January 3, 2023
What does it say?
Sin entered the world through the disobedience of Adam and Eve.
What does it mean?
Because of their disobedience, Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden, and their lives became very different from what God intended. The serpent enticed Eve to disobey God by appealing to her sense of pride. The passage doesn’t record any objection from Adam as he joined her defiant action. Although they offered excuses, the guilt of their choice was on them. The consequences of their disobedience included pain in childbirth, toil in work, and eventual physical death for them as well as for all future generations. Even the earth responded to the presence of sin by producing thorns and thistles. One sinful act had devastating consequences on life and the world.
How should I respond?
Why do bad things happen in the world? When Adam and Eve chose to disobey, sin entered the world; and their lives, as well as ours, were forever changed. The existence of sin means our world is now full of terrible things that God never meant for us to experience. We, too, choose daily between obedience and disobedience. No matter what excuses you make, if you choose to sin, it will always affect your life negatively. In what way might you be defying God’s instructions? What consequences can you avoid today by choosing to obey?