THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GOD AND MANKIND

In the relationship between God and Adam, we can learn a lot about how God relates to us and how we relate to Him. First of all, God was the head of the relationship between them. God was the creator, and Adam was the creature. God was the one who decided what was best for Adam. He determined what Adam's responsibilities were: multiply through child birthing, take care of the animals, take care of the Garden of Eden, and not eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Genesis 2:15-17 says, "The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. But the Lord God warned him, 'You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden—except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.'" Ultimately, God was responsible for Adam's well-being. Adam, on the other hand, was under the love and care of God. He completely relied on God's goodness and authority. His responsibility was to listen and obey God. Everything that God told him was for His own good. 

There was no slavery in their relationship. Adam had complete freedom to choose however he wanted to live his life. He had the freedom to choose whether to obey God's commands or not; however, God informed him that there would be consequences for disobedience. In the same fashion, our relationship with God is the same, except in a different context. We are not in the Garden of Eden anymore, and we are now living in this fallen world. However, God is the head of our relationship with Him. He takes care of us and guides us to the right way. He determines what is good for us and how we should live our lives. He takes care of us with His love, grace, and mercy. He disciplines us when we disobey Him because He treats us as His precious children. Our responsibility is to trust and obey His commandments and instructions. We trust his love and worship Him because He is our God. It is very clear in the beginning through Adam's relationship with God that God created us for Himself and not for ourselves, even though He gave us free will to make a decision on however we want to live. 

God wants us to use our free will to choose to live for Him. The problem that we have today is that we do not want to be governed by God because we want to live according to our own desires, and not His desire. We want to be independent from Him, instead of relying on Him for everything. We will talk more about this in the coming daily devotions. Have a blessed day.

Questions for application: (Think through these questions carefully, meditate on them while answering them, and let the Spirit of God speak to you.) What are God's responsibilities in His relationship with me? What are my responsibilities in my relationship with God? Describe my current relationship with God or how is my current relationship with God? 

Take a moment to write down all your worries today. Then, lift them up to God in prayer, surrendering them to His will and trusting in His guidance.

Prayer:

Dear Father in Heaven, you are my God and my creator. Thank you for taking care of me with your love, grace, and mercy. I acknowledge and submit my life under your loving and caring authority. Please help me to live for you by pursuing your desires, instead of mine. I realized that your ways are better than my ways because you know what is best for me. Please help me to trust you and obey your Word. In your name, Jesus, I pray, Amen.