Who is man that God would even consider him? Job questioned the fact that God would set his heart upon man (Job 7:17). Man seems to be such a small part of the entire picture, but it is to man that God’s love has been given (John 3:16; II Peter 1:3).
God’s, infinite power, love and justice have been working for man since the beginning of time and will continue till time is no more.
The great designer made a world that was ready for man to inhabit; the plant and animal life formed and given to man to have dominion over them (Gen. 1:28, 29). Man moves mountains and rivers by explosives, and brute force, while God spoke the world into existence (II Peter 3:5 – 7).
It was a glorious creation. God was preparing a place for his crown of creation to be placed. After each day God looked upon it and saw that it was good.
God made the Garden of Eden and then placed man there, giving instructions to dress and keep the garden. God’s love for man was shown in his making a help meet suitable for Adam. In his creative power God caused a deep sleep to come upon Adam and from his side took one of his ribs and from that rib formed woman. God brought the woman to Adam and the first home was formed.
In the place where the power of God had been so manifested, one would think no wickedness would ever enter. But into this perfect place of peace, Satan came to tempt woman. God gave man the power to make decisions, to have choices not to be as a machine unable to reason and think.
The possibility that man would make a wrong choice was there and he did (Gen.3:3 – 6). God had told man, “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Gen. 2:17).
Satan tempted the woman with the lust of the eye, lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. He told her eating the fruit would not cause her to die, but rather it would make her as “gods” knowing good and evil.
When man disobeyed God, God could have destroyed man. But instead of destroying man, God’s justice was appeased by God’s love in the promising of sending a Savior for mankind. God would send His Son to take the place of man, to redeem mankind (Gen. 3:15).
Paul wrote concerning this love, “For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8, 9). God showed his love for man.
The power of God is also in salvation (Rom. 1:16). The seed of woman, Christ, defeated Satan by the power, love and justice of God. By God’s power Christ was sacrificed for the sins of man (Acts 2:22, 23) and God’s justice was served in the redeeming power of the blood of Christ (Eph.1:7) the grave could not hold Christ for he came forth from the grave (Acts 2:21, 32).
He was triumphant over death giving mankind the hope of the resurrection (I Cor. 15:20 – 23), and he is still man’s hope today.