To say the least, today’s post is totally different from what I had anticipated a couple of weeks ago. When I initially launched into this three-part series with God’s first question to Adam and Eve, “Where Are You?”, my objective was to point out some significant questions God asked them following their disastrous transgression. My intent was to highlight the implications those transgressions still have for us here and now. What I didn’t anticipate was that by the time we got to the last installment, our perception of what “here and now” looks like would have changed radically. Because of that, my approach to the final question in our series has had to undergo some unforeseen adjustments.

A Different Direction ~
My first inclination was to hit the pause button on our “Question for You” series and insert something more relevant to what’s going on right now in this historically significant time in our country, and as God has answered so many prayers of His people with Election Week coming to a close and bringing with it renewed joy and hope to so many followers of Jesus. But then the Lord seemed to suggest considering a different approach. What if we expand the scope of the question we had planned to explore today and look at it from a broader perspective? 

It occurred to me that whether we’re experiencing jubilant victories or crushing defeats, God is always thinking, planning, and working beyond the moment. He lives in the larger picture, and whether we realize it or not, so do we. The questions God asked in the Garden of Eden invite us to consider their role in our lives from both the immediate and eternal points of view. 

But before continuing to the implications of ‘here and now’, let’s return to Eden first and resume our eavesdropping as God interrogates His erring image-bearers. We pick up the conversation just after Adam’s attempt to explain and excuse their behavior by pointing out the discovery that they were naked. He sought to sidestep his own guilt by blaming Eve and then appeared to even indict God Himself for giving her to him. And with that, the stage was set for God’s third question . . .

And He [God] said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”
Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”
And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” (Genesis 3:11–13, NKJV)

Looking Beyond the Moment ~
As we highlighted in our prior sessions, God didn’t ask questions of any human being because He needed their information. He certainly didn’t need Eve’s input to figure out what had transpired between her and the serpent. That being the case, it’s clear that there are other purposes for this Divine inquiry with Adam and Eve, and those purposes extend beyond that moment in the Garden. The things in our history that God chose to inscribe and preserve forever may seem distant and removed now, but the lessons revealed in them are rooted in God’s changeless character, and they’re intended for all of us. The Apostle Paul made that abundantly clear in that profound Christian manifesto we call the Book of Romans when he included this: 

For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. (Romans 15:4, NKJV)

So, if God already knew the answer to His question, “What is this you have done?”, as He obviously did, what purpose might He have had in mind with that question to Eve? What principles might be illustrated by asking that penetrating, uncomfortable question? Being the omnipotent God that He is, He may have had several objectives in mind, but one stands out as primary, so let’s focus our attention on that one. 

We aren’t told how much time elapsed between their catastrophic violation of God’s commandment and God’s interrogation, but it’s obvious that they had enough time to try their hand at fashion design. It’s also obvious that shame and fear had shattered the unbroken shalom that had characterized their existence until that point, and their fig leaf wardrobe only emphasized their failure to restore it. But whatever the time frame was, this much is true … Eventual confrontation with the God who created us is inevitable, and His question to Eve reveals a key part of that process. 

An Expanded Introduction ~
A Adam and Eve’s affirmation of their disobedience wasn’t necessary in order for God to establish their guilt or formulate His judgment. He wasn’t on a quest to emphasize how egregious their rebellious behavior was. God’s attention at that juncture wasn’t focused on the impact of their condemnation or the nature of their punishment. His gaze was fixed on the cost of their redemption. Adam and Eve knew Him as their omnipotent Creator and their loving Provider, but they didn’t know that He would soon become their sacrificial Redeemer. Introducing Himself in that role only began to take shape when He said to Eve, “What is this you have done?” 

God also unveiled a principle in Eden that would be demonstrated throughout the thousands of years that would follow, and that is this. Confession is the first step on the road to redemption for sin-cursed, rebellious human beings. Clearly fig leaves and flimsy excuses didn’t work with God then, and they have failed every time such things have been tried since. As most of us have learned, the term “confession” literally means to say the same words – to define our behavior with the same words God uses, and to use His terms in considering the consequences He will impose. It’s a process that makes the concept of grace and redemption shine like a beacon in a dark and stormy night. In every case, agreeing with the loving God who created us opens doors to life and hope.

Doorways to New Opportunities ~
But awful failures aren’t the only places where new beginnings and new opportunities emerge. From God’s perspective both victories and defeats can be opportunities for new beginnings. Both can be major motivations to meet with God. Both can open doors for engaging in an honest discussion with Him about what the victories or defeats mean from His perspective. Both of those Divine engagements can lead to redemption that touches both our past and our future. 

As we think of victories, millions of our fellow Americans consider this week’s national election results to be a resounding victory against incredible odds. So it’s likely that some of us may still be joining in to sing the Psalm of David:

You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness (Psalm 30:12, NKJV)

The relief following months and months of divisive rhetoric, accusations, and threats feels wonderful, indeed, but the outcome doesn’t represent an end in and of itself. It represents an opportunity for a fresh beginning, an encouragement to partner with God to make changes that will help ensure a brighter future. This victory is an opportunity to remember that the God we serve lives in a larger story – and so do we, and the redemption He offers plays a role in our future, as well as our past. 

God wants to redeem us from the impact of the forbidden fruit we consumed in the past, but He also wants to extend the joy and increase the blessing of our victories for generations to come. But since we started our time in this series together with a question, and since the blessings of redemption seem to always begin with a challenging personal question, I have a suggestion . . . Instead of looking back and asking, “What is this you have done?”, how about seeking to redeem our future and responding to a question I believe God is asking each of us in the aftermath of Tuesday’s election. And that is, “What are you willing to do now?”