“And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed.”
Joe 2:3
Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them.
Psalms 50:3
Our God comes; he does not keep silence; before him is a devouring fire, around him a mighty tempest.
Amos 7:4
This is what the Lord GOD showed me: behold, the Lord GOD was calling for a judgment by fire, and it devoured the great deep and was eating up the land.
Genesis 2:8
And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed.
Isaiah 51:3
For the LORD comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places and makes her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.
Gen 1:31
And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Gen 2:8
And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed.
And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers.
God created man and planted the garden of Eden. It was pleasant to the sight and good for food. In fact God saw everything He had made and behold it was very good. However we see in Joel that the land before them was like the garden of Eden and behind them desolate wilderness. It seems to me that our lives are somewhat like this. If our eyes, heart, mind and soul are desiring to humbly serve , honor, and obey Him and continuing to look to God for our strength and guidance we have blessings and hope of a place created for us in eternity. Alternatively if our eyes, heart, mind and soul are focused on what seems right in our own eyes and not focused on God the only thing that is ahead of us is desolation, waste, and judgement. Knowing this, why would we neglect our calling to serve and obey Him? I wonder how much of what we approve of is ok’d by our culture and is detestable in the eyes of God. My wife and I were talking last night about a popular face book personality who has many followers and looked upon for their understanding, knowledge and application of scripture into everyday application. This person had changed their view on essentials and was condoning something that is not right according to scripture. It confirms to me that society/culture has influence on even the best of us. We need to be absolutely sure our actions and stances are based on what God’s word speaks into our heart. For every stance of obedience there will be multiple corresponding views. We are going to be held accountable for our walk in this life before God. The excuse “I thought what so and so said was true and I followed it” or “everyone else was doing it” or “it was ok by law” will not be an excuse before God. We have at our finger tips more access to scripture than anytime in history yet we choose to neglect this blessing from God. We will be held accountable for this neglect. Today choose to find purpose, meaning, hope, joy, love, peace, etc… each day through reading His word with the single purpose of knowing Him and how to honor and glorify Him more and more.