The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: A Closer Look at the Weird and Wild Parts of the BibleSample

Genesis 3 and a Christmas Tree

The Bible is a unified story that leads to Jesus and teaches us to become like Jesus. Every part of it is meaningful and intentional. The good parts, the bad parts, and even the ugly parts. God is that good of an author. He carefully constructs His story in such a way that every piece of the puzzle plays a vital role in telling the beautiful story of how He is working in the world.

Today, we’re going to look at the moment when everything took a turn for the worse. This event is known as the Fall, and it takes place in Genesis 3. As we read, we’ll see how applying the principles of Jesus is King and context is everything to this portion of the Bible helps us to see even more clearly God’s justice, mercy, and grace.

Here’s a quick summary of the first part of Genesis to bring you up to speed.

Genesis 1 is a poetic telling of God creating the universe and everything in it. He forms order from chaos and fills the darkness with light and life. Every step of the way, we are met with the refrain, “... And God saw that it was good” (Genesis 1:10 NIV). Then, on the sixth day, God created human beings in His image to serve as His partners, overseeing the world that He had made. God gave us life, purpose, and invited us into a relationship with Him. Then, the refrain changes slightly. Now, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day” (Genesis 1:31 NIV).

Genesis 2 retells the origins of the universe from a different perspective. This time, instead of a zoomed-out view of the whole of Creation, the author zooms in on the first humans, their time in the garden, and the unique role they were given by God.

It’s here we read the one rule God gave to the first humans:

And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” Genesis 2:16-17 NIV

In the next chapter, Adam and Eve, the first humans, break the one rule God gave them. Tricked by a crafty serpent into disobeying God, they ate the fruit and unleashed sin upon the world. Their action brought all of Creation into rebellion against God, ripping a hole in His universe that death, suffering, and evil crawled through. Every inch of the world and every cell in our bodies was thrown into disarray. The once good and beautiful world was now infected by sin and stained by suffering.

This brings us to a really important question: If God didn’t want them to eat from that tree, then why did He put it in the garden to begin with? Or, at the very least, why didn’t He hide the tree somewhere that Adam and Eve wouldn’t find it? But instead, God put the tree smack dab in the middle of the garden.

The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.Genesis 2:9 NIV

So, what’s going on here?

How we understand and interpret this part of the Bible (and every other part of the Bible) is almost entirely based on what we think of God. For example …

If you think God is a ruthless dictator, then it’s easy to imagine the tree as a mousetrap God placed in the garden to catch and punish us.

If you think God is an uncaring disciplinarian, then it’s easy to imagine the tree as a cookie placed in front of a two-year-old to demonstrate our inability to resist temptation.

But that’s not who God is, and that’s not how He sees us. So, who is He? God is a loving Father who wants to give good gifts to His kids.

This view of God is expressed in every line of the prayer Jesus taught His followers to pray:

“... Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.” Matthew 6:9-13 NLT

Because God is a good Father, we can trust that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil isn’t a mousetrap meant to catch us or a cookie meant to tempt us. More than anything, the tree in the garden is like a Christmas tree in your living room with presents piled under it.

Like a good father, He put the tree in the middle of the garden because He wanted Adam and Eve to know a gift was coming their way. It’s the same reason a Christmas tree doesn’t get hidden in a closet or the garage. It’s put on display to build excitement.

But, just like kids who get greedy and snatch the presents before it’s time, Adam and Eve spoiled the gift and damaged their relationship with God by taking the fruit before they were ready.

Thankfully though, that’s not where the story ends. Because God responded to Adam and Eve’s sinfulness with justice, mercy, and grace.

Justice is getting what you deserve. Mercy is not getting what you deserve. Grace is getting what you don’t deserve.

First, we see God’s justice when He spells out the reality of Adam and Eve’s wrongdoing and the consequences that come from their sin. He tells them that having kids will be hard, work will be difficult, and human relationships will be rife with conflict (Genesis 3:16-19 NIV).

Next, we see God’s mercy when He lets Adam and Eve live. Do you remember what God said when He told them what would happen if they ate from the tree? “... for when you eat from it you will certainly die” (Genesis 2:17 NIV). But that’s not what happened. Instead of putting them to death, God let them live.

Finally, we see God’s grace when He makes a promise and gives a preview of how He will undo the damage of the Fall and rescue us from our sin. God promises that a son of Eve will defeat the serpent, losing his life in the process. And He previews how another will die in our place to clothe us.

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” … The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. Genesis 3:15-21 NIV

Both the promise and the preview are pointing to Jesus and what He would accomplish through His sacrifice on the cross. In His death, Jesus defeated the devil and covered our sins. Through His resurrection, He overcame the darkness and clothed us with His righteousness.

Why is there a tree in the garden? Because God is a loving Father who wants to give good gifts to His kids.

God, change my view of You. Help me to see You and know You according to what is really true. You are a good and loving Father. You care about me and want what’s best for me. Give me the faith to trust that and to trust You. In Jesus’ name, amen.