Back in the ‘1970’s, comedian Flip Wilson, through his cross-dressing character, Geraldine, popularized the saying, “the devil made me do it”. In the various comedic skits, he/she would acknowledge behavior that was wrong or outrageous. and when called out on it would always have the excuse, “the devil made me do it”. Wilson was a brilliant comedian, and his delivery in these skits got a lot of laughs.
However, the reality of the devil, a reality many people scorn, mythologize and yes, laugh at, is not a laughing matter; it is a matter of eternal significance in which our ignorance of his existence, his schemes and his enmity toward God and toward mankind as image bearers of God, has dire consequences. I am not sure if Flip realized that Geraldine was not the first to implicate the devil in her wrongdoing, as we have the record of this first occurring back in the Garden of Eden, by a real woman named Eve.
In Genesis Chapters 1-3, we are introduced to Adam and Eve as the first man and woman. They are created by the eternal God to image and enjoy His glory, the infinite perfection of His glorious being, not as divine equals, but as beloved children. It was (and is) God’s desire that they and all of their offspring (the human race) would intimately know, love and be loved by God and one another; living with Him in His immediate presence, wherein they would know only fulness of joy and pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11). At that time, they resided with God in a garden paradise that they were given the responsibility of extending throughout the whole earth (Genesis 1:26-28). All of the things that God created in Genesis Chapters 1 and 2, were created for them to freely enjoy, including one another (1 Timothy 6:17).
God will immediately test their faithfulness, their faith in His goodness, wisdom and love for them, and their allegiance to His authority as their creator. He does so by prohibiting them from eating of the fruit of one tree in the middle of the Garden, referred to as the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil”. The penalty for disobedience to this one command would be death, being cut off from the glorious life with God for which they were created, subject to divine justice and wrath (Genesis 2:15-17).
We first see the devil/serpent in Genesis 3:1- 5, wherein God uses him, unwittingly, to administer this test. Adam has already failed to obey God’s previous instruction to keep or protect the garden paradise and exercise the dominion given him over all creation by allowing this insidious being into it (Genesis 2:15) (Genesis 1:28). And this, and his subsequent failure of the test will have a monumentally disastrous impact on him, Eve and all who will proceed from them, the human race, the image bearers of a holy, just and good God (Romans 5:12-14).
In Genesis 3:1 we have the serpent addressing Eve, questioning her on both the trustworthiness of God’s word (“did God really say”) and His commitment and ability to make them exceedingly and abundantly happy in Himself. The serpent implies that God’s restricting them from eating of the tree is an obvious attempt by God to hold onto His power and authority, and to keep them from that which is most necessary for their happiness and wellbeing. He claims that by eating of the fruit, they can become like God, having the freedom and ability to pursue “happiness” on their own terms, accountable to no one, just like God. He then directly contradicts God’s clear warning of death for disobedience.
And despite God’s warning, despite imaging the beauty and glory of God in the totality of their being already, and despite the beauty and wonder of the glorious creation surrounding them of which they could fully and freely enjoy (except for this one tree), they believe and act on the serpent’s insidious lie. Eve partakes of the fruit first, and nothing happens. She then gives it to Adam, who had been standing there, cowardly observing the whole interaction. I say cowardly because it was his responsibility to step in and protect Eve. Instead, seeing that nothing bad happens to her upon eating the fruit, Adam, in the freedom of his will, partakes of it himself, pridefully anticipating its “great” reward (Genesis 3:5-6).
From that point on, everything goes downhill for them and humanity, as in shame and guilt they hide from God, rightly fearing God’s promised judgement, which He will now execute surely and swiftly (Genesis 3:16-24). God confronts Adam first, who blames both God and Eve for his transgression (“the women you gave me”). When God addresses Eve, she, like Geraldine, blames the serpent who in Revelation 12:9, is also identified as the dragon, Satan and the Devil, all titles given to him throughout the Bible which represent His hostile and oppositional bent and actions toward both God and man.
It is this most wicked and evil of all beings, a fallen angel who was the first created being to rebel against God’s purpose for and rule over his life and then incited Adam and everyone since to do the same, whom I will look at in my next few posts (Isaiah 14:12-14).
And I do so out of the encouragement given by the Apostle Paul, that we are not ignorant of the devil’s fatal schemes and devices, as he goes about this world as a roaring lion, looking to devour or destroy the lives of those who are (2 Corinthians 2:11) (1 Peter 5:8).
Grace and Peace ×