So the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” Genesis 3:14-15

Though, perhaps hard for us to fully understand, the serpent was cursed with a greater curse than that of the rest of God’s creatures for its role in the temptation and fall of mankind. Not only would it have to die, but it would spend its life on its belly, eating the dust of the ground.

There would be enmity between the serpent and the woman, and between the serpent’s seed and the woman’s seed. This enmity is much more than a normal distaste for snakes and even destroying them when the opportunity arises. It speaks of the offspring of the devil’s lie and the Seed or offspring of the woman who would crush the serpent’s head and undo the damage done by the temptation of the devil in the garden.

The devil would fail in his attempts to deceive and mislead the promised Seed of the woman — Jesus Christ, Son of God and Mary’s Son — for Jesus did not give in to the devil’s temptations but was holy and without sin (cf. Matthew 4:1-11; Hebrews 4:15).

And, Christ Jesus, when He suffered and died upon the cross for the sins of the world, paid in full the punishment for all mankind’s sin and destroyed the devil’s work, opening up for all of us a way of salvation through faith in Him and His shed blood (cf. Hebrews 2:14-17). And so, though the old evil foe bruised the heel of Christ Jesus when He suffered in agony upon the cross, Jesus crushed his head and destroyed his evil work, opening up for us the gates to heaven, by paying in full for all our sins and then rising again from the dead on the third day.

The devil used God’s holy law to bring about mankind’s condemnation by tempting Adam and Eve to disobedience and bringing them under the curse of the law. Jesus, true man as well as true God, obeyed God’s law in the stead of all mankind and then suffered the just punishment for the sins of the world, rising again in victory on the third day, that the law would be fulfilled for all mankind and the just punishment for all sin fully satisfied. Cf. Galatians 3:10,13.

It is also true that there is enmity between the offspring of the devil (the unbelieving) and the children or offspring of God through faith in Jesus Christ (the believers). Thus, true believers continue to suffer hatred and persecution here in this world from those who do not trust in Christ Jesus or follow Him. But, in the end, all who have not trusted in the innocent sufferings and death of God’s Son for their salvation will be condemned and cast into the eternal torments of hell; and all who have trusted in Christ Jesus will live forever with Him in the paradise of God (2 Thessalonians 1:3-10).

In Jesus’ own words, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life … He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:16,18).

Dear Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God and Son of man, thank You for redeeming me from the curse and condemnation of God’s holy law by keeping it perfectly in my place, bearing my punishment upon the cross and then rising again on the third day. Graciously keep me trusting in You, and You alone, for my salvation. Amen.

[Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit. Psalm 51:10-12

After acknowledging his sin and praying to God for mercy and forgiveness for the sake of the coming Redeemer, David also prayed that God would create in him a clean heart to replace his sinful and wicked heart and renew in him a faithful and steadfast spirit which would hold fast to God and His Word and walk in His ways.

He prays that God would not cast him away from His presence and not take from him the Holy Spirit who creates and preserves faith in the Savior. Sin separates from God, but David prays that God would forgive his sins and restore in him the joy of God’s salvation and uphold him and keep him in the true and saving faith through the working of His generous Spirit.

We confess our sins to the Lord and ask for His mercy and forgiveness for the sake of Christ Jesus and His atoning sacrifice upon the cross (cf. 1 John 1:7 – 2:2), but do we pray that God would purify our hearts and desires? Do we ask that God not cast us away but change our hearts and minds by His Holy Spirit that we might desire and walk in the ways of the Lord?

Often, we desire God’s mercy and forgiveness but we have little desire for a change of heart, for God to create in us a clean heart which loves Him and desires to walk in His ways and live according to His Word. We wish to be spared from the punishment we deserve on account of our sins, but we do not truly wish to forsake our sins and live in accord with God’s perfect will, revealed to us in His Word.

Remembering that the end result of living in our sinful ways is death – both physical and eternal – shouldn’t we cling in faith to Christ who won for us eternal life and seek to walk in His ways? After all, Christ did not die for us so that we could continue on in our sinful ways; He died for us that we might be pardoned and forgiven and live for Him in accord with His Word (cf. Romans 6:23; 2 Corinthians 5:15; Ephesians 2:8-10).

And so, with David, we pray: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit.”

[Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Genesis 2:24

Why do we as Christians teach that marriage is the life-long union of one man and one woman? Why do we oppose same-sex marriage, sexual relationships outside of marriage and all forms of adultery? It all goes back to Genesis and God’s creation of the first man and the first woman (cf. Genesis 1:26ff.; Genesis 2:7.18ff.).

God created mankind male and female and gave them the command and the blessing to be able to have children and populate the earth. He created woman for the man – from Adam’s rib – and brought her to the man to be a helper and companion comparable to him. And it is for this reason “a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” – a new family unit in which children can be conceived and born and brought up to know and walk in the ways of the LORD God (cf. Ephesians 5:22-33; 6:1-4).

Why is divorce wrong and prohibited in the commandment against adultery? Jesus said (Matthew 19:4-6): “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Divorce, adultery, fornication, homosexuality, sodomy, bestiality and even lusting are not in accord with God’s purpose and design in marriage and are therefore a form of adultery – a perversion and abomination to our Maker (cf. Genesis 18-19; Leviticus 18; Matthew 5:27ff.; 19:3ff.; Romans 1:18ff.; Jude 7). And those who practice such things will not be a part of God’s eternal kingdom (Revelation 21:8; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10).

What hope is there for those who have failed to live up to God’s purpose and design in marriage? Our hope is in Christ Jesus who fulfilled all righteousness for us and then suffered the just punishment for all our sins (cf. 1 John 1:8-9; 2:1-2; Ephesians 1:6-7; 2:8-9). We repent of our sinful ways, look to Christ and His cross for forgiveness and then, as a fruit of our faith, seek to live in accord with His will and do those works He created us to do (Ephesians 2:10).

O LORD God, You created woman for the man, brought her to the man and thus instituted marriage as the life-long union of a man and a woman unto one flesh. Forgive us, for Christ’s sake, for our failures to live up to Your purpose and design in creation and strengthen us to live for You. Amen.

[Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

Not many people believe in the devil anymore, but I see definitive proof of his existence and workings. No, he’s not the little red man with horns and a pitchfork as many — and especially the devil — would have people believe. He’s a fallen angel, a powerful spirit, not visible to our eyes unless he chooses to take on a visible form.

The Bible describes him and those other angels who fell with him as “principalities … powers … rulers of the darkness of this age … spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12). Jesus calls the devil a “murderer” and a “liar” because he deceives the people of this world and brings about their spiritual and eternal ruin (John 8:44).

How do I know he really exists? Who else could deceive the people of this world to deny their Creator and believe in chance existence and evolution? The very fact that people believe and tout as “science” the notion that the earth and life on the earth is all the product of chance over billions and billions of years — even though the true evidence does not support it and the whole notion is mathematically impossible — is proof that someone, some being, has deluded their minds and holds them captive to foolishness.

And, of course, what better place to attack Christianity than at its source, at creation as described in the Genesis account! If an all-wise and all-powerful God is removed as the Creator, there is no basis for obedience to commandments given by God on Mt. Sinai and revealed through His prophets. After all, if God did not make us, what right would He have to give us commandments or to judge us when this life is over?

To be totally honest, if God did not create us as described in Genesis 1 and 2, all of Christianity (as well as Judaism and Islam) are bogus religions and deceptions. There would be no basis for morality, no basis for judging whether things are right or wrong. Not only would there be no basis for obedience to God’s commandments, there would be no reason for faith in Jesus Christ as God’s Son and the atoning sacrifice for the sins of all!

That, of course, was the devil’s goal! Take away people’s belief in God as the Creator, and everything else falls! Cf. Psalm 2. Indeed, the devil is no dummy. He knows where and how to challenge the truth and destroy the faith of God’s people. And who else could convince the “wise” people of this world that somehow life happened by chance and then evolved into present-day forms over longer and longer periods of time?

As a newspaper editor, if I believed this devil’s lie, even if I helped a bit by turning on my computer, I would then just sit back and wait until, by chance, all the right letters appeared on the pages in just the right order to make sense and be a readable article — perhaps, if I just wait a little longer! Even if I let my 3-year-old grandson help out a bit more by pushing the keys on my keyboard, I don’t think the letters, by chance, would turn into an intelligible article. I’m pretty sure, if I trusted in chance to produce a newspaper, I’d be fired in no time at all!

And yet, our modern “scientists” believe that something much more complex than the arrangement of 26 letters on a newspaper page exists by chance. They should have their “church services” in the gambling casinos. Their odds, though slim, would be far better than their faith in chance existence and evolution!

If I haven’t convinced you the devil is real by the world’s acceptance of chance existence and evolution, how about the inroads he has made into the churches and into the faith of believers? Pastors and believers try to twist the Bible around so that they can accept modern “science” and still be believers. That, of course, may be the biggest deception of all — changing the days of creation into eons and reducing God’s role as the creator into one who merely guided chance. I am always shocked when I hear pastors and those who claim to be Christian speak of an earth millions and billions of years old. There is no other explanation for such utter foolishness than deception by the devil himself!

Do you believe me yet? If not, perhaps a look at governments, judges and politicians will work. Who else could convince a panel of judges that an unborn child in his or her mother’s womb is not a human being? Who else could convince judges and politicians that homosexuality and same-sex marriages are normal and acceptable alternatives to marriage between one man and one woman? Who else could convince politicians that it is OK to pass laws or support with tax money immoral activities?

Yes, my list could go on and on. The evidence is undeniable and almost endless. It is as the Bible says: “The whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one” (1 John 5:19). Yes, the devil is real!

[Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]