What Went Wrong?

January 10th, 2024
by Joey Hufstedler

Hey Guys,

In the beginning there was a perfect planet and a perfect pair. Everything was healthy, happy, and holy. There was no sorrow or sickness. There was no cancer or crime. There was no tears or tragedies. There was no pain or problems.

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What a contrast to the world today. I once read that every 24 hours, 93 Americans died from guns; 16,000 were raped, mugged, or robbed; 274 babies were born exposed to illicit drugs; 2,748 children quit school; Washington paid over $100 million to foreign creditors and interest on the debt; 355 U.S. companies went belly-up; and 5,500 Americans lost their jobs."

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The FBI estimates that 83% of Americans will be victims of crime at some point in their lives.

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The FBI also says that violent crime has become the major problem in American society. A murder occurs every 21 minutes, a rape every 5 minutes, a robbery every 45 seconds, and aggravated assault every 29 seconds.

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Every 5 minutes an American teenager is arrested for a drug or alcohol offense: over 80,000 a year. Every 30 minutes an American teenager is arrested for drunk driving: nearly 20,000 a year.

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The World Heath Organization estimates that as many as ten million people are already infected by the HIV virus.

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I read that on an average day there are 1.1 million patients in hospitals.

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Now when you consider all this in light of the fact that in the beginning everything was perfect, you can't help but ask the question WHAT WENT WRONG?

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Genesis chapter 3 tells us what went wrong. In a nutshell, man said no to God and yes to the devil and we have been paying for it ever since.

Man was given all the earth to enjoy. But the only restriction was one tree in the garden: the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God said to leave it alone.

I'm sure you know what happened. Satan tempted Eve and Eve ate. Eve gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. We, now, live in a sin-sick world. There are many lessons that we can learn from Genesis 3.

We can learn how Satan goes about tempting people. His method has not changed in almost 6,000 years. Satan attempts to debate God's Word and then gets us to doubt God's Word. How much more susceptible are you to the temptation from Satan if you don't know God's Word? I think we all know the answer to that question. Therefore, I think we can also learn how important it is to read, study, and understand God's Word.

We also learn how gracious God is to forgive and restore. God didn't have to forgive. He didn't have send Jesus because of what happened in Genesis 3. God forgave us because of the great love with which He loves us. This doesn't give us "license" to sin, but it does show us that our sin isn't bigger than God's love and forgiveness.

Serving Him,

Bro. Joey