Genesis 2:18 (NLT)
“Then the LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.”
Whether out of necessity or choice, women today are driven to do it all themselves. They don’t feel they need the help of a man and may even feel there aren’t enough of them available, but this doesn’t exactly track with God’s original intention and design in Genesis 2:18. And as our Creator, of course He will always have the final Word. Times have changed and there’s no question that we’ve become more sophisticated and intelligent over the last seven thousand years or so since Adam and Eve’s sin. The sad reality is that the more intelligent we have become, the further we have moved away from God’s Word and standards. This has been catastrophic when it comes to building intimacy with God, honoring His magnificence and holiness, and enjoying all the blessings that He has established, especially the blessing of marriage.
As women of faith and followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is our privilege and responsibility to be insistent about God’s standards and holding ourselves to them. Many think that this is an unachievable and outdated or old-fashioned lifestyle. “Things have changed.” They say. “We can’t be expected to follow the Bible in this day and age!” This is a dangerous attitude, one that will lead a person down a very dark path. True believers can’t ever think that way. We must hold tight to what God said of Himself in Malachi 3:6(NLT), “I am the LORD, and I do not change.”
1Samuel 15:22(NLT) tells us that “Obedience is better than sacrifice.” The significance of this truth is huge, especially when it comes to all the desires and blessings we hope will manifest in our futures. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s Word, sin was introduced into the world, and the first couple lost the state of holiness that God had given them. Their act of rejection and defiance against God is known as the “Fall of Man”, because sin entered their bodies and has been passed down to every generation after them. Sin breaks fellowship and harmony with God, because God cannot fellowship with it. He is perfect, holy, and righteous, and in order for Him to have fellowship with His created beings, we must be holy too.
Hebrews 9:22 tells us, “For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.” Life is in the blood, because that is the way God designed it. He tells us in Romans 6:23 that the wages or cost of sin is death. Therefore, in order for the people that were living back then to pay the price sin demanded, life had to be introduced. To have fellowship with God, and to be spared the consequences of their sin, our Heavenly Father permitted the people living during Old Testament times to offer the blood sacrifices of animals. This covered their sin, but it did not cleanse it.
God didn’t want them to sin, and He didn’t want any harm to come to them. Through His infinite mercy and grace, He made a way of escape for His chosen people, but they always choose sin over obedience to Him. Sadly, most people are still making this same disastrous choice. All was not lost, our Heavenly Father knew that one day His plan for our redemption would be fulfilled through His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Hebrews 9:15(NLT) tells us, “That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.”
This is what God has done for us. No more offering the blood sacrifice of animals. Jesus Christ became the sacrifice for us when he gave his life on the cross. God has set us free through Christ. He has cleansed our sins, forgiven us, and now we have the gift of eternal life. This is Good News indeed, but just as it was thousands of years ago, most people continue to turn their backs on our Heavenly Father. His love for us has not changed. His Word has not changed, and it never will. In order to be pleasing in His sight, we must live by the example of Christ and uphold God’s standard.
2Corinthians 4:4(NLT) tells us, “Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.” Adam sold the dominion and authority that God has given him to the adversary, and he has blinded the masses with deception so they’re unable to see through his trickery. As God’s people, we have the light of Christ, and we should realize that God’s way is forever the right and best way. We should cling to Him and His Word with all our might because He loves us, and we can’t do anything without Him.
When the Lord is for you, Romans 8:28 tells us that He will cause all things to work together for your good. He’s proven this through Jesus Christ. Even when our conditions and circumstances look bleak, God can turn everything around and bring about our success. If we trust His leadership, guidance, and direction, He will make our crooked paths straight, and lead us to the desires of our hearts, but we must hold God’s Word sacred. He tells us in Isaiah 55:9(NLT), “For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” He never makes a mistake. He means what He says and says what He means, and if we want to see movement in our circumstances, we must make God’s standard a priority in our lives.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“When the Lord Is for You”, written by Kim Times, edited by Fran Mack and KLizzie for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2024. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.