How far back in history do we have to go in order to find the “good old days?” Well it all depends on who you talk to and how you define those days. Some might say that we would have to go back to the 50s or at least go back at least one generation. In reality the real good old days occurred many, many generations ago. We really need to go back to the book of Genesis to see when things were really at their best. The best of days are defined when God and his highest creation, man, walked together on the earth.
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…” Genesis 1:1
“…So God created man in His own image…” Genesis 1:27
“Then God…said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it…’” Genesis 1:28
“Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good…” Genesis 1:31
“The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed and out of the ground the LORD God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food…” Genesis 2:8-9
“And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you many freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat…’” Genesis 2:16-17
“And the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.’” Genesis 2:18
“And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day…” Genesis 3:8
Those were the real good old days!
So Adam and his mate Eve were created in the image of God. They were given dominion over all of the rest of God’s creation on earth and had complete freedom in the garden. God Himself was right there with them. Now, inasmuch as God created them, He was indeed sovereign over them. He gave them one small instruction, as a condition for their freedom, i.e. there was one tree in the garden of which fruit they were forbidden to eat. That was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. They had no need to know the difference between good and evil in their pure state and God’s instruction was for their own good. Adam and his wife Eve had need of nothing! They had everything.
All they had to do was follow one simple instruction from their creator and friend. Well, we know what happened next. God’s enemy Lucifer, son of the morning, had been expelled from the presence of God in the heavens because of his disobedience to his creator. He now roamed the earth and set his sights on disrupting the plan for God’s new creation, man.
“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, when took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.” Genesis 3: 6
This action brought the inevitable and necessary response from a Holy God. Lucifer, who became Satan when he was expelled from the heavens, was cursed as well as both Adam and Eve and the earth itself. The good old days had come to an end.
“So the LORD God said to the serpent… ‘You are cursed…’” Genesis 3:14
“God went on to say to Adam, ‘Cursed is the ground for your sake…’” Genesis 3:17
The question is, therefore, will we ever be able to return to the good old days? Will the curse ever be removed?
To answer that question requires that we go to the last chapter of the Bible. In chapter 22 of the book of Revelation where New Jerusalem is described:
“…and there shall be no more curse…” Revelation 22:3
There we have it. The day will come when the curse that was caused by rebellion against a holy God will be removed.
It can be said, then, that the contents of the Bible between Genesis chapter 3 and the final chapter of the Revelation is a seamless exposition of man’s odyssey to return to the good old days when he will once again walk in the presence of the One who created him in His own image.
Throughout the ages man has attempted on his own initiative to return to better days but each time has failed miserably. To illustrate this point we simply need to examine every piece of legislation passed, every executive order issued, and every judicial decision rendered to see if it is in line with the immutable word of God. Remember the curse was given because of disobeying a single instruction.
Not only are we not taking the Bible seriously we are denying it. That being the case, how in the world will the curse ever be removed?
It’s simply a matter of grace.
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