We have probably all experienced that special joy of elation when a project we have worked diligently on for weeks and months comes to completion.  The project that takes the most time and effort gives us the most satisfaction when finished, right?   We step back, look it over, and smile. Then we might evaluate our work as we look over every detail one last time.  We lean in to make a few more adjustments and apply the final touches until we feel it is all we wanted it to be.

We also can’t wait to tell others so they can share in our joy, too.  That’s how we were made, it’s in our DNA—to share life with others in relationships that are encouraging and helpful.  When we truly listen and encourage each other, God, who created relationship, is pleased with us!  When we encourage each other in the work God has given us; it helps us to continue “without growing weary”!  (Galatians 6:9)

We will see readily how God created relationship between his newly created humans and Himself.  It all began with Adam, then Eve.  God created male and then a female in the image and likeness of God Himself.  We will learn later how God loved to walk and talk with them in the cool of the evening in the perfect paradise He created for them to live.

Genesis 2

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.

² By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. ³ Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

Adam and Eve

⁴ This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.

⁵ Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth^[a] and no plant had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, ⁶ but streams^[b] came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. ⁷ Then the Lord God formed a man^[c] from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

⁸ Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. ⁹ The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

¹⁰ A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. ¹¹ The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. ¹² (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin^[d] and onyx are also there.) ¹³ The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush.^[e] 14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

¹⁵ The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. ¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; ¹⁷ but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

¹⁸ The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”

¹⁹ Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. ²⁰ So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.

But for Adam no suitable helper was found. ²¹ So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs^[g] and then closed up the place with flesh. ²² Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

²³ The man said,

“This is now bone of my bones
    and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called ‘woman,’
    for she was taken out of man.”

²⁴ That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

²⁵ Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND TO OUR CREATOR?

The Rise and Fall of Relationship

Relationship began with Adam and Eve.  We were created to worship God with grateful praise for all He has done for us.  Were Adam and Eve grateful for the garden in which the lived?  Did they enjoy being with their Creator?  What did they talk about when they walked in the garden together?   

Let’s pause and imagine living in a place where evil has yet to distract, deceive, and destroy relationships.  Imagine a pure, holy, and unashamed relationship bond between God and His created humans.  Now, imagine running to meet God in the cool of the day to talk with Him about all news of the garden. Except for that one day when they hid from God. 

One day a choice was presented to them wrapped in deceptive package of evil pride.  They were told to rethink who they were in relationship to God. The cunning and sly Deceiver made them think God was the Liar!  So, they fall for evil.  They chose what the Enemy of God wanted from the beginning—to be God! The relationship between God and mankind will suffer the consequences of their choice. 

God Creates a Helper for Adam

When Adam was created, God knew He would need a suitable Helper.  From Adam, He created Eve.  What an amazing picture of a holy, perfect union created by God!  Adam responds;

This is now bone of my bones
    and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called ‘woman,’
    for she was taken out of man.”

The relationship between Adam and Eve, Male and Female, are united intimately.  “You complete me”, a romantic sentiment in the movies, doesn’t come close to bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh!  God put them together!  They were united as One by God.

God the Father, Jesus His Son, and God’s Holy Spirit are also One in Three.  The Holy Trinity as One is hard for us to understand.  We sing, “One in three persons; blessed Trinity;” but we need to grasp the reality of the relationship between God, Jesus, and His Holy Spirit.  Each One of the Three has a specific purpose but forms one Person.  

God, the Father of all Creation; Jesus, our Savior and Lord; Holy Spirit, our Helper who leads and guides us to be more like Jesus. All are God, in Three Persons, but still God.

Here is an example; consider the apple. The inner core contains the seeds that reproduce others apples.  The “flesh” part is what feeds us.  The skin protects the flesh from intrusion by predators and weather.  Each part is related to the other part.  All three parts make up the apple.  You can separate the parts, but the apple is still an apple.  Still confused?  Grab an apple… and think about it.

God Created Us in His Own Image and Likeness—with Purpose!

God did not create Adam and Eve just to have someone to talk to Him; God created Adam and Eve with a specific purpose.  “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.”  God created all and is in all.  We are to take care of all He has so generously created and given to us to enjoy.

We also learn that God created rest after work as an example to us.  Rest comes after work so that our bodies, made in His image, created by Him, could sustain the energy and health needed to live well. God even blessed the rest day and made it holy.  We will soon learn that this “rest day” is a time of celebration each week, reveling in what God has done in and through us as His created!  To God be the Glory! 

Lord,

All these thoughts and wonderings lead us to love you more, praise and thank you more, as we come humbly before you in prayer.  We realize the you not only created the outside; you also created the inside with a very special place reserved especially for you to live as you lead our hearts, minds, and souls.  Cleanse my heart of all that is not of you.  Renew my mind with your purpose for my being.  Refresh my soul with your tender, new mercies for today.  Restore the continual joy of your salvation within me.  May your Kingdom come, Your Will be done, for there is NO ONE like you!

In Jesus Name, Amen