The Beginning of the Gospel
And the LORD God called unto Adam and said unto him, Where art thou? Genesis 3:9
Read Genesis 3:9-11
The darkest and saddest page in all of Scripture is found in Genesis 3. Before our very eyes we see man (including ourselves) topple from his position of highest honour into a deep abyss. In a single moment Adam, a child of God, becomes a child of wrath and a slave of sin.
But this dark page in God’s Word is not without a flicker of light. This light is not in any way because man’s doing; it is only due to the pity and incomprehensible love of the Lord Who seeks lost sinners. Sometimes we speak of God’s love so thoughtlessly, but God’s love is precisely what we see happening before us: God seeks out fallen, trembling creatures who have hidden themselves among the trees of Paradise. He calls out, “Where art thou?” This marks the beginning of the gospel call, and it is also how it happens today. God and man do not meet each other half way because they both begin to look for each other. Rather, God seeks man. And when He looks for us, He always sees the same scenario: guilty sinners trying to hide, using many different ways to cover themselves up.
God’s dealing with man is not a question of working together; it is a one-sided action from the Lord. Already in eternity it was free grace alone which moved the Lord to seek sinners. Whoever experiences his guilt, his resistance, his powerlessness and despair may still expect deliverance. Thank God that salvation is not dependent on you and me. But it is just as the Lord Jesus would say during His ministry, that the good Shepherd seeks and finds His wandering sheep, then personally brings them home (Luke 15:5).
Thought: In Catechism class you are taught that remonstrance, or Arminian thinking is not an option, for then salvation is dependent on man. The Holy Spirit teaches us that Arminian thinking is not necessary, for the Lord does everything!
Psalter 446:2, 3 (based on Psalm 130) If Thou should’st mark transgression, O Lord who then could stand? For evil and oppression Are found on every hand. But Thou dost pardon fully All our iniquity, That we may serve thee truly And fear Thy majesty. I wait for God to hide me; My soul with longing stirred, Shall hope what e’er betides me, In His unfailing Word. My soul waits for Jehovah, With more intense desire, Than watchers for the morning, To dawn of day aspire.