?”
2 Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the
woman replied. 3 “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.” 4 “You won’t die!”
the serpent replied to the woman. 5 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.” 6 The woman WAS CONVINCED. She saw that the tree was
beautiful and it’s 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.
7 At that moment their eyes were opened, and suddenly felt shame at
their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover
themselves.”
Adam and Eve were in the garden, doing what God told them to do.
This shrewd serpent began to speak to Eve and Adam (…..who was
with her….(vs. 6)) The serpent question Eve about what God had
told them to do and not to do. Eve listen to the serpent. She
focused on it’s every lying word. Then she was convinced to disobey
God. (2 Cor.11.3) “But I fear that somehow your pure and undivided
devotion to Christ will be corrupt, just as Eve was deceived by the
cunning ways of the serpent.”) Eve took the fruit, realized how
beautiful it was and ate it. Then she gave it to Adam, who was there
with her, but never said a word. He just listened and obviously was
convinced as well. He took the fruit from Eve and ate it. Adam and
Eve didn’t say, hey serpent let us talk to God about this and we
will get back to you. They didn’t discuss it among themselves. They
were convinced because of a serpent. They took it among themselves
to disobey God and eat the fruit that would “give them wisdom”. Adam
and Eve were focused on the serpent’s lying words and were convinced
that the serpents words were right and God’s words were wrong. God
is not a lye. (2 Cor. 4 you happily put up with whatever anyone
tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we
preach, or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received, or
a different kind of gospel than the one you believe.”) Satan
adjusted their focus on the one thing that God told them, to stay
away from. Satan made it sound like it was not a big deal to sin
against God and that they would be like God with wisdom. So Eve
began to focus on Satan’s words which lead her focus to herself and
how she could benefit from disobeying God. Adam jumped on the train
with her. I’m sure he wanted to be as wise as his wife. They acted
without thinking about the consequences of their actions. Because of
their sin, they were evicted from their home. Eve’s pain during
pregnancy and birth was sharpened. The land became cursed with
thorns and thistles and Adam had to work to get food from it. They
went from paradise with God to working, laboring, pain, sweat and
tears because of sin. God is not a liar, Adam and Eve worked all
their life, they had children and they died. All this happened
because for one split second, they focused on something that God
told them not to and they acted on it. The consequences were huge!
This fruit changed their lives. Although God stilled loved them, I’m
sure He was very hurt. They only had one rule and they chose to
break it. When we are focus on the situation around us and on
ourselves, it can be overwhelming. If we act without God, the
consequences can be huge and can make our life very difficult. Why
do we put God in a box and try to fix our situation our self? What
makes us think that we are wiser and can do a better job than God?
Why do we constantly focus on ourselves and how this life will
benefit us? Why can’t we learn from Adam and Eve? Why do we worry
about anything? Let us turn our focus off of the world, our
situations and us and redirect it to God and His word. Let us be
overwhelmed with God’s Peace and Joy. Any every situation Focus on
God!!!
thedailylily.com 
CF…you said above, “why do we put God in a box and try to fix the situation ourselves”…That is s-o-o-o- true about God’s very own people who profess to be born again, filled with the Holy Spirit, living for God and NOT doing what HE has told us to do. Instead of acting like the Second Adam (JESUS CHRIST) we act like the first Adam…of the Garden of Eden. Everything we need for good and godliness, God has put in His Word. We read it and then, like James says, we look into the Word as in a mirror and then promptly run off and forget what IT looks like and Whom we should resemble, since we are made in the Image of God. The world beckons and we don’t even recognize it as the world, the flesh and the devil. Paul says, I am not in bondage to anything…I ARE free in Christ Jesus, but NOT all things are convenient for godliness; not all things are expedient to a godly life. Why do we want them?
I believe that the fruit of the TREE OF GOOD AND EVIL really did not taste any better , really look any better than any of the other marvelous Fruits of the Garden. Yet Eve wanted THAT fruit…had to have THAT fruit, desired THAT fruit. We are like that….we have to have something or someone which is not expedient to godliness when GOD has something much better. But the pride of life and the lust of the eyes pull us toward that THING that will be a error of judgment on our part and then, of course, subject to judgment if not repented of. Some of us spend most of our time repenting when we should be going forward in the Holy Spirit, in obedience to God’s Word.
Let’s let God out of our BOX-LIFE and put HIM in charge of our “gardens”, again!
I have heard recently that ‘office off color jokes, office affairs, etc. etc. draws the attention of most. Do you think that idle words, jesters, winking, blinking, and all ‘forms of countenance’ that are not holy are forbidden apples in the garden of eden? Just floating around looking juicy and no calories and ready to eat are what causes us modern day eve’s to eat.
MG, looks like your comment says eve’s spent too much time repenting and redoing and repenting and redoing. Now, I have always thought that if you needed to repent, you needed some correction and time to show you got the point and had made the change. But, it sounds like from what I understand (my mind set) has been and is ass-backwards by modern day Christians. Recently, I shared this philosophy with MG and she said, “whom do you know that teaches and counsels like that today?”
Chickenfarmer wrote, “The serpent questioned Eve about what God had told them to do and not to do. Eve listen to the serpent. She focused on it’s every lying word.” This makes me think, do we even know a lie when we tell one or hear one? Lies comes in so many different varieties just like apples.
Have you ever wondered why the serpent in the garden of eden was so wise? How did he know the value of the Tree of Life? Good and Evil? All the varieties of apples?
Poison and medicine “Serpents are connected with poison and medicine. The snake’s venom is associated with the chemicals of plants and fungi[1][2][3] that have the power to either heal, poison or provide expanded consciousness (and even the elixir of life and immortality) through divine intoxication. Because of its herbal knowledge and entheogenic association the snake was often considered one of the wisest animals, being (close to the) divine. Its divine aspect combined with its habitat in the earth between the roots of plants made it an animal with chthonic properties connected to the afterlife and immortality.” Wikipedia
Sara asked: ‘Do you think that idle words, jesters, winking, blinking, and all ‘forms of countenance’s’ that are not holy are forbidden apples in the garden of eden?’
I say yes.
Idle words produce death, not life, in the listener and speaker.
“Words satisfy the mind as much as fruit does the stomach;
good talk is as gratifying as a good harvest.
Words kill, words give life;
they’re either poison or fruit—you choose.” Proverbs 18:20-21 (Message)
Jesting is silly talk/off color jokes are dirty talk.
“Though some tongues just love the taste of gossip, those who follow Jesus have better uses for language than that. Don’t talk dirty or silly. That kind of talk doesn’t fit our style. Thanksgiving is our dialect. “Ephesians 5:3-4 (Message)
Winking and innapropriate body language draws attention to self.
“A scoundrel and villain, who goes about with a corrupt mouth, who winks with his eye, signals with his feet and motions with his fingers,.”.Proverbs 6;12-13 (NIV)
All these things indicate that focus, as chickenfarmer is writing about, is in the wrong place.
Right on CF. 1Peter 5: 8-9 says: “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.” Now for the footnotes for verses 8 and 9: “Lions attack sick, young, or straggling animals; they choose victims who are alone or not alert. Peter warns us to watch out for Satan when we are suffering or being persecuted. If you are feeling alone, weak, helpless, and cut off from other believers, or if you are so focused on your troubles that you forget to watch for danger, those are the times when you are especially vulnerable to Satan’s attacks. During times of suffering, seek other Christians for support. Keep your eyes on Christ, and resist the devil. Then, says James, ‘he will flee from you.’ “(James 4:7)
Right, Needles. Satan goes about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour…he will devour the weak, the fence straddlers, the inconsistent, the compromisers, the carnal Christian. He is not interested in the non-believers or the unbelievers. He already has them in the center of his cloven hoof. He looks for the weak of the flock. He did try it out on Jesus after HIS 40 day ‘fast’ but JESUS held “FAST” to the Word of God. He tries it out on the Spiritual Christians, trying to attack them in the body because he knows their spirits are too strong for him to overcome….so he goes for the physical body. But Jesus has overcome all of that on the Cross.
Also don’t forget, as Sara asked above as to why satan is so wise…He was the anointed cherub the highest of God’s creation and headed up the worship of our GREAT JEHOVAH. So he was pretty close to the TOP and learned much from the pre-incarnated CHRIST. He retained everything but how to remain in the presence of Almighty God.
Sometimes it seems Satan sneaks up on you in your mind so quickly that you tend to play the thought over and over again. Each time it seems he enjoys toying with the mind. With experience you know something is not quite right. You say, “In Jesus’s name, I have had it with you Satan. You are lying about (whatever he has told you) this or that. I claim the promise as set forth in I Corinthians 10:13 NIV.
“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.”
HOLD tight to the promise. Say God you promised you will not give me more than I can bear. Lord I can’t stand it. In Jesus name please take it this away from me. Watch and see how quickly God embraces you and the thought is gone. God is faithful.
Amen! In all of these comments, I see a thread that says….”the escape is there. God has provided the means to escape the bondage of our thought lives for evil but WE HAVE TO TAKE THE INITIAITIVE. WE have to banish it. WE have to rebuke it, reject it, denunciate it with the tools the Lord Jesus has given us as in the Scriptures and comoments above.
A dear friend of wisdom age, Ruth Catalana, would teach us, ‘as you go you are healed.’ ‘As you do you are free.’
Many years later I began to understand more of the ‘as you________!’
Oh, don’t want to forget, as you put on the garment of praise the spirit of heaviness will go. As you leap-joy! Wonder how many ‘as you’ their really are?
Remember Chickfarmer, whatever you do, don’t eat the wrong apple. Watch what you pick up and eat today! Looks like the as you could bring the negative as well. … ‘as you’ do today.!
A few more ‘as you’s’:
As you ask ….in faith, believing and in His name…you will receive. (Matt 21:22, Luke 11:9)
As you seek, you will find. (Luke 11:9)
As you knock it will be opened to you. (Matt 9:9)
Cool, Debi, your comments makes me think, knock knock, who’s there? God is when we desire to please Him.
I think our focus should be on following the dream God has places within us and watch what He does with the serpent.
In reading a lesson from Daniel by Beth Moore relates to our topic, “Where is your focus?” She says, “Our minds are the battlefield on which this fight (setting our minds on the things above or not) is won or lost. Satan will tangle with us as long as we let him. A wavering mind writes an invitation in the sky. It tells him we’ll let him. (Col. 3:2) Will we truly make up our minds?…will we cease wavering back and forth and blending into our environments…. ” and focus on Jesus. As we stop wavering and focus we can watch as Sara says what God does with the serpent (Satan).
God is focused. God is focused on us in so many ways. He’s so focused that He can number every one of our hairs (Matt 10:30). His penetrating eyes see right through us into our hearts. (I Sam 16:7). He focused His ‘microscope’ and could see our body when it was just an indistinguishable mass of cells in our mother’s womb. (Ps 139:16)
With His directed gaze He can see the tongue and know the word that is about to be on the tip of it. (Ps 139:4). We are the apple of His eye. (Psalm 17:8)
How many ways God expresses His focus of loving care for us.
“Where’s our focus?”
Shouldn’t we have regard for Him and look back?
David the Psalmist, the warrior, the great king did.
“I lift up my eyes to you, to you whose throne is in heaven.
As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid look to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the LORD our God, till he shows us his mercy.” (Psalm 123:1-2)