What Everyone Needs to Know Before They Grow Up!. Eddie Boone's Phillips
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One day, when Eve was hanging out in the garden, Satan came to her disguised as a serpent. As you know, Satan (a.k.a. the Devil, Lucifer, Beelzebub, and the Prince of Darkness) is God’s worst enemy. Believe me, he is one evil, creepy dude! Like God, the Devil has supernatural powers that he uses to hurt people and trick them into disobeying the Lord. His ultimate goal is to keep as many of us as possible from going to heaven when we die.
Now, Eve knew that God had warned her and Adam not to touch or eat the fruit from the forbidden tree. But Satan was a sneaky snake. He knew the tree’s fruit looked so good and tasty, and that it would be hard for Eve not to want to take a bite. So he twisted the Lord’s words around to convince her that if she ate the fruit she would not die, and also that she would become as wise as God.
Well, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what happened next. The temptation was too great and she took a bite of the fruit, and then she persuaded Adam to do the same. And at that moment, sin entered the world for the very first time.
Let me ask you a question. Have you ever had an uneasy feeling in the pit of your stomach when you knew you had really messed up? Guess what! Adam and Eve had that same sensation the minute they ate the fruit. They knew they had blown it big time. Both of them were so ashamed that they had disobeyed the Lord, and they were scared of what He might do to them. So, they covered their nakedness with fig leaves, and then hid under a tree. Can you believe it? How lame can you get! They should have known you can’t hide from God.
Needless to say, it didn’t take the Lord long to find the guilty pair. He asked them why they were hiding and they quickly confessed what they had done. There was nothing left for them to do but face their punishment.
Because Adam and Eve had disobeyed God, the world changed forever. The Lord still loved them, but they had to pay for their sins. As a result, they were banished from the Garden of Eden, never to return. God made them clothes of animal skins and then sent them on their way. From that day forward, they were forced to hunt and farm the land for their food. Even worse, the Lord’s warning came true. Because Adam and Eve had broken His rules, they would have to experience thirst and hunger, pain and sorrow, and sickness and death for the first time in their lives.
Alright, by now you’re probably wondering what this story has to do with us today. Well, you see, we live in a world that has a lot of laws and rules. Some would say we have too many of them, but they have been put in place for our own good.
Think about it. What if we lived in a world with no rules at all, and people could do whatever they pleased with no consequences for bad behavior. Criminals would run wild because there would be no laws for police officers to enforce. Also, if there were no traffic lights or street signs, how would we keep from wrecking our cars on the highway? What about sports? How would we make sure the other team plays fairly without rules of the game? Most importantly, if our parents didn’t have rules for us to obey, how would we learn how to grow up to be good citizens and responsible adults? So as you can see, we need rules in our daily lives to make sure all of us do the right thing, and to provide everyone a safe and orderly society in which to live.
In the same way, God has laws and commandments that he expects us to follow. These rules are found in the Bible. He did not give His commandments to be mean, or to keep us from having fun and doing whatever we want to do. No, that’s not it at all. Our Heavenly Father loves us, and His laws have been given to help us stay out of trouble and to have a better chance to live peaceful and happy lives.
If God could create the universe in six days, then no doubt He is smart enough and wise enough to know what’s best for us. That’s hard for people to understand sometimes, but it’s true. If we disobey the Lord’s commandments, sooner or later bad things will happen and we will suffer shame and hardship just like Adam and Eve.
LIFE LESSON 2
LIFE IS NOT ALWAYS FAIR
Once upon a time, in a place called Uz, there lived a guy named Job. The Bible says that he was a good man, well respected by his friends and neighbors, and someone who loved the Lord with all his heart. In other words, he was definitely a cut above everyone else, a man who stood out among the crowd.
Because Job was such a righteous person, God blessed him greatly. He had ten children, a large estate, and many possessions. When I say “many”, I’m talking 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 head of cattle, 500 donkeys, and a bunch of servants to take care of them all. Face it, the guy was filthy rich! But as we’ll see, one’s circumstances in life can change in an instant.
OK, we pick up our story with God admiring His creation. All of a sudden He sees Satan snooping around. The Lord suspects that Mr. Evil is up to no good, so He decides to stop and have a little chat with him. The conversation goes something like this:
“Hey Satan, what have you been up to?”
“Oh, just roaming the earth looking for souls to devour.”
“Why does that not surprise me?”
“By the way, God, I thought those people were made in Your own image.”
“They are.”
“Well, I must say I’m not impressed.” “Really?”
“Really.”
“Well, what about my main man Job over there?”
“Him? What’s so special about Job?” “He’s a righteous man, well respected by others, and he loves Me with all his heart.”
“Is that so?”
“Yep.”
“Hmm, seems to me that Job only loves You because You have blessed him so richly.”
“You think so?”
“Yeah, and I bet if You took all his possessions away he would curse You to Your face.”
“No he wouldn’t.” “You wanna bet?”
“OK, you’re on, but whatever you do, don’t lay a hand on him. Deal?”
“Deal,” said Satan as he leaves to do his dirty work.
Well, up until this point Job has led a wonderful life. However, that’s about to quickly change. In the course of one day all his cattle and donkeys are stolen, his sheep are destroyed by fire, rustlers make off with his camels and most of his servants are killed. But worst of all, Job’s children die in a terrible wind storm. Of course, the Devil is behind all of this, and he’s sure the Lord’s favorite will now curse His name.
Yet things don’t turn out like Satan thought they would. Job mourns for his losses, but never once does he sin or blame God for his misfortunes. As a matter of fact, what Job says makes the Devil furious: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21, NASB).
But