There's only two types of people: those condemned in Adam & those saved in Christ.
Read / Listen
Read Genesis 2:4-18
Listen to passage & devotional:
Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 45
Q. How does Christ’s resurrection
benefit us?
A. First, by his resurrection
he has overcome death,
so that he might make us share
in the righteousness
he won for us by his death.
Second, by his power we too
are already now resurrected to a new life.
Third, Christ’s resurrection
is a guarantee of our glorious resurrection.
Summary
The first chapter of the Bible presents a play by play account of God speaking the world into existence, with each completed day punctuated by God concluding "it is good!"
This second chapter adds more detail to the story, especially regarding the pinnacle of God's creation: man. God created man differently than the rest of the cosmos; whereas He had simply spoke everything else into creation, He formed the man from the dust and put His own breath into him.
God had a job for His new image bearer: to work His beautiful garden and take care of it. In other words, Adam's purpose - and your purpose - is to ensure that all of creation continues to reflect the holiness of the one who created it.
But Adam's existence was far from being all work and no play. God had already set a pattern of rest into His creation, and Adam was free to eat and enjoy the abundance of the garden and God Himself would come and enjoy the 'cool of the day' with Adam (Gen 3:8).
Adam had but one rule to follow: he must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for he would die if he did so.
Dig Deeper
All through scripture, God refers to His chosen people as being His covenant people. A covenant is a solemn arrangement in which two parties contract with one another in a contingent format. For example, a covenant could be as simple as one person saying to another, "I will do this if you will do that."
The simple covenantal formula that God enters into with His people in every generation is best expressed in Jeremiah 7:23:
Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people.
So it should come as no surprise that God immediately enters into the covenant relationship with His new image bearer, Adam that we read about in today's passage. God gave Adam life, and in return Adam must give God obedience. As long as Adam obeyed, God would give life, but if the covenant was broken, Adam would die.
In theology we call this arrangement the Covenant of Works. The New Testament makes clear (Rom. 5 & 1 Cor. 15) that Adam wasn't just an independent contractor, but that he represent all of humanity.
Even though Adam defaulted on his half of the covenant, God has not dropped His righteous requirement of perfect obedience.
The implication is clear. If you want everlasting life & enjoyment, you must give God everlasting, perfect obedience.
But you can't.
That's why we celebrate a new representative. One who went all the way to death in order to pay Adam's penalty, and one who provided the perfect everlasting obedience that God requires so as to earn everlasting life.
God made it immediately clear that Christ's obedience was sufficient to fulfill man's covenantal obligations in that He restored Jesus' dead and buried body to everlasting life. And since you share in Christ's righteousness, you can be confident that you to will live forever in peace with God.
"In Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive (1 Cor. 15:22)." Praise God that in Christ you have fulfilled the Covenant of Works and will enjoy life with Him forever!
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our covenant God, the creator of all that is who has called us to a life of righteousness.
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God that through Christ you've earned everlasting life, and pray for wisdom to fulfill your purpose of ensuring God's creation reflects His holiness.
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 14
