I am not much of a gardener myself. My entire family can tell you, my daughter especially, that if you get me plants, roses, or flowers, they’re probably not going to last a very long time, unless they’re like the dead ones or the fake ones that look real. Then, it’s awesome. I’m just the worst at it.
But when I think about gardening or snakes entering, I immediately go back to the Book of Genesis. I personally love Genesis, especially lately. I think I’ve found myself just reading it over and over again. I’m sure my husband is kind of tired of me saying, “Oh baby, look what I found,” or “Did you ever think about this?” or you know, just different things that I’ve seen there. Because I’ve just been drawn to it lately. So I just found it very interesting and actually kind of exciting that when God wanted me to talk about the war snakes in the garden, it would take me back to the Garden of Eden.
We all know the story of how Eve was deceived in the garden and it caused all of this chaos and mayhem that we have right now. What I really wanted to do is go through Genesis 3 and look at exactly what happened and how this even continues to apply to us today. When we talk about being on guard, because one thing that we know, and if you don’t know, the devil is not creative. He’s not doing anything new. The Bible also tells us that Paul talks about us being aware, like we are not ignorant of his schemes, of his plans, because he’s been sinning from the beginning. He’s been lying and scheming from the beginning. And Ecclesiastes says, “There’s nothing new under the sun,” nothing new including what the enemy tries. So, what he has been trying and doing from the beginning, he is continuing to do today. And especially now, we know that we are in the last days, and the Bible tells us that we are going to be deceived. That even the very elect among us will be deceived. So, it’s very important that we are not ignorant and that we keep our eyes open. And as the title is today, that we are on guard.
So when we look at Genesis 3 and the first verse, it says, “The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made.” And one day, he asks the woman, “Did God really say?” I’ll pause right here for a second because that part always gets me. One day, he asks a woman, “I’m sorry, what?” So, serpents used to talk back in the day, right? I don’t know if anybody caught that. Some of you may, but you know, it just even begins to open your mind to think that the animals that we see today, that we know today, they were not the same, or they could have been different than the ones that were back in Eve’s day. Clearly, she was not startled by the snake talking to her. That even there is a point because maybe he said, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden’?”
So, Eve wasn’t like, “Oh my gosh!” She wasn’t frightened, she wasn’t afraid, she wasn’t startled. It wasn’t anything that was foreign to her. So that told me two things. One, of course, clearly serpents talked back in the day. But second of all, he presented himself in a way that was welcoming, that was not scary or frightening.
He continues to do the same today. There’s a saying, “Beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing,” and it still holds true. Be cautious of things that appear perfect or appealing because they may be traps from the enemy. We must always be guarded by the word of God. Vet everything that is presented to us against what the word says to avoid being deceived. The enemy questions what we know, just like he asked Eve, “Did God really say you must not eat of this fruit?”
It’s important to realize that the enemy is aware of what God says and what we should know. He makes us question what we already know. For example, he makes us doubt our worth, beauty, or the love of our spouse. These questions make us doubt what we should know. We must be aware that the enemy will twist the truth and try to deceive us.
Eve initially did the right thing by stating what God had said. She knew the boundaries set by God. Jesus also fought the enemy’s temptations with the word of God. We must know the word so that we can resist the enemy’s attacks. Eve, however, was not fully convinced of what the word said. The serpent convinced her that she wouldn’t die but would gain wisdom. Sometimes we question what we know, doubting God’s promises and our identity. The enemy preys on our desires and tries to convince us that what we know is not true.
We should trust in what God says about who we are. Beware of the people around us who try to knock us off God’s path. The enemy doesn’t come as a scary figure but as someone appealing, offering things we desire. We must be aware and guard our hearts, minds, and vision. In these last days, it’s crucial to be on guard against deception.
God questioned Adam and Eve’s whereabouts to acknowledge the separation caused by their disobedience. Adam blamed Eve, and Eve blamed the serpent. We must take responsibility for our own actions. God’s grace and mercy are available to all. If we have strayed, we can seek forgiveness and realign ourselves with God. We need to ask God to open our eyes to the snakes in our garden, the influences that are not aligned with His will.
The enemy is the father of lies, and his tricks are not new. Let us all be aware, on guard, and mature in our faith so that we can spread the gospel and establish the kingdom of God. May we remain vigilant and not be ignorant of the enemy’s tactics.