Our story began last month with God existing, and then creating, and ultimately dwelling with his created image-bearers in perfect fellowship. His charge to his people was to reflect his glory throughout the earth, by caring for and spreading the beauty of his garden.

But an evil arose to break their fellowship. Satan entered the garden, in the guise of a snake, and hissed lies and doubt into the ears of God’s people. Rather than recognizing this predator and exterminating it, as good and faithful gardeners should, the man and woman listened to the treason, drank it in, and ate of it. For this act of rebellion, God could have crushed them. The story could have ended right here.

But it did not. No, rather than turning against those created in his image, God turned toward them. Though in this moment, the gardeners had handed over his precious world to the deceiver, God refused to leave his people; in fact, he drew closer to them. He gave them a way to still be in fellowship with him, through the blood of a substitute. And he made them a wonderful promise: some day, one of the children of the very man and woman who turned their backs on the Creator would arise and conquer the deceiver, once and for all.

We still hold on to that promise. Because we know we also have turned away from God. We also believe the deceiver’s lies. We also fail to love God as he deserves. And we see the result of our sin everywhere: The world is still broken. There is still pain, and suffering, and death. We do not have the face-to-face relationship with God that he originally intended.

And so we need that Savior, who will one day make things right again. We need the mercy of his blood, to spare us from the death we deserve. We need him to draw near to us, when we cannot draw near to him.

We cry out to him, “God have mercy on me. I am a sinner. Do not pass me by!”

Additional Scriptures:
Genesis 3
1 John 1:5-2:2

Additional Resources:

Three Year Worship Plan

At Your Bidding |
Hymn of the Week Post