Biblical Manhood - Genesis 3 - The Fall

Genesis 3

Monday Night we'll get into perhaps the most important chapter of Genesis - Chapter 3 where everything goes South and we come under the curse of the Fall.  What an amazing thing it would have been to live in the garden of Eden, walking in perfect communion with LORD God, enjoying perfectly rewarding work, and blissful marital intimacy with a wife fashioned solely for you and your help!  Unfortunately it didn't take long for the two of them to mess it all up!   

Review Genesis 1 & 2:

1.       God created man (man & woman) in His image.  As image bearers men and women reflect God’s qualities and are equally worthy.

2.      Man & Woman have shared job of exercising God’s loving dominion over the earth and it’s creatures and are called to make the earth fruitful and to multiply and fill it.

3.      God graciously provided a beautiful garden with “every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food”

4.      God provided pleasing work – to tend and keep the garden

5.      God prohibited only one thing – eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil

6.      On day 6, the only thing not good, was for man to be alone

a.      Need for relationship reflects the relational nature of the Trinity

7.      Male and Female roles are different.

a.      Men are given unique authority and responsibility as manifested by

                                                              i.      Created order – Adam made first

                                                           ii.      Adam named all of the animals

                                                         iii.      Woman was made from Man

                                                          iv.      Adam named the woman  

b.      Woman’s role was helper

8.     Men and Women are called to leave their parents and become one.

a.      Marriage involves shameless committed marital intimacy!

Genesis 3

Gen 3:1-24 ESV  Now the serpent was _____  ______  than any other beast of the field that the _____  ______ had made. He said to the woman, "Did ___  actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?"

1.       What was the serpent trying to do with Eve?  Was he sincerely asking her?

2.      How do you know when Satan is lying? (John 8:44)

3.      Why was he asking Eve and not Adam?

4.      Why did he ask about the only thing she was not permitted to do, instead of the generous provision of God?

a.      Does he still do this today?   Is this effective?

 Gen 3:2-3 ESV  And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden,  (3)  but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'"

1.       What did God actually say in Gen 2:16 about the trees?   “You may _____  eat of ____  tree  of the garden, 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 _____  die.”

a.      Eve lost sight of God’s ____________  ______________

b.      Eve exaggerated his prohibition by saying they couldn’t even touch the fruit

c.       Eve downplayed the speed and surety of judgement by implying death was just a possibility.

d.      Do you ever question the goodness of God’s prohibitions and downplay the negative effects of sin?

                                                              i.      What did that get you?

Gen 3:4-6 ESV  But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die.  (5)  For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."  (6)  So 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 to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

1.       Why is verse four a lie?

2.      What is the serpent implying about God’s reasons for prohibiting the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil?

3.      Is it wrong to want “to be like God?”

4.      What were the three aspects of the fruit that tempted her? (1 John 2:16)

a.      “good for food” – Lust of the ______

b.      “delight to the eyes” – Lust of the _____

c.       “tree was to be desired to make one wise” – Boastful pride of _____

5.      Does the devil still tempt us that way?

6.      Where was Adam during all of this?

a.      Why is that important?

Gen 3:7-12 ESV  Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.  (8)  And 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.  (9)  But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, "Where are you?"  (10)  And he said, "I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself."  (11)  He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?"  (12)  The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate."

1.       What is always the consequence of sin?

a.       

b.       

2.      Did they die?  (Romans 5:12 – 19)

a.      Was there death before now?

b.      Was there death after the fall?

3.      Who did the LORD God call?

a.      Why is this important?

b.      With authority comes _____________.

c.       Does God call men to be responsible or pay for the sins of others sometimes?

4.      What are the two types of sin?

a.      Not doing something you should do is a sin of __________.

b.      Doing something you shouldn’t do is a sin of ____________.

5.      Who did Adam blame for his sin?

a.      G_____

b.      E_____

c.       Him_____

Gen 3:13 ESV  Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."

1.       Who does Eve blame?

a.      S________

b.      Her_______

2.      Is deception an adequate excuse?

Gen 3:14-15 ESV  The LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.  (15)  I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel."

1.       Since Satan attacked man through the woman, God provided man’s salvation and Satan’s destruction through her.

2.      Who is going to be Eve’s offspring who will bruise the Serpent’s head ________?

a.      This verse is called the Protoevangelium – the announcement of the first gospel.

Gen 3:16 ESV  To the woman he said, "I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you."

1.       Eve’s curse – painful childbirth and most likely everything else that has to do with raising children. 

2.      Eve will desire to have her husband’s role of leadership and authority

a.      NT  instructs women to lovingly submit to husband’s leadership – 1 Tim 2:9-15, 1 Cor 11:3-15, 1 Cor 14:34-35,  Titus 2:3-5

3.      Husbands will tend to abuse or avoid their role and responsibility for leadership and loving authority in the home  (Eph 5:25, Phil 2:1-8).

a.      Abuse

b.      Abandonment

c.       Passivity

Gen 3:17-19 ESV  And to Adam he said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;  (18)  thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field.  (19)  By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

1.       Ground is cursed

a.      Work will be greatly increased in difficulty

b.      The  start of everything bad on the earth (Ro 8:20 – 25).

2.      Adam will return to dust – He will die.

Gen 3:20-21 ESV  The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.  (21)  And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.

1.       Eve means “Life”

2.      God sacrifices an animal to cover their nakedness

a.      Foreshadows need for blood to be shed to cover sin.

Gen 3:22-24 ESV  Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever--"  (23)  therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken.  (24)  He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

The Church needs real men!

A couple of great videos speaking to the need for real men, not boys in the church:

Biblical Manhood - Genesis 1 & 2 Man before the Fall

  

Biblical Manhood

These are the notes from last night.  If you need me to help you fill in the blanks, let me know! 

Genesis 1 & 2 – How it was all meant to be.  God’s design for the roles of men and women is found in the creation account.  You can’t understand the rest of the Bible’s teachings about manhood if you don’t understand Genesis 1 & 2.

Genesis 1

1.       In the beginning ________ created the heavens and earth.  Gen 1:1

a.      The creator makes ____ ___ _____ ________.

2.      

      Gen 1:26-27 ESV  Then God said, "Let ___ make man in our image, after ___ likeness. And let them have ____________ over the _____ of the sea and over the ______ of the heavens and over the ____________ and over _____ the earth and over _____ ________ thing that creeps on the earth."  (27)  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

a.      Who said?  What is he like? 

b.      If man is made in the image of a Trinitarian God, what does that tell us about him?  Man is made for  __________   with others.

c.       What does being made in the image of God mean?

                                                              i.      We are a __________ of God.

                                                           ii.      We are made to have perfect ________ relationships.

                                                         iii.      We __________ God in our  qualities as originally made.

                                                          iv.      We have certain qualities that set us apart from all of the other animals.

d.      Why is man given dominion over the creation?

                                                              i.      He is made in the _____ of God.

                                                           ii.      Being made in the image of God equips him to lovingly care for creation as God’s agent.

3.     

      Adamic Covenant part 1 - Gen 1:28 ESV  And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be _________ and _______ and ________ the earth and ________ it and have _______ over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth."

a.      Make ______ and ________ the Earth well.

b.      God’s original plan was that the whole Earth would be populated and governed by people who knew and loved him and who would manage it as he would.

4.      

      Gen 1:29-31 ESV  And God said, "Behold, I have given you every _____ yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every _____ with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for ______.  (30)  And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so.  (31)  And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was ______  ______. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Genesis 2

1.  

          During creation in chapter 1, God called six things “good”:

a.      Light

b.      Earth & Seas

c.       Vegetation

d.      Sun, moon, and stars

e.      Sea creatures and birds

f.        Beasts of the earth, livestock, and creeping things

g.      At the end of day 6, he called everything “______  good” and created day 7 as the Sabbath (Gen 2:3).

2.      

      Remainder of Chapter 2 gives us a close up view of the creation of man on day 6.

3.  

           Gen 2:7-9 ESV  then the LORD God formed the man of _____ from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the _____  ___  ______, and the man became a living creature.  (8)  And the LORD God planted a ________ in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed.  (9)  And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up ______ tree that is ________ to the sight and ______ for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of _____ and _____.

4

  .      Adamic covenant part 2  - Gen 2:15-17 ESV  The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to _____ it and _____ it.  (16)  And the LORD God commanded the ____, saying, "You may surely eat of every tree of the garden,  (17)  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."

a.      Productive work is part of God’s creative order

b.      Adam was to protect and sustain the garden, be a good steward

c.       Who did God command not to eat the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?

5.      

      Gen 2:18-20 ESV  Then the LORD God said, "It is _____  _______that the man should be alone; I will make him a ______ fit for him."  (19)  Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and _________ them to the man to see what he would ____  them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.  (20)  The ___ gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was ____ found a helper fit for him.

a.      Sharp contrast to all of the creation being good

b.      Being alone is a poor reflection of the trinity

c.       God wanted Adam to have a helper

d.      Adam’s authority, leadership role, and dominion over creation was demonstrated in naming the animals

e.      A helper is one who supplies strength in an area that is lacking in the helped.  Is not an inferior role.

1.  

           Gen 2:21-23 ESV  So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ____ and closed up its place with flesh.  (22)  And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a _____ and brought her to the man.  (23)  Then the man said, "This _____ is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be _____ Woman, because she was taken out of Man."

a.      Woman made from man

b.      Adam is thrilled to have a helper fit for him!  He sings.

c.       Adam accepted the woman God gave him.

d.      Adam named her Woman demonstrating his authority over her

2

 .        Gen 2:24-25 ESV  Therefore a man shall ____his father and his mother and hold ____ to his ____, and they shall become ____ _____.  (25)  And the man and his wife were both ____ and were not ___________.

a.      Men must quit being mama’s boys

b.      Men must be dedicated to their one wife

c.       Men don’t marry dudes or animals

d.      Nakedness with your wife is good and holy!!!!!!

Genesis 1 & 2 summary

God’s creative order describes Adam as:

1.       Created in God’s Image

2.      Responsible to fill the Earth and exercise dominion over it

3.      Responsible to work and protect the Earth

4.      In benevolent authority over earth, animals, and his wife

5.      Responsible to enjoy, work, and eat all of the garden except the animals and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil

6.      Responsible to Love and Protect his Wife

7.      Responsible to be fruitful and multiply

8.     Naked and unashamed with his wife

Men's Monday Night Bible Study

I have had the privilege of leading a Men's Bible Study with my friend Dave for the last few years.  We break in the summer and just started up again this fall.  It is in Dave's wood shop - a real manly place, where men can be men.  We have had groups from 8 - 30 + at times, with some men only being with us for a short time during crisis and others hanging in there, living life together during it's ups and downs.  We laugh, we challenge, and we pray for one another.  

We're exploring the Bible's teachings about Biblical Manhood over the next few months.  We feel there's no higher priority than learning what God's word teaches us to be and do in our families, church, and communities.

I'm going to start something new - posting my notes I teach from on this blog.  If you can't make it, or want to follow from afar, tune in and follow us here!

Jim