June 4: No Accommodation for Sin

And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat . . .” Genesis 2:16

Because of our fallen nature, there is the strong tendency to resent the concept of a command. But allow your mind to enter into the setting here: the Creator has just completed a world of stunning beauty and grandeur, such perfection as our own eyes have never beheld. There is no sin as yet in the human heart: nothing to come between the Creator and the supreme object of His love: mankind. Every square inch of our original world was filled with brilliant, robust, breathtaking beauty intended to delight the God-given senses of man in every way. Those trees were laden with luscious fruit. The colorful birds perched upon their branches were singing melodious songs (and might we say that there was no squawking? I believe so!). The atmosphere, or firmament (1:7), was immaculately fresh and scented with one pleasant fragrance after another…all of this directly from the hand of our God of indescribable love.

The command in this setting may also be thought of as a divine decree. This decree came directly from the LORD to Adam. It was a joyful decree, for there were hundreds, if not thousands, of varieties of sweet, delicious, nutritious fruits to be enjoyed. We cannot begin to fathom the Creator’s capacity for variety. When the LORD God situated Adam in the garden of Eden to tend it and to keep it (v.15), there was not a hint of negativity associated with work: only pleasure, purpose, and delight.  

If our understanding today of God were not tainted with sin, there would be no trace of doubt or resentment of even a single syllable from Him. We must be committed to learn of His character of pure love. He is preparing His people to live with Him in glory. As our loving Commander in Chief, it is essential to believe that every instruction from Him is for our eternal good. There will be no accommodation for even a sliver of sin in His presence. He stands willing to restore in us His likeness, if we will come to Him in full cooperation. Are you and I truly convicted of His power to purify us? Do we believe in the kind of Purity and Brightness that illuminates every corner of the heavenly city? John was shown in vision:

The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. Revelation 21:23