Bible Passage: “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God really say, “You must not eat from any tree in the garden?” (Genesis 3:1 NIV)
Scripture Reading: Genesis 2:1-25; Genesis 3:1-24
Doubt.
We’ve all felt it.
In fact, I doubt there is a man reading this who has never dealt with it.
And I don’t doubt that when we experience it, we are filled with anxiety and feelings of being lost and not good enough.
The interesting thing about doubt is that it is not a sin, but it comes as a result of the first question ever asked in Scripture.
In Genesis 2, God created Adam and placed him in the Garden of Eden, telling him to enjoy everything before him, except for the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.
Seems simple enough.
Then God created Eve and presented her to Adam, and Creation was complete and “very good” (Genesis 1:31).
So, now you have sinless Adam and Eve in the perfect Garden.
Then, one day, the serpent comes along and asks Eve a simple question:
“Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’” (Genesis 3:1).
Isn’t it interesting that he challenged Eve and not Adam? Why is that?
I believe there are two reasons.
One, Eve hadn’t heard the original instruction from God Himself to avoid that Tree. She would have heard it from Adam, so then she would not have been as sure of God’s word.
That leads to the second reason:
The serpent was then able to twist God’s words and make room for doubt to creep in by asking about “any tree in the garden.” And from there, the conversation started, and sin entered Creation.
The fact that the doubt happened in the Garden shows that it is not sin in itself.
It’s what the doubt leads to that can be, though.
Over the next week, we will look at different men in Scripture and see how they handled their doubts. My hope and prayer is that each of us will connect with them and know that our doubts are normal and don’t have to define us, but can rather show us more of who we are and Who God is.
Prayer: Jesus, thank You that You know who I am and my weaknesses. Help me this week to hear what You want to teach me about my doubts. Amen.
Reflection: On your spiritual journey, what are one or two doubts that you have carried? Ask Jesus about them and see what He will show you.
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