The story of the Fall in Genesis 3 speaks of the deceptive power of Satan, the independence of Man, and more importantly’ the nature of God’s astounding love for us. After Adam and Eve had eaten from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, their eyes were opened, and for the first time in their existence they had a self-consciousness that did not include the reality of God’s presence in their lives. They had been naked all along, but after the Fall they saw themselves, and each other through a different grid altogether. They were created to be in union with God, and only see themselves through the grid of that union, but because God’s presence had been withdrawn from within them, their self-consciousness was missing the most important thing that makes man truly man; God Himself. The result was self rejection, and the fear of rejection, from each other and from God, and so they sewed fig leaves and covered themselves up, and hid among the trees from God as he walked in the garden in the cool of the day to fellowship with them. There is so much about God’s relentless love and kindness that’s revealed in this chapter that we don’t have time to talk about today, but I want to point out one glorious example. In verse 21 it says, “And the Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.” This is certainly a prophetic foreshadowing of the cross, for we have here the first example of an innocent creature’s blood being shed so that mankind’s spiritual nakedness could be covered. It was at least a prophetic foreshadowing of the Old Testament solution, of animals being slaughtered year after year to cover the sins of the Jews, until the Lamb of God would come, and in shedding his blood, he would not just cover sin for one year, but He would take away the sins of the whole world. Once and for all; but what I want you to see is God’s personal kindness and affection for Adam and Eve that’s revealed in this verse. Nowhere in Genesis 3 do we have God screaming at Adam and Eve, in anger over their failure, or condemning them with a threatening tone. Instead, he laid out the solution to mankind fallenness, which would involve God personally being sold out to die on a Cross, that mankind might be redeemed.
In verse twenty-one I believe that we see God kindly slaughtering an animal, and then personally making the garment of skin, and then personally clothing them to cover their nakedness. After their Fall, Adam and Eve were afraid, and insecure, and instead of celebrating their brokenness because that’s what they deserved, in light of their sin; the God of the universe sat on his throne and sewed garments for these frail and fallen objects of his unconditional love, and he clothed them, to protect them from insecurity, and shame. He cared for them, and covered them in their frailty, and humiliation. This is who our God is. This is a glimpse of how he feels about us, and why he would come to earth and live as a human and die for fallen race that had turned its back on him. Just like he slaughtered the animal, and he made the garments personally, and then he clothed them. Picture this in your mind if you can; there they stand afraid, and insecure because of their own actions, God tenderly stooped down and wash their feet, as it were, and covered them, to minister to them in their confusion and pain. I don’t know about you, but this story makes me want to love Him back more than ever before, and a trust Him, who is so good, with everything.
