Committing to Getting (The temptation and Fall of Adam)- Part 1

"Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?"
Gen 3:9-11

"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”" Matthew 4:1-3

"I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed..." Revelation 3:18

Where are you? Do you know? Are you able to name the landscape of your heart as well as the geography of your surroundings?

This seems to be a very important question to God. There is something He wants us to learn, for certainly He who knows all needn't learn from us our whereabouts. Where are you? Are you feeling freedom, joy, and deep connectedness with others and God? Or are you feeling pressured, failed, lonely, fearful, accused, threatened, guilty, or trapped? Where has it led you? Are you able to name it? If not, why? Could it be that God is asking, "Where are you?"

For Adam the answer was clear. He heard the voice of God, undoubtedly calling to him, and Adam realizing that he was naked, was seized by a terror that drove him into the shadows of hiding. Something about being seen without any covering, being exposed as he really was before God, terrified Adam. In truth it wasn't the idea of being exposed before God alone that terrified Adam. For long before the Lord steps on the scene we read in verse 7, "Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings."

Adam's penchant for hiding what was true about himself began with his closest human relationship and seems simply to carry over to God, the only difference being Adam seems aware that God, being the All Seeing One, cannot be blinded by our pretense and shadow seeking. God sees us as we really are. To one committed to shadows the Lord must be a terror indeed. How transparent are we with those whom we value most? How does this carry over to our relationship with God?

Is it possible that the exposure we fear is actually the invitation of God calling to us from the cool of a garden which we, like our eldest ancestors, have lost?

Before we turn to solutions, before we look for escape, let us first ponder the implications of this first question God asks, "Where are you?". Resist the temptation to justify, defend, or blame. Let us simply join God in asking the question and agree to stay here until we get an answer. Until we have our answer we can go no further and receive no more.