Scripture Text for Today: Genesis 1:1-2:25
Full Text Online | Listen Online
Except for the reverence and attention duly given to Christ’s birth, I’m always immensely relieved when the holidays are over. Growing up in a family shattered by multiple divorces and relationship disasters, our only extended family traditions seem to be finger pointing and blame shifting.
None-the-less, every year I am comforted in knowing that God had a better plan. Interestingly though, two accounts of the creation are given in Genesis. Chapter 1:20-2:3 reports that on day six God created man in his own image—"male and female he created them." Blessing them, he then put the man and woman in charge of his lively creature kingdom. Nothing complicated there. Masterfully, he created perfection with ease.
The same story is told a bit differently in verses 4-25 of Chapter 2, however, when Adam is created in verse 15, then restricted from eating from the tree two verses later. Interestingly, Eve is not created from Adam’s rib until verse 22. With this telling (and my personal experience with extended family divorce issues), I instinctively wondered whether Adam intentionally forgot to tell the little misses about God’s restriction with the tree! Simply said and before delving deeper into scripture, that initial response convicted me of my own sinful tendency toward finger pointing and blame shifting. And ultimately, just like my extended family knows, regardless of who did it, we’re all injured by their sin.
Wisely, God knew well in advance that I would bring all of my family’s emotional junk to the table when I put those two renditions together. Satan knew it too. Thus a child was born to us in Bethlehem—the perfect fix!
Devotion Provided by Linda Bogan