In the Beginning… They had it great
Grandpa told Jackson, “In the beginning Adam and Eve had it great…”
What was so great?
In your Bible, look at Genesis 1:26 – 1:31 to see the ways that God blessed the first two people He made.
(God blessed them, He told them to rule or take care of the earth and the creatures on it, He gave them each other, He made them in His image, etc.)
Also Genesis 2:4 – 2:25 tell specifically about how God made Adam and Eve. These verses tell us more about how Adam and Eve had it so “great” in the beginning.
(God gave them everything … WOW that is GREAT! He gave them everything except for the one tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil).
After giving them all those blessings and gifts, God gave Adam and Eve one rule. What kind of obedience did God ask of Adam and Eve? Read Genesis 2:15-17.
(In verses 16 and 17 God told them “…you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." God wanted 100% obedience.)
What was their response to God’s commands? Read Genesis 3:6
(They ate of the fruit God had told them NOT to eat.)
Who’s “The Boss?”
So by disobeying God’s rule for life in the Garden, Adam and Eve sinned. Like Grandpa told Jackson, they wanted to “be the boss.”
Who should have been the Boss?
(God!)
Why is God “the Boss?” Think about the words to the song that Jackson sings!
(God is the creator --- big and strong and mighty… so He has the right to decide what is best for His creation.)
Who knew what was best for Adam and Eve as they lived in the Garden?
(God knew what was best for them! He had made them… He had made the Garden! He loved them --- He had blessed them with life in this wonderful Garden --- and He wanted what was best for them!)
What did Adam and Eve do that was wrong? Read Genesis 3:6 to find out how Adam and Eve sinned against God.
(They ate of the fruit that God said not to eat… but even if they just “took one little bite”…the big deal is that they did not obey God’s command! They wanted His place as “the Boss.”)
How did Adam and Eve act when God asked them about disobeying? Did they admit they were wrong? Read about what happened in Genesis 3:8-13.
(First they tried to hide from God. Then they blamed others for their sin --- Adam blamed Eve, and she blamed the serpent.)
The Best Way to Live
Grandpa told Jackson that Adam and Eve are everyone’s great, great, great, great grandparents. Just like God gave them instructions for living in their garden home, He also gave US instructions for living.
Read Exodus 20:1-17 to find out God’s “rules for living.” What are some of God’s commands to His people?
(Make God most important in your life. Don’t let other things take God’s place in your life. Don’t take someone else’s life, and don’t take someone else’s stuff. Honor your parents. Take one day each week to worship God.)
That’s quite a list. Why do you think God can make all these rules?
(Remember He is the Boss because He made all of us. He blessed us, like He blessed Adam and Eve. He knows what is best for us. He knows these rules are the best way for us to live! He wants what is best for us!)
Uh oh. Can you keep all these rules? Be honest!
For example, one of God’s instructions is to “Honor your father and mother.” Can you think of times when your mother has asked for you to “clean your room” or told you “no… you may not watch that show right now?” How have you responded? Do you obey her EVERY time? Do you obey her the FIRST time she asks?
Ummmmm…. Uh……uh oh…………we’ve all broken God’s rules.
The Big Blue Ball
We can’t obey God’s rules perfectly. Think back to the part of the story where Grandma and Grandpa take Jackson out on the sidewalk with the big blue ball. Have you tried to throw a ball to someone standing far away like Jackson tried to throw it to his Grandma?
As Grandpa mentioned, trying to throw the big blue ball to a faraway spot is kind of like trying to obey God --- we all fall short. That is “sin” --- falling short, or missing the mark.
Read Romans 3:23. Who has fallen short?
(ALL have sinned and fallen short. ALL of us! Me and you and everyone else, too!)
But the good news is that “God had a plan long before we were born…”
What was God’s plan from long ago? Earlier, we talked about Adam and Eve living in their Garden home with God. Then we learned about how they wanted to “be the boss” and disobeyed His one rule. Do you know what happened next? God told them about his GOOD NEWS… HIS PLAN!
Read Genesis 3:15-16. In these verses God is talking to Adam and Eve and the Serpent after Adam and Eve had disobeyed in the Garden. The “seed of the woman” that He mentions will be a person --- a descendant of the woman… a great ,great great, great, great, great, great, great grandchild of the woman, if you know what I mean. So read these verses and see if you can understand what God promised to do! (God promised to send a Savior, who would be hurt on his heel, and who would crush the evil serpent!)
Now, thousands of years later, we know that God kept that promise and sent JESUS. Jesus was a great, great, great,great… you understand …. He was a descendant of the woman --- her seed. He got hurt on his heel at the cross when the soldiers pounded nails through his feet. But He crushed that evil serpent because Jesus did not just DIE… He rose again as the WINNER over death!
What Did Jesus Do?
Grandma told Jackson that Jesus was perfect… He
was always good.
Do you wonder how could He do that? There was something special about Jesus.
Read 1 Peter 2:22. What did Jesus do?
(The verse says He committed no sin! So that means He did not fall short! He obeyed
God’s rules! He was not just a normal person like you and me.)
So Jesus was perfect. He never sinned. He never fell short! He kept God’s rules for living! He obeyed His heavenly Father! WOW!
But Grandma also said that Jesus was punished for our sins when He died on the cross. Read Isaiah 53:5-6. What do these verses say about Jesus? What do these verses say about us?
(He was pierced, He was crushed, He was wounded. The verses say we are not perfect --- transgressions, iniquities, etc. --- but that we have peace with God because Jesus took our punishment.)
Let’s think about whom should have been punished… What did Adam and Eve deserve for their disobedience? What do we deserve? Read Luke 23:41. A dying man is talking about himself and then pointing to Jesus.
(We deserve punishment)
What kind of punishment is given for sins? Read Romans 6:23 to find out.
(The punishment for sins is death.)
Jesus took our punishment. He gets our sins and our punishment. It’s like a trade! Read 2 Corinthians 5:21 to see what we receive in this “trade.”
(We receive the righteousness of Christ--- which means we receive “right standing” with God.)
It’s a trade, where Jesus is punished for our sins and where we become “righteous” --- which means that God sees us as if we are 100% obedient. After believing in Jesus, God treats us like His perfect Son Jesus --- He treats us like we have obeyed! He gives us eternal life and no punishment!
I Want to Be God’s Friend
Even though we deserve punishment, Jackson said, “But I want to be God’s friend…” And Grandpa told him… “You can be His friend and more. You can be His child and enjoy Him forever…”
Now that’s great news! We can be friends even after we have sinned against him because God will forgive us for our sins if we believe in Jesus. How can our relationship with God our Father be healed after we have sinned? Read John 1:12.
What does it mean to “believe in Jesus?” Two things:
Believe about ourselves: We must believe that we are sinners, so we deserve punishment for our sins. Believe about Jesus: We must believe that we NEED what Jesus DID. We need his perfect life, when he obeyed God’s rules for living. We also need His death, because He took the punishment for sins.
How do we “receive” Him?
We pray. We talk to God and admit to Him that we are sinners. We admit that we need what Jesus did. We ask Him to forgive our sins. We tell Him we want to be forever friends! Your prayer might go something like this:
God in Heaven… I want to be your child. I admit I am a sinner. I can’t keep all of your rules for living. I have wanted to be the “boss” just like Adam and Eve did. So I deserve to be punished for falling short. But I believe in Jesus! I believe He was perfect and I believe He was punished for my sins! So would you please forgive me for my sins?
This is how we can be friends with God. This is how God forgives us. This is how Jesus saves us from our sins.
Life with God as Forever Friends
So if you believe in Jesus, and you have received God’s forgiveness for your sins, you can have a relationship with God --- forever! What’s that like? Some of the verses below will help you understand ---
He talks to us! We can hear from Him in His Word, the Bible. God is a God who wants to be KNOWN! He is not hidden. He reveals Himself to us in His Word (the Bible) and in His creation. When we sin against God … and we still will sin… we can honestly confess to him and He promises to forgive us! Read 1 John 1:9.
We can talk to Him. He wants to hear from us! Read Jeremiah 33:3 – it’s like God’s “phone number!”
We are never alone! God promises He is always with us! Read Hebrews 13:15b and Matthew 28:20b.
God sends His Holy Spirit to live in our hearts. Read John 14:26.
When we sin against God … His Holy Spirit can help us change. He wants us to repent, or turn away from sin --- like making a U-turn! Read Ezekiel 18:30, which tells us to “turn away” from our sins.
When we die we will enter into heaven where God lives! Read Luke 23:43 --- it’s the promise Jesus made to one of His friends, and it’s a promise for you, too!
Heaven will be great --- like Adam and Eve’s Garden home before they sinned against God. Read Revelation 21:4 and 21:10 – 22:5 to see what heaven will be like!
For Parents, Grandparents, and Teachers
Deuteronomy 6:5-9
Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.
“Jackson’s Song” explains the good news of knowing God in terms that even young children --- like Jackson --- can understand. Grandma and Grandpa were just talking about God during the daily events of family life --- swinging in the backyard, eating cookies, throwing balls. They explained to Jackson about how people can be “forever friends” with God by believing in Jesus. It’s good news that even a child can understand --- just find a mirror, a big blue ball, and maybe some cookies and milk to enjoy too!
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