Different by Design (Part 2 of 2)

Bible teaches that God designed us as men and women to be different so that there would be harmony. So why is there so much antagonism even Christian relationships today on Truth for Life will find out what went wrong. Alistair Begg is teaching from Genesis chapter 2 were in verses 15 through 25.

If were going to except the Bible says it says were different by design. It says that the design is put there in order that we might live in harmony. I like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony Dale Gallagher by the world a Coke and so but any perceptive person says this thing is messed up if that's what you're telling me that this God made us different by design, and the reason that he made it in this way for harmony goodness something very badly is gone wrong. The machinery is not doing what is supposed to do statistics tell me that life tells me that my own feeling is a woman tells me that the struggle that I have within my marriage. The fearfulness that I have is I look upon my children all manner of things around me are saying something is dreadfully wrong while you something is dreadfully wrong. But again, if you want to go to the Bible and allow the Bible to answer the question, and you will be able to discover which is gone dreadfully wrong is not taken the designer by surprise, and that he is already written into the process. The mechanism whereby his design, which is a good and perfect design that has been flawed may actually be re-created so thing with me.

What didn't go around while in Rome.

Are you just need to read what happens here, God gave them instructions.

He said now I want you to do certain things and there's only one thing that I don't want you to do and the one thing that he didn't want them to do was the one thing that they decided to do the Lord God took the man verse 15 to put them in the garden working take care of it and he commanded the man, you are free to eat from any tree in the garden, you must need from the tree of the knowledge of good or evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die. So here is this wonderful, phenomenal environment in which to live in man turns his back on what God is said doesn't want to know is unprepared to do the one thing suddenly what God has made different by design, with all of the harmony and wholeness that is represented in that design is no marked it is spoiled and suddenly into the story comes guilds comes alienation, suspicion, shame one of the children kills the other kid.

The family becomes a battlefield are universal wrong so quickly to the end of verse of chapter 2 and the man his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame their nakedness on the ship. They just lived in this fantastic harmony with one another left of a book on anything. You know, no big thing written up on the on the wall for them to do or not to do or make sure you do this to make sure you don't do that. He said look, just do your thing fabulous time in the garden this time, but don't do that. So rebellion comes in. Embarrassment comes in and verse seven of chapter 3 the eyes of both of them were open. They realize that they were naked and so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. When you meet didn't know. In verse 25 of chapter 2 that they were naked and then he only realized they were naked in chapter 3. Yeah, because it never occurred to him to benefit outside on the naked we were with the idea close come from.

Suddenly rebellion sin shame awareness alienation guilds hiding all part and parcel of the experience.

We do not need the Bible to understand that our circumstances today as men and women are marked by personal fragmentation by social tension and by spiritual alienation. We know what it is to feel a sense of angst that were not really even comfortable within our own skin that we can fully explain who we are what we are. We don't understand why it is that we feel the way we do towards other people. Sometimes we feel kindly disposed of them. Other times we could kill them in this idea of a God who has made us and has plans for us. Frankly don't have time for it and then the occasions that we do think about it we usually think of it in very sentimental terms as if he was a gigantic Santa Claus meeting for the children to come and sit up on his life. But our worldview cannot explain why we are as we are when we accept this explanation of the Bible are not and we have to be honest enough to say that the Bible is prepared to give an explanation as to what when dreadfully wrong, God made at any said this is really really good all of a sudden it's not as good as he made the world that you and I know today, the world of sexuality. The world of family the world as we know it today is not the world as God made it in all of its pristine beauty, but is the world as spoiled by man who determined to turn his back on God and to try and formulate the plan in his own way to think of things that God had designed for our good, namely our sexuality are masculinity or femininity, and to turn them to our own selfish ends and as a result of that you see exactly what happens. The woman is created. Second, I get she sends first she's intended as a helper will kind of help is this to lead him into sin and it. Interestingly, Adam elsewhere in the Scripture is held absolutely responsible for sin doesn't say as he and Eve all die as as as in Adam all die. Adam, who was supposed to be the leader supposed to be responsible is found to be irresponsible firemen not to take the lead. The order of events is completely turned upside down and the consequences are tragic and fight the consequences are judgments in verse 16 of chapter 3. To the woman he said, I will greatly increase your pains and childbearing with pain, you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you and to Adam he said, because you listen to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you much not needed cursed is the ground because of you, through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life will produce thorns and thistles and dandelions and you will eat the plants of the field by the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken from dust you are and to dust you will return the shipment wasn't wasn't working. One of the gifts one world where knowledge pristine beauty yes work that would never be drudgery and I were secretive, wise, and is eager to rake leaves to his heart's content. But he would've had to rake leaves, presumably unless God fashioned into the cycle of the seasons.

If he did any reset. I'm heartbreakingly ranking leaves on ranking the doll. I love the Raymond Riley ventilated and needs comes not can I get USN leaves.

I love now the 70 weeks because I find see another spanking we have you seen my she saying you know when you're raking leaves this afternoon. If you shout on me one more time praying miracle. I will take the rake. That sure is money you yes I do is great having babies.

It's great having babies, but not as great as it would've been is a great going to work some days. But the fact of the matter is that under the sun. Work is ultimately drudgery. This is same old same old same old work to get enough money to buy food so they can stay alive.

So they go to work to get money to buy food to stay alive to work to get money, food, stay alive, and so on and make money the old-fashioned way and send and make sure you have enough before you finally keel over in your nursing home and hit and hit the hit that hearse doesn't sound right is the judgment of God's judgment of God. So the characteristics of life.

The elements of distinction.

The provision for harmony wasn't removed. It wasn't changed in the sense of the gate guard I gave out different deals.

The same things were present, but now they were spoiled, pain in childbirth, sweat and labor, and in this context. Now names Eve. Adam names Eve now there's something in this.

I think we can stay on it but you know Adam had named the animals it was a picture of his domination and now he a names Eve, we tell you who you are, your Eve, you're a living thing you not produce other living thing and so from now on and place of intelligent understanding intelligent submission intelligent leadership. The thing goes south.

The wife submission. Then, if you will note clearly. What I just read to you tends to be characterized by one of two experiences, and often the simultaneous expedience one the desire to reverse the roles and thereby T the lead over her husband. Her desire was for the same drug that is used. Incidentally, in chapter 4 where it says that that sin is crouching at your door. It desires to have you desires to control you desires to dominate you and as a result of the fall. The principle of harmonious distinction within the marriage bond is now messed up and the affinity of man and woman in the harmony and wholeness of their nakedness, and in all of the bliss that God is intended is now jeopardized as a result of sin. And so the woman's experience is in part to say you know what, I'll take control of this or her experience of submission is the expedience of unjust subjugation. As a result of the wrongful domination of her husband and what happens is that the marriage simply becomes one of struggle and conflict, as a result of the fall as a result of sin. Man now rules over woman in a way that wasn't true beforehand woman's effectively taken leadership in eating was contrary to God's plan.

It had disastrous results and has failed in his leadership and shares in the disastrous result. While the relationship with God was intact. There was no need for emphasis upon the principles roles and submissions. They rejoiced and turning towards one another. There was a wonderful harmony about their lives. Clearly that's what the whole picture is in the garden but as soon as sin enters, then there is the need to articulate to teach the juxtaposition of what it means to rule and what it means to submit something sitting out there saying yes but tell the people tell everybody here that once you become a Christian that fixes it. You know not to tell you that I spent years in pastoral ministry dealing with people who both follow Christ and those who don't follow Christ.

And frankly, my experience, I've dealt with as many people within the framework of following Christ whose marriage is a royal shambles, as I ever have with those who profess no interest in Jesus. So you see my dear sisters and friends. I swam saying to you. You don't need 10 principles about how to do this and how to do that you need to come to her convinced understanding of what it was supposed to be and what it actually is because when you realize what it actually is because I'm a sinner and you are a sinner and your husband definitely is a sinner and that your whole marriage is one ugly person married to another ugly person try to make their way through one ugly journey in life with a bunch of ugly kids. Then you can then you can have a far more sane and realistic estimation of what's going on rather than the silly nonsense that is held out I impugn the articles that are produced in the secular environment always held out friendly and puny articles that are produced from Christian publishing houses, which are not true to life there just not true because regeneration the new word the transformation brought about by Christ does not eradicate my fleshly instincts.

My desire for selfishness. My propensities to go my own way. I am no longer before God held to account on the basis of what I have trusted in the work of Christ.

But the fact of the matter is that my wife knows that she still married save sinner and save part may sometimes be lost in the sinner required as he tries to make her journey through our days. So the new birth doesn't fix it all you got problems in communicating with your husband. The answer is not to sit around singing. You know, I'm so glad that Jesus lifted me when you can do that.

But the fight of the matter is either your husband needs to speak up or he needs to shut up.

You need to either speak up or shut up. There's not rice isn't rocket science. It's so funny we don't talk anymore.

I was Cliff Richard, in sexual terms, the answer to the erosion of physical intimacy is not found in some strange esoteric abstraction in relationship to what it means for me to be a Christian not what it means for me to be a Christian is not directly related to all of not my own perverse human spirit is not wrapped up in all of but the idea for our non-Christian friends that the answer is Jesus to every question is something that we want to be very very careful and see yes ultimately the answer is that, but the issues that confront us in the living of our lives are real issues and that our sense is man of priority equaling superiority rather than responsibility erodes confidence and trust. It ends up putting us in a position where men and women are living as rivals rather than different.

By design, suggesting that our gifts and our personalities were there so that we could fight with one another, rather than that we could complement one another and again I say to you that if we just look around as we can see the evidence of it everywhere. I just got finished with a couple quotes here. Women are increasingly to be found succeeding in the workplace.

While there menfolk who cannot get jobs, stay home and look after the kids writer, Shirley, and was not far from the mark with our ideal of Superwoman, but they face the agony of tension between career in the home. They spend years earning degrees and doing professional training and it seems absurd to stop and give it all up, but it seems just as absurd to have a child and then leave it for someone else to raise, despite the massive advance of the women's movement in the last half-century. The haunting question remains how my best to deploy my life who on Arafat my currently says this author is even more difficult for men. The swinging 60s changed women by the nurturing 90s are changing men.

The young men of this generation of the first to be raised on an equal basis with women.

They are expected to be sensitive as well as mentally to cook as well as play sport to bath the kids and spend time caring for them and not leave it all to their partner. They are to be strong yet to be totally rid of male aggression and the overbearing arrogance that has alas been so common down countless centuries, and the changes all supposed to happen now in one generation to generation. Moreover, when the woman may prove to be the better breadwinner as well is the better homemaker thus causing the man to say who in a world of my where I fit into this and the answer lesbianism if you don't fit in the top. I do not need to, I don't want you and I am free to design my own package. God says no you're not no more free to design than is a man to step outside the framework of his marriage and be involved in multiple relationships with other women you know more free to do that and we are to re-create marriage to our own design at a wonderful thing in the story is that although everything is gone so dreadfully wrong. God in his mercy doesn't say well you know you did what I told you not to do so therefore you're done know he actually comes to seek them out.

He comes to seek them out.

He judges them injustice because he must. This is how is going to be, says that our implications of this. You will surely die – which was not the design from the beginning enters into the world this thing is having now discovered themselves to be shameful, aware of their nakedness. He comes along and in verse 21 of chapter 3 is is the Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and he closed the and he clothed them.

That of course is the picture of the unfolding story of Jesus, we turn our back on God and rebellion against this plan and against his design. God sends his son the Lord Jesus Christ in order that he might provide a covering for us in order that by his death, we may be covered over by all of his righteousness that all about mercy and all of that grace may become ours, something that we don't deserve having turn our back on him all the love of God or the mercy of God or the goodness of come to our rebellious arts to come to our family battlefields to come to our upsetting down life's say here.

I got a covering letter in answer for the future for you. Been trying your own way, you destroyed my way. Father we pray that as we think these issues through the spirit of God will be our teacher. Help us to examine the Bible to see if these things are so for we pray in Jesus name. God uniquely Russian men and women to complement each other but soon corrupted his perfect design and often makes us rivals listing to Alastair big and this is Truth for Life to go along with our current study about women. We've selected a book were recommending titled women and God. This book gives us a survey of women throughout biblical history begins in Genesis. Considering how and why God created both men and women next to takes us to some of the darker days for women described in the Old Testament books like Deuteronomy and Judges.

Finally, we see how Jesus interacts with women in the Gospels.

All of this historical exploration leads us to a better understanding of God's plan for women today marriage and single life in the truck.

Request a copy of the book women and God.

When you give a donation to support the Ministry of Truth for Life to give, click on the image of the mobile app or visit us online at truth. Life.org/donate now today is the last day for the basics, 20, 22 pastors conference at Parkside church. Please continue to pray for the men who attended in person or via live stream. Pray that as they leave the conference. They will be refreshed and recharged ready to return home to their churches and to embrace the lessons they've learned about Lapine just mentioned the word submission and watch how women and men feel uncomfortable or maybe even angry. Tomorrow will learn why genuine biblical submissions isn't something to be feared or resented something to be embraced.

Bible teaching of Alastair big is furnished by Truth for Life with the Learning is for Living