FAITH CAPSULE: Responsibility builds up relationship with God.
Genesis 3
God made man and He gave commands to man. God’s commandment is His word. The Word of God is for man’s responsibility before God. Man should be responsible before God by obeying the word of God to build up for greatness. Paul the apostle buttressed, “So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.”
Responsibility before God leads to relationship with God. Responsibility to be living righteous will be accounted for man before God just like Abraham. James 2:23, “…Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God.” Abraham was responsible as a result, he had relationship with God.
God gave Adam word for his responsibility when He said, “And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” (Genesis 2:16-17)
Adam was not responsible in the word of God when he moved by Eve’s irresponsible conversation with serpent (devil). Genesis 3:1-3 recorded the conversation between serpent and Eve, “Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’”
Irresponsible is having conversation with serpent instead of communicating the word of God. Eve’s conversation with serpent (devil) was lack of responsibility which broke up Adam and Eve’s relationship with God. With no longer relationship with God Adam and Eve were sent out of the Garden of Eden.
Jesus demonstrated the need for man to be responsible before God by communicating the word of God with devil. Just as serpent approached Eve with conversation, devil also approached Jesus with conversation. Jesus responded to devil by communicating the word of God instead of conversation with devil. Matthew 4:1-4 recorded, “ Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”
With Jesus’ responsibility before God, He responded to devil with written word of God not in conversation. Eve responded to serpent in conversation. Devil is cunning we are to engage the word of God instead of conversation when devil comes with temptation.
Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to be living by the word of God.