“Lord In Your Mercy, Do Not Banish Me From Your Presence!”

“Lord In Your Mercy, Do Not Banish Me From Your Presence!”
The Nigerian comedian Okey Bakassi says Adam and by extension all men are slow-witted. He ssys God asked Adam a simple question of location, “Where are you? instead of giving God his location, he started a diatribe, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” God did not need such explanations. It was a rhetorical question because he already knew where Adam was. God was to later ask the same rhetorical question to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”(Gen.4:9).
Every time we sin, we can still hear the silent voice of God asking, “Where…?” “Why…?” Sin causes fear, exposes our nakedness and alienates us from God’s presence. It is in the same way that any child who has done something wrong in the absence of the parents is ashamed and/or afraid to meet them upon their return.
The dressing code of Adam was the same since they were created and none of them ever complained that they were naked. How come they suddenly knew they were naked? When God asked to know if Adam had eaten from the tree he commanded them not to eat from, Adam launched the blame game. In other to justify himself he blamed God and Eve. Eve on her part shifted the blame to the serpent.
Yesterday I read somewhere that if Adam was constantly with his wife, she wouldn’t have had the conversation with the serpent that led to their downfall. That’s not true. The story does not imply in any way that Adam was not with Eve. “…she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it…”
It is in the same way that God was right there with them in the garden when they ate the fruit. When we are not vigilant a lot of bad things can happen right in our presence without us noticing; especially with our children and wards in the home.
We should learn to eschew blame shifting and own up to our sins.
There is a sense in which sin makes us naked. We try as much as we can to cover our nakedness by justifying ourselves while blaming others. Only God can graciously cover our nakedness as he did through the blood of Jesus Christ. It is in the same way that through Christ Jesus the serpent’s head is finally crushed!
All sin stems from disobedience! “Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”(Gen.3:8-19&21).
My friend, we may have stumbled and fallen many times, but we are reminded not to do what God has asked us not to do, and to do what he has asked us to do!
Prayer: Lord may your grace accompany me and guide my feet on the paths of obedience, righteousness and truth. Amen!
Have a blessed day! Peace be with you!