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A Life with Love Does Not Hide

When Adam and Eve loved God they did not hide from Him. When they loved each other they did not hide from each other. It was not until sin came into the world that man began to hide from God and from each other. We will hide behind all sorts of coverings and facades. We hide because we are insecure. Love makes us secure but sin takes away our security.

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings. They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” Genesis 3:7-10

Of course the Lord knew where Adam and Eve were. He knows where all of us are and exactly what we are doing and what we have done. There is nothing hidden from Him.

And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. Hebrews 4:13

The Lord asked Adam where he was not so that God would know, for He already knew, but He asked Adam so that Adam would acknowledge where he was and what he had done. The Lord wants an honest heart and not a person who pretends to be somewhere they are not or someone whom they are not. The Lord is still asking man, “Where are you in relation to God?”

But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance. Now no one after lighting a lamp covers it over with a container, or puts it under a bed; but he puts it on a lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light. For nothing is hidden that will not become evident, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light. Luke 8:15-17

It is not until we learn to be honest with the Lord can we be honest with each other. We can not trust ourselves, for our hearts are deceitful. We deceive ourselves but we can trust the Lord. We can not deceive Him.

Many a man proclaims his own loyalty,
But who can find a trustworthy man? Proverbs 20:6

How do you know if someone is trustworthy? Many a man will proclaim to a girl his loyalty. How does she know if he will keep his wedding vows to her? How does she know if he will be faithful to her? There is a way that she can know if he is trustworthy before marriage and if he is trustworthy before marriage then there is a much greater chance that he will be trustworthy after marriage. If he fails this test then there is a much greater possibility that he will not be faithful to her after marriage. Trustworthiness comes from the words “worthy of trust”. A man who is worthy of trust will be faithful to the Lord before marriage and will not touch a girl in an inappropriate manner. Trust must be characterized by moral excellence. A man exhibits self control when he controls his passions before marriage and if he can control his passions before marriage then he will most likely control his passions after marriage.

Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. II Peter 1:5-7

The beginning of love must be faith in God. Then for there to be love there must be moral excellence and then knowledge and then self control. A man must persevere in his self control and as he perseveres then he will become godly and learn kindness and then he will learn to love as God has loved him. This is the only kind of love that will last. This is a pure love that is built on the Lord and the man who loves like this will be blessed in his marriage and he will be a blessing to the woman he marries. She will trust him for he will have proven himself to be trustworthy. He will have nothing to hide from God or from his wife or others.

A Life with Love Does Not Judge

Judging someone is the opposite of loving someone. The Lord has not called us to judge but to love. There is only One Lawgiver and Judge.

There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your neighbor? James 4:12

The Lord has called us to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul and mind and our neighbor as ourselves, that is, how we would want someone else to love us. We can not love and judge at the same time. When we are judging someone then we are presuming something about someone else when we do not have all of the facts. We are not all knowing. There is only One who is all knowing and He will judge righteously.

Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it. James 4:11

The Lord has called us to be a doer of His word and not a judge of it. If we are only a hearer of the word and not a doer then we are only deceiving ourselves and His truth and love is not in us.

But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. James 1:22

When Adam and Eve sinned they became a judge of God and His Word and not a lover of God and a doer of His Word. They presumed about the Lord and His character and so they hid themselves.

They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” Genesis 2:8-10

Adam was afraid because he know longer knew the Lord. His view of God became distorted because of his sin and Adam began making a judgment of God of what he thought God was like. Everything that you and I do is a response to our view of God. Everything that every person in the world does is a response to their view of God. For this reason, our greatest need is to have the correct view of God. God is not who we judge Him to be but God is who God is, whether we know Him or not. When the Bible uses the word “know” someone, it means an intimate knowledge of the person. Adam lost his intimacy with God when he sinned. He no longer knew Him and Adam’s judgment of God became twisted. God is not twisted but Adam’s view of God became distorted and twisted.

With the pure You show Yourself pure,
And with the crooked You show Yourself twisted. Psalm 18:26

Only God can cleanse our heart. Our heart becomes clean when we are forgiven of our sin. Only God can forgive us of our sin. Jesus Christ shed His blood on the cross to forgive us of our sin, to forgive us for wanting and trying to be like God. He came to forgive us of judging God and everyone else.

And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. Hebrews 9:22

The correct view of God will only come when our heart has been cleansed and is pure. A pure heart is a heart that by faith is single minded in its purpose to trust and obey God.

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. James 4:8

The Lord wants to reveal Himself to all of us but He waits until we have drawn near to Him through faith, by His grace, and have had our hearts cleansed through the blood of Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross to forgive us of our sins. He took all of our sins and gave us all of His righteousness that we might once again be restored to a loving relationship with God and know God intimately.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8

A Life with Love Does Not Change

Love does not change. If it does then it is not love. God is love and He does not change. There are two things that will not change and it is these two things that give us security in this world and security for all eternity. When Adam and Eve sinned God’s love did not change for them. He loved them as much as he had loved them before. It was Adam and Eve who had changed and they could no longer experience God’s love.

“For I, the Lord, do not change; Malachi 3:6a

It was God, the Father and Jesus, the Son of God who said in the beginning, “Let us make man in our image.”

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” Genesis 1:26

Jesus Christ is God’s only begotten Son, equal with God, the Father, and He does not change.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8

God’s Word does not change. Those who have put their trust in Jesus Christ have been born again into His family through the living and enduring Word of God. It endures forever and will never change.

for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God. For, “All flesh is like grass,
And all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
And the flower falls off,
But the word of the Lord endures forever.” I Peter 1:23-25a

When God made Adam and Eve, his plan for them was love. He said that if they would keep His commandments then they would live and not die. His plan was for them to live in His love for all eternity. He never designed that they would experience grief, death, guilt, fear, shame, regret, slavery or any of the other horrible consequences of disobeying Him and rejecting living in His love. When they sinned He did not reject them. They rejected God. He still loved them and came up with another provision for them to live in His love. His provision was to be a sacrificial love so that man could “see” how much God loved them. Those who receive this sacrificial love will live forever in God’s love and will never need to hide again.

“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. John 14:1-3

God loves you and He says that one day He will come back and take those who love Him to the home that He has prepared for them. Jesus Christ said that He would die and rise again from the dead and He did, just as He said. He is risen and and will raise us up also to live forever with Him in His love, just as He says. He is our hope. We do not need to fear. He says that He loves us and God will never lie. We can trust Him and His Word completely. Let not your heart be troubled you who have believed in God and His Word. He is alive and you also will live with Him. God does not change.

A Life Filled with Happiness

Everyone wants to be happy and parents want their children to be happy. Yet, few people know how to find happiness and it eludes the majority of people. Many people struggle with unhappiness and depression and live with it on a daily basis. Another word for happiness is gladness. Gladness and happiness are feelings of wonderful well being and peace that give a person great satisfaction and confidence. The Bible describes Jesus Christ when He lived on earth as a man as having more gladness than all of his friends. He was filled with great joy, peace and gladness.

“You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness;
Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You
With the oil of gladness above Your companions.” Hebrews 1:9

God is the One who gives happiness and gladness and it comes from loving to do what is right, or in other words, loving “doing the right thing”. Jesus wanted to always do the right thing and He always did the right thing. In the same way, when a person does what is right then they too will enjoy much happiness and gladness. They will have a clear conscience and have confidence in every situation because they “did it right” beforehand. Just as when a person goes to take a test in school and they studied beforehand and learned the material, then they will have confidence and peace when they go to take a test and they will have gladness afterwards for they were prepared. Life is similar and is filled with many tests. If a person has done what is right and is prepared then they will have confidence and peace.

And the work of righteousness will be peace, And the service of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever. Isaiah 32:17

Life is made up of many tests but the final exam will come at the end when a person dies. If one has done what he needs to do then he will die in peace, if not, then there will be no peace.

“There is no peace for the wicked,” says the Lord. Isaiah 48:22

The fool lives as if there is no God and the wicked person does not fear God. Both will have to give an account of their lives at the end. It has been said that there are no atheists on the deathbed. God has made Himself known to all men and every man has chosen for himself if he will turn to God.

Transgression speaks to the ungodly within his heart;
There is no fear of God before his eyes.
For it flatters him in his own eyes
Concerning the discovery of his iniquity and the hatred of it.
Psalm 36:1-2

A wicked and foolish person knows that he has done wrong. His guilt is ever before him. He will say that he hates what he does but he does not hate it enough to stop doing it and to turn to God. If he will only turn to the Lord and cry out to Him, then God will give him the power to stop. Either a person is going away from God or they are going towards Him. Once a person turns toward God then God will meet the one who wants to be right with God.

You meet him who rejoices in doing righteousness, Who remembers You in Your ways. Behold, You were angry, for we sinned, We continued in them a long time; And shall we be saved? Isaiah 64:5

Yes, a person can be saved. Any person can be saved who will come to Jesus Christ. It does not matter what a person has done or how far he has gotten from God. If one turns to the Lord and calls on Him then the Lord will save him. God’s peace will come into their life. They will have much gladness and happiness. They will have peace and confidence for the day when they will breathe their last breath. They will be forgiven of all of their sins, past, present and future. Their heart will be right with God. They will want to follow Him with all of their heart and do what is right. They will receive a new heart that will want to do what is right. Life will no longer be the struggle that it once was for they will have a new life, not one of surviving but a life of living life to the fullest. They will be blessed. This happiness in life and blessing of life is available for all and those who choose the Lord will receive it. True righteousness is based on faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Faith is coming to Jesus Christ and calling on Him to be your Lord and Savior.

“The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:8b-13

If you are a Christian already then the Lord wants you to live out the righteousness that He has given you in Christ. Keep a clear conscience. Have you done what His Word says to do? He has given you His righteousness so that you can live out His righteousness in this present life on earth. If you are lacking in peace, quietness and confidence in any area then get into His Word and find out what His way is in the particular situation. His way is wisdom and He will give wisdom to any who asks Him and without reproach, which means, even if you got yourself into this mess He will help you get out of it. God has forgiven you but He is not mocked. If you have done wrong then you will receive the consequences of the wrong which you have done but don’t continue doing wrong because it will only get worse. Repentance is turning from your sin to God. He is a present help in time of trouble. He wants to restore your peace and fill you will His gladness and you will once again know happiness in your life.

Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. James 1:2-5

A Life with Love Brings Satisfaction

Love brings satisfaction to others by helping them to become the person that God designed them to be and to do the things that God wants them to do. A person can only do this if they have the love of God abiding in them. When Eve disobeyed God she no longer was a helpmate to Adam but she became his mate who hurt him. Her life no longer helped him grow closer to God but she hurt his relationship with the Lord by wanting him to sin just as she had sinned. Sin has a ripple effect and will always bring hurt to the people around the one doing the sinning.

When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her and he ate. Genesis 3:6

If you love someone then you will not want to be a stumbling block to them but will want to help them grow in their relationship with the Lord. You are either pointing people to the Lord through your life or you are pointing them away from the Lord. A person who is disobedient to what the Lord says will not only stumble themselves but they will put a stumbling block before others. God’s Word is offensive to the one who does not want to obey it. The disobedient person will often want others to do the same as they have done. It does not lessen their guilt but only increases it.

For this is contained in Scripture: “Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious corner stone, And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.” This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve, “The stone which the builders rejected,
This became the very corner stone,” and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense”; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed. I Peter 2:6-8

“Indeed, did God say…” is what the devil said to Eve. He caused her to question God’s Word and then she twisted what the Lord said and then she disobeyed God’s Word. She disobeyed God’s Word to her own destruction, to the destruction of her marriage and home and to the destruction of her relationship with God. The Lord had given Adam and Eve everything that man and woman could possibly want. Yet, they were not satisfied. You will never be satisfied if you look elsewhere for satisfaction, other than to the Lord. There will always be something prettier, better, more advantageous and anything else that we think would bring us happiness.

Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied,
Nor are the eyes of man ever satisfied. Proverbs 27:20

Sheol and Abaddon are other names for hell. The devil is never satisfied as to how many people he can get to go to hell with him. He is never satisfied with how many marriages he can destroy or how many lives he has destroyed. When your marriage is destroyed and dies then something within you also dies. You will never be the same. In the same way, the eyes of men and women are never satisfied. They will always want more.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Matthew 5:6

As you learn to hunger and thirst for the Lord and to hunger and thirst after righteousness then you will be satisfied. Righteousness is believing what God said by faith and acting on it by obeying His Word. It may seem impossible but it is true. The word “blessed” means happy. You will be happy and satisfied in life, in your marriage and you will be a blessing to your spouse and to others.

A Life Free of Fear and Worry

Although it is a “natural” thing to be fearful and worry, it is not a healthy thing to be full of fear and worries. Fears and worries of tomorrow rob us of the joys and pleasures of today. Not only can they destroy our happiness but they can also destroy our health, our relationships and our well being. Fears and worries can cause us to make poor decisions and lead us into “taking things into our own hands”, which also can bring us much grief. Most of what we fear will never happen and what we worry about will never even take place and yet, we can not recover what we have allowed them to rob us of or to destroy. It is not of God for us to be fearful or to worry. He never tells us to fear or to worry about life and the command, that He gives us more than any other command, is “do not fear”. If worry is not of the Lord then what is the source of all worry and fear?

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. John 10:10

The thief is the devil and that is why another name for him is “the evil one”. The meaning of evil is to cause grief. If he can not kill you then we will seek to destroy you and rob you of the life that Jesus Christ came to give you. Jesus Christ came to not only give eternal life but to give us an abundant life here on earth. In Christ alone is life. Life is far more than the body breathing. When Jesus Christ comes into a person’s life then He brings life to the soul. For this reason, when a person becomes a Christian then the eyes of their soul are opened and they see all of life differently.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. John 14:6

The Lord knows our frame and how fragile we are and so He has told us over and over again not to worry and not to fear. He takes care of those who come to Him in faith, trusting Him for not only eternity but for the here and now.

For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust. Psalm 103:14

When we come to Christ through faith in what He accomplished on the cross for all of mankind, then God transfers us into the kingdom of His beloved Son, Jesus Christ.

For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13,14

In God’s kingdom, Jesus Christ is King and He takes care of those in His kingdom. He wants us to seek first His kingdom rather than seeking first for our needs to be met. He will provide our needs when we seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. Seeking His righteousness is seeking to live according to God’s ways and doing His will.

“For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Matthew 6:25-33

The Lord loves you. He wants you to trust Him and be free of worries and fears. The Lord is the only One who can set you free from worries and fears because He is all powerful and loves perfectly. He is the only One who is greater than any problem, fear or worry you may have. He is a present help in time of trouble.

God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. Psalm 46:1

Look to the Lord Jesus Christ. He is near to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. He is good. Do not doubt His power or His love. It is not His will for you to worry. Faith is coming to Him and letting Him show you His love and His power. Learn to talk to Him. Worry is meditating on your problems and talking to yourself or others about them. Faith is meditating on God’s Words and talking to Him about your struggles and problems.

So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34

Come to Him all who are worried and heavy laden with burdens and cares. Cast them upon Him. Faith is coming to Him through His Word and through prayer to Jesus Christ.

Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28

You must believe that He is God and must come to Him.

And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. Hebrews 11:6

The person who comes to Him will not be disappointed.

For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” Romans 10:11

God loves you and He wants to carry your burdens. He came to give you life. Don’t allow the burdens, cares and worries of life rob you. Give them to Jesus. He will take care of you. He loves you.

casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. I Peter 5:7

A Life with Love Must Choose

Love was the plan and life was the choice. Eve could choose to live in the love that the Lord planned for her and Adam or choose death and the corruption, guilt and shame that would follow.

The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” Genesis 2:16,17

The Lord gives all of us this choice. We may eat freely of what He has given to us but if we do what He has told us not to do then we will die. The Lord wanted man to live and told man what he must do to live and what he must not do or he will die. Faithfulness and love go together. If Adam and Eve were faithful then they would live in God’s love. Even if Adam and Eve were not faithful then the Lord would still be faithful to His Word. It is God’s faithfulness to His words and promises that give us security and hope.

If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.

II Timothy 2:13

Love is a choice and love is faithfulness. God loved Adam and Eve and so He had to be faithful to His Word. If they had kept His commandment then they would have lived. God can not lie. He is truth. What He says will happen.

so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. Hebrews 6:18

God’s plan for Adam and Eve was that they would live in His love. He would be faithful to them and keep His Word that He promised them. They could live in the garden and live securely in His love. He wanted them to be faithful to Him. There is a godly jealousy and that godly jealousy protects the relationship. A man who loves his wife wants her to be faithful to him and the same is true for a wife who loves her husband. We also want God to be faithful to His Word and He wants us to be faithful to Him. Faithfulness is love and love is faithfulness and both are choices.

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Galatians 6:7,8

Adam and Eve would reap the consequences of their actions. They could choose God’s plan and live in His love or they could choose their own flesh and reap corruption of their relationship and the death of their lives. The Lord gives each of us the same opportunity to choose Him or to choose to go our own way and please our flesh. God is not mocked and will be faithful to give you what you choose. If He could choose for you then He would choose life but the choice is your choice and so you must choose.

The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

II Peter 3:9

A Life with Love is Good

Love is good and one of the meanings of the word “good” in the Bible is “the highest form of love”. The Lord is good and He only seeks what is good for us and His actions towards us are the highest expressions of love. When He created man He created man to be loved and to love.

For the Lord is good;
His lovingkindness is everlasting
And His faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 100:5

When God sent His only begotten Son into the world it was to show His love for the world. His redeeming love was sacrificial, costly, of great value and of the highest form. Jesus Christ died for us while we were sinners and had no love for Him or desire to trust and obey Him.

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

The Lord is good and no evil dwells with Him. Evil is the opposite of love and those who do evil seek to hurt, harm and to cause grief.

For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness;
No evil dwells with You. Psalm 5:4

The devil is the one who is evil and seeks your harm and hurt. He is a liar and will do what he can to bring you grief. He lied to Eve.

The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4,5

He said that she would not die but that her eyes would be opened and she would be like God. Every word was a lie. She would die and her actions brought about her own death. Satan always tries to minimize the consequences.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23

He said that her eyes would be opened but rather she became blind and it was not until Jesus Christ came to open the eyes of the blind, that we could see spiritually.

Then the eyes of the blind will be opened Isaiah 35:5a

He said that she would be like God, but no, she became like the devil, for the devil did not do what was right in the sight of God and unrighteousness was found in him. The devil rebelled against God by doing what he wanted to do rather than what the Lord wanted him to do.

“You were blameless in your ways
From the day you were created
Until unrighteousness was found in you. Ezekiel 28:15

He said that she would know good and evil, but she no longer knew what was good but only what was evil. She no longer knew God’s love for her. The word “know” is to experience. She no longer experienced God’s love. The devil lied about God for God does not “experience” any evil and as long as Adam and Eve did what the Lord wanted them to do then they also would never “know” evil.

Your eyes are too pure to approve evil, And You can not look on wickedness Habakkuk 1:13

Eve exchanged the truth of God for a lie and the consequences of her actions brought death to her life and her relationship with Adam. The love that God had given them was no longer in the relationship as God was no longer present.

A Life with the Gift of a Great Love

There is love and there is a great love that is offered to all of mankind. Happy are all who find this great love. A person can only give away what they have received and when someone is loved with a great love then they are able to love others with a great love. God’s love is offered to all the world.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:16

God sent His only begotten Son into the world to take away the sin of the world. Jesus Christ was the sacrifice for all of mankind’s sin.

The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! John 1:29

The word “sin” is singular because the sin of all mankind is that everyone wants to be their own god. They do not want anyone to tell them what to do. They want to make their “own” decisions and go their “own way”. However, it is their “own” decisions that bring them much sorrow and grief and it is when they go their “own way” that they go astray from what is right. This wanting to be our own god and wanting to make our own decisions is “the sin” of all who are in the world. Jesus Christ came to take away our sin.

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23

Mankind does not realize that he or she can never be their own master but in their turning away from the One True God, something else becomes their master and it is the different sins that start controlling them. It is not until people start experiencing the pain of their own sins from their own decisions that they realize that they do not know everything or know what is best for them. They need help and they need One who is greater than themselves to save them from themselves and their sins. There is only One who has the right to be God and that is the One True God, who sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to save us from ourselves and our sins.

She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins. Matthew 1:21

He alone knows what is best for us for He made us in His image and made us to be in a relationship with Him. When we surrender our lordship to Him and ask Him to be our Lord, rather than ourselves or anything else, then He also becomes our Savior. We become one of His people and He will save us from our sins. The word “sins” is plural because each one of us has a weakness toward particular kinds of “sins”.

for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:13

It is not until we call on Jesus Christ to be our Lord will He also become our Savior. He came to take away the “sin” of the world but He only saves His people from their “sins”. The world does not experience saving from their “sins” until they become one of His people. Someone becomes one of His people by receiving Him as their Lord and then He becomes their Savior and saves them from their “sins” and sets them free from their “sins”. Their “sins” no longer are “master ” over them.

Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.” John 8:34

When a person receives Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior then they become one of His people and they begin living in His kingdom, and also they become one of His children. They become “born again” into His family, to forever live with Him.

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, John 1:12

You must be “born again” to be born into His family and to become a part of His kingdom as one of His people.

Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ John 3:5-7

When you become “born again” then you become His child and you belong to Him. You begin to live in His great love and you begin the greatest adventure of your life. He will lead you in the good way and He will pour out His great love on you. He will only do good towards you. You will hear His voice and want to follow Him. You will grow in His great love and you will want to love others. You will be forgiven of all of your “sin” and of all of your “sins”. Your guilt will be gone and you will be clean on the inside. You will be free, for now the “Good Shepherd”, will guide you in paths of righteousness. You will want to do what is right for you will want to please the One who loves you, who died for you and who now lives and intercedes for you. You will have peace and joy on the inside and will be free from whatever tormented you from within, whether it is guilt, unforgiveness, regret, hatred, bitterness or whatever else that would destroy you. You will have found rest for your soul.

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matthew 11:28,29

Come to Jesus Christ, if you have not yet come. Faith is coming to Him. All who came to Him found that He could and was willing to meet their needs. If you are struggling with anything then come to Him. If you have been hurt or are heavy laden then come to Him. He is gentle and humble of heart. You will find what you need. You will not be disappointed. He loves you with a great love and wants you to live in His love.

For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:11-13

A Life with Love Does Not Manipulate

Since Adam named the serpent then he knew the character of the serpent. The serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field. His name “serpent” means “to enchant”. The devil chose to disguise himself in the serpent because the serpent was enchanting and beautiful.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’” The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! Genesis 3:1-4

When we are not trusting the Lord and His love for us then we want to be in control, thinking that we know better than the Lord and can not really trust Him with what is most important to us. We feel the need to “take matters into our own hands” to accomplish what we think would be best for us. Manipulation is not of the Lord and is neither loving nor respectful of another. It is our sinful nature that teaches us to manipulate and it can begin at an early age. A man may seek to manipulate through charm, money, power, words or actions. A man may also seek to manipulate a female through trying to make her feel sorry for him. A female should run from a man who is a manipulator just as a man should avoid a female who manipulates. Females can also manipulate through being enchanting or charming, through their beauty, tears, words or actions. It is not godlike but is more like the devil. Someone who is a manipulator can not be trusted.

When you sit down to dine with a ruler,
Consider carefully what is before you,
And put a knife to your throat
If you are a man of great appetite.
Do not desire his delicacies,
For it is deceptive food. Proverbs 23:1-3

It is only one who trusts the Lord who can be trusted. Don’t listen to what a person says but look at the fruit of their life. If they are trusting the Lord then the fruit will reveal what the person is like.

For each tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they pick grapes from a briar bush. Luke 6:44

If you want a loving marriage and a godly life then you must learn to trust the Lord to give you what you need and to not manipulate to get what you want. He knows your needs and your desires. Learn to do what is right and to walk uprightly with Him and He will not withhold any good thing from you. Then and only then you will know that the partner that he gives to you in marriage is a gift from Him and not something that you brought about by your manipulation.

No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. Psalm 84:11b

This is important because in marriage, just as in life, storms will arise and you need to know without a doubt that it was the Lord that brought you two together. If you have that confidence then you will be able to weather the storms together and they will strengthen your marriage rather than weaken it. Trusting the Lord is doing it right. When you do life right then there will be peace, quietness and confidence. Manipulation is doing it wrong. When you do life wrong there will be doubt, stress and problems.

And the work of righteousness will be peace,
And the service of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.

Isaiah 32:17