Origins: The Beginning (Genesis 1–11)Sample

By Danny Saavedra

“Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’" Genesis 2:15-17 (NKJV)

Follow your heart.

Live for the moment.

You only live once.

These are phrases that have permeated our society that bases their actions on how they feel. We no longer look to any authority as a means for direction in our lives, we’re told to look to ourselves, we determine our destiny, we answer to no one. In fact, one atheist has suggested that we are possibly the last evolutionary step of homo sapiens (“wise humans”); we’re going to evolve into homo deus (“human god”). This is the result of living in a postmodern world where we are taught to question authority. 

At some point, we all have to ask ourselves who we are going to listen to—who will be the authority over our lives? Will it be ourselves and how we feel? Or will it be a wise and loving Creator who has given us boundaries for our lives for our own benefit?

When God gave the above command to the first living couple in the Garden of Eden, His intent was to provide both protection and purpose for their lives. Like a loving parent, He knows what’s best for us and asks us to place our trust in Him, not our own feelings. 

The challenge is not whether God has authority over us (He does whether we acknowledge it or not), it’s whether we will adopt the right heart attitude toward His authority. Obedience is not enough. Author K.P. Yohannan put it this way, “Submission is a heart attitude toward authority, whereas obedience is an action.”

There is a transformative power when we learn true submission to God’s authority in our lives. We begin to respond to His love by loving and worshipping Him out of the abundance of our hearts. We begin to experience a truly blessed life!

DIG: What does submission to God mean to you? Where are you challenged when it comes to submitting to God?

DISCOVER: Allow God to have authority over each area of your life. Keep a journal of the impact of submitting to Him as a reminder of His love and goodness in your life.

DO: Share with others the joy you have discovered in submitting to God!