week of 1/22/08

This week we continued our focus on fasting, but we took it from a slightly different angle. To help understand the value of fasting, we broke down who we are body/soul/spirit and talked about some of the confusion and misunderstandings of what/how we are made.

We started in Genesis 2:16-17, Genesis 3:1-6 and Genesis 5:5-6.

There is an interesting progression that takes place in these passages. God says if they eat of the tree of the knowledge of Good & Evil, they will die THAT SAME DAY. Adam & Eve are then tempted by the serpent and eat the fruit, then we see that Adam lives for hundreds of years AFTER his disobedience.

Did Adam really die?

We know his body did not die, so to understand what happened we have to look at the parts of Adam.

In Genesis 2:7 God forms dust, then breathes 'living essence' into it.

But is there more? Genesis 1:26 & 27 says we are made in the image or likeness of God, and John 4:24 tells us that God is spirit. Adam had a physical body, a soul that animated that body and in the image of God, a spirit as well! When Adam and Eve ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil their bodies did not die, and the soul that animates the body did not die, but their spirit's died that day.

There is a reason 1 Corinthians 2:14 says the natural man or literally 'soul-man' does not understand the things of the spirit. Our spirits are dead within us. This is the reason Jesus told Nicodemus that 'you must be born again'. Not a physical birth but a SPIRIT birth.

In Leviticus 17:11, 13-14 we see that the 'living essence' of all flesh is in the blood. Literally, LIFE is in the blood. Where there is no blood, there is no life. Romans 3:23 tells us that the results of or sin is death.

As we understand the significance of those 2 verses, does the significance of the OT Law requiring blood sacrifices for sin begin to make sense? Life was given to cancel Death.

Think now of the sacrifice Jesus made begins to take on additional meaning. The entire chapter of Romans 5 is more significant!

The blood Jesus shed - the greatest life gift possible - the very blood of the Son of God was given to cover the death debt of all the sins of the entire world.

Great Death was covered by Greater Life.

Through Jesus, and the life He has given, the Spirit of God revives our dead spirits within us, and through Him we can know and relate to God just like Adam and Eve did! We do this by worshiping him with our spirits. To reference John 4 again, God is spirit and those who worship Him must worship Him in SPIRIT and in truth.

Jesus has given life for our death, wholeness for our brokenness and through his sacrifice has restored what through Adam we lost.

Is there any better news than that?

peace and courage my friends,
-davey