Walking With Christ

The bible has a lot of answers. It makes a lot of statements. What about questions? What was the first question written in the bible?

Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”.(ESV)

This was the serpent speaking to Eve. What was the first question that God asked in the bible? We see that just a couple of verses later after Adam and Eve had both eaten of the fruit.

Genesis 3:9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”(ESV)

This was the first of several questions that God asked. What about the first question that was asked by a human?

Genesis 4:9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?”(ESV)

Think about these firsts. The serpent asked the first question in an attempt to cast doubt on the goodness of God. He told Eve that the only reason we couldn’t eat the fruit was because God didn’t want the competition. We obviously fell for the trap. God’s first question was to seek out Adam and Eve. He knew the answer, of course. It wasn’t because He didn’t know that answer. He asked to prompt us to come out of hiding.

The first question from a human was an attempt to avoid responsibility. Cain knew full well where his brother was. He had put him there. All three of these questions were asked even though the one asking knew the answer. What else do these questions do?

They reveal a great deal about the one asking.

The serpent asked a question it knew the answer to with the intent of using that answer to hide the seed of doubt. God asked the question knowing where Adam and Eve were to give them an opportunity to turn to Him and fix what was broken. Cain, who knew where his brother was, asked a question about responsibility in the hopes of deflecting that responsibility.

The enemy only wants to cast doubt about the goodness and faithfulness of God. That’s his only goal and his only real weapon.

God seeks us out to tell us that the door to Him is always open.

Mankind seeks to avoid the blame or responsibility for their own actions. We often put off doing things that we know we should do or make excuses for doing the things we know that we should not do. Cain was his brothers keeper. Cain was responsible for where his brother was.

Just like Cain, we also have a responsibility to those around us. If we, as Christians, sit around and do nothing but worry about our own well being then we have missed one of the most crucial aspects of Christianity. We are called to disciple one another. We are called to sow seeds for the kingdom. We are called to care for the sick and the elderly. We are called to sacrifice, even the ultimate sacrifice, for others.

Father,
No matter how many times we read the bible we always find something new about You to love and enjoy. The ways that You reveal Yourself to us constantly astound and amaze us. There is such majesty and mystery in how You wove this narrative together. We thank You for Your love and grace that was revealed even in the vert first question You asked of us. Your heart for mankind has been obvious from the very beginning. Your nature is the one we seek through our trust and faith in Your son Jesus. It is in Him we place all of our hopes. It is through Him and His sacrifice that we see You clearly. We ask that You continue to minister to us and show us the great mysteries that You delight in showing us every day.

In Jesus name we pray, amen.