And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree from which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me some of the fruit of the tree, and I ate.” Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
~Genesis 3:11-13
In diving back into the Origin of Life events of Genesis, it was so interesting to once more observe and listen in on the events of the Fall. It was obviously a terrible moment for humanity, one that set a course of our pursuit to be like God.
God absolutely knew what happened—He knows everything, sees everything. But when the couple hid in their newly experienced shame (as if they could really hide, Psalm 139:1-2; 7-10), God gave them a chance to come clean. The rebellious action was done, and the consequences in play, but would there be ownership and repentance? Although the wife initiated the disobedience, the first question from God was directed at the husband. (There’s a whole conversation that could be had here about Adam’s failure to protect his wife—after all, he “was there” when the serpent slithered up—but we’ll forego that for now.)
Adam, he’s sly. In answer to God’s question, he managed the double-blame-game in one statement: “The woman You gave me—it’s all her doing!” Yep, Adam laid the blame on the woman and on God at the same time. “She did it, God…and if You didn’t create her in the first place, we wouldn’t be in this mess.” Eve was no better. When the Lord confronted her with what she had done, she likely clutched her proverbial pearls with one hand while pointing into the garden and dramatically saying, “It’s not my fault! That talking serpent lied to me!”
It got me thinking of my own sanctification journey of playing the “blame game” and making excuses for my sinful choices. Praise the Lord, He has refined me through my nearly 30 years of following Him. But in my sin fleshly proclivities, it’s still easy to point a finger and shriek, “Look what you made me do!” Or “I was lied to!” Or even, “Their incompetence was unacceptable—I had no choice but to let them have it!” Just being real here, but can you relate? Thankfully, as our maturity in Christ progresses, the recognition of our sin—and of our blame shifting—gets quicker. Conviction by the Holy Spirit—and the need to repent and apologize—deepens the more we’re surrendered to (controlled by) Him (Romans 8:5-6; Galatians 5:16-17).
Beloved, our sin is our responsibility. When we find ourselves shifting the blame and making excuses like our first parents in the garden, there’s a beautiful truth to hold onto: Our sin is paid for in full by our Savior Jesus Christ. We don’t have to make excuses, especially since the Lord sees and knows. And although we never find out if Adam and Eve repented or asked God for forgiveness, we can be confident that “if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
Lord, forgive me for shifting the blame for my sin, for making excuses when I disobey Your commands. May I become quick to recognize my sin, repent, and continue to walk in the freedom You paid for.
