NIV Discover God’s Heart Devotional Bible

The Great Accusation Against God

Genesis 3–5

God’s Story

All is well in the living masterpiece God created—for a little while. Soon, Satan, the enemy of God, slinks into the garden in the form of a serpent, and he sneakily raises doubts in Eve’s mind by calling God’s rule and his good heart into question. Eve is deceived. She disobeys God, eating the fruit of the tree God warned not to eat. Adam follows. This disobedience shatters their closeness with God and opens the door for evil, which oozes into God’s pristine creation like a foul, black shadow.

God goes after his people, who are now hiding in fear. He explains the consequences of their decision—life will be harder for them. And he vows to crush the serpent for his deception. Tenderly, God fashions leather garments for Adam and Eve to help cover the shame they now feel in their nakedness, and he banishes them from the garden so they won’t eat from the tree of life and live forever apart from him in their sin-stained state.

But tragically, sin spreads like a ravenous, hereditary cancer. Soon Cain, Adam and Eve’s first child, becomes the first murderer.

The King’s Heart

When the serpent questioned the single rule God had given, he was actually questioning the goodness of God’s heart. Twisted within Satan’s statements are these implications: “God is withholding something good from you. God cannot be trusted. He is not good.”

Creation resounded with the foundational truth of the universe: God is good. And the fall resounds with the foundational accusation Satan sends forth: Is he really?

This is Satan and his dark forces’ main tactic. Like cosmic prosecutors, they call God’s heart into question. Their intention is villainous: to get us to distrust and then distance ourselves from God.

This cosmic trial plays itself out in our own hearts. It comes in the form of fearful questions. They’re often questions we ask on our own, but sometimes, like Eve, we have help in the asking. We wonder: Is God going to take care of me? Is he good? Does God love me? Is he good?

If we could see reality, we’d see God loving us and lovingly carrying out his good plans for us. When the great accusation rises in our hearts, we answer it with the foundational truth of the universe and throw the weight of our hearts on it. God is good. Is he really? Yes, he is. He is good, good, good.

Insight

Genesis 3:15 is Satan’s epitaph. On the cross, Satan struck a blow to Jesus—the offspring of Eve—but it wasn’t lethal. Jesus prevailed, conquering death. Revelation 20:7–10 tells of the final crushing blow to Satan’s head. Satan will get his due.