The first two chapters of Genesis paint a picture of a loving Father creating the perfect home for his prized creation, man. The Father planted not only trees and plants bearing fruit, but the vegetation also bore seed so that it may continue to grow even after man ate of them (Genesis 1:11-12). In Eden, man did not have to work to find food. All vegetation was available to him (Genesis 1:29).
Sounds amazing! Free food, right there, for all. No money required. No labor required, unless you count peeling it.
I cannot take credit for a lot of the above connections, for many of them were made by the excellent exegetical preaching of a friend (see, I do pay attention). I will continue with more of his thoughts directly from the Bible, but for now, I want to pause.
Much modern discourse concerning the role of government, the economy, or how things should work in society is — whether knowingly or unknowingly — attempting to create a modern Eden. We want to create a society where there is no work, no pain, no death, no sorrow, and no injustice.
Doesn’t a society where man does not have to work but is cared for — whether with food, healthcare, or housing — sound wonderful? Doesn’t it sound inherently Christian? Perhaps Christians should be supporting this because it is so loving!
But as Christians, we are the one group who should know better!!
We all know what happens next in Genesis. Eve listens to the deception of both the snake and her own heart. She gives in to the idea that God is holding out on her, that He isn’t providing everything. So she sins, taking a bite of the fruit, then giving it to Adam, who also sins.
What’s their punishment? Genesis 3:17-19 states that Adam was cursed by having to work for his food. This basic and wonderful and plentiful thing God created for man was now more difficult to attain.
Christians know this. We know the curse of the snake, woman and man by heart. Yet we persist in trying to create an Eden on Earth.
The problem with this is that all of us fallen, sinful and broken humans are trying to restore something created by God in His perfection, holiness and wisdom, but broken by man. We’re the problem and we’re trying to fix it on our own!
Yes, our hearts are in the right place. But we are setting ourselves up for an impossible task. We are trying to do what only God can do. Only God can fix the curse.
And He will. Eden will be restored one day. Skip to the end of the Bible and read Revelation 21:1-7 which says that God will destroy this broken and cursed world. He will end the curse and Eden will be restored.
We will enjoy Eden. But only if we believe the Gospel, repent, die to ourselves, and be born again, surrendering our new lives entirely to God. Praise God, that anyone who does that can enter Eden, thanks to Christ!
What about now? Eden cannot exist in a fallen and cursed world and that’s exactly why socialism and communism never work. The left’s philosophy of good results without morality is also defunct. It seeks to fix a broken world without acknowledging what broke it. Even worse, they exalt it.
Christians don’t help the matter. We just condone and sometimes implicitly promote the sin that causes the brokenness, further separating others from Eden.
All that is left is to manage the sin that is in the world.
Not all sin should be managed by the government, mind you, just the sins that are harmful to society – the ones causing destruction to the body as well as the soul. Things like murder of the born and unborn; harm to the traditional family as it is increasingly accused of child abuse, long-term harm to children, harm to women and harm to men. The government should protect us from enemies outside our country that seek to destroy us. They are to protect the liberty given us by God, but not the liberty not given to us by God. In other words, our natural rights as recognized in common law.
All of this was enshrined in the Constitution. The Framers understood our laws could only work for a moral people. But even with that, those laws could not create an Eden. They could only provide a place of liberty until God restores Eden.
We must stop trying to create Eden, pursuing moral liberty instead. Not liberty for any and every moral, but one that will lead to flourishing and the ability to spread the Gospel so that more can join us in Eden one day.
This we shall do regarding the government and politics of the Earth as we wait excitedly for Eden.
“…and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His People, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” Revelation 21: 3-4 NASB
Laura Clark is a wife, mother, and community activist. She currently serves as the interim president of Alabama Center for Law and Liberty, a conservative nonprofit law firm that fights for limited government, free markets, and strong families in the courts. Anything written by Laura for this publication does not constitute legal advice.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to Commentary@1819News.com.
Don’t miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.
