To experience salvation in Christ requires humble repentance. It can’t happen without acknowledging that you’re sinful and you need and want Him to save you from that sin. He washes you and makes you righteous in the sight of God. Many tacks on extra conditions to that – such as holy living. They argue that if you sin, you forfeit your salvation. As Pastor Mike will clarify in today’s message, that’s not how it works. You should desire to live holy, but there will be moments of weakness as long as you walk this earth.

There’ve been theological debates for a long time over whether God knew that man would fall into sin. Did He know even before the fall that He would need to send His Son to die on the cross and secure our salvation? Those are some big questions. No human being can claim to understand or fathom the mind of God and His position as an eternal being, but as Pastor Mike will point out in today’s message, we find a prophetic hint to Christ in these moments following Adam and Eve’s fall in the Garden.

Sin leads to more sin. It’s a downward spiral that can’t correct itself. Instead of seeking out a way to stop it, our inclination will be to justify it and harden our hearts to the convictions we feel. This has happened on a massive scale in our modern world. We’ve gotten to a point where wrong has been labeled as right and normal. In today’s message, Pastor Mike will continue our study of the book of Genesis and help us understand the beginnings of this destructive state that we find mankind in.

We are so easily deceived. Even Adam and Eve – perfect humans who intimately knew God and literally walked and talked with Him – fell into the deception of Satan. Why would we expect to be able to discern his lies any better? In today’s message, Pastor Mike will continue our exploration of this decisive moment in our history. The enemy will dress up temptation in the finest dresses. At first glance, it may appear to be a good thing, and you’ll easily find justification for it… but it always brings destruction.

When you watch the news or browse social media, the condition of this world is heartbreaking. Wars, rumors of war, violence, discord, oppression, and various atrocities plague our world. How could God let this happen? As Pastor Mike will explain in today’s message, all this evil is a byproduct of God’s love for humanity. He designed us with the choice to love and obey Him or to reject and rebel. Sadly, many have chosen rebellion and it’s led to the brokenness that surrounds us in this place.

Most of us have a misplaced sense of independence. We like to think that we “answer to no one.” But, that isn’t the case and it wasn’t the case for Adam and Eve either. As Pastor Mike will explain in today’s message, all of us will be held accountable to God. Your choices in this life can either be driven by a desire to serve yourself, other people, or God. When you choose to leave God out of it, ignoring His existence and sovereignty, you’ll find little reason to serve anyone but yourself.

While there’ve been many times in the history of the Church and out, that women have been relegated to second class status under men, that’s not approved by any of the teachings of Jesus or any other portion of Scripture. This way of thinking assumes that having different roles and characteristics means you’re unequal. In today’s message, as Pastor Mike examines the creation of Eve, we’ll be reminded that in Christ, all of us are equal and called to bring glory to God with the roles and gifts He gives us.

It is not good for man to be alone. When God created Adam on the 6th day of Creation, He concluded that He was good. But, before we even make it halfway through the next chapter, God deems that Adam needs help. He needs a companion. Was God surprised by this, or was it His plan all along? As Pastor Mike will point out in today’s message, this need led to arguably God’s most wonderful Creation: woman. Adam was incomplete without her and together they became whole.

Adam and Eve were formed from dust and given life by the breath of God. They were born into freedom, with the choice to love their Creator or disobey Him. In the midst of the perfection of the Garden, temptation and deception came in from a fallen angel named Lucifer. As Pastor Mike will point out in today’s message, the man went from purity and intimacy with God to defilement and separation from Him. But, immediately after the fall, God offers us our first promise of a Savior who would crush the deceiver.

Who are we, what are we, and why are we here? This question has weighed on the hearts of men since the beginning. We’d really like to find an answer. Many have gone to their graves, having spent the majority of their lives, as well as their bank accounts, in an effort to find it. As Pastor Mike will explain in today’s message, we have easy access to the answer in God’s Word. The book we’ve been studying, Genesis, offers an explanation directly from our Creator.