Who's to Blame?

Genesis 3:12 ~ The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.”

From the outset, mankind has been putting the blame for sin on everything else but self. Let us draw ourselves within earshot of the conversation between God and Adam. 

Adam and Eve sinned against God by eating of the forbidden fruit (see Genesis 3:6). Then, in the cool of the day, Adam and Eve heard God coming. In desperation, they hid themselves from the eyes of the Righteous Judge, for they had rebelled against Him. Calling out, God sought them and Adam responded, telling God that he was afraid because he was naked (exposed).

Think of this for just a moment. Man was naked, exposed before God, and there was no actual hiding from the eyes of the Holy One. Fig leaves could not disguise them. The flora could not shield them. Adam and Eve were not going to escape the Lord. Then God, in His rich mercy, gives Adam an opportunity to come clean--to confess his transgression. God asks a simple question: Did you eat of the forbidden tree (see Genesis 3:11). And, with this open opportunity for Adam to seek the mercy of God, he instead, looks to put the blame on another. 

It seems at first that he would blame the woman. After all, she was tempted by that serpent and then handed him the fruit. And Adam's first blast of blame is just that: "the woman." But it didn't end there. Adam, ultimately, blamed God. It was not just the woman, but, "the woman whom you gave to be with me." Adam, in the very presence of his Maker, in the overwhelming glory of the Almighty, looked to God and said, in essence, "You're the one to blame. For surely this would never had happened if she weren't around--and she'd have never been around if you didn't give her to me."

And from that moment on, our disposition has been to cast blame as far and as high as possible, thinking that none of it will ever stick to us. For surely God must know it's not our fault that we sin. 

Consider King Saul of Israel. In 1 Samuel 15, The LORD had commanded Saul to completely destroy the Amalekites. Yet, Saul and the people kept the spoils--the best of the plunder of the Amalekites. When confronted by Samuel, Saul did what came naturally to all of us--he made excuses and cast blame. "And Saul said to Samuel, 'I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I have gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me. I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have devoted the Amalekites to destruction. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal'" (1 Samuel 15:20-21).

Basically, Saul said: "It's not my fault... the people did it." How many times do we know of when children (ourselves included when we were young) always sought a way out by casting the blame on another?

But, even as God called to Adam, so God calls to us all, to confess and repent of the sins we commit against Him. Without excuse and without self-justification, we are to come clean with our sins. 1 John 1:8-10 lays it out clearly for us, "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." 

What a promise is nestled in the midst of those verses. God, who is righteous and holy, will cleanse us from our sins if we would but confess them to Him. But if we say we have not sinned, then we make God out to be a liar for He has said that we did sin. To confess is to agree with the Lord and His word concerning them.

In truth, you cannot confess nor repent of a sin you did not commit. But, when God has revealed your sin as He did to Adam in the garden (did you eat?), then do not cast the blame, and look to no one else to hold your guilt. Confess, agree with God, and repent of that sin and find the everlasting Lord and Judge to be your righteous Redeemer and Savior.

To answer the question, who's to blame, is simple. You are... and so am I. We have no one to blame but ourselves for the sins of our life. But we also have a merciful and faithful Lord who will pardon our transgression and cleanse us from every sin.

In His Grace,
Pastor Michael

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