What a winter it has been! With the multiple snowstorms we’ve been gifted with lately, it’s hard not to marvel at the beauty and power of God’s creation. As we take in the wonder of nature, let us also turn our hearts to something even more wonderful – the Holy Scripture. Just as the snow blankets the earth, may God’s Word cover our lives with wisdom and truth.
I want to share with you an epiphany I received from the book I recommended last time, We Who Wrestle With God. Since then, I have finished reading it, and I have been deeply moved by how the book journeys through Scripture – from Adam and Eve to Cain and Abel, from Noah to Abraham, from Moses to Jonah.
What struck me in Genesis 3:1-7 is the subtle yet powerful deception of the serpent, tempting Eve to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The temptation was cunning: ‘You will be like God, knowing good and evil.’ In that moment, Eve sought to reach beyond her given place, attempting to grasp mastery over the moral order itself. Adam, too, followed her lead, committing the sin of overreach – not out of mere defiance, but in an effort to impress and maintain harmony. Unquestionably, both Adam and Eve reveal to us the sin of overreach, the sin of pride.
This interpretation reveals a deep truth about human nature. Men and women, in different ways, are prone to presumption – to extend beyond the wisdom given by God, to reshape order according to personal desires rather than divine will. How often do we, as men, act like Adam – retooling and renaming order itself, indefinitely – all to impress women and maintain harmony? And how often do women, like Eve, fall into the narcissism of compassion, believing, “I am the mother who can encompass all”? These patterns are not just ancient mistakes; they are struggles that persist in our lives today.
I pray for you, my fellow members, that we take the Bible seriously and that a love for it may be ignited within us. May it not be a book we only read from a few verses during the service or let collect dust on a shelf, but a living word that shapes our hearts and minds. Let us encourage one another to open up and engage in faith-filled conversations, whether in Bible study or beyond, and wrestle with these truths together in community. May the ancient stories of wisdom move us by the Holy Spirit to interpret our contemporary culture through the lens of the Holy Bible, rather than the other way around.
In Christ’s love and service,
The Rev. Eric Lee
“‘You will not certainly die,’ the serpent said to the woman. ‘For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’”
– Genesis 3:4-5 NIV