The Consequences: Guilt and Fear

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MONDAY

April 5

The Consequences: Guilt and Fear
Read Genesis 3:7–13 and answer the following questions:
1) If you could define, in one word, what the couple experienced, what would that word be, and why? How do we in our own experience today sometimes face the same thing?3:21. 

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2) What other emotion did they experience that they had not known before? Again, in what ways do we experience the same thing, and why? 

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When the Watergate scandal in the United States was exposed by the press in the early 1970s, it was revealed that much of the White House activity focused on cover-up operations. When President Richard Nixon finally resigned, it was not because he either had authorized the break-in to the Democratic Party’s premises or had a part in planning the break-in; instead, he was guilty of trying to cover up what others had done.
In a sense, what we see in these verses is Adam and Eve attempting a cover-up job, trying to hide from God what they had done or at least trying to shift the blame from themselves.
Of course, most folk who know the Lord know that it’s impossible to hide anything from Him. When the hair of our head is numbered (Matt. 10:30), we can’t fool Him about our actions. But we can fool ourselves, can’t we? How easily we find ways to try to shift the blame on others. If only my boss hadn’t done this, then I wouldn’t have done that. If only my spouse hadn’t done this, then I wouldn’t have done that. If only God had taken away the temptation when I prayed, then I wouldn’t have fallen. If only this, if only that. . . .
Sure, we sometimes face powerful temptations, temptations that pull at the very fabric of our being. The
situation is worse, too, because we already come with corrupted and fallen natures, which makes it that much easier for us to succumb when tempted and tried. As bad as sin is, as bad as the consequences often are, we make it worse when we refuse to accept responsibility. After all, how can we overcome sin if, in our own minds, we don’t blame ourselves for it?
How open are you to accepting responsibility for your wrong choices? Or do you always find ways to blame others for it? If so, when are you going to stop?