Old Testament Reading: Genesis 2:4-17

“These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. 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. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’” (Genesis 2:4–17, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Hebrews 4:14–16

“Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:14–16, ESV)

Introduction 

Brothers and sisters, I hope and pray that you are not growing tired of our rather tedious journey through the first few chapters of Genesis. All scripture is important, but there are some passages that are more foundational than others. Genesis chapters 1 through 3 are foundational. They communicate truths that are basic and seminal. These chapters lay down foundations necessary for a worldview that is biblical and true. And so it is good that we take our time here. 

It is so very important for us to have a worldview that is biblical and true. By “worldview” I mean the way in which we view the world. A worldview is a philosophy of life. A persons worldview is the sum total of what he or she thinks of life biggest questions. Where did we come from? What and who are we? What is our purpose and destiny? It is so important that our worldview be biblical and true, for it will undoubtably shape the way that we live our lives. By “true” I mean that we must have a worldview that corresponds to the reality of things. And by “biblical” I mean that our worldview must come ultimately from God’s word. 

I hope that you would agree that God is the only one capable of communicating to us a view of the world that is thoroughly true. Yes, unbelieving scientists, philosophers and theologians may seek to establish their own worldview independent from God through their observation of the natural world and by use of human reason, but they are terribly limited by their own smallness, their creaturely limitations and especially their sin. Do the unbelieving scientists, philosophers and theologians come to some true conclusions? I’m sure they do, for God does reveal himself to some degree through the world he has made. But there are many things that lay beyond our ability to comprehend apart from God’s word. This is due to our creatureliness, not to mention our sin which blinds our eyes and clouds our judgement. 

The true child of God happily acknowledges that we are dependent upon God for truth. He alone is qualified to communicate it. He has graciously revealed his truth to us, and we are to receive it happily and humbly. 

The same questions that God put Job are appropriate for us to consider here. In Job 38:4–7 God questioned Job, saying, “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” God’s questioning of Job goes on and on in that passage, and we need not read it all to understand the point of it. “Where were you when [God] laid the foundations of the earth?” We must reply by saying, “Lord, I did not exist. I was not there to witness it.”

Who is qualified to reveal foundational truths to us? Can any man do it on his own? Can any man simply reason his way to the answers to life’s biggest questions? The Christian is content to say, “no, not infallibly.” But God can reveal truth to us infallibly, because he was there in the beginning. More than that, he himself is the source of all things. Just as we are dependent upon God for life and breath, so too we are dependent upon him for truth. If we are to know truth – ultimate truth – then he must reveal it us. 

Thanks be to God that he has revealed it, for “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world” (Hebrews 1:1–2, ESV). What a treasure the Word of God is! Brothers and sisters, let us treasure God’s word. May it be to us more “desired… than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb” (Psalm 19:10, ESV).

Let us open God’s word often. And whenever it is opened let us listen attentively so that we might understand it, believe it and live accordingly. Friends, let us “put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save [our] souls” (James 1:21, ESV).

What are the foundational truths that have been established for us so far in our study of Genesis 1 and 2. Among other things we have learned that God is the Creator and we are his creatures. I cannot think of a more basic truth than this, and yet so many live as if it were not so. Many live as if they were God, and God was theirs to create. No friends, God is God, and we are his creatures. We have been made by him and in his image. As image bearers of God we were created to commune with God. We were created to imitate him in his kingship. Man, as he came from the hand of God, was to exercise “dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth” (Genesis 1:26, ESV). The man and women together were to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it…” (Genesis 1:28, ESV). 

What does this have to do with you and me? It has everything to do with you and me for it reveals something of the purpose for which God created man.

In Genesis 2 we learned that God entered into a covenant with the man. It was a covenant of obedience or works. Evidently the man and women were placed under a time of testing. Two trees were set before them – the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  They were created with a free will. God created “man with that natural liberty and power of acting upon choice.” They were “neither forced, nor by any necessity of nature determined to do good or evil” (LBC 9.1). The man and women were put to the test. The reward for obedience was life – a higher order of life than they had experienced in the garden, eternal life, a glorified life. The stated consequence for disobedience was death – spiritual death, as well as physical. “God created man upright and perfect, and gave him a righteous law, which had been unto life had he kept it, and threatened death upon the breach thereof… (LBC 6.1). The two tree functioned as sacraments, symbolizing obedience and life on the one hand, and rebellion and death on the other. 

What does this have to do with you and me? It has everything to do with you and me, for it shows what it means to born into this world fallen and in sin. Though we have not yet come to this part of the story, you know it well enough. Adam did not keep the covenant, but broke it. And we are born in Adam. We are born under the covenant of works, which is broken. It cannot give life. It only brings death. 

What does this have to do with you and me? It has everything to do with you and me, for it also shows what Christ has accomplished. He, being the second Adam, has kept the covenant of works. He has paid the penalty for sin, which is death. And this he has done for all of God’s elect – for all who have and do and will believe upon his name.  

God planted a garden in a place called Eden and there he placed the man and woman whom he had formed. The garden was the place where this covenant was made. It was not just a garden, but it was a temple or sanctuary. There in that place man enjoyed communion with God, for God was present in that place. It was in the garden that man was to fulfill his purpose as he lived in perpetual obedience to the God who made him. it was in the garden that Adam was to keep the covenant. Adam and Eve were to worship and serve God there in that place. They were to reproduce and teach their children and their children’s children to worship and serve God there in that place. They were to fill earth with the image of God by bearing children and by working to expand the garden of God. This they were to do until the whole earth was filled with God’s glory.    

What does this have to do with you and me? It has everything to do with you and me, for it shows God’s original purpose for humanity. Also, it makes it possible for us to understand what Christ has earned. Not only has he earned the salvation of individuals, but also the new heavens and earth in which righteousness dwells. The first Adam was to accomplish this – he was to fill the earth with righteousness until heaven and earth became one – but he failed. Thanks be to God, the second Adam, who is Christ our Lord, has succeeded through his obedient life and his sacrificial death. He, by virtue of his life, death, burial and resurrection, has been “appointed the heir of all things” (Hebrews 1:2, ESV). He is the one who has earned the “new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13, ESV), for which we eagerly await. 

Understanding Adam’s original place in the garden also shows what has been restored to us if we are in Christ Jesus. If we are in Christ Jesus, being united to him by faith, then the image of God has been renewed in us. If we are in Christ we are again called sons of God, as Adam was. We again stand before God aright, our enmity with God having been wiped away by the blood of the Lamb. And so too our purpose has been renewed. We who are in Christ have this task, work towards the expansion of God’s kingdom to the ends of the earth. This was Adam’s task, and it is also ours if we are in Christ, the second Adam. The difference, of course, is that we must work towards the expansion of the kingdom of God in a world that is fallen, whereas Adam was originally woking in paradise. He was to work towards the expansion of the garden while also keeping it. When we expand the kingdom of God we do so m=by pushing back the gates of hell.  And we are to work towards the expansion of the kingdom of God, not by pushing out out the borders of the garden sanctuary of God and through reproduction, but through the proclamation of gospel, which is the good news that God has provided a Savior for sinners, Christ Jesus our Lord. And so our work looks different, doesn’t it? But our task is not altogether different from Adam’s original one now that we are in Christ. He was to works towards the expansion of God’s kingdom and so are we.   

All of this matters greatly, friends. When we handle the first few chapters of Genesis we handling things that are absolutely essential to a right understanding of our faith. I hope that you would agree. 

The foundational truth that I wish to emphasize today is a simple one. It is that Adam was not a farmer (as many suppose), but a priest in the garden temple of God. Put differently, Adam’s work was not only to dig irrigation canals and to plant and cultivate trees – his work was not only to bring order to the unordered parts of the earth – but he was also to function as a priest. He was to work and to keep the garden temple of God. His task was to drive away any intruder who would seek to undermine the proper worship of God in that place. Adam was to draw near to God, he was to live holy before him, he was to promote the worship of God, he was to keep the garden, driving away any who would attempt to defile its sanctity. He was to do the work of a priest.   

How do we know that Adam was a priest? By the way, remember that he was also a prophet and king. He was a prophet in that he was to proclaim God’s word to Eve and to his descendants, saying, “thus saith the Lord!” And he was a king in that he was to exercise dominion in imitation of his Maker with Eve his helper at his side. That Adam was a prophet and king seems obvious. But how do we know that Adam was a priest? I have four answers to that question, and then suggestions for application.

One, we know that Adam was a priest by paying careful attention to the narrative of Genesis chapters 2 & 3. 

Notice where Adam was placed after being created by God. He was placed within the garden which, as it was established in the previous sermon, was a temple or sanctuary of God. This is where priests work – in the temple.  

Notice also Adam’s proximity to God. Adam stood in the presence of God. God walked in the garden amongst the man and woman. His presence was in that place. 

Lastly, notice Adam’s work. God commanded him to “work” and to “keep” the garden. Genesis 2:15 says, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it” (Genesis 2:15, ESV). This is precisely the work that the priests under the Old Covenant were to accomplish. The Levites were to “work and keep” the tabernacle, and later the temple of Israel.  

In Numbers 18 the work of the priests of Israel is described. And notice that their “So the Lord said to Aaron, ‘You and your sons and your father’s house with you shall bear iniquity connected with the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear iniquity connected with your priesthood. And with you bring your brothers also, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, that they may join you and minister to you while you and your sons with you are before the tent of the testimony. They shall keep [šāmar – same as in Gen 2] guard over you and over the whole tent, but shall not come near to the vessels of the sanctuary or to the altar lest they, and you, die. They shall join you and keep [šāmar – same as in Gen 2] guard over the tent of meeting for all the service [ʿ^aḇôḏāh – noun form of verb, to work in Gen 2] of the tent, and no outsider shall come near you. And you shall keep [šāmar – same as in Gen 2] guard over the sanctuary and over the altar, that there may never again be wrath on the people of Israel. And behold, I have taken your brothers the Levites from among the people of Israel. They are a gift to you, given to the Lord, to do the service [ʿ^aḇôḏāh – noun form of verb, to work] of the tent of meeting. And you and your sons with you shall guard [šāmar – same as keep in Gen 2] your priesthood for all that concerns the altar and that is within the veil; and you shall serve [ʿāḇaḏ – verb, to work, same as in Gen 2]. I give your priesthood as a gift, and any outsider who comes near shall be put to death” (Numbers 18:1–7, ESV). 

The priests of Israel were to “work” and “keep” the tabernacle, and later the temple, just as Adam was to “work” and “keep” the garden. The terminology of “work” and “keep” is shared in common and deliberately so. Why? To show that the garden was a temple and Adam was a priest. The temple of Israel was a microcosm of creation and of Eden, and the priests of Israel were a reflection of Adam in is his original priestly function. 

Adam was to “work” in the garden to the glory of God, laboring towards its universal expansion. And he was to “keep” or to guard the garden from all intruders, preserving its sanctity.  

How do we know that Adam was a priest? First, by paying careful attention to the narrative of Genesis chapters 2 & 3.

Secondly, by observing the development of the theme of “priesthood” in the history of redemption. 

Adam was a priest. In fact the original design for humanity was that all would function as priests. By this I mean that Adam and all his descendants  were to minister in the presence of God. All were to live holy before him, promoting his worship while they preserved the sanctity and extended the bounds of his holy tabernacle.

But notice that after the fall God, by his mercy and grace, still appointed priests. I am thinking of Melchizedek and Arron, the Levites as well as others. What was the meaning of this? Can you see that the presence of priests after the fall communicated that a way to communion with God was still open, despite mans fall into sin. What an extraordinary thing this is! It fits hand in glove with what was said in the previous sermon concerning the temple. Eden was a temple, and the presence of temples after the fall communicated that a way to communion with God was still open, despite mans fall into sin. No longer could we work our way to God, but we could come to him through the offering up of a substitutionary sacrifice – animals at first, and then Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of he world. The fact that priests remained the world from Adam to Christ communicated that a way to communion with God was still open.  

But notice this, Aaron and the Levites – that is, the priests who ministered to God under the Old Mosaic Covenant in Israel’s tabernacle and temple – were not the first priests. They are the best known priests. Their work is most clearly described for us in the pages of holy scripture. But they were not the first, nor were they the last.  

Adam was a priest. All others are an echo of him. 

Adams children knew to make sacrifices to God. Cain did so badly, but Able got it right. Think about that for a moment. Where did they learn to bring sacrifices to the Lord? The text doesn’t explicitly say, but Adam must have taught them. Making sacrifices to God is priestly work, is it not? Able functioned as a kind of priest, then, as he offered up sacrifices to God as an act of worship before him. This he probably learned from Adam, his priestly father.

And then we have that mysterious figure, Melchizedek. He lived long before Moses, Aaron and Levi, and yet he was a priest of the Lord Most High, and the king of Salem. The book of Hebrews makes it clear that Christ was a priest in the line of Melchizedek, and not Aaron, as the priests of the Old Covent were.

Aaron and the Levites were not the first priests, nor were they the last. Christ himself is the High Priest. And we are priests in him, as we will shall see. 

To solidify the connection between the priests who minister after the fall and Adam as priest, simply consider the imagery of the tabernacle of Israel and the priests who ministered there. The high priest of Israel was to enter the most holy place once per year. He represented the people as he entered the most holy place into the presence of God through the shedding of blood. Picture it now. The priest would walk up to that large curtain embroidered with seraphim. He would enter the most holy place and there he would see the ark of the covenant with the two cherubim on either side guarding that place. Was this not an image of the priest walking back into Eden as it were? After the Adam and Eve were expelled from the garden and cherubim were appointed to guard the entrance. But under the Old Covenant the high priest was invited to enter. A sacrifice had to be made, prefiguring Christ. But a way to the throne of God was still open, thanks be to God. 

Not only did the Old Covenant priests of Israel point forward to Christ, they we also and echo of Adam.

Thirdly, we know that Adam was a priest by comparing Adam, who was a type, with Christ, our great high priest, who is the antitype. 

Paul says directly in Romans 5:14 that Adam “was a type of the one who was to come” (Romans 5:14, ESV), namely Jesus the Christ. 

What is a type? A type is a picture or model or foreshadow of something that yet to come. The Old Testament scriptures are filled with “types” that pointed forward to the coming Savior, who would then be the antitype, or the thing to which the type corresponds. 

C.J. Williams has some wonderful things to say concerning the typology. He says in his book, “The Shadow of Christ in The Book of Job”, that “the person and work of Jesus Christ was imprinted on the history that led to his incarnation, through people and events that were invested with prophetic meaning by God, offering glimpses of the coming Savior, and reassuring God’s people of the promise of his coming.” Another way to say this is that God communicated to his Old Covenant people that the Christ would come not only by speaking through the prophets, but also by types and shadows – historical people and events which “said” something about the coming Christ, but not through words. 

The historical person named Adam was a “type” of Christ. Certain things about him communicated things that would be true concerning the Christ once he arrived. Adam was human – the Christ would be human. Adam was a son of God – Christ would be the Son of God. Adam was born under the Covenant of Works – the Christ would be born under the Covenant of Works. Adam was head or representative of others – Christ would be a head or representative for others. Through Adam’s headship death came to all whom he represented – through Christ’s headship life would come to all he represented. At first it seems inappropriate to compare Adam with Christ. In some respects they couldn’t be more different given the terrible failure of the first and the wonderful success of the second. But the scriptures say that Adam was a “type” which pointed forward to Christ, the antitype. 

Here is the point. If Christ is our high priest, then wouldn’t that mean that Adam was also a priest. This they share in common. The difference between the two is that the one was faithful in his priesthood, whereas the other was found to be unfaithful. This is why there is only :one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5, ESV).

Lastly, and very briefly, we know that Adam was a priest by considering that in Christ we have been renewed to function as priests before our God.

The work of Christ is a work of renewal. Christ restores in us what was lost or marred at the fall. 

Adam was created a son of God. We, in our fallenness are by nature children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3) – children of the devil (John 8:44). In Christ we are restored, adopted as children of God by the Spirit by whom we cry out “Abba Father”. 

Adam was made in the image of God. We, in our fallenness, find that the image is greatly marred and distorted. In Christ the image of God is renewed. “Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator” (Colossians 3:9–10, ESV).

Likewise, Adam was created to live as a priest before God. This was God’s design for all mankind. In our fallenness we do live as faithful priests. But in Christs our priesthood is restored. 

Listen to the way that Peter speaks to the Christian. “As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house…” Ah, you are a God’s temple – do you see it? But there is more! “As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:4–5, ESV).

Did you hear it? If you are in Christ – if you are approaching God through faith in him – then you are God’s temple and you are a priest. What was lost with Adam has been restored in Christ. 

No longer is the priesthood restricted to only a few. Now that Christ, the second Adam, and our faithfully high priest has died and risen, the priestly role has been restored to all who are in him. You are sons of God, each one. You are being renewed in knowledge after the image of your creator. You are a priest before God, as was Adam was a priest, prior to his transgression. Those in Christ, “like living stones… being built up as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

Application

Brothers and sisters, do you see that God’s original design for humanity was that all would function as priests before God?

I wonder if you would consider how far we have fallen. How many from amongst the children of man are interested in coming before God to worship and serve him faithfully according to his revealed will? How many are interested in living holy before him to and to promote his worship amongst others? The answer is that none are interested, unless God intervenes. In our natural and fallen state we happily serve as false priests to false gods. We serve ourselves. We worship the things of this world, and we encourage others to do likewise. Oh, how distorted we are in our sin!

But God is merciful. He has provided a Savior, Christ Jesus our Lord. He is our faithful high priest. He served God faithfully all his life. And in the end he offered himself of for our sins. Are you trusting in him? He is indeed the only mediator between God and man. He is the only priest who can led us to God. Any others who claim to be priests or mediator are liars and should not be trusted. Faith alone in Christ alone can effetely bring us into a right relationship with God. 

If you are in Christ then you have been renewed in the image of God, and you are to walk as a priest before him. Are you?

Are you drawing near to God so as to enjoy his presence?

Are you living holy before him, or are you content with your sin?

Are you faithful in prayer? Prayers for yourself and on behalf of others? 

Are you eager to worship God and to promote the worship of God amongst others?

Are you concerned to bring others to God through faith in Christ, or have you grown complacent?

If you are a husband, father or head of house, are you functioning as a priest in your home? Are you faithfully leading your wife and kids to God through Christ? Are you promoting the worship of God there? Are you interceding for those who God has entrusted to your care? Are you preaching the gospel to your family so that the kingdom of God might be expanded realm over which God had given you dominion?

This is the kind of work that a priest is to do, and you are a kingdom of priests. “You yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:4–5, ESV).

 

Old Testament Reading: Genesis 2:4-17

“These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. 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. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’” (Genesis 2:4–17, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Revelation 21:22-22:5

“And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.” (Revelation 21:22–22:5, ESV)

Introduction

What made the garden in Eden paradise? Was it the scenery? Was it the climate? Was it the lush tress or the savory food? Now I do not doubt for a moment that the garden in Eden was a very beautiful and pleasant place, but it was not the place that made Eden paradise. Instead, Eden was a paradise to the first man and woman because there they enjoyed the presence of God. In Eden Adam and Eve lived in right relationship to God. In Eden Adam and Eve enjoyed communion with the God who made them. There was no sin in that place. There was no suffering. In Eden there was no death (at least not human death). And in Eden there was God. God was present with the first man and woman. He walked with them and they with him. They were at peace. It was God’s presence in Eden combined with the absence of sin, suffering and death that made the garden in Eden a paradise for the first man and woman. Man was made in the image of God in order to commune with God, and in Eden that communion was thoroughly enjoyed.

Remember that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earthly realm was at first without form and void and darkness was over the face of the deep. In six days time God formed the earthly realm into a place suitable for human habitation. And after the earth was fully formed God made man and gave him “dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth”. The man and woman were “blessed” by God. They were to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it…” (Genesis 1:28, ESV). This was the story of Genesis 1.

But note this: the man and the woman were not to live independent from God. They were not to live autonomously, but were to go on living in continual dependence upon the God who made them. Man was made to know his Maker. Man was made to commune with his God. Man was to live for the glory of God and to enjoy him forever. While this truth is not clearly established in the creation narrative of Genesis 1, it is clearly established in Genesis 2.

In Genesis 1 it is the transcendence of God that is emphasized. In Genesis 1 it is the distinction between Creator and creature that comes to the fore. But in Genesis 2:4ff. we learn that the same God who in the beginning created the heavens and earth is the God who relates to man. Elohim is Yahweh Elohim. He is the covenant making and covenant keeping God. God Almighty is relational. Not only did he create the earth to be a place for human habitation, he also planted a garden to function as a sanctuary where the man and woman he made would enjoy his presence. This is the story of Genesis 2. It is here we learn that God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into him the breath of life. Likewise God formed the woman from man. God planted a garden in Eden. He placed the man there and entered into a covenantal relationship with him.

Friends, the garden in Eden was more than a garden, for God’s presence was there. God walked with Adam and Eve in that garden paradise. The garden in Eden was a temple, or sanctuary.

How do we know?

First, by paying careful attention to the description of the garden in the narrative of Genesis 2 & 3.

The context of Genesis 3:8-9 is negative, for in that passage God is found confronting man in his rebellion, but it proves the point that is being made. There we read, “And they [Adam and Eve] 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” (Genesis 3:8–9, ESV). Here in Genesis 3:8-9 “God walking” in the garden and “the presence of God” brought terror to the man and the woman, but that was because of their sin. When they were upright and holy God’s walking and God’s presence amongst them were purely pleasant to the man and woman, for then they stood in a right relationship to God.

When suggesting that the garden was a temple I suppose we should ask the question, what makes a temple a temple? Is it not the presence of God that sets the place off as unique and distinct from all other places? A temple is that place where God is present in pronounced way. A temple is a place where man may approach God to commune with him. The garden in Eden was such a place.

Someone might say, but isn’t God omnipresent? Isn’t he all places at all times? Indeed he is! There is nowhere you may go to escape the presence of God. This is what the Psalmist is reflecting upon in Psalm 139 when he says, “If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me” (Psalm 139:8–10, ESV). When I speak of God’s presence as the distinguishing characteristic of a temple I am of course saying that God is present within his temple is a unique and potent way.

Though it be true that God is everywhere present, he was present in Eden in a pronounced way. There man enjoyed communion with the God who made him. There in that place something of the glory of God was manifest.

God’s “walking” in the garden, his “presence” in that place and his communion with the man and the women all indicate that the garden in Eden was more than a lush garden, but was in fact a temple or sanctuary where man beheld the glory of the Lord.

How do we know that Eden was a temple? First, by paying careful attention to the description of the garden in the narrative of Genesis 2 & 3.

Secondly, we learn that Eden was a temple when we compare it to the temple that Israel built according to the command of God.

This, in my opinion, is where the matter is settled. Israel, as you know, was instructed to build a portable tabernacle, and later a permanent temple, according to instructions given to Moses by God. And what was the purpose of the tabernacle and temple of Israel? Was it not to show that Israel was God’s chosen people? Was it not to show that God was present with them in a unique way? Was it not to show that God was in covenant with Israel and did commune with them?

This is indeed what Leviticus 26:11-12 teaches. There God speaks to Israel saying, “I will make my dwelling among you… And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people” (Leviticus 26:11–12, ESV). The reader should immediately think of Eden when reading Leviticus 26. In Eden God dwelt with Adam and Eve. God was present in the garden with them. He walked amongst the first man and woman in that place. And now, so many years after the fall of Adam, God speaks to Israel, whom he just redeemed from Egypt, saying “I will make my dwelling among you… And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people”. And where did God in fact dwell within Israel? He dwelt within the tabernacle and temple that Israel built according to the command of God.

We should remember that Moses was the one who wrote Genesis, but he also wrote Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. These five books, which are commonly called the Pentateuch, were delivered to Israel, and through Israel to us. They are meant to be read together. We come to understand what the garden in Eden was, not only by reading Genesis 2 and 3, but the Pentateuch as a whole (as well as the rest of scripture, as we shall see).

The Pentateuch tells a story. These books from Moses told a story to ancient Israel, and they tell us a story today. And what is the story? Adam and Eve enjoyed communion with God in the garden. Adam sinned and was cast out. But God is gracious! He has determined to redeem a people for his own possession. He has made a way for man to have a right relationship with him.

The tabernacle and temple of Old Covenant Israel were to be understood in this way. They were constructed according to the command of God given to Moses in order to function as a picture of the original creation and the original garden in Eden, which was itself a temple or sanctuary for God.

Though I am not comfortable with all of Meredith Kline’s ideas about Genesis 1 and 2, I do believe he gets this right when he says, “God produced in Eden a microcosmic version of his cosmic sanctuary. The garden planted there was holy ground with guardianship of its sanctity committed in turn to men and to cherubim. It was the temple-garden of God, the place chosen by the Glory-Spirit who hovered over creation from the beginning to be the focal site of his throne-presence among men… Eden had the character of a holy tabernacle, a microcosmic house of God. And since it lory was God himself who, present in his theophanic Glory, constituted the Edenic temple, man in the Garden of God could quite literally confess that Yahweh was his refuge and refuge and the Most High was his habitation” “(Kline, Images of the Spirit, pp. 35-37).

This is right, I think. Eden was made to function as a microcosm of the whole cosmos, which itself was created as a sanctuary for God (heaven is my throne and the earth y footstool), and Israel’s tabernacle and temple was created to function as a miniature version of the cosmos and of Eden. The massage “preached” by the tabernacle of Israel was that access to God the Creator may still be had! Why? Because God the Creator is also God the Redeemer. He may be approached by his people, but now not without the shedding of blood, given the fact of sin.

It becomes clear that Eden was a temple when we compare it with the temple that Israel built according to the command of God. The temple of Old Covenant Israel was designed to function as a picture in miniature of the whole cosmos and of Eden. All three – the cosmos, the garden in Eden, and Israel’s tabernacle – were temples constructed to “house” God’s presence to facilitate communion between God and man.

Did you know that when God gave Moses the instructions for the building of the tabernacle they were delivered to him in a series of seven speeches beginning in Exodus 25:1 and concluding in Exodus 27:19. Think about that for moment. When God created the heavens and earth he did so in seven days. When God commanded Moses to create the tabernacle he delivered the command in seven stages.

Also, did you know that there are similarities between the conclusion of the creation week and the conclusion of the construction of the tabernacle. On day seven of creation God entered into rest. And after God finished instructing Moses concerning the construction of the tabernacle the Sabbath command was reiterated (see Exodus 31:17). In fact, when the creation of the tabernacle was complete the presence of the Lord “settled [or rested] on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle” (Exodus 40:35, ESV). Clearly the creation of the cosmos and the creation of the tabernacle parallel one another.

And what do we see when we consider the actual construction of the tabernacle and temple? We see that the building was designed to function as a picture, or as a miniature model, of the heavens and earth and of God’s original temple in Eden.

The tent itself represented the heavens that God stretched out at the beginning of creation. The veil which separated the holy place from the holy of holies represented the firmament which was created on day two of creation. The large bronze lavers which were crafted to hold water used for cleansing represented the seas which were formed on day three of creation. The lamp stand symbolizes the luminaries that were created on day four. The winged cherubim which decorated the temple correspond to the bird that were created on day five. And the consecration of the high priest corresponds to the creation of man on day six. On day seven of creation God finished his work, ceased from it and blessed it. When the tabernacle was finished, the people ceased from their labor and Moses blessed it.

Exodus 39:32 and 43: “Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was finished, and the people of Israel did according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses; so they did… And Moses saw all the work, and behold, they had done it; as the Lord had commanded, so had they done it. Then Moses blessed them.” (Exodus 39:32, 43, ESV)

What I am saying is that when one compares the tabernacle that Israel built according to the command of God with creation in general, and the garden in particular, it becomes clear that the tabernacle was to function as a miniature version of creation with the garden being symbolized by the holy of holies.

Many other comparisons could be made if we had the time. Consider the river that flowed out of Eden and the many prophesies that speak of a river flowing from the temple of God. Consider the precious stones that are mentioned in Genesis 2 and the fact that these precious stones were used in the temple of Israel for the worship of God. Consider also how images of angels adorned Israel’s tabernacle – two guarded the ark of the covenant in the most holy place, and the curtains had cherubim embroidered on them – and how angels were tasked with guarding the entrance to the garden in Eden after man’s fall into sin. Clearly, the worshipper would have felt as if he were walking through the cosmos and towards Eden as he walked through the tabernacle of Israel. When he came to the menorah he would have been reminded of the tree of life.

If Israel’s tabernacle and temple were designed to rind the worshipper of the cosmos in general and of Eden in particular then what message did this convey? would not the message have been, the cosmos and Eden were designed to be a sanctuary where man would commune with God. Man fell and was cast out, but God has been gracious. A way to communion with God is still available.

Thirdly, we know that the garden in Eden was a temple when we observe how the new heavens and earth are described at the end of the book of Revelation.

Remember that the new heavens and new earth which will be ushered in at Christ’s return are described in at the end of the book of Revelation as a temple: “And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Revelation 21:22–27, ESV)

Notice that a river of life is seen flowing from the throne of God in Revelation 22:1, just as a river is said to have flowed from Eden in Genesis 2: “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb” (Revelation 22:1, ESV).

And remember that the tree of life is said to be in the new heavens and earth: “through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” (Revelation 22:2, ESV)

Clearly we are to remember Eden when see a depiction of the the new heavens and earth in Revelation 21 and 22. The new heavens and earth will be a return to Eden, sort of.

The garden in Eden was a temple, but clearly it was not the eschatological temple, for there are some very important difference between Eden and the new heavens and earth.

One, there is no tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the new heavens and earth.

Two, the who earth is described as Eden in the new heavens and earth.

Three, it is the glory of God and the lamb that will fill that place.

If the new heaven and earth are described as a sanctuary where God and man commune with one another, and if the new heavens and earth are described in Edenic terms, then Eden must have been a sanctuary also .

Fourthly, by we understand that Eden was a temple when we recognize that the theme of “temple” runs throughout the pages of Holy Scripture from beginning to end.

The earth was created to function as a sanctuary for God. Eden was the first holy of holies. When man fell access to the holy of holies was denied. Cherubim were set to guard the entrance. The story of redemption which follows can be described in terms of God reestablishing and making permanent and sure mans enjoyment of the garden sanctuary of God.

The patriarchs build alters to worship God. This they did amongst trees and on mountains. These were temples in miniature. Israel build the tabernacle under Moses and the temple under Solomon. Here God walked amongst his people. Here the people enjoyed his presence. When the Christ came the temple of stone was declared by him to be desolate. Now, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, the one who has faith in Christ is said to be the temple of the Holy Spirit: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20, ESV). The church is the temple of God under the New Covenant: “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:16–17, ESV). When Christ returns all of creation will be temple, for the glory of God and of Christ will fill all.

This was God’s design from the beginning. The cosmos were created to function as a sanctuary where man would enjoy the presence of God forever and ever.

Application

You were made to know God. You were made to commune with him. You were made to live enveloped by his presence and to bask in his glory.

Do you know God? Are you at peace with God? I do not mean, do you feel at peace with God. But are you? Are you in a right relationship to God?

It is only possible through faith in Christ. He accomplished what Adam failed to do. He opened the way into the eschatological Eden.

If you are in Christ, do you realize that you are God’s temple?

You are God’s temple personally. Are you living holy?

We are God’s temple collectively. Are we living holy?

Old Testament Reading: Genesis 2:4-17

“These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. 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. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’” (Genesis 2:4–17, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Romans 5:12-21

“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 5:12–21, ESV)

Introduction 

In the previous sermon I made five general, big picture observations concerning Genesis 2:4-25. The five observations were these:

1. Genesis 2:4 marks the beginning of a new section of the book of Genesis. The phrase, “these are the generations of…” marks the transition from one section to another in the book of Genesis. 
2. The creation account of Genesis 2 does not compete with the creation account of Genesis 1, but complements it, providing a different perspective and emphasis. In Genesis 1 God is the transcendent and all powerful Creator of heaven and earth. In Genesis 2 God is near to his people and hands on.
3. The focus of Genesis 2:4-25 is God entering into covenant with the man that he had made.
4. In Genesis 2 we have a record of God creating the holy of holies of the cosmic temple. 
5. Adam’s task, with Eve as his helpmate, was to function as a priest in this temple, to guard and to keep it, working towards its universal expansion. 

Points three through five of last weeks sermon are very important concepts and they deserve greater attention, and so in this sermon and in the next two we will return to those three points to flesh them out more thoroughly. Today we will focus on the covenant of works that was made with Adam in the garden, next Sunday we will focus upon the garden as a temple or sanctuary, and in two Lord’s Days we will return to the idea of Adam as a priest in the garden of God, Lord willing.

What do we mean when we say that God entered into a covenant of works with Adam in the garden? Answering this question will be the focus of the sermon today. 

A covenant is simply an agreement. 

When speaking of a covenant made between God and man we must say that it is a “divinely-sanctioned commitment or relationship” (Barcellos, Getting the Garden Right, 56). Notice that it is God who initiates and established covenants with man. Man has no right to say to God, “here will be the nature and terms of our relationship”, but God certainly has the right to say this man, for God is the Creator and we the creature. In the pages of holy Scripture we find a number of covenant established between God and man. All of them were initiated and established by God. It is God who condescends to enter into covenant with man. 

It should also be noticed that these covenants made between God and man (and there are many) are always for the betterment of mankind. God establishes covenants with his people in order to advance or better their estate. Divinely established covenants, to quote Nehemiah Cox, involve “a declaration of [God’s] sovereign pleasure concerning the benefits he will bestow on [his people], the communion they will have with him, and the way and means by which this will be enjoyed.” God has always related to his people by way of covenant. It is the covenant which establishes and defines God’s relationship with his people. 

We do have an analogy available to us. It is the analogy of the marriage covenant. The relationship that exists between a husband and wife is wonderful and rich, but it is established and maintained by a covenant. The husband and wife enter into an agreement with one another. They covenant together when they say, “I take you to be my wedded spouse, and I do promise and covenant before God and these witnesses to be your loving and faithful spouse in sickness and in health  in plenty and in want, in joy and in sorrow, as long as we both shall live.” It is a covenant which establishes and maintains the marriage relationship. It should be recognized that God entering into covenant with man, and God instituting the marriage relationship are set side by side in Genesis 2. This, of course, is intentional. For the marriage relationship was created to function as an image of Christ’s relationship to the church. The covenant of marriage made between man and woman is a picture of the divinely sanctioned covenant made between God and his people. 

A covenant is an agreement. When speaking of a covenant made between God and man we must say that it is a “divinely-sanctioned commitment or relationship” (Barcellos, Getting the Garden Right, 56).

There are many covenants found in the pages of holy scripture. In due time we will consider the Noahic covenant, the Abrahamic, the Mosaic, and the Davidic. But two covenants are of supreme importance, for they are the root and fruit of the others that have just been mentioned. 

These covenants – the Noahic, Abrahamic, Mosaic, and Davidic – pointed forward to and prepared the way for the covenant of grace ratified in Christ’s blood. We call the covenant of grace “the new covenant”. Remember how Christ said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:25, ESV). The new covenant, which is the covent of grace, is the fruit, as it were, of all the covenants which proceeded it. They all pointed forward to and prepared the way for the covenant of grace ratified by Christ. 

But there is another very important covenant which might be called the root or foundation of all the others. It is called the covenant or works, or the covenant of obedience, or the covenant of creation, or the covenant of life. Sometimes it is called the Adamic covenant, for it was made with Adam in the garden and required his personal, “entire, exact, and perpetual obedience” and promised life upon the keeping of it (see Second London Baptist Confession, ch 19, para 1). 

When I say that the covenant of works is the root of he other covenants I mean that it is the foundation. All of the other biblical covenants flow from it. Indeed, you cannot correctly understand the covenants made with Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David if you do not first understand the covenant of works made with Adam in the garden. In fact, the new covenant, which is the covent of grace, of which you and I are partakers if we are in Christ, would not be possible without their first being a covenant of works made with Adam in the garden. The covenant of works is the root of all other bibleof the covenant of grace. 

Another way to say this is, if you want to understand the Bible – if you want to understand your sin and your natural guilt before God – if you want to comprehend what it is that Christ actually accomplished for you, then you had better pay attention to the covenant that was made with Adam in the garden.

We have defined a covenant between God and man generally as a “divinely-sanctioned commitment or relationship”. This general definition fits all of the covenants that God has entered into with man. But let us now define the covenant of works specifically. Again, I appreciate the words of my friend, Dr. Rich Barcellos, who defines the covenant of works as, “that divinely sanctioned commitment or relationship God imposed upon Adam, who was a sinless representative of mankind…, an image-bearing son of God, conditioned upon his obedience, with a penalty for disobedience, all for the bettering of man’s estate” (Barcellos, Getting the Garden Right, 57).

Let us think about this definition for a moment and consider in light Genesis. 

First, the covenant of works was a divinely sanctioned commitment or relationship [that] God imposed upon Adam.

This relationship was not Adam’s idea, but God’s. Before God Adam had no rights. He had no right to say, here will be the nature and term of our relationship, for Adam was the creature and God Creator. This distinction between Creator and creature was firmly established in Genesis 1. Man did not make God, but God made man. Man, therefore, by virtue of his creation stood obligated before his Maker to worship and serve him always. The fact of creation itself established this relation. No specific covenant was needed. But God did graciously enter into a covenant with the man. The covenant of works was a “divinely sanctioned commitment or relationship [that] God imposed upon Adam”.

This is should not be difficult to see in the narrative of Genesis 1 and 2. God made man. God blessed man. God commanded man, male and female, to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion…” (Genesis 1:28, ESV). The same is true in chapter 2. The LORD God made man and then establishes the terms of their relationship. 

This might seem like a strange point to emphasize given it’s simplicity. You might be saying to yourself, “Okay, we get it. God is God and man is man. God has the right to initiate and to establish the terms of the relationship. Move on already!” But herein lies the difference between true and biblical religion and that which is man made. Herein lies the difference between the child of God and the rebel still in his sin. The chid of God says, “yes, God has the right and I will submit to him!” The rebel says, “I will decide for myself and go my own way.”

The covenant of works was a divinely sanctioned commitment or relationship [that] God imposed upon Adam.   

Secondly, the covenant of works was made with Adam who was a sinless representative of mankind, an image-bearing son of God.

Notice that the covenant was made with Adam. The woman, who name was Eve, had not been created when “the Lord God took the man [Adam] and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die’” (Genesis 2:15–17, ESV). The covenant was made with Adam, and not Eve.

Notice that Adam was at first sinless. Everything that God had made was good, indeed very good. Adam was made upright. To quote our confession, “God… endued the will of man with that natural liberty and power of acting upon choice, that it is neither forced, nor by any necessity of nature determined to do good or evil.” Adam was free. “In his state of innocency, [he] had freedom and power to will and to do that which was good and well-pleasing to God, but yet was unstable, so that he might fall from it” (2LBC 9.1, 2). God entered into a covenant of works or obedience with Adam and “endued him with power and ability to keep it” (2LBC 19.1). Adam was sinless. He was good and upright in the beginning. 

And notice that Adam was a representative of all mankind. Had Adam succeeded all would have enjoyed life. When Adam fell all fell in him. You and I were born in sin because we were born in Adam. We descended from him by birth. He was our federal head and representative. 

No teaching in all of scripture is more clear than this. 

The narrative of Genesis confirms that Adam was the federal head and representative of all humanity. Adam and Eve were barred from the garden and all of their descendents were born outside the garden. They were born in sin, they themselves sinned, and they, like Adam died. 

This is also the explicit teaching of holy scripture. The Psalmist said, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me” (Psalm 51:5, ESV). Paul, in Ephesians 2 says that  we all are “by nature children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:3, ESV). And Paul developes this idea most thoroughly in Romans 5 in the passage that was read earlier, saying, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—” (Romans 5:12, ESV). 

The clear teaching of scripture is that the covenant of works was made with Adam who was a sinless representative of mankind.

Does this bother you, Christian?

This principle is woven into our everyday experience. The decisions of others impact us.  

Your salvation in Christ depends upon this principle too! Just as Adam is the federal head of all humanity, Christ is the federal head of the elect, of al who have faith in him. Just as Adam’s is inputed to all who are in him, so too Christ’s righteousness is imputed to all who are in him.   

Thirdly, the covenant of works made with Adam was conditioned upon his obedience, with a penalty for disobedience. 

What was Adam’s obligation in the covent of works? The answer is that Adam was to obey God.

What was Adam to do? Remember that Adam, having been made in the image of God and having been blessed by God, was to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Genesis 1:27–28, ESV).

Adam was to fill the earth with God’s image. He was to subdue the earth. He was to rule and reign on earth a God’s vicegerent. He was explained the kingdom of God to the ends of the earth. 

In Genesis 2 we learned that God planted a garden in Eden and placed the man who had created there. The whole earth, therefore, was not garden, but rather a garden was planted in a place called Eden. Outside the garden there was wild, unformed, uncultivated land. Adam’s task was to expand the garden to the ends of the earth. He was to imitate his Maker in bringing order and form to those places that were without form and void.    

Notice the mention of the four rivers in verses 10-14. It is a rather unexpected emphasis in the narrative of Genesis 2. Two of the rivers are known to us, and two are mysterious, but the meaning seems to be that these rivers emanated out to the four corners of the earth so that man might have all that he needed to expand God’s garden to the ends of the earth through cultivation. 

This is was Adam was to do while living in “entire, exact, and perpetual obedience” to God. 

Clearly, Adam was placed under probation or a time of testing. 

The tree of the knowledge of good and evil was a tree of testing. The tree would show if Adam had remained loyal to God. By abstaining Adam would prove himself faithful. By partaking Adam would prove himself a rebel – a breaker of the convent of works, which was a covenant requiring “entire, exact, and perpetual obedience”.  

Fourthly, the covenant of works made with Adam was for the bettering of man’s condition.

In Genesis 2:9 we read, “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” (Genesis 2:9, ESV).

The presence of the tree of life in the garden indicates that Adam had a higher form of life offered t him by God. Adam was already alive. Adam was alive in paradise. But he was prone to fall. Adam, being under a time of testing, had not yet attained the glory of God. He was to pass the test, eat of the tree of life, and enter into glory. 

Brothers and sisters, Adam never ate of it. Adam sinned and fell short of the glory of God. And now it might be said that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23, ESV).

But do you see that the covenant of works made with Adam for the bettering of man’s condition. Adam, by keeping the covenant, was to advance to a higher form of life, not only for himself, but for all his posterity whom he represented. 

Application

Friends, do you see that where Adam failed, Christ succeeded?

Christ kept the covent of works. Christ remained obedient to God to the end. His obedience was “entire, exact, and perpetual”.  

Adam was the son of God by virtue of his creation, but Christ, being the eternal son of God entered into glory when he kept the covent of works. And this he did, not only for himself, but for all the elect as he functioned as their federal head or representative. 

Listen to the prayer of Jesus for his disciples recoded for us in John 17. Jesus “lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word” (John 17:1–6, ESV).

Jesus kept God’s word. He finished his work. 

Jesus was qualified, therefore, to enter into glory – into that higher form of life offered to Adam in the garden. 

Jesus entered in, not alone, but as a representative for others. He earned salvation for “all whom [the Father had] given him.”

Are you in Adam or are you in Christ? 

Are you under he covenant of works or the covenant of grace?

To be under the covenant of works means death, for “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23, ESV).

To be under the covent of grace means life – eternal life, “for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23, ESV).