6.23.19 - Adam, Eve, and the Fall (Kenny Camacho)

SCRIPTURE: Genesis 2:4-9; 15-17; 3:1-21

There are few stories from the ancient Israelites or any other group of people more important to the lives of every human being than the stories of the origin of sin. In the second and third chapters of Genesis, we find the Biblical account of the creation of men of women, their initial work in the Garden of Eden, and their Fall from God’s design. Although discussions of this story often fixate on questions of historical accuracy or sexual politics, the heart of this narrative reveals an incredible understanding of the root of human mistakes. This week, we want to discuss the symbolic resonance of forbidden fruit, the temptation of knowledge alone, and the trauma of breaking faith. Our hope is that this might lead us to reconsider how we see our own relationships with the God of the Universe...as well as how we might reconnect with the path God lays out, even from the very beginning, for our redemption.

DISCUSSION/REFLECTION QUESTIONS:

  1. How can you wrestle with the tensions of the Creation story while also holding to your belief/faith in God’s story and character?

  2. When God finds Adam and Eve in the Garden after they have eaten from the fruit of the tree of knowledge, he asks them questions. What does this scene teach us about who God is and how he chooses to relate to us?

  3. On Sunday, Kenny said that the root of Adam’s/Eve’s sin isn’t disobedience of God’s rules but rejection of God’s help and companionship. Did this strike you as true? Have you ever felt this way about the sin/brokenness in your own life?

  4. What can we learn from the detail in Genesis 3:21 that God clothes Adam and Eve in animal skins? What does this act imply about how mankind’s sin affects all of Creation? What does this act suggest about God’s character?  

Kenny Camacho