We have two DIVINE RIGHTS!  These two rights were instituted by GOD in the Garden of Eden and given to Adam and Eve.  When Adam and Eve made their choice to disobey God many things were lost to future generations.  However, these two rights are still with us!  The first right is our Divine Right to HEAR the voice of God!  The second right is our Divine Right to CHOOSE!  The right to hear God’s voice is most IMPORTANT!  Why?  Because having the freedom to talk with God regarding the choices we must make in our lives – is paramount!

However, many people do not value God’s guidance.  People want to do what they want to do – WHEN they want to do it!  After making their own choices and setting them into motion - when things begin to fall apart it is that point - its back to God asking Him to - FIX IT!

Most people across the world know the story of Adam and Eve and what took place there.  After creating the Heavens and the earth God then created a beautiful garden, and then God created man from the dust of the earth, and He breathed life into him!  After creating the man God took a bone from the side of the man and created a woman.  In the evenings God would come and spend time with Adam and Eve in what the Bible calls “at the time of the evening breeze”.

God wanted a relationship with Adam and Eve.  The Bible indicates in Genesis 3:8 that spending time with Adam and Eve was especially important to God and because it was - He came to them every evening!  That is how important relationship was to God in the beginning and - it still is!  You see spending time with someone brings – relationship!

When building a relationship with God or with anyone else for that matter it is necessary to be extremely interested in what the other person has to say!  SHARING and LISTENING – THAT IS WHAT RELATIONSHIP IS ALL ABOUT!  Until we truly learn that truth – it is only then – can we honestly say we have a relationship with God or anyone else!      

As we move on - please keep in mind that God prepared and set into place everything that Adam and Eve would ever NEED!  Everything!  However, there was just one thing they were NOT supposed to do – just one thing!  Here is what God said to them: “You may freely eat from every tree in the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  You are not to eat from it, because on the day that you eat from it, it will become certain that you will die.”

One day Adam and Eve had a visitor, and a discussion began between the serpent (Satan) and - Eve.  Adam was standing right next to her!  The discussion was regarding the fact they could not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and if they did, they would die!

“Being the crafty, creature he was, the serpent (Satan) told Eve that what she just had shared was not true!  In other words, Satan was telling Eve that God had lied to her! “The serpent said to the woman, “It is not true that you will surly die; because God knows that on the day you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God knowing good and evil.”  At this point Eve pondered what the serpent said.  Then she ate.  She found the fruit was desirable and she gave some to Adam and he ate.  At that moment, their eyes were opened, and they realized they were naked.  They made clothes out of fig leaves and then they heard the voice of God!  They attempted to hide BUT! “They heard the voice of ADONAI, God, walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, so the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of ADONAI, God, among the trees in the garden.  GOD ADDRESSED ADAM FIRST:  ADONAI, God, called to the man, “Where are you?”  He answered, “I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, so I hid myself.”  He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree from which I ordered you not to eat?”  The man replied, “The woman you gave to be with me — she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate.”  ADONAI, God, said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman answered, “The serpent tricked me, so I ate. “ADONAI, God, said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all livestock and wild animals. You will crawl on your belly and eat dust if you live.  I will put animosity between you and the woman, and between your descendant and her descendant; he will bruise your head, and you will bruise his heel.” To the woman he said, “I will greatly increase your pain in childbirth. You will bring forth children in pain. Your desire will be toward your husband, but he will rule over you.”  To Adam he said, “Because you listened to what your wife said and ate from the tree about which I gave you the order, ‘You are not to eat from it,’ the ground is cursed on your account; you will work hard to eat from it as long as you live. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat field plants. You will eat bread by the sweat of your forehead till you return to the ground — for you were taken out of it: you are dust, and you will return to dust.”  The man called his wife Eve [life] because she was the mother of all living.  ADONAI, God, made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.”  Genesis 3:4-21 (CJB)

(sw-h)