Genesis 2:18-19a, 20b-24 - Then the LORD God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him." Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. ... But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him. So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man He made into a woman and brought her to the man. And the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
I like the way God orchestrated Adam's marriage. He knew perfectly well that human beings would end up male and female, mated and reproducing. But Adam did not know. And it looks like God wanted him to appreciate His blessing.
So first He gave him the job of naming every animal in sight—which would have been interesting, and taken quite some time. But it would also have made him increasingly lonely, I think, as the animals came and went, and Adam discovered nothing like himself—nothing He could talk to, nothing that was his equal. And yet, the animals were not alone. They had their mates—even the porcupine, even the platypus! But not Adam.
It looks like God allowed that loneliness to set in. And then He put Adam to sleep and produced Eve, made from the same bone and flesh that Adam was—someone who was truly his match and mate, truly his equal. And Adam was overjoyed. How could he not be? And they became the first parents of the whole human race.
But even then, that was not enough. Even in a marriage between two then-sinless people, more was needed—and that was God's own company. And they had this too, as Genesis 2-3 tells us. That was enough to make them truly happy—truly not alone.
And this is how it is for us, too, isn't it? We need other people—even the most introverted of us, as we found out during the pandemic lockdowns. We need family and friends and neighbors—to challenge us, keep us company, and be a blessing to us. And above all, we need God with us.
Yet we aren't in the Garden of Eden anymore. Our sins ruin our relationships—both with God and with one another. And then we are lonely and grieving again. Which is why God, in His infinite love, decided to take on human nature and be born among us, as Jesus, our Savior. He came after us, to live and to die and to rise again, to take away the sin that separates us from Him and each other. And now He brings us into His family of love—as children of God, members of the body of Christ forever.
WE PRAY: Lord, thank You for restoring us to Yourself and to each other. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Reflection Questions:
1. Name one person you appreciate a lot.
2. How do you build good relationships with other people?
3. How has God brought you into relationship with Himself and His people?
Today's Bible Readings: Isaiah 50-52 Romans 9:16-33
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