Did you ever think what was the first thing Adam and Eve lost after they had disobeyed and ate of the fruit? The first thing they lost was the Spirit of a child. They lost it. They at once saw that they were naked. Little children, one or two years old, are not aware they are naked. They are not aware of their outward appearance at all. That was the first thing they lost the spirit of a child and they lost their sense of security and stability. Instead, they had fear and hid from God.
I was in the home of Brian and Michelle and their little children. As soon as they saw me, the little girl ran from me and hid behind her mother. She looked at me and hid her face behind the dress of her mother. If she did not see me, she thought I wouldn’t see her. Adam and Eve hid their faces from God. They lost the spirit of a child. What is the first thing He wants to restore to us? It is the spirit of a child. The first thing He wants to restore to us is the spirit of a child and that is why we read in Isaiah 9:6, “A child has been given to us, a son is born to us.” A child has been given to us. Another part of Isaiah we read of changes that have happened because of God working. Isaiah 11:6, “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.” It is so precious. We get it in Christ when His nature is born in us and that is the Will of God. It is so possible and we are glad that we have had the beautiful, wonderful experiences of having the nature of Christ in us, but we have to be careful and not lose out spiritually. They lost their peace and their rest and gained some things: they received some things from that experience in the garden.
When God came into them and asked Adam, “Where are you?” He said, “How do you know that you are naked?” “Have you eaten of that fruit that I told you not to eat?” He said, “It is the fault of the woman. I would not have eaten if you had not given me the woman!” God turned to Eve and asked, “Why have you done this?” “The serpent has beguiled me.” Not I. Blame it on the serpent. This is what we have in our nature and because of that first disobedience, we by nature just put the blame on the other at once. It is not my fault. I have done that so many times in my life, and I still do it now. I just ask God to give me the power and grace to be aware of the opportunity of taking the blame before I throw it on the other. We are so quick. We know it is not right for us to do so. If God would help us to be in the spirit of a child and to be in the spirit of Jesus and to take the blame for whatever, because Jesus has taken our blame. All the wrong that came because of that disobedience, that has been put right by Jesus. It has been thrown away from souls as they seek God.
Later on also, when Cain had killed Abel and God came to him and talked to him and said, “Where is your brother?” And he said, “Am I the guardian of my brother?” We know that spirit. We know it. It is ugly isn’t it? But it is a spirit that is in human nature and because of them eating the fruit. That is the fruit of the knowledge of evil and good. But Jesus, He took the blame for all of us on the cross. He took our sins and He suffered on the cross for us all.
17 John, “I have kept them.” Those that Thou gavest Me, I have kept them and all are safe, but only Judas. I have kept them. He has been the guardian of all of us. He has kept us and He will keep us eternally. Jesus: to think of Him, we fall in gratitude. On that day then when all that happened, there was a condemnation and there was a separation. One thing that I like is that God cursed the serpent. He said, “You will eat dust all the days of your life.”
Isaiah: when there is that great change of the lamb eating with the wolf, then it says, and the meat of serpents will be dust. That will never change. The words of God will never fail in blessing and in cursing. May we always live in the blessings of God. It is very possible, this is the will of God. It is up to us to choose. God cursed the ground and He said to Adam, “The ground is cursed for your sin.” We are made of the dust and we are taken from the ground and that is why our body has such a miserable and beautiful end, and it goes down to the dust, and sometimes it is a pity to look at. It is cursed, the body. He did not curse Adam and Eve. He only cursed the soil.
God will keep our body, because He wants [to live] in it, while we are alive. In our body, there is the soul and the heart and in the soul are the temple and heart of God. There was condemnation. God said, “You will surely die.” He had said that before. He said this to Adam before he created Eve. Adam got the commandment from God and He created the woman and Adam told Eve but Adam heard the commandment directly from God. He was very responsible. God condemned them and then He separated them. Sent them out of the Garden of Eden. He didn’t want them to touch the tree of life and He guarded the Tree of Life. There were Cherubim with flaming swords that went everywhere. No one could go to the tree of life, there was the sword. Even now, we will not enter the Tree of Life unless we pass through that sword. It is amazing what God says. It is amazing. No word that God has said will ever fall.
Have you heard many times and know the translation by memory – it is in Hebrews 4:12, “For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13, Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. 14, Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 15, For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 16, Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” The Word of God has to be fully applied to our soul. Only when this happens (when the Word of God is fully applied to our soul and we accept it and we live through it and in it) only in this way will we eat of the tree of life. This is encouraging and positive. The baptism in the water is only a symbol, but there is the reality of it and we have to face the fire.
When I was young (I was 14) and we used to talk in the evenings, the parents and we children. Sometimes we talked about Revelation (the part that was understandable to us). One night we read before the end, there will be very perilous times for the faithful and the faithful will be tested and difficult times. I said to my father, “I am afraid I will reject Jesus in those times, I will not be able to go through that.” He said, “Do not worry, because God will give each one of His, just what we need.” He knows our strength and if our desire is earnest and sincere, He will give us the power and desire to come through. We do the possible, He will do the impossible, and I got comfort from that. If God gives us power, that is ok.
Romans 8:1 and last verse, “1, There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 36, As it is written, ‘For Thy sake, we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37, Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. 38, For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” No more separation, no more condemnation, because of Jesus Christ, but we have to walk by the spirit and not by the flesh. We have to do that. It is a marvelous thing if we start today with this thought. If we can keep the thought during the day and if we can finish the day with this thought. We can so easily be distracted. I speak for myself.
So many times I pray, “God, please help me to see what I could do.” A few minutes before I do what I would not. I am always aware afterwards I should have said or done that. I pray God will help us to see things at the time. To do that, we must watch and pray