God's Pursuing Love
“And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, 'Where are you?'” Genesis 3:8-9
While Adam and Eve were trying to hide from the presence of God because of their sin and shame, the Lord called out and asked, “Where are you?” Why would the Lord ask such a question? Didn’t He already know where they were hiding?
He did. But when the Lord asked the question, it wasn’t because He didn’t know the answer. The question was asked to make them think about where they where in relation to God. The question was designed to get them to make an honest assessment of themselves so that they would come out of the shadows and into the light.
If you’re lost and you call a person for directions, the first question the person giving you directions is going to ask you is, “Where are you?” You need to know where you are before you can get to where you need to be.
Adam and Eve got lost. They were out of the will of God and out of fellowship with God because they chose to act independently of God which is the essence of sin. In that place, rather than enjoying God’s presence, which is what they were created for, they were hiding from Him in shame. There’s no worse place to be.
Where are you? To recognize that you are not where you should be is the beginning place to get to where you need to be, which is enjoying fellowship with God and fulfilling His purpose for your life.
The cry of God, “Where are you?,” did not come from a heart of a anger that was out for revenge. God wasn’t a hunter seeking His prey. The seeking question of God was the heartfelt cry of an anguished Father. God clearly knew where they were but He also knew that sin caused a separation between Him and man, a separation that He Himself would bridge through the second Adam, Jesus. (1 Corinthians 15:45)
I appreciate David Guzik's thoughts concerning God’s question to His lost children:
"The question was meant to
As God went after Adam and Eve in the garden, He’s still seeking the lost today in and through Jesus. This is the heart of the Lord who declared, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:10)
The manner in which God came to Adam and Eve is still how He comes to lost and fallen humanity ever since. What’s more, it’s a model for all who’ve been redeemed by Christ and have been given the ministry of reconciliation. Concerning the ministry of reconciliation Paul wrote:
”Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:17-21)
God’s cry to Adam and Eve was an expression of His pursuing love. And again, how He came to them is also a model for us. In Genesis 3:8 we read: ”And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.”
Concerning the Lord’s pursuit, the great British preacher Charles Spurgeon observed:
Again, I appreciate David Guzik thoughts concerning the way God came to the lost in the garden which is a model for us.
God knows where you are. Do you know where you are? Do you know that your sins have separated you from Him and that you need to be restored back to a right relationship with God, a relationship we were created for, that meets the deepest needs of our hearts, a relationship in which we walk with Him and talk with Him and He tells us that we are His own?
Jesus made a way through the shedding of His blood for us to be reconciled to the Father. If you’re not where you should be, and you don’t want to stay there, stop hiding. Run to the Father in repentance and trust Christ as Lord and Savior. He will receive you. He will forgive you and reconcile you to Himself.
Where are you? Perhaps you have come to saving faith in Jesus but have strayed from a close and intimate walk with Him. Restoration begins by allowing the Spirit to help you make an honest and sincere assessment of where you are. Come out of the shadows. Don’t rationalize or justify your sin. Don’t blame anyone else. Don’t make excuses. Confess your sin to God. He is faithful and just to forgive you (1 John 1:9).
Humble yourself and seek a trusted and biblically wise person that you can share your deepest struggles with. Come out of hiding and let the light of God’s grace and love restore your soul. And those of us who know the pursuing and restoring love of God, let us seek for God to use us to bring His lost and wandering sheep home.
In your service,
Pastor Marco
While Adam and Eve were trying to hide from the presence of God because of their sin and shame, the Lord called out and asked, “Where are you?” Why would the Lord ask such a question? Didn’t He already know where they were hiding?
He did. But when the Lord asked the question, it wasn’t because He didn’t know the answer. The question was asked to make them think about where they where in relation to God. The question was designed to get them to make an honest assessment of themselves so that they would come out of the shadows and into the light.
If you’re lost and you call a person for directions, the first question the person giving you directions is going to ask you is, “Where are you?” You need to know where you are before you can get to where you need to be.
Adam and Eve got lost. They were out of the will of God and out of fellowship with God because they chose to act independently of God which is the essence of sin. In that place, rather than enjoying God’s presence, which is what they were created for, they were hiding from Him in shame. There’s no worse place to be.
Where are you? To recognize that you are not where you should be is the beginning place to get to where you need to be, which is enjoying fellowship with God and fulfilling His purpose for your life.
The cry of God, “Where are you?,” did not come from a heart of a anger that was out for revenge. God wasn’t a hunter seeking His prey. The seeking question of God was the heartfelt cry of an anguished Father. God clearly knew where they were but He also knew that sin caused a separation between Him and man, a separation that He Himself would bridge through the second Adam, Jesus. (1 Corinthians 15:45)
I appreciate David Guzik's thoughts concerning God’s question to His lost children:
"The question was meant to
- arouse Adam’s sense of being lost.
- lead Adam to confess his sin.
- express God’s sorrow over man’s lost condition.
- show that God seeks after lost man.
- express the accountability man had before God."
As God went after Adam and Eve in the garden, He’s still seeking the lost today in and through Jesus. This is the heart of the Lord who declared, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:10)
The manner in which God came to Adam and Eve is still how He comes to lost and fallen humanity ever since. What’s more, it’s a model for all who’ve been redeemed by Christ and have been given the ministry of reconciliation. Concerning the ministry of reconciliation Paul wrote:
”Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:17-21)
God’s cry to Adam and Eve was an expression of His pursuing love. And again, how He came to them is also a model for us. In Genesis 3:8 we read: ”And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.”
Concerning the Lord’s pursuit, the great British preacher Charles Spurgeon observed:
“Not in the dead of night when the natural glooms of darkness might have increased the terrors of the criminal, not in the heat of the day, lest he should imagine that God come in the heat of passion; not in the early morning, as if in haste to slay, but at the close of the day, for God is long-suffering, slow to anger, and of great mercy.”
Again, I appreciate David Guzik thoughts concerning the way God came to the lost in the garden which is a model for us.
- "God came to them patiently, waiting for the cool of the day – the evening time.
- God came to them with care, coming before the darkness of night.
- God came to them personally, addressing Adam and Eve directly.
- God came to them with truth, showing them their lost condition."
God knows where you are. Do you know where you are? Do you know that your sins have separated you from Him and that you need to be restored back to a right relationship with God, a relationship we were created for, that meets the deepest needs of our hearts, a relationship in which we walk with Him and talk with Him and He tells us that we are His own?
Jesus made a way through the shedding of His blood for us to be reconciled to the Father. If you’re not where you should be, and you don’t want to stay there, stop hiding. Run to the Father in repentance and trust Christ as Lord and Savior. He will receive you. He will forgive you and reconcile you to Himself.
Where are you? Perhaps you have come to saving faith in Jesus but have strayed from a close and intimate walk with Him. Restoration begins by allowing the Spirit to help you make an honest and sincere assessment of where you are. Come out of the shadows. Don’t rationalize or justify your sin. Don’t blame anyone else. Don’t make excuses. Confess your sin to God. He is faithful and just to forgive you (1 John 1:9).
Humble yourself and seek a trusted and biblically wise person that you can share your deepest struggles with. Come out of hiding and let the light of God’s grace and love restore your soul. And those of us who know the pursuing and restoring love of God, let us seek for God to use us to bring His lost and wandering sheep home.
In your service,
Pastor Marco