What was humanity’s relationship with our creator intended to be like?
To understand this we need to look at the garden in Eden.
Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ”
“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
Genesis 2 v 25- 3 v 8
We might think that God is distant, aloof, unknowable, but that wasn’t the original desire of the one who made us. We can find out about the relationship between the Lord God and the first couple, Adam and Eve, when we look back to Eden. We can glimpse its tenderness and intimacy.
We see Adam and Eve walking with the Lord God in the cool of the day.
When the weather is hot, people rest in the heat of the day. In the Turkish summer I love going for a walk by the sea early in the morning, when the day is still fresh. I think of this as the cool of the day, although it could be in the evening.
Imagine walking with the Lord God. How close you would get if you did this every day!
But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”
He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”
The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Genesis 3 v 9 - 13
Once Adam and Eve had eaten the apple, or whatever fruit it was, they became aware of their nakedness and felt shame for the first time. They felt the need to cover themselves and to hide from God. Then Adam started to blame others, God and the woman, and Eve blamed the serpent.
What had they done?
To be completely open and honest before someone makes us nervous. We feel naked and we feel shame, because actually we are aware of our own guilt. God himself has covered our nakedness as he did with Adam and Eve. We are given white robes to wear, so we don’t need to hide from our Heavenly Father, but we still do.
(Genesis 3 v 21, Revelation 6 v 11)
Sarah, Abraham’s wife, hid in the tent from the Angel of the Lord, and he asked, ‘Where is Sarah?’. The Lord asked Hagar, Sarah’s servant, as she was running away from Sarah's mistreatment and abuse, ‘Where are you going and where have you come from?’ Throughout the bible, and throughout history people have tried to hide and to run away from God.
(Genesis 18 v 1 -15, 16 v 6 - 13)
The Lord still calls out to us today - Where are you?
He wants to be with you, to chat with you and to walk together in the cool of the day.
He knows what you are really like and he still loves you.
He can cover your shame. He can clothe you. He clothed Adam and Eve and he clothes us in a robe of righteousness.
There is no need to be afraid of God, because he is love and perfect love drives out fear.
( 1 John 4 v 8, 18)
The Lord is still calling out to us today, 'Where are you?'
Where are you? - Don Francisco
Don Francisco has been writing and recording songs since 1974. He lives in Colorado, US. This ballad has the power to move me to tears when I consider how humanity rejects, refuses or ignores the Father’s call.
(#ballad, #christiansong, #whereareyou, #donfrancisco, #eden, #knowinggod )