God Calls the Man

Read Genesis 3

“Then the LORD God called to the man and said to him, ‘Where are you?’” (Gen. 3:9, NASB).

Growing up in rural Tennessee my sisters and brothers and I often played together outside. When my mother wanted one of us or all of us she would call to us, and she would call the name of the child that she wanted to see. There was something about the voice of my mother when she called. We could just about guess why she was calling. Now, on a personal note, there was a different tone and volume in her voice when she wanted me to do something as opposed to her tone and volume when I had done something wrong. I suppose that her tone and volume also was enhanced in my mind by my knowledge that I had done something wrong, and it was likely that I would receive some kind of punishment. After all, mom had already warned me of the consequences of my actions.

As we read the creation story in Genesis 2-3 we learn that in a similar way God calls to the man in the Garden after his wife and he have done wrong by eating of the fruit from the tree that God commands him not to eat. God warns the man saying: ‘“From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die”’ (Gen. 2:16-17, NASB). God creates the woman. The serpent convinces the woman to eat the forbidden fruit and she persuades the man to eat also.

After eating the fruit the man and woman are consciously aware that they have disobeyed God’s command and they expect to receive His punishment. We read, “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin covering” (3:7). This verse points out three things that take place with the man after disobeying God’s command. First, their eyes are opened. God has put in every person a conscience. The man and the woman feel guilty because they know not only that they have done wrong; they know exactly what they have done. According to the theology of Apostle Paul all of us know when we do something to violate God’s law. However, we are guilty of suppressing this knowledge in our conscience. Secondly, the man and the woman try to cover themselves by sewing fig leaves together to cover themselves. They know that they are naked; that their sins are exposed to God. Third, they try to cover themselves by sewing fig leaves together.

When the Lord comes walking in the garden, the man and the woman hide themselves among the trees of the garden (2:8). At this point, the Lord calls the man, and the man hears the voice of the Lord in much the same way that I would hear my mother call. The cadence of God’s walk lets the man know that God is coming to punish him. The sound of His voice lets the man know that he is in serious trouble. God looks among the trees and the man knows that he can hide no longer. He comes to God knowing that he is in the hands of his creator. Why does God call to the man? Why did God not just kill the man or let him die?

God calls to the man and ask the question that God ask of every person. ‘“Where are you?’” (v. 9). Does God ask this question because God does not know? Does the omniscient God not know where the man is? Does the omnipresent God not able to see the man? God is not asking this question because of His own lack of knowledge. God calls to the man because He wants the man to become aware of where he is. He is giving the man a chance to confess and repent of his wrongdoing. This is our problem when we sin. We know that we have earned the punishment of God. Paul writes: “For the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23a). It is not until we hear God’s call and respond to His offer of forgiveness through Jesus Christ that we become aware of God’s gift of forgiveness and salvation. “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (6:23, NASB).

The man tells the Lord that the sound of God’s approaching makes him afraid because he knows that he has disobeyed God and his sin lies open to the eyes of the Lord and he hides himself. How many people are trying to hide from God? Yes, I remember that there were times that I did not answer my mother’s call immediately. I remained silent and tried to stay out of her sight. Mom always knew where I was hiding. She could come to the exact place that I had told myself would keep her from finding me. You cannot hide from God. God finds the man and calls him to give an account of himself. God is still calling people to give an account of themselves. Where are you? Why are you hiding? What have you done?

In Genesis 3:12-20 we read that God judges the man and the woman and the serpent. God institutes law for the man and the woman to live by. After instituting law God does something that the law cannot do. “The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them” (3:22). The law does not cover our sins. Instead, the law exposes our sin. The law tells us when we disobey, but there is no mercy in the law. So, God acts out of His grace. God does for the man and his wife what they cannot do for themselves. They sew fig leaves, but the leaves do not adequately cover them from the eyes of the One whose eyes search not only the outward man but also the heart of a man. So that they will be covered, God clothes them with garments of skin. Then God drives them out of the garden to live in a world of sin, hardships, and death. God makes it impossible for the man to enter the garden. “So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life.

It seems that mankind is eternally doomed. However, God has already announced hope for the man and his wife and all of their descendants. God judges the serpent and says these words to the serpent. “I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel” (3:15). The seed of the woman is Jesus of Nazareth; the Christ. Satan bruises the heel of Jesus at Calvary, but Jesus will bruise the head of the serpent when He comes to establish God’s righteousness in a new heaven and a new earth.

In conclusion, God calls the man to make him aware of his sins. He establishes law so that man can know that he is incapable of doing what is right in the eyes of God. The good news is that God calls the man to offer him a way to forgo the punishment pronounced by accepting the grace provided in the seed of the woman, Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord.