Some people argue that God must not be just because He allows so much evil in the world. But then many of these same people cling to the philosophy of evolution, rejecting God as their judge. The fact is that God is our sovereign Creator exercising perfect justice over all the earth for all time. His justice is sometimes delayed because He is patiently waiting for men to recognize His sovereignty and their accountability to Him. God “commands all men everywhere to repent” and “takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked”(Eze 33:11, Acts 17:30). But if men continue in their self-righteous pride and reject His mercy, they are consigned to an eternal hell (Prov 6:16,17; Psalm 9:17). That is ultimate justice.
When we were at the great cathedral in Prague we saw a beautiful 14th century mosaic called “The Last Judgment.” It depicted the resurrection of the saved to “everlasting life” and the wicked (unsaved) to “everlasting contempt” (Dan 12:2). It is over 900 square feet made up of ½ inch colored tiles.
When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, there were several consequences of judgment.
First of all, they immediately realized they were naked; they were ashamed and tried to cover their nakedness with fig leaves (Gen 3:7). This pictured their attempt to cover their sin, just as when we try to cover our sin and please God with self-righteous works, which God views as filthy rags (Isa 64:6). God then sacrificed a lamb to cover (Hebrew: atone for) Adam and Eve with the skin of that animal (Gen 3:20-24). The fact that an innocent animal’s blood would have to be shed to atone for sin prefigures the Old Testament sacrifices and the ultimate one-time sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ (Heb 10:12).
Secondly their sin separated them from God (Isa 59:1, 2). Adam and Eve hid in the Garden but of course God knew where they were and what they had done. We can never hide our sin from God because he knows everything about us (Psalm 139, Num 32:23). As a loving Creator and friend, God sought them out and confronted them but they made excuses and shifted blame (Gen 3:9-13).
Finally, the most significant aspect of their disobedience was that they brought sin into the world and all humans from then on would be born with a sin nature (Rom 5:12, Psalm 51:5, 1 Cor 15:22). Rejecting God’s commandments always has dire consequences (Prov 1:24-31). Their “wages of sin (was) death” (Rom 6:23a). When Adam and Eve sinned they immediately died Spiritually (Eph 2:1) and began to died physically as God had warned (Gen 2:17).
But with Adam and Eve’s sin, we also have the first promise a coming Messiah (anointed One) to redeem man from the curse of sin. God promised that the woman’s seed would “bruise (Satan’s) head” even though Satan would “bruise His heel,” a reference to Christ’s crucifixion (Gen 3:15). Generally speaking the “seed” is the human race, all the descendants of Eve, and Satan is the enemy of mankind. But specifically the seed refers to the Lord Jesus Christ (Gal 3:16) who defeated Satan on Calvary’s cross. We refer to this as the protoevangel, the “first Gospel.”
Justice therefore will be fully served when Christ returns to earth. The time is compared to the time of Noah.
“But as the days of Noah were,…before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away (in
judgment); so shall also the coming of the Son of man (Jesus Christ) be.”
Matt 24:37-39
Again we see fundamental doctrines of the Bible grounded in the literal events of Genesis. The doctrines of sin, judgment, and redemption are introduced. Sin is real and God’s justice is real. Have you received Christ’s gift of atonement for your sin? Are you ready for Christ’s return? “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Cor 6:2).
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