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Confessing the Truth

by | Jun 4, 2024 | Confession, Truth

And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, ‘Where are you?’ And he said, ‘I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.’ He said, ‘Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?’ The man said, ‘The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.’ Then the LORD God said to the woman, ‘What is this that you have done?’ The woman said, ‘The serpent deceived me, and I ate.’ The LORD God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her Offspring; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.'”

(Genesis 3:8-15)

Have you ever noticed how many times God asks questions in this story? Clearly He doesn’t need them to give Him information. God knew exactly what happened already. So why ask?

I’m guessing it’s for the same reason we urge people to confess their sins—because nothing good can happen when you’re still hiding behind lies and deceit. If I’ve done wrong, the first step toward healing comes when I admit the truth and agree with God that it was sin. Then God can show grace and mercy to me without any risk of it making me more hard-hearted than I am already.

And we see God doing exactly that for both Adam and Eve. They will certainly suffer, yes; but God is already promising to send them a Savior, Jesus our Lord. He makes that promise when He speaks to the serpent: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her Offspring; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” Our first parents must have taken great comfort in that promise, in the hard days to come.

Jesus is the promised Offspring who would destroy the ancient enemy, the devil, and all the traps he has laid for us children of Adam and Eve. But it came at a cost—the cost of Jesus’ own life. That’s what the poetic phrase means, “you shall bruise His heel.” The devil did get the chance to harm Jesus—to cause Him pain and grief and suffering and death. But through His suffering, death, and resurrection, Jesus won the victory over the devil and all evil powers; and Jesus shares that victory with all of us who trust in Him.

We Pray: Lord, help me to trust You when I have sinned, and tell You the truth—because I know You will be merciful to me. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Originally published in The Lutheran Hour on June 04, 2024
Used by permission from International Lutheran Laymen’s League, all rights


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