When I went away to college, I was a California boy in the middle of Indiana. I was learning very quickly about the differences in culture from one part of the country to another. There weren’t many of us Californians on campus. I can only recall three others besides myself. Therefore I was having to adapt to the variations of the ways of people from the north, the midwest and the south. Sometimes it was fun. Sometimes it was frustrating.
One of the friends I made was a young man named Doug from Georgia. Doug and I had many interesting discussions. At times, we would point out something about the others habits that were part of their culture that wasn’t very flattering and could be painful to admit. However, one of the things we discovered was a commonality I fear we all have. Let me explain.
I visited Doug down in Georgia at the end of one of our school years. While visiting his home, he told me about a time that he and his brother, Jerry, got into a ruckus. Jerry was only a little over one year younger than Doug. Their father had sent them out to work in the family vegetable garden. However, they had gotten into an argument about their work. As their tempers flared, their good sense departed. Doug in his anger struck Jerry with a hoe. It cut his head and he cried out in surprise and pain.
Their father heard the outcry and yelled out at them, “What’s wrong?” They were both frightened of getting in trouble, so they ran into the house and hid under the bed. There they were side by side – hiding under the bed. Jerry’s head was bleeding profusely, but they were afraid of getting caught. There was their father, searching for them, able to care for the cut head, but not being able to find them.
Why do we do that? What is it in us that makes us want to hide when we’ve done something wrong? Sometimes help can be near, but we don’t want to face our guilt – we don’t want to confess our wrong. That often includes our sin.
Adam and Eve were given a blessed and honored position in the Garden of Eden. Food was there – abundantly! They were given freedom to eat whatever they wanted except for the fruit of one particular tree. They were told specifically not to eat the fruit of that tree. But, they chose to eat that fruit anyway.
Make note of this – they chose to eat it. No one forced them to do so. It wasn’t a foolhardy mistake they made. They weren’t weak and couldn’t help themselves. No! It was a choice they made.
Then they heard God coming to have fellowship with them like He was accustomed to doing. What did Adam and Eve do? They hid. They didn’t want to face God knowing what they had expressly been forbidden to do, but did it anyway.
A child, caught in the act of doing something they know they shouldn’t be doing, will hide. They hide behind lies. “I didn’t do it, my brother, Johnny did it.” Adults, acting more like children, will do the same – lie about it – trying to hide.
Far better to fess up – admit it and repent of it, asking forgiveness. That forgiveness they are seeking is there to be had, especially with God. (We humans could do a better job at this point.) We just have to own up to our sin, our bad, our failures and ask for forgiveness. Don’t hide; it doesn’t work.
– Just a Thought Dale Fillmore is lead pastor at New Day Church.
