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“And I will put enmity
between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush
your head, and you will strike his heel” —Genesis 3:15
I have a set of old rusty
keys. I also have some nice shiny ones. They come in handy. And, oddly enough,
they connect to Calvary.
As far as the historical
record is concerned the story of the cross begins in Genesis with the first
couple and the first sin. But God’s plan to deal with what He knew was
inevitable actually was in place before time was established and history was first
recorded. This is suggested in Revelation 13:8 when John refers to the “…the Lamb that was slain from the creation of
the world.”
It’s a pity. If there had been
no sin, there would have been no need for a Saviour to come and take our
punishment upon Himself; no need for a cross upon which He would have to die.
James Kennedy remarks in Cross
Purposes, Discovering the Great Love of God for You, that we seldom, if
ever, hear the word sin used
today—not even from some of our pulpits. Many people go so far as to deny that
such a thing as sin exists. We have invented more acceptable terms to describe
it—and excuse it. Kennedy once used the following example to illustrate sin’s
existence.
“I remember…saying,...‘ I wonder if I may see your keys. Do you have a
key ring?’ The man reached into his pocket and pulled out a key ring. I said to
him, ‘If there’s no such thing as sin, sir, tell me, why do you have these?’ He
was speechless. He has keys because he has locks. And why does he have locks?
Because he has things locked up. And why does he have things locked up? Because
there are people who would steal them if he didn’t. And why would they steal
them? Because they’re sinners. That’s why” (page 23).
It’s hard to argue with the
logic.
Adam and Eve decided to steal
God’s glory by competing for His position by doing what He had forbidden them
to do. Satan had made this claim, “For
God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be
like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5). The first couple fell for
the lie. We’ve been falling for the same lies ever since.
Their decision made Calvary
necessary. Our decisions, as sinners who have followed the path of our ancient
ancestors, made Calvary necessary. From the beginning of recorded history God
promised the coming of a Saviour (Genesis 3:15). Satan would try to destroy Him,
but He who would conqueror death on one glorious Resurrection morning would
also conqueror Satan and sin on one strangely glorious dark and deadly Friday.
Perhaps our need to reduce the
cross in our worship, and in our practice, is related to our desperate need to
deny the sin in us that made the cross necessary.
But all of us must confess to
having keys—and the locks that make the keys necessary. Every time we lock or
unlock a door we are reminded of sin.
