The Curse on the Man, Part 1 A

Adam is why they should've died on the spot. People say well or certainly no grace in the Old Testament. There certainly is there's plenty of grace in the Old Testament you want to hear something. There is as much grace as sinners live God delusion, Dawkins writes the God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction. He's a jealous, petty, unjust, malevolent bully. Of course, the God of the Old Testament is nothing like that. In fact today on grace to you. John MacArthur's going to show you that from the very first book of the Bible, God reveals himself as being full of grace, mercy, and profound forgiveness. So stay here as John continues his new study Genesis of the gospel and with that, here's John MacArthur. I would encourage you to turn in your Bible to Genesis chapter 3 back to the beginning Genesis 3. The origin and impact of sin that is really the title for the whole chapter we find ourselves in verses 17 to 19 the divine curse on the man chapter 2 tells us in verse seven, the Lord God formed man from dust dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, man became a living being.

And the Lord God planted a garden toward the east, and Eden.

There he placed the man whom he had formed, and out of the ground the Lord God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the site.

Good for food.

Tree of life also in the midst of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Here's the introduction of the very concept of evil done in verse 16.

The Lord God commanded the man saying for many tree of the garden you may eat freely, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat her in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die. And then in chapter 3 verse six the woman saw that the tree tree of the knowledge of good and evil was good for food.

It was a delight to the eyes tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit. Nate gave also to her husband with her, and he ate and in that act of disobedience. Sin entered the world and the whole human race was plunged into iniquity and evil in Romans chapter 5 it says in that act, the whole human race died in Romans 512 19 you will read that in Adam all died.

The whole race died. Adam send Eve send and therefore the principle of death became operative in the world in all parts of the world. The plant world.

The animal world bacteria world the insect world, even the physical universe began to decay and disintegrate man fell from his innocence and his goodness into sin. When I got one act catapult of the whole universe into iniquity, and that's why things are the way they are because of that act in the garden just something in addition to that the world is the way it is, not only because of the consequences built into man's disobedience. But the world is the way it is also because in addition to the principle of death is now operative and the principle of sin that is now operative. You have the specific curses of God, and they are in addition to that, and we come in chapter 3 to those curses we've seen in verses 14 and 15, God cursed Satan and cursed the serpent and then in verse 16 we saw that God cursed the woman actually verses 15 and 16, because the woman is mentioned in verse 15, although the specific curse that falls in her realm comes in verse 16 to the woman he said, I will greatly multiply your pain and conception in pain you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you. Every woman who struggles with the pain of child birth with the problems of conception with the struggles of raising children, every woman who knows the experience of conflict with her husband should be reminded by that of the terribleness of sin. But what is a man's round.

If the woman's realm is the home where is the man's world. Well, let's look at verse 17 and find out because here comes the curse on the men then to the man he said because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying you shall not eat from it, cursed is the ground because of you and toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life with thorns and thistles it shall grow for you and you shall eat the plants of the field by the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, because from it you were taken for you are dust and to dust you shall return is a lot of dirt in that curse. And if the woman's place is the home. The man's place was the field. It's the workplace course in Genesis that that's toiling in the field was an agricultural realm in which the man lived man was not deceived, like the woman he chose to disobey God, willfully unpremeditated lead chose to do it.

His wife wanted him to do chose his wife over the word of God and he, not the woman as the head of the union and the head of the race was held culpable for the sin. That's why in Adam we die rather than in Eve, he is the head of that union. He is therefore the head of the race and so he joining in the sin of his wife is then held responsible because he abdicates his authority and submits to her for plunging the whole human race into decay disorder disease destruction and death paradise was lost and for all time for all humanity. The whole race became sinful, the curse is something beyond just decay and disorder disease, death, destruction, curse has to do with his world. Her world is the family. She's cursed in her world. His world is the field the workplace and he's cursed in the workplace.

All of the natural effects of the of fallenness and sin are there but these are the special effects, not the natural effects.

These are the special effects they come in the dominant sphere in which the woman lives in the dominant sphere in which the man lives now. As we look at these three verses 1789 19. Just three things to think about the cause of this curse. The curse itself and the consequence of it to the cause of verse 17. A. To Adam he said, because you listen to the voice of your wife and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying you shall not eat from it, cursed is the next word and the reason is in the first part of verse 17 because you listen to the voice of your wife and you have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying you shall not eat from it. That's why you're cursed God speaks to Adam here Andy. He says to him, there is a reason for this special effect. This is just the natural effect of decay and death is a reason for the special effect which is designed to be a particular punishment placed upon the man is a reminder of the severity of sin and in God doing this he gives us a very simple, very straightforward and very complete statement of Adams motivation. You wonder how did Eve get Adam to get into this thing. How did he.

How did she gain his complicity in it. Back in the chapter 3 in verse six it says that she took from its fruit and ate.

She gave to her husband with her, and he ate at that point doesn't say why did that. Maybe when we were going to that you are saying here. So why would he do that. What wouldn't she say what was going on. What was the dynamic that we know from first Timothy two that he was not deceived. It tells us there. The man was not deceived. It was not deceived by Satan, and therefore we can assume that perhaps he wasn't even there when the conversation was going on between Satan and Eve and that would've been the way Satan would've chosen to have it so that he could pull the woman out from under the man's protection and authority and deceiver what it tells us here in verse 17 is what it doesn't tell us back in verse six. The reason that he did this was because he listened to the voice of his wife rather than the voice of God. He decided to do what she wanted him to do rather than what God commanded him to do that simple. Now we all cave into that life in general. And sometimes it may not even be what we particularly want to do.

There's a certain measure of that that's reasonable and probably good for the relationship but never when we are being asked to violate the divine command. Let's go back to the text look a little more closely. Verse 17 then to Adam he said, by the way, this is the first time the man is named Adam, the first time he's always the man up to now the man and the woman, but this is the first time the man is called Adam Dunn in verse 20 is the first time the woman is called Eve.

The Hebrew grammar indicates that the word for man. That's the word that's been used should now be considered a proper noun why because the definite article is dropped. Up until now it's been the man the the adult is a dumb and now it's a done. So he takes on the name from the word that means man, and I think it's right that this is a name because the Hebrew language makes the distinction, and God says because you listen to the voice of your wife, rather than the voice of God because rather than ruling. Her you let her rule you rather than showing her by example what was right. Obedience to God.

You followed her example of disobedience to God, rather than honoring God you honor your wife will rather than honoring God and honored the serpent was no deception here on the part of Adam. There was no ignorance on the part of Adam. There was no confusion on the part of Adam. There are no subtleties here.

It is very simply this, he did what his wife told him to do and she told him to do what she wanted, rather than what God wanted and he did it. Hopefully you never let your spouse draw you into sinful behavior draw you into simple conversation draw you into sinful entertainment draw you into sinful attitudes draw you into sinful self-indulgence draw you into sinful materialism draw you into sinful unfaithfulness draw you into sinful worldliness or carnality or anything else that is contrary to the will and the command of the glory of God. That is exactly what Adam did listen to the voice of his wife. God said, and you've eaten from the tree. It's that simple.

You don't get too profound about it. She wanted it and he wanted to please her rather than pleasing God was a deliberate premeditated act of rebellion against God in which Adam chose his wife over God and you always think about it.

It is quite an interesting thing that the act itself didn't have any moral element to it in that I mean there's nothing immoral about eating something I can.

First Timothy four New Testament verses three and four says that the you need anything. Everything has been provided by God and is to be received with thanksgiving right you need anything. Nothing immoral about eating nothing immoral about picking a piece of fruit off the tree and eating it.

Nothing immoral about picking a piece of fruit off the tree and offering it to your husband. I mean it didn't break any moral law. It didn't harm any other person, it wasn't any kind of violation of the relationships yet that one act of eating catapulted the whole human race out of Paradise into hell. Maze, you know, if it had been some moral thing if it'd been something that we would sort of paint as a major iniquity, we might be under the illusion that it is the major iniquities that concern God me tell you something, folks, this on the surface appears very simple, very non-moral, but any violation of God's law is a damning violation of any violation even something simple as this. I think that maybe what the apostle Paul had in mind when he said, whether you eat or drink, do all to the glory of God. And the key is, I commanded you, saying you shall not eat from it, but you did so here is the cause of the curse.

The man is indicted by God is indicted for premeditated willful disregard for God's clear work we can understand that. Can't wait is nothing mystical here. This is just plain and simple. God said this my wife said this, I chose to do it.

My wife wanted me to do so. Man is indicted for first-degree crime, premeditated willful disregard of God and man deserves to die. He does not deserve to live, deserves to die and he well deserved to die on the spot. Obviously that's not what happened. Seeds of death began to operate and decay immediately entered in, and death would come inevitably and eventually we deserve to die on the spot. So to be why didn't God told him why didn't is one reason because is a God of what is going to grace and mercy.

You these liberals and critics of the Bible say all the God of the Old Testament is a terrible God, God of the Old Testament, some in the past: the demiurge a scandalous vicious sub God anybody who would do the things that he would do with wiping out the Canaanites calling for the death of some little boys who yelled Baldy at a profit, and having the Bears come out of the woods and shred those little boys.

They were really little boys of young men Hebrew.

What kind of a God is going open the ground and swallow people what kind of a God is going to tell the Israelites to massacre people to kill people. What kind of a God. Is this kind of got chills those people. Well it's not really the question. The question is what kind of a God lets anybody live is not a better question because we all deserve to what to die. The question is, and why did God kill his people.

The question is why does he let anybody live in this matter that that is central to Scripture that God is a God of mercy, and you see it immediately in the case of Adam and Eve and we get onto verses 20 to 24 Internet study work and learn in those verses that redemption is actually promised right then and right there. Immediately after the curse, so they were called honor God. They were called to glorify God, to obey God. They didn't do it, didn't find in God. Their highest love their purists delight their greatest joy. They disobeyed they had clear word from God that sentence for that disobedience was death. And yet when they sin.

God withheld his hand and demonstrated mercy and grace to them and the promise of redemption also was in the curse to Eve that there would come one from the woman who would bruise the serpent's head. There's more of that redemptive promise in verses 20 to 24 so I said the question when you study the Old Testament is not the question why does God kill these people. The question is why does he let so many people live who should be dead. Wages of sin is what death the soul, it sends a chill die and the critics say.

You know there's Nate Avina by who in Leviticus chapter 10 and God kills them. And there's poor others whose the ark was being transported and is being transported second Samuel six it bounces along on the back of a card shouldn't had on the card was returned on poles, but it put on the cart which was against what Scripture said.

Nonetheless, thing starts to fall off a card man named as a hold his hand over and tries to stop it from falling off the cart be desecrated somewhere immediately. God kill some people say what kind of a God would do that chordates in an environment ground swallows them up kind of a God does that is not really the question sure there are people that God executed and they are illustrations from time to time, of what we all deserve immediately showing illustration of that look at Luke 13. I think this is really a very fascinating portion of Scripture that often gets overlooked, but it teaches a profound lesson. Luke 13 verse one now on the same occasion.

There were some present who reported to him to Jesus about the Galileans. There were some Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with her sacrifice is the picture. Some of the Jews up in Galilee had come down to Judea to Jerusalem to the temple to offer sacrifice and their in their offering their sacrifices supposed to be the right thing to do. They were following Old Testament sacrificial prescription they were doing with the Old Testament said they should do in these Galileans were down there offering their sacrifices and Pilate comes in as men and execute the question in the mind of the people is what is God doing. I mean, these are obedient people. These are people at the temple doing their sacrifices. According to the law of God. How can God let the pagan Romans come in and slaughter them. What kind of God.

Does that verse two Jesus answered and said to them, do you suppose these Galileans were greater sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered this fate, all many you think of the answer. The question is, well, even though they were doing their sacrifices even though they were making our offering support of the Old Testament law. The truth of the matter is they were wretched and terrible sinners and a holy God was so offended by their sin that there sacrifices were mere hypocrisy and he just sent the troops a pilot in the massacre you suppose that there was greater sinners and everybody else verse three I tell you what, no, no, they were greater sinners, but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. Wow, you get the answer. They're saying why it why did this happen with these were sinners than everybody else and Jesus is no they weren't enemy take some if you don't repent sending it happen to you. God doesn't need any reason to execute a center at any time he chooses to have it happen right. The question is not why do people die. The question is why does anybody live.

That's the question Jesus answer affirms it.

He simply says, well, they weren't the worst of all sinners and I'm telling you, if you don't repent.

The same thing could happen to you.

God interjects into history. Plenty of illustrations of what all of us immediately deserve. In verse four he carries the thing a little further, there were some 18 people.

He says disposals 18 people on whom the tower in Siloam fell. Apparently what happened was, there was a tower in the area of Siloam and the it fell over and there were just 18 innocent people standing there and accustomed death you imagine. He says that they were worse culprits and all the men who live in Jerusalem to the tariff on them because they're worse than everybody else. Verse five I tell you what, no known they were worse than everybody else. If you don't repent sending Avenue she got doesn't have to justify why it is that certain people die they die because they deserve to die because anybody who sins against God deserves to die, and the question is, and why do people die. The question is why do people live. That's mercy well and we look backwards go back to Genesis 3 Adam and his wife. They should've died on the spot. People say well or certainly no grace in the Old Testament.

There certainly is there's plenty of grace in the Old Testament you want to hear something. There is as much grace in the Old Testament has arisen. The New Testament because sinners live that's common grace, mercy, and as I said in verses 20 to 24 were going to see that God even provides redemption for Adam and for Eve. God didn't do too. Adam or Eve. What he did to the disobedient angels cast them out of heaven with no hope of redemption sentenced them to eternal lake of fire, but they deserved because it was premeditated and willful act of the woman.

She was deceived and Adam was not. Adam being the head of the union between himself and the woman. Therefore, the head of the race when he sin willfully in a premeditated way plunge the whole race into sin. For that reason special curse pronounced upon the man and God has always been and always will be a God of grace, that amazing truth was at the heart of John MacArthur's message today on grace to you. It's part of his current study, titled Genesis of the gospel, along with ministering daily on radio. John is also Chancellor of the Masters University and seminary and Jon, I want to go back to what you said today about Adam and particularly his lack of leadership in the passive behavior that he exhibited in the Garden of Eden.

I'm wondering what should Adam have done when he saw Satan tempting his wife.

What would strong, caring male leadership of look like in a moment like that. Theoretically, he should have stepped in and protected his wife. He didn't do that. It's hard to imagine he wasn't there right so what was he thinking. What was he doing, why wasn't he the protector of his wife. This this is a reminder that that is what God has designed a man to be Adam failed to be the protector of his wife and at the same time, Eve was failing to be submissive to her husband.

She should've than what the New Testament says should dust her husband. What's going on here. What what should I do both of them failed at that point. As a result of that. That's kind of built-in is noted to the fabric of humanity so that husbands and wives keep failing through all of human history.

They follow the same pattern husbands fail to be protectors and wives failed to submit and to cry out for leadership from their husband.

So this is the beginning of all the struggles in human life because the the most intense relationships in human life are in marriage and the struggles are part of the curse as though you're fighting the battle. This same battle of a husband who fails to be the leader and protector, and a wife who fails to submit were all fighting the same battles now in our fallen condition was so much more to this that we would love for you to know there's a book that I have written that we would like to let you know about is called divine design.

And here's the good news free to anyone contacting us for the first time and it looks at marriage what it was meant to be what it has become elixir you know what makes an excellent wife. What makes a leader out of a man what what is God's calling for man. What's is calling for women. All of it is laid out in the Scripture.

So if you've never contacted our ministry before we will send you a free copy of this very biblical at the same time very practical book, listen. It's our way of saying thank you for listening and letting us to minister to you so if you never contacted us before do it today. Call or write or email us on the website and asked for the book divine design. By the way it's available for those of you who are part of our ministry for reasonable cost right and this is a helpful book, especially for newlyweds as well as couples who been married for decades will send you a free copy of John's book called divine design.

If it's your first time contacting us. Get in touch today. The number here is 855 grace that translates to 800-554-7223. You can also take advantage of this offer@ourwebsitejidety.org again. GT Y.O RG, and when you get in touch let us know how God is using this daily time of teaching in your life. Not only does feedback like that encourage us. It's important for helping us to chart the course of grace to you so when you have a moment, drop us a quick note email is great. Our address letters at GT Y.Ward.

Or you can write us at grace to you. Box 4000 panorama city, CA 91412 and again if it's your first time contacting us. Be sure to request this helpful book called divine design and will send you a free copy GT Y.or call us at 855 now for John MacArthur on Phil Johnson.

Thanks for starting your week with grace to you and make sure you're here for our next broadcast.

John's going to continue his series on the origins of sin, salvation and the gospel of grace. He calls this study Genesis of the gospel.

Don't miss another 30 minutes of unleashing God's truth one verse at a time on Tuesdays. Race