THE BROKEN AND FORGOTTEN
LAW OF GENESIS 1

As we begin this article on a further investigation and understanding of our Lord's perfect and wonderful character of love let us enter into a word of prayer that our spirit and attitude may be One and in harmony with Him. Heavenly Father, thank You for all You have done for us in our lives and for all You are doing and will continue to do. We praise Your holy and eternal Name for everything both good and bad for we know all things work together for good to those who love You. Bless us now as we go deeper into Your great heart of love to discover the way back to the tree of life in Eden lost. In Jesus holy name we pray, Amen.

In the first chapter of Paul's letter to Corinthians he reasons with them about the resurrection of Christ, using this Divine affirmation of the Father's love and acceptance of His only Son as proof beyond disputation that Jesus truly was the Jews' long awaited Messiah and had indeed fulfilled every prophecy and requirement to the letter.

As a Pharisee, Paul had studied the law at the feet of one of the most learned of Israel's teachers, Gamaliel. He knew the Old Testament Scriptures inside out, backward and forward. His razor sharp mind no doubt operated like a high speed computer. Logic was his forte. Theological polemics was his life. To give us an idea of how gifted and talented this man was we need only read the following: "Stephen was a mighty man of God, especially raised up to fill an important place in the church. Satan exulted in his death;...Saul took no part in casting the stones at Stephen, yet he consented to his death...Saul was a man of ability and education...Christ had selected Saul as a 'chosen vessel' to preach His name, to strengthen His disciples in their work, and to more than fill the place of Stephen." EW 199.

So, it is this same Saul, now Paul, who transports us back in time to our first parents' loss, not only of their Edenic home but of their very lives. "For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." I Cor. 15:21-26. Further on Paul refers to Adam as the FIRST man and Jesus as the LAST or SECOND ADAM, vs. 45-47.

If we could sum up in a few words the basic difference between the first Adam and Christ, the second Adam, what would we say? Have you ever thought about it? Well, let's ask another question. What word and emotion was Jesus constantly trying to erode and eliminate out of the disciple's vocabulary and lives? It is the ultimate, negative "F" word; the one four letter word God does not want us to experience, let alone speak. No, it is not the four letter word most people would think I am talking about. It is worse. It is spelled F-E-A-R. It is the first characteristic of those who will be found in the lake of fire. Rev. 21:8.

So Where Has This Fear Come From? How Did It Begin?

May I suggest, beloved, that it all began when Adam, our first and ancient earthly father, refused to believe and obey the holy, righteous and blessed law of Genesis 1. "And just what might that law be?" someone is surely asking: Well, let's go back to Genesis and read it for ourselves.

"And God said, 'Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed which is upon the face of the earth, and EVERY tree with seed in its fruit; YOU SHALL HAVE THEM FOR FOOD." Gen. 1:29. RSV. And in the verse just before this God had commanded them to "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion...over every living thing that moves upon the earth." v. 28. This was the law regarding Adam and Eve.

Obviously, man has lost his dominion. That is, Adam, the first man, lost it. But the prophet predicts that it will be restored: "And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the FIRST DOMINION; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem." Micah 4:8. "And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High..." Dan. 7:27.

When Christ Jesus began His ministry Satan and all of his hosts trembled for they knew Jesus had come to reclaim what Adam had lost long ago in Eden. "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because He hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord." Luke 4:18; Isa. 61:1.

When Jesus read these words to the people at Nazareth He was announcing not only His mission to heal the spiritual blindness of Israel but His Divine mission as the Messiah. The proof that this is indeed what He intended reveals itself in the very fact that they tried to kill Him. When human beings yield themselves to the malign will of Satan, his very own wicked qualities and demonic traits are manifested in their words, facial expressions, tone of voice and actions. In fact, they actually become the virtual shadows of which the Prince of Darkness is the substance.

"Because their understanding was darkened by selfish prejudice, they could not harmonize the power of Christ's convicting words with the humility of His life. They did not appreciate the fact that real greatness can dispense with outward show. This man's poverty seemed wholly inconsistent with His claim to be the Messiah. They questioned, If He was what He claimed to be, why was He so unpretending? If He was satisfied to be without the force of arms, what would become of their nation? How could the power and glory so long anticipated bring the nations as subjects to the city of the Jews? Had not the priests taught that Israel was to bear rule over all the earth? and could it be possible that the great religious teachers were in error? ...If Christ had called attention to the Pharisees, and had extolled their learning and piety, they would have hailed Him with joy. But when He spoke of the kingdom of heaven as a dispensation of mercy for all mankind, He was presenting a phase of religion they would not tolerate." DA 242, 243.

Our Lord disired with great longing in His heart to reveal the nature of His mission and character to His own people but they allowed their fears to blind them from the truth. They were not willing to admit any "outsiders" to receive the blessings the Messiah had to bring. They saw the kingdom of God as a government ruled by a stern judge who would preside over all the earth with stern justice. A judiciary system in which they would decide who would live and who would die. In stark contrast to this picture Jesus presented the God of Israel as a loving Father who was pained at His heart by humanity's suffering, who even attended the funeral of every little sparrow. The coming kingdom was to be a family which would embrace all the various races of mankind, excluding no one. Isaiah and other prophets had foretold this but their writings had been ignored, passed over and misinterpreted in favor of interpretations designed to inflate their pride and bolster up their ego and fatten their purses. Is it any wonder the teachings of Jesus filled their hearts with anger and fear.

Like the Jews of old, religionists today want to argue about the "nature" of Adam as opposed to the nature of the Christ or Messiah. Today they ask, "Did Jesus take the 'sinful' nature of Adam after the 'fall' or his 'sinless'nature before the fall?" These questions are really a set-up because they send people off looking for a left-handed monkey wrench or in other words, "A wild goose chase," or "chasing after the devil's rabbits." Why? Because the real answers can never be found unless you understand God's true character of love...that He is "holy, harmless and undefiled," which means He does not destroy. His presence in us does not destroy us but gives us life. But most people die without Him for they would rather argue over a theological idea or ideal than experience the living Christ. Once you experience Him you will never be the same. You will no longer have to argue debate the issue for He is "in you," and you know who He is. And you will ever after know that you can always trust Him. And why do I believe this?

Because first of all, the true God never breaks His promises, changes His laws or makes threats of death. But we find that this is precisely what the so-called "god" of Gen. 2 is doing when he tells Adam that one of the trees has evil in it and that Adam will die or be put to death if he eats of it. If you are looking for a law breaker you might consider the god behind the voice that spoke this contradictory law of Gen. 2 which forbade Adam to eat of one of God's perfectly good trees. He is also a liar and a murderer for his lies are what led Adam and Eve to their eventual deaths. One of the four basic definitions of sin is found in Rom. 14:23. "And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin." KJV. I find this text very apropos (relevant) since it is not only on the subject of eating, which supposedly led to Adam and Eve's downfall, but even more importantly about faith which Adam lost. He lost his faith in God's first command and promise to eat of all the trees because they all were "very good." It is most interesting that Eve believed and had faith in the promise of Gen. 1 and obeyed the command of the God of Gen. 1. She looked at the fruit and saw that it was good. She pronounced it good and desirable with the power to make her wise. And when she ate of it she did "wise up" so to speak because she found out that the god of Gen. 2 was a liar. Nothing happened to her at all. Why? Because she ate in faith, not doubting the command and promise of the God of Gen. 1 and the voice who spoke through the serpent.

By contrast, Adam ate the fruit with his mind full of doubts. "But he who has doubts is condemned, if he eats, because he does not act from faith; for whatever does not proceed from faith is sin." So, what was Adam's sin? He doubted the word of God...the true God who had pronounced His creation "very good." The LB says: "But anyone who believes that something he wants to do is wrong shouldn't do it. He sins if he does, for he thinks it is wrong, and so for him it is wrong. Anything that is done apart from what he feels is right is sin." Rom. 14:23. So, it was actually Adam, not Eve who sinned and caused the whole human race to go astray. Because Eve was so much in love with Adam and "one flesh" with him she "fell" with him. Let us again go to God's holy word for a further definition of sin...this time to its results and we shall better be able to see what caused Adam and Eve to "fall" from grace.

"Behold, the Lord's hand is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear; but your sins have separated you and your God; your iniquities have hidden His face from you, so that He could not hear you." ML. When Adam chose to believe the lies of the lord Satan of Gen. 2 who told Adam one of the trees had evil in it and would kill him if he ate, Adam's mind was filled with fear and this fear began to short circuit and finally cut off his light connection with Jesus, the true Lord and His Creator. At the same time his mind was slowly coming under the power of the evil lord Satan of Gen. 2 and filled with darkness. His polarity was being reversed and his light was going out. His mind was being connected up with lord Satan who was now taking over the dominion of the entire earth, thus stealing Adam's birthright.

Let us see how God looked at all of this. "I don't want your sacrifices---I want your love; I don't want your offerings---I want you to know (get married to) me. But like Adam, you broke my covenant; (of Gen. 1). You refused my love." LB. The ML says, "they broke faith with Me." Don't you think it is fascinating that the killing of animals to receive forgiveness of sins is tied in here with Adam's "sin." Obviously, the same voice that led Adam astray in the first place also led him to believe that the killing of Animals would "atone" for his sins outside of the gates of Eden. What a delusion! What a lie! Man, has Satan ever sold the whole human race, especially religious people, a bill of goods. And it has just kept on getting worse and worse and worse until we see where it all has finally led us to in this last hour of earth's history...to the very brink of total destruction...and still "all in the name of God!" But which God? Satan is the handsome conductor of the train taking all aboard to perdition. Beloved, don't you think it is about time we got off of the devil's choo choo train headed for total "self" destruction?!

So, how did Christ reverse the curse? Jesus came to this earth to re-light our heavenly fire which Satan had put out with his lies. "In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not....That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world." John 1:4, 9.

He also came to show us the way back to the "tree of life," which is He, Himself. "I am the vine, ye are the branches." John 15:5. Jesus also came to teach us that nothing was wrong with Him or any of His trees. He spoke of eating bread in John 6 and even said He Himself was the bread of life. "I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." These words caused a great deal of strife among the Jews for Satan was their God who was still telling them the same old lie from Eden that something was wrong with God and His tree...even Jesus. Finally, in John 6:53 Jesus gave one of the clearest commands of His entire ministry when He said, "With all the earnestness I possess I tell you this: Unless you eat the flesh of the Messiah and drink His blood, you cannot have eternal life within you." How could it be any plainer?

And finally we put our Creator on the cross and ground Him down to the smallest molecule to see what He was really made of. And still He would not hurt us. Instead He says, "Father forgive them for they don't even know what they are doing." And just the night before He had given the sacraments of the last supper to his disciples in the symbols of the unleavened bread and grape juice which represented his broken body and spilled blood. This gave tremendous meaning to His words when He hung there on the cross bleeding and dying for us all. Yes, the God who spoke through a serpent in the Garden of Eden while hanging from a tree again spoke the truth from a tree planted on Calvary. Two trees and two voices...both speaking the truth about God...that He and His creation are "Holy, harmless and undefiled."

So, which nature did Jesus have when He came as man? His mind was connected with the throne of God. He knew the truth about His Father that He had planted only good trees. Satan could not trick Him. He could not frighten Him into believing any lies through the fear of death. "The prince of this world cometh," said Jesus, "and hath nothing in Me." There was nothing in Him that responded to Satan's sophistry. He did not consent to sin (as Adam did by becoming afraid and believing Satan's lies about God's creation being defective). Not even by a thought did He yield to temptation. So it may be with us. Christ's humanity was united with divinity; He was fitted for the conflict by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. And He came to make us partakers of the divine nature. So long as we are united to Him by faith, sin has no more dominion over us. God reaches for the hand of faith in us to direct it to lay fast hold upon the divinity of Christ, that we may attain to the perfection of character. DA 123. The LB says, "I don't have much more time to talk to you, for the evil prince of this world approaches. He has no power over me." John 14:30. Why didn't Satan have any power over Jesus? Because He knew the truth and was not afraid. Jesus created Adam in the beginning with life within Himself but through the sin of doubting God's Word and breaking His covenant to believe the creation was perfect and to eat of it and take care of it Adam's fire seemed to go out...He lost it but Jesus came to re-light His fire and He will do the same for us if we let Him. If we are still afraid to eat of all of God's trees because we are afraid one of them will poison us and kill us then Jesus bids us to come and eat of Him, the original tree of life. And as we become connected up with Him we thus eat of the tree of life. Praise God!

But it all began way back there in the Garden of Eden when Adam refused to obey the law of Genesis 1 and listened to the contradictory voice of the impostor/pretender god of Chapter 2 (Satan) who insinuated a doubt into his mind about the perfection of God's creation. The idea that one of God's trees was defective and had evil in it, mysteriously mixed with the good, which would bring death if they ate of it began its baleful work on Adam's mind. Throughout the centuries and millenniums various theories and doctrines have been developed to explain how sin and evil found its way into this world. There is nothing in the Genesis record itself to indicate Satan was even there. The idea that the serpent was Satan or was used by Satan to tempt Eve to eat of this "forbidden" fruit is contradicted by both Moses and Christ. In Numbers 21 we read how God instructed Moses to fashion a brazen serpent and place it on a pole so the people could be healed clearly shows that the serpent represented Christ, which Jesus Himself verified in John 3:14, 15. Furthermore, the staff which Moses carried with him into Pharaoh's court represented the power of God not the power of Satan, although the evil one tried to imitate and counterfeit it only to be swallowed up in defeat by the true God which was represented by Moses' serpent. Here is a mystery we need to unravel if we are going to understand the real truth behind the cross of Calvary and the very nature and character of God.

Satan has slandered our God long enough and it is high time we knew the real truth about him and the power behind his lies and deceptions. Ezekiel 28:13 reveals that Satan was in "Eden, the garden of God." But it does not identify him as a slimy, sneaky, conniving serpent in the perfection of our first parents paradise home. Satan's identification as the serpent came after the "fall," and only because a certain entity claiming to be God pronounced a curse upon this most beautiful of all God's creatures in Eden. Rev. 12:9 tells us that the serpent was "called the devil, and Satan," using the adjective "old" which indicates that from ancient times the serpent was blamed for all of this world's problems. But just because the serpent was "called" the devil and Satan does not mean that this symbolism was correct. In fact, many of the world's cultures reserve a very high place in their history for the serpent.

"The snake in most cultures is given a positive interpretation. In India, even the most poisonous snake, the cobra, is a sacred animal, and the mythological Serpent King is the next thing to Buddha. The serpent represents the power of life engaged in the field of time, and of death, yet eternally alive. The world is but a shadow---the falling skin. The serpent was revered in the American Indian traditions, too. The serpent was thought of as a very important power to be made friends with. Go down to the pueblos, for example, and watch the snake dance of the Hopi, where they take the snakes in their mouths and make friends with them and then send them back to the hills, just as they have brought the message of the hills to the humans. The interplay of man and nature is illustrated in this relationship with the serpent. A serpent flows like water and so is watery, but its tongue continually flashes fire. So you have the pair of opposites together in the serpent." "The Power of Myth," By Joseph Campbell, page 47. Going on in his interview with Campbell, Bill Moyers makes the following observation: "In the Christian story the serpent is the seducer." Now, beloved, please notice carefully the following amazing and important reply by Joseph Campbell, one of the most brilliant authorities of ancient cultures and their religious beliefs: "That amounts to a refusal to affirm life. In the biblical tradition we have inherited, life is corrupt, and every natural impulse is sinful unless it has been circumcised or baptized. The serpent was the one who brought sin into the world. And the woman was the one who handed the apple to man. This identification of the woman with sin, of the serpent with sin, and thus of life with sin, is the twist that has been given to the whole story in the biblical myth and doctrine of the fall." This particular section goes on to discuss why the woman has been cast as the terrible sinner in the fall of mankind and responsible for all of life's woes ever since. We will expand upon this more later on either in this paper or in a future issue. Suffice it to say that Satan's effort to degrade womankind has been at the very root of most of this world's tragedies. Christ sought to reverse this trend by selecting a woman as His vehicle to enter our world for the plan of salvation. Christ never once spoke against the serpent in Eden or Eve. On the contrary He admonished His followers to "be wise as serpents and harmless as doves." Matt. 10:16. And then, as we have noted, Christ used the very symbol of the serpent itself to represent Himself in His most crucial and important role as Saviour of the world, citing Moses as an authority to give authenticity to the meaning of His words. Does it not seem strange, yes, even contradictory that Jesus would use the serpent as a symbol of Himself, if the serpent was only a representation of Satan? Is it possible that Christ was trying to reinstitute the real status and meaning of the serpent? It seems inconceivable that Jesus would use a symbol of Satan to draw attention to the most important event of His earthly life...namely the cross of Calvary. There He destroyed the power of Satan to deceive the human race not only about God's true character but of the original identity of the serpent in Eden which Satan cursed, debased, degraded and has counterfeited through the centuries. Furthermore, beloved, let us consider the deeper implications of Matt. 10:16. As we noted above, Christ Himself admonished us to be not only like a dove but also like a serpent. We know that the dove is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, God's very presence, which descended upon Jesus at His baptism. But what about the serpent?

Nicodemus evidently had no problem with the illustration of the serpent, as no comment or question was forthcoming. It is only in our Romanized, Western culture that we have stereotyped the serpent as evil, sinful and Satanic. Let us notice now that the voice masquerading as the true God in Gen. 2 leads Adam and Eve to break the law of Genesis 1 by believing that they should not eat of all the trees of the garden, even though God Himself had pronounced them not only "good" but "very good." In other words, perfect and without blemish, with no evil at all in them. Yet, a mysterious voice, claiming to be the true "Lord God," was allowed to lead our first parents to believe God's creation was defective, evil and full of death, just waiting to destroy them. It was this false doctrine and/or law of Gen. 2 that led Adam and Eve to their fall and eventual death outside the gates of Eden. It was their failure to believe and have faith in the Word of God spoken in Gen. 1:29-31 that all the trees belonged to them, every single one, and that every last one of them was good, not evil, and would, in fact give them life. The Psalmist tells us God's law is perfect, converting the soul...that His commandment is "pure, enlightening the eyes." Psalm 19:7, 8. Vs. In fact, vs. 10 informs us that they are "sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb," indicating God's Word/law is something we eat and digest. Psalm 34:8 encourages and confirms this: "O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him." That is, in Jesus, our Lord.

And so we see that there are two Gods and two Lords each speaking their law or covenant to us. It is up to us to decide which is the true Lord and which is the false one. If we believe Jesus is the kind of God who often changes His mind based on how He feels at any given moment, then we are going to be deceived. The Jesus I serve does not change. "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever." This is the Jesus of Gen. 1:27-29. In contrast to this God who has blessed all and given all to man is the God of Gen. 2:15-17 who is allowed to "tempt" Adam and Eve in a proscribed area called the "Garden of Eden." The original meaning of the word "Garden" is "Guard Den," a proscribed area under watch or surveillance. "Guard," is [OFr.] or from the Old French and spelled (gard or garder). The main question we need to ask and have answered is "Why was Lucifer (now Satan) allowed to tempt or test them like this? Especially if God knew ahead of time the evil that would result?" Was not God Himself "setting a trap" for His own children? Why would a loving God do such a thing? The answer has to be the same one we would give regarding the experience Job went through. Was there any good accomplished? And was it worth it? I would say "yes" to both of those questions and I think that Job would too. Here are some of the reasons: 1. Job learned to trust God more. He found out that God never forsakes us. 2. He learned to forgive His friends who really were his enemies. 3. He found out how great, awesome and wonderful His God really was and that He could save and deliver Him out of any trouble. 4. He discovered that God more than rewarded him for all of his suffering. 5. The universe learned the truth about God's character, that He does not destroy. And also that Satan cannot destroy or overcome God's children when they put their trust and faith in Him. 6. It gives us a model for what happened in the Garden of Eden and what will happen again at the end of time in the final crisis. And it is a prophecy and promise that we will overcome and be victorious just like Job.

So, when we hear this mysterious voice "patrolling" the virgin glens of Eden, seeking out God's newborn children, to see if he could deceive them into thinking they had actually broken the "Creator's" (which in reality was one he himself made up out of thin air) law that one of God's trees was "forbidden," and to punish them with curses once they had broken it, thereby proving to the onlooking universe that they were indeed inferior, stupid, defective creatures of a God who didn't really know what He was doing after all, we can know that this is indeed the voice of the enemy of all goodness, truth and love. The voice of the jealous, fallen angel, Lucifer, now Satan, who once aspired to "exalt" his "throne above the stars of God...and to "be like the most high." Isa. 14:13, 14.

With God's permission Satan was allowed to tempt Adam and Eve. I find the Living Bible's version fascinating. "You may eat any fruit in the garden except fruit from the Tree of Conscience---for its fruit will open your eyes to make you aware of right and wrong, good and bad. If you eat its fruit, you will be doomed to die." Here is not only a contradiction of Gen. 1:29 and a broken promise but an actual threat of death.

Does not this cruel voice remind you of the same voice we heard in Job 1:6-13? "One day as the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, Satan, the Accuser, came with them. "Where have you come from?" the Lord asked Satan. And Satan replied, "From patrolling the earth." (Sounds just like the Gestapo) Then the Lord asked Satan, "Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth---a good man who fears God and will have nothing to do with evil." "Why shouldn't he, when you pay him so well?" Satan scoffed. "You have always protected him and his home and his property from all harm. You have prospered everything he does---look how rich he is! No wonder he 'worships' you! But just take away his wealth, and you'll see him curse you to your face!"

We know the rest of the story only too well. Now, beloved, let us just use a little logic and allow our own intelligence to tell us the truth. We all know that God is our Sovereign Creator. Satan cannot do anything in this earth unless he first gets permission from "headquarters." Our God permits and prevents, He directs and He determines in the affairs of men and nations. "Above the distractions of the earth He sits enthroned. All things are open to His Divine survey and from His quiet and calm eternity He orders that which His Providence sees best." MH 417. Therefore, He allowed Satan to tempt Adam and Eve to doubt His goodness, mercy and love. Every tree of the whole earth was good. There was no evil in any of them. But Satan declared that one of God's perfect trees was evil and the eating of it would bring death. This was the lie Adam believed. Jesus declared that Satan has been a liar from the beginning. John 8:44. And here is his first lie on earth. And it worked. It broke Adam's light connection with the throne of God.

In 1972 Augsburg Press published a volume entitled, "The Serpent Was Wiser", By Richard S. Hanson. I was able to talk to him this morning by phone as he still teaches at a college in Iowa. I am going to share a few ideas from his book. Although we may not agree with everything he says or the way he says it let's just be willing to listen and try to understand where he is coming from and some of his feelings and even his frustrations in trying to comprehend what really happened. Here is just one of the ideas he expressed. "The woman succumbs. She takes of the fruit and eats. Then she beckons to Adam and together they share the moment of truth, the discovery of what it is like to grow up. 'Now the serpent, was wiser,' it says, 'than all of the creatures God made.' (The word for wise is 'Aroom. A similar sound means naked.) But who is this creature, the serpent? The devil in disguise or the devil without his disguise? No, not the devil at all. Perhaps, then, a god-...the same who both poisoned and healed Jacob's sons in the desert (Numbers 21). So, we must ask, 'Which serpent is this?' and the playwright supplies the answer. This is one so wise that he knows the secret which the conscience of man withholds: the secret of realization. This is the voice which says, 'Dare! Dare and discover! Dare, and become what you're destined to be: a creature who bears God's image. Dare to reach out, to grasp and to taste, to challenge the sculptor who made you from mud. Make him behold the truth of his deed! Let him regret what he's done." Page 43, 44.

Here the author is speaking the words he no doubt believes Adam and Eve thought. In another sentence he refers to the Creator thusly, "So shifty a rascal is this that with equal ease he plays both villain and savior." Now, how, pray tell, could anyone refer to God, our Creator, as a "shifty rascal?" The reason is simplicity itself. He does not realize that there are two personalities at work here at the very dawn of civilization. But neither did Moses, not only when he was writing the book of Genesis, but when he was up on the Mountain receiving the Ten Commandments. (Ex. 19) Nor even later when Israel worshipped the golden calf, Ex. 32. Read v. 12 in which Moses actually rebukes the Lord and urges Him to "repent of this evil against thy people." The "evil" was God's threat to destroy Israel. Does this sound like our lovely Jesus whose teachings repudiated the "eye for an eye" law and taught us to turn the other cheek and to not return evil for evil? Let him/her who has spiritual discernment decide which God you will listen to and follow? Poor Moses did not have the advantage of six thousand years of history to study in order to know which voice was the true God and which one was like Jesus. He was so exasperated that he implored, yes, even begged the Lord to reveal Himself and to plainly tell him whether or not He was going to lead them on to the promised land or not. For one day one voice would tell him to "let me alone that I may destroy these people and make you a great nation," and then change his mind and say He wouldn't. Then the next day He would get angry and tell Moses that He wasn't going to lead them anymore because He was sick and tired of the whole affair. And so it went, back and forth until Moses was completely at his wits end. And who wouldn't be? No wonder Jesus resurrected His faithful servant and took him to heaven for some nice long R & R and some heavenly instruction on what "in the earth" was really going on.

But how could Moses know these were two different gods? The true Creator God and then Satan, the pretender god. Most people still can't see it or figure it out even when you show it to them in black and white. And why would the Creator-God, Jesus Christ, even allow Satan to do this in the first place? Good question. But we are not quite ready for any kind of explanation. Not just yet.

In his book, "The cipher of Genesis," author Carlo Suares tries to sort out and reconcile the inconsistencies of Genesis 1 and 2. He says, "Verse 25 goes on to say that they are naked and unashamed, but that Adam (he is not mentioned as Eesh) and his Esha (Eve) both incorporate the number 70, which is the realization of all the possible possibilities." "The Cipher of Genesis," by Carlo Suares, page 115. Again we have a frustrated author who is trying to sort out and reconcile the inconsistencies of Gen. 1 and 2. Once more we may not agree with his words or what we may think his intended meaning is. But let us be willing to be fair and listen and then rationally evaluate what he is trying to express.

"Let us now consider some of the incongruities in the accepted narratives concerning the Garden of Eden. Why did the so-called God need to plant a tree giving the knowledge of 'good and evil,' in a garden whose only inhabitants were forbidden to eat of it? For whom, then, did he plant that tree?...We know from Gen. 2:9, that the tree of life is in the midst of the garden. Now just think for a moment: not only did this perfidious 'God' set a trap for his creatures, but he deliberately caused a misunderstanding. For both of these trees were in the middle of the garden, and they were surely just alike. How could anyone know which was which? Esha (Eve) in good faith had no idea of disobeying. Moreover (and here is another incongruity in imputing a fault to Esha/Eve), she could not disobey because the interdiction had been placed only upon Adam. Look at the situation again. Not only was there no prohibition laid upon Esha, but was not Esha (Eve) herself created expressly so that Adam, in case he should eat of this fruit, would not 'die a dead death' as would have been the case had he been left alone!" Please realize, dear friend, that I do not necessarily agree with every word and idea of this quotation. However, there is no indication that anyone ever hung a sign on the tree of knowledge of good and evil. For all we know, it may have looked exactly like the tree of life. Personally, I believe they did know which one it was even if it did look like other trees. So, I disagree with the quote on that point. But let us go on for even if we do disagree in some points we can agree on the major issues.

"Two questions arise: why is this story always read 'upside down,' and why does this version enjoy such great popularity? The answer springs from a profound psychological truth. The story, in its veritable nature, is frightening. But how can one be afraid of it if one has not understood it? That answer is that the psyche knows unconsciously that the story is dangerously upsetting. It creates a religious taboo to protect itself. The teaching that results from this translation is that mankind must remain in an infantile state and obey those who speak in the name of a 'father' located in heaven. The dogma of original sin as disobedience is maintained to prevent disconcerting discoveries concerning that deity. For instance, an obvious ambiguity is created by YHWY with two trees. Then, having created two adults who from the outset knew how to talk, why could not 'he' or 'it' have told them how to discriminate between a green and a red light (or how to recognize any other signal as being a danger zone, had there been one)?"

"The truth is that this story is a magical snare where fear sees birth as sin, (that is growing up by learning good from evil and right from wrong) freedom as disobedience, nobleness as ruin. It is not the serpent who is the tempter. The deceiver is the so-called God, YHWY, and the deceived is the reader. Does this appear ridiculous? The scandal is the world-wide picture of a good old father seated in the heavens, benignly observing us." Page 120.

Obviously, the author is somewhat irritated with this whole mystery which neither he nor anyone else can possibly solve without the knowledge and understanding that there are two different Gods or entities involved here. His comments and satirical asides betray his cynicism. But can you totally blame him?

How many of us have been through the same mental and emotional turmoil or trauma as we have read many blood soaked, gory stories in the Old Testament trying to not only understand but justify what we have thought of and or conceived to be a changeable, fickle, angry, cruel and even sadistic God who would command the armies of Israel to slaughter thousands of innocent women, babies, elderly folk along with domestic animals? (I Sam. 15:1-3) Probably all of us.

But then we turn right around in the New Testament and read where this same God is telling His followers this is not the way to live but that we should honor all life, even little sparrows, whose death touches and even causes grief to our heavenly Father's heart. Furthermore, we are told that Christ does not even speak harshly to the devil himself. Jude 9. Surely, Jesus came to show us the real truth about our Heavenly Father, that He is a dependable and trustworthy God. But, again we must ask: "Why has Satan been given such freedom to deceive and lead astray the whole human race the way he has?" This I will attempt to answer. But please be patient for I do not think that I can explain it in a few sentences.

First of all, we must let go of and forget our traditional understanding of time. For, our God does not dwell or function in any kind of "Time Frame" or "Time Zone" as we do. Instead He dwells/lives/exists in the ETERNAL NOW. He declared His timelessness to Moses when He said, "I AM THAT I AM" which basically means, "I am the Eternal, Self-existent One."

The advantage we have over past generations, especially over Adam and Eve, is that we can look back over the entire scope of history and break up the time continuum, as we are doing by examining the various experiences and scenarios of history and sitting as it were as judges to discern the truth about our Heavenly Father. In this respect, we truly are living in a "Time of Judgment." We can run the tape back again and again, as it were by studying the story of Abraham in Gen. 22 and finally discerning that it was not the true God after all who commanded Abraham to slay his son so he could offer him up as a burnt offering. Thus it is that we can move anywhere we please in the time continuum of the 66 books of the Bible and carefully examine each and every account to see "who dunnit," so to speak and thus solve the great murder mystery of eternity. Jesus Himself has already revealed Satan as the "murderer from the beginning." This was not spoken by our Lord as a condemnation but as a revelation to all the universe...especially to those of us alive in this last generation who must decide who is the true Christ and who false?

My friend and historian, John Matthews has written an excellent definition of "TIME." "Time is the measurement for determining the rate of speed in which reality moves from point 'A' to point 'B' in relationship to point 'C.' The 'time' it takes matter to go from point 'A' to point 'B,' as perceived from the vantage point of point 'C' is a measurement of the motion of reality. Man comprehends 'Time' from his perception of it at point 'C.' With God there is no passing of time because God Himself moves with reality as it travels from point 'A' to point 'B,' therefore God's perception of time is the same as having 'Time Stand Still.'"

In I Peter 3:8 we read that "One day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day." From this verse we can conclude that God is not bound or constrained by the limits of time. He dwells in the eternal NOW. Isa. 46:10 reveals that God knows the end from the beginning. Therefore, He can see into the future as easily as we can see yesterday and the day before in pictures, films, books, etc. The future already exists as far as God is concerned. Albert Einstein, the father of modern physics, believed that there is no absolute time. He said that time changes with the motion of the observer. We treat time as though it were linear, one thing leading to another in an ordinary time sequence as we live it day by day. But Einstein showed that past, present, and future need have no fixed status. He believed it is possible to see them in varying order---the future before the present, for example. Perhaps this is one of the gifts that Adam and Eve lost when they broke their light connection with the throne of God by believing Satan's lie that something was wrong with one of God's trees. This caused them to become afraid even though Eve proved to Adam that nothing happened to her when she ate of it.

Carlos Suares writes further about Eve regarding her conversation with the Serpent. "When she is questioned concerning this event, she does not--as the translations assert--reply, 'The serpent beguiled me (Gen. 3:13). What the true reading gives is far more significant. The Hebrew phrase, Hanahhas Hashayiny, as is so often true in the most beautiful passages, is impossible to translate in two or three words. It has to do with the action of the letter 'Sheen' which we met with after Adam's so-called sleep. 'Sheen' (300), it is remembered, stands for the cosmic breath of life, and we have seen that the true meaning is not that they were 'naked' and 'not-ashamed' (which has nothing to do with the letter-numbers of the text), but that they were left without the 'Sheen.' Now Hanahhash Hashayiny simply means that Nahhash, the serpent, 'Sheens' her: that is, he blends his earthly fire with her lost heavenly fire, which thus comes to life again. Some traditions have identified this 'Sheen' (300) with the mythical 'Spirit of God.'" "The Cipher of Genesis," Page 127.

Although I may not agree with all the philosophy in the above book I find myself challenged by many of the author's ideas and assertions. For example, I checked out the following assertion he makes on page 125 and found he was absolutely right. Here is what he said: "The fact (which one can verify for oneself) is that the copyists, priests, rabbis and theologians have systematically discarded every statement in the Bible that destroys man's sense of security in a steady continuity of existence. But the bible is a Revelation only in so far as it includes death in life, thereby disrupting every psychological certainty." He says that this important Biblical message has been reversed and betrayed. Just what he fully means is not clear but I can only tell you what I believe Jesus tried to teach us which we do not wish to hear. And that is the concept that in losing our lives, as we know it, we gain life. When we apply this idea to Eve's action of eating the fruit that Satan forbade, on the grounds that she would die, we see that at first she believed the truth that the fruit was actually good. She did not die. Nothing bad happened to her at all...that is until she shared her discovery with Adam who just happened to be a firm believer in the voice who said he would die. Was their oneness so strong that his negative reaction and belief that they would die took Eve down with him? This I do not know. But what I did find out by looking up the Hebrew word translated "beguile," was that it does not mean "deceived" or "seduced" or "tricked" or "led astray" or any such thing. It in fact, means "lift up," as in "to lift up one's person from a humble condition, to be cheerful, to look forward hopefully to, to lift up the soul to anything." Even the word "beguile," can have a positive connotation. If, as so many believe, the serpent was a medium through which Christ was speaking to Eve to counteract the lying voice of Gen. 2, then He surely knew what would happen to her when Adam's negative reaction took her down with him. In one of the sources Eve encourages Adam to continue on in life and live. So, it is possible that Jesus re-lighted her fire by breathing back into His own breath. And perhaps this is the meaning of "The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." Rev. 13:8. That Christ began unselfishly giving of His own life right at the moment Adam and Eve doubted His Word.

Now, this brings us right back to the concept of time. For on a time continuum, the experience of Adam and Eve just happened a split second ago and we, as witnesses of this "tragic" event can learn from their failure and know how to "get it right" here at the "end of the world." So, what we may view as a tragedy God simply views as part of our birth and growing up into the full stature of Christ whose life was also lived on the stage of action a split second ago. And we can see it again and again as often as we like until we fully understand the true significance of it and finally "get it right." And "getting it right," means to no longer "miss the mark" regarding the truth about God's character. That He is "holy, harmless, undefiled," Heb. 7:26 and we can "eat His flesh and drink His blood," and know that He will never hurt us and He is not out to get us and all of His trees are as good and perfect and life sustaining as He Himself is and was and ever shall be. Amen.

This is why then that John the Revelator saw the vision of Rev. 15:1-4 in which God's people are standing on the sea of glass declaring the total and complete victory of our precious Lord Jesus Christ when "All nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments (decisions) are made manifest." "Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints." This is the final affirmation of all of God's creatures that everything He has ever done from the very beginning has been absolutely perfect and what we have viewed as a terrible tragedy, heartache, loss and sorrow have really only been heavenly lessons to perfect our character. And for these we can now thank Him and praise Him for on the time continuum, which we can now see at a glance, "All things" truly do work together for good to them that love God and are the called according to His purpose." And FEAR truly is 'FORGETTING EVERYTHING IS ALL RIGHT," for now we can see through eyes of the faith of Jesus that everything is happening right on schedule just as it should have and was planned to be from the fall of Lucifer to the Garden of Eden to Gethsamne to the final Sunday law and death decree and coming of Jesus and 1,000 years and finally the Holy City coming down, the end of sin and the creation of the New Earth. Everything is happening right on time and it is happening right now and we are the eye witnesses to declare that Jesus truly is our Wonderful and Eternal Saviour and we can be just like Him. Amen. mfc.