History's Most Important Question: Genesis 3:8-9

Genesis 3:8-9: "Then the man and his wife heard 

the sound of the Lord God 

as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, 'Where are you?'"

As an educator, I was taught how to ask questions. That may seem odd if you don't spend a lot of time in a classroom with students, but there is a right way to ask a question. Let me illustrate this with a story. I did my student teaching during my last semester of college. I taught seventh grade World Geography during Operation Desert Storm. I remember many of my students talking about parents or siblings who had been called to serve in that conflict. Naturally, we spent a lot of time learning about the geography of the Middle East. 

Overall I was successful with student teaching. However, I remember my supervising teacher giving me a good piece of advice. She said, "Todd, when you ask a question, you need to ask it once and then wait." I had a tendency to ask a question, and then impulsively re-ask it. My questioning sounded something like this: "What do you know about the Middle East? Do you know where it is?" While my habit of repeated questioning was not detrimental to my success, I knew I needed to improve how I asked questions.

The Story that Answered the Question

I believe the most important question that has ever been asked in Biblical history happened in Genesis 3. Look at that scripture again with me. Notice three critical details of this scene that set up the narrative of humanity's story. First notice the characters in these two verses. Adam and Eve's role in this account reveals the emerging storyline for humanity. The Lord God responds to the changing circumstances offered by Adam and Eve's absence from the garden.

We learn the context from the three times the Lord God is mentioned. We learn about the setting in the first mention when He was walking in the garden. We see His encounter with the man and woman in the second occurrence when they were hiding from Him. And we see the climax to this powerful scene during the last sighting of the Lord God when He questioned Adam about his absence. 

While the characters introduce the storyline for this short scene, we should identify the problem to see a promise that God still offers us today. Do you see the problem? Here it is. From what we are told, the Lord God was walking in the garden and presumably the man and woman typically accompanied Him. We suspect their absence is the problem because the question that we will look at in a moment implies that Adam and Eve were not where the Lord God expected them to be. So their problem looked like our problem today. Sin causes us to drift away from where God created us to be- walking "in the garden" with Him enjoying His Presence and listening to His Voice. 

Our problem makes God's promise possible for us today. We see this promise in James 4:8: "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you." That is the promise we have today even when we find ourselves distant and away from where God created us to be. God's original intent has always been to have us near Him. 

Third God's question to Adam and Eve gave them a chance to draw near to God again by coming to grips with where they were. Now to history's most important question. When the Lord God realized they were not in the garden, He asked, "where are you?" Now realize that the Lord God did not ask that question because He did not know where they were, but rather He asked it because they did not know where they were. They were hiding in an unfamiliar place, separated from the Presence of God. It was a place defined by fear, self-preservation, and the conflict of the ages (Genesis 3:10ff). His question revealed the heart of our issue, the will of God for humanity, and the astronomical need we have for reconciliation in our relationships. 

Our Spiritual Problem

Our problem is that we live in a place we were not designed to live, separated from God and in conflict with each other. The will of God is that we get back to where He created us to be-in fellowship with Him and in harmony with one another. If we examine our lives, then we will see our great need for reconciliation to God and each other. 

Our daily news serves as a chronicle for our spiritual problem. We war against authority like Adam and Eve questioned the authority of God's original Word. We fight against people who don't think like us, look like us, believe like us, or live like us. We hate when it's easier to love. We curse when it's more beneficial to bless. We take when it is more blessed to give. We hurt when we know we should heal. We become part of the problem when we know the Answer. God's question to Adam and Eve has always been His question for us: Where are you? 

Life Application

So many things separate us from each other and God. Addictions, misplaced passion, depression, loss of faith, hatred, unforgiveness, and bad decisions impact our relationships with one another and God. They abandon us to a place where we were never designed by God to live. The Lord God created us to walk with Him and live in harmony with one another. 

How do we get back there when we find ourselves separated from God and in conflict with everyone around us? Here are a few steps you can take to find your way back "into the garden."

• Acknowledge you are in a place you were never designed to be. That's what Adam did. He answered God, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” Notice, fear's central role in his separation from God. While he didn't acknowledge responsibility, at least at that point, he revealed an underlining issue with so many of our problems today that separate us from God; that is, the culprit of fear. Acknowledgement of our abandonment of God is the first step, but it's not the only step to overcome fear's separating power.

• Acknowledge God's activity in your life. God is doing in your life what He has always been doing. Like with Adam, He is asking, "where are you?" By asking that question, He has opened up the way for you to come back to where He designed you to be: In relationship with Him and in harmony with one another. Proverbs 3:6 says, "In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." God's promise to you is to straighten out what you have messed up. God specializes in cleaning up our messes. But it starts with acknowledging the mess we've created and the God who can redeem us from that mess. 

We do have a problem, but God gives us a promise. If we will draw near to Him, He will draw near to us. That means if we take a step back to God, then we will find Him where He always intended us to be in the first place-walking in His Presence "in the garden" of our everyday life, enjoying who He is and at peace in our relationships.

Scriptures for further study

Genesis 3
James 4:7-10