Key Thought: The warning God gave Adam and Eve against eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil shows us that, though they were to know good, they were not to know evil..
April 9, 2022

1. Have a volunteer read Genesis3:1,2 ; Rev 12:7-9..

1. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the most important point is in this passage.
2. Who is the serpent and how does he deceive Eve?
3. Personal Application: How much more vulnerable are we now than Eve was then? What is the best defense against Satan’s deceptions? Share your thoughts..
4. Case Study: One of your relatives states, “I believe we are all born with immortality. God meant for us to live forever. Satan told the truth about death. We don’t sie; we just pass from one level of our lives to another level. The body may die, but the spirit lives on after death.” How would you respond to your relative?

2. Have a volunteer read Genesis 3:7-13.

1. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important point in this text is.
2. Why did Adam and Eve feel the need to hide from God? How did they seek to justify their behavior?
3. Personal Application: How often do we blame others for what we have done? How do we keep from doing this? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: One of your friends states, “Why does God allow so much evil to exist on this earth now? My son was killed by a stray bullet. My husband has cancer. We have been robbed. Why did God allow all these things to happen? Couldn’t He stop these things from happening?” How would you respond to your friend?

3. Have a volunteer read Genesis 3:15..

1. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is.
2. What did the Lord say to the serpent here, and what hope is implied in these verses?
3. Personal Application: Why is it comforting and hopeful to see God begin to open up the plan of salvation to humankind when sin began? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: One of your relatives states: “Why did Eve think that eating from the tree would give her wisdom? Did she think she could get something better than God had already given her?” How would you respond to your relative?

4. Have a volunteer read Genesis 3:15-24..

1. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important point in this text is.
2. What happened to Adam and Eve as a result of the fall?
3. Personal Application: In what ways could knowledge not always be a good thing? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: Think of one person who needs to hear a message from this week’s lesson. Tell the class what you plan to do this week to share with them.

(Truth that is not lived, that is not imparted, loses its life-giving power, its healing virtue. Its blessings can be retained only as it is shared.”Ministry of Healing, p. 148).

Amen!(0)

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The book of Genesis offers us so many vast topics from which to choose a theme hymn. As we are starting at the very beginning, I would like to give praise to our Creator of heaven and earth in singing
Hymn 320 – Lord of Creation and 
Hymn 2 – All Creatures of Our God and King. The stories that follow creation will lean back toward our amazing God and what He has done for each of us in creation.

The Sabbath afternoon introduction shows that “despite the Fall, God has made a way of escape for us all”:
Hymn 340 – Jesus Saves.

As the devil continues to twist the words of God (Sunday), may we instead state 
Lord, I Have Made Thy Word My Choice – Hymn 273 and then have joy in singing 
Wonderful Words of Life – Hymn 286 so we can prayerfully say 
Lord, Bless Thy Word to Every Heart – Hymn 667.

With Satan arguing about immortality and being like God (Monday), we find in our Bible 
Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise – Hymn 21.

It is so wonderful to be 
Hiding in Thee – Hymn 525 rather than trying to hide from God as did Adam and Eve (Tuesday).

We are encouraged on Wednesday with the plan of salvation that has been given to us: 
Hymn 339 – God Is My Strong Salvation and 
Hymn 646 – To the Name That Brings Salvation.

We cherish with joy that “God had other plans for the man and the woman, as opposed to the serpent. They were offered a hope…”: 
Hymn 440 – How Cheering Is the Christian’s Hope, 
Hymn 522 – My Hope Is Built on Nothing Less and 
Hymn 214 – We Have This Hope.

God’s abundant blessings as we study through the first book of the Bible which our gracious God has given. May we be faithful and all say “Come, Lord Jesus, come – very soon” so we are able to go to our new home in Heaven, as 
We Have This Hope – Hymn 214.

To learn unknown hymns, you will find the accompaniment music for each one at: https://sdahymnals.com/Hymnal/

Another great resource is for when there is a hymn you wish to sing, but can’t find it in your hymnal. Go to https://www.sdahymnal.org and in the search bar type a special word in that is in the hymn. I am sure you will be amazed at the help you will be given.

2 Timothy 2:15 KJV – “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Amen!(0)

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Read Genesis 2:16-17,  and Genesis 3:1-6 (see also John 8:44). Compare the words of God’s commandment to Adam with the serpent’s words to the woman. What are the differences between the speeches, and what is the meaning of these differences?

Note the parallels between God’s conversation with Adam (Genesis 2:16-17) and Eve’s conversation with the serpent. It is as if the serpent has now replaced God and knows even better than He does. At first, he merely asked a question, implying that the woman had, perhaps, misunderstood God. But then Satan openly questioned God’s intentions and even contradicted Him.

Image © Krieg Barrie from GoodSalt.com

Satan’s attack concerns two issues, death and the knowledge of good and evil. While God clearly and emphatically stated that their death would be certain (Genesis 2:17), Satan said that, on the contrary, they wouldn’t die, all but implying that humans were immortal (Genesis 3:4). While God forbade Adam to eat from the fruit (Genesis 2:17), Satan encouraged them to eat the fruit because by eating of it they would be like God (Genesis 3:5).

Satan’s two arguments, immortality and being like God, convinced Eve to eat the fruit. It is troubling that as soon as the woman decided to disobey God and eat the forbidden fruit, she behaved as if God were no longer present and had been replaced by herself. The biblical text alludes to this shift of personality. Eve uses God’s language: Eve’s evaluation of the forbidden fruit, “saw that … was good” (Genesis 3:6), reminds of God’s evaluation of His creation, “saw … that it was good” (Genesis 1:4, etc.).

These two temptations, that of being immortal and of being like God, are at the root of the idea of immortality in ancient Egyptian and Greek religions. The desire for immortality, which they believed was a divine attribute, obliged these people to seek divine status as well, in order (they hoped) to acquire immortality. Surreptitiously, this way of thinking infiltrated Jewish-Christian cultures and has given birth to the belief in the immortality of the soul, which exists even today in many churches.

<–Sunday Tuesday–>

Amen!(2)

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Read Genesis 3:1, 2 Corinthians 11:3, and Revelation 12:7-9. Who is the serpent, and how does he deceive Eve?

The text begins with “the serpent.” The syntax of the phrase suggests emphasis: the word “serpent” is the first word of the sentence. Also, “the serpent” has the definite article, indicating that this is a well-known figure, as if the reader should already know who he is. The reality of this being is, thus, affirmed from the first word of the chapter.

Image © Lars Justinen at Goodsalt.com

Of course, the Scriptures identify the serpent as the enemy of God (Isaiah 27:1) and explicitly call him “the Devil and Satan” (Revelation 12:9, NKJV). Likewise, in the ancient Near East, the serpent personified the power of evil.

“In order to accomplish his work unperceived, Satan chose to employ as his medium the serpent — a disguise well adapted for his purpose of deception. The serpent was then one of the wisest and most beautiful creatures on the earth. It had wings, and while flying through the air presented an appearance of dazzling brightness, having the color and brilliancy of burnished gold.” — Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 53.

When talking about the devil, in whatever form he appears, the Bible is not talking mere metaphor. In Scripture Satan is depicted as a literal being and not just some rhetorical symbol or an abstract principle to depict evil or humanity’s dark side.

The serpent does not present himself as an enemy of God. On the contrary, the serpent refers to God’s words, which he repeats and seems to support. That is, right from the start, we can see that Satan likes to quote God and, as shall later be seen, even quotes the Word of God itself (Matthew 4:6).

Note also that the serpent does not argue immediately with the woman, but he asks a question that implies that he believes in what the Lord has said to them. After all, he asked: “Has God indeed said … ” (Genesis 3:1, NKJV)? Thus, even from the start we can see just how cunning and deceitful this being was. And, as we will see, it worked too.

<–Sabbath Monday–>

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Image © Pacific Press

Sabbath Afternoon

Read for This Week’s Study: Genesis 3:1-24; 2 Corinthians 11:3; Revelation 12:7-9; John 8:44; Romans 16:20; Hebrews 2:14; 1 Timothy 2:14-15.

Memory Text: “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:15, NKJV).

Amid all that God had given our first parents in Eden came also a warning: “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:16-17, , NKJV). This warning against eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil shows us that, though they were to know good, they were not to know evil.

We certainly can understand why, can’t we?

And, too, the threat of death attached to the warning about disobedience (Genesis 2:17) would be fulfilled: they will die (Genesis 3:19). Not only forbidden to eat from the tree, they were also driven from the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:24), and thus had no access to what could have given them eternal life as sinners (Genesis 3:22).

However, amid this tragedy comes hope, which is found in Genesis 3:15, called the protoevangelium, or “the first gospel promise.” Yes, this verse presents the first gospel promise found in the Bible, the first time humans are told that, despite the Fall, God has made a way of escape for us all.

Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, April 9.

Sunday–>

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