In the book of Genesis we find the story of Eve and the serpent.
“Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.'” (Genesis 3:1-3)
First of all, God didn’t say “You shall not TOUCH it”. He told them not to EAT it. And if you know the rest of the story, Eve ate the fruit and gave it also to Adam, who ate, and they were kicked out of the garden.
People are quick to judge Adam and Eve and their actions, and argue, “Well, if Eve hadn’t been so selfish in taking that fruit to eat, and if Adam hadn’t eaten it as well, there wouldn’t be sin in this world.” However, we do the same thing today.
In the garden there were MANY other fruit trees to eat of. All Eve had to say was, “No, I don’t need that fruit, I’ve got plenty of OTHER fruit that I CAN eat.” But, yet she when tempted by the serpent was so fixed on what she COULDN’T have, she even exaggerated and said, “We can’t even touch it!”
Well, in our lives today, we spend a lot of time it seems focusing on what we’re NOT supposed to do, on what God doesn’t give us, on what we don’t have but really want instead of just enjoying and thanking God for what we DO have.
Just like God had a reason for not wanting them to eat of that fruit, He has a reason for the things He doesn’t want us to do, or the things He has not given us or allowed in our lives. Think of how blessed Adam and Eve were! They had the entire garden to pick and choose from. They got the privilege of walking with God each day in the Garden. They had MANY things to be thankful for and to enjoy! Yet, there were not supposed to eat of that one tree, and that’s what got them into trouble. When the serpent tempted Eve, she should have just said, “No thank you! I don’t need that fruit! I’ve got PLENTY of OTHER fruit to eat!” And that should have been the end of the discussion.
We too often focus a lot of our attention on what God tells us NOT to do, and then we wonder why we end up falling and giving in to the temptations. We have so MUCH to be thankful for, we have SO MANY blessings in this life, especially when we DAILY follow God. WHO CARES about the stuff we’re NOT supposed to do? Stop dwelling on it, and find OTHER stuff to focus on! Don’t waste your time focusing on and complaining about what you shouldn’t or can’t do! Or else, we become like Eve when she said, “We can even TOUCH it!”
The Bible says in John 3:19, “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.” God sent Jesus into this world to die on the cross for our sins. All we need to do is confess and forsake our sin and believe in Him. Yet many people LOVE their darkness too much to give it up.
Like Adam and Eve, we have a choice to make. They had the beautiful garden to live in, the daily walks with God, etc., yet they gave it all up for one taste of what they weren’t supposed to have. And we too, often times give up the blessings of God, the fellowship with God and His Son Jesus Christ, simply because we like the world and it’s pleasures too much to give them up.
Think of what we are missing out on. I’m sure Adam and Eve for years afterwards wished they hadn’t bitten into that fruit! And we can miss out on SO MUCH that God has to offer simply because we focus on what we’re NOT supposed to do or have. IT’S NOT WORTH IT! Just obey God and His Word, and follow Him. He has SO much more to offer than ANYTHING that may tempt us to do wrong.
Paul warned us in Romans 13:14, “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.” MAKE NO PROVISION AT ALL – Don’t even give yourself an opportunity to do wrong!
The choice is up to us! Why focus our attention on the bad? Focus all our attention on JESUS who has promised to NEVER leave us nor forsake us, and has promised to supply ALL our needs!!