The Coerced Confession

[0:00] Okay, let's go.

[0:10] Let's go back to the book of Genesis. And we will not be looking at what we were in Sunday school there. Go to chapter 3. Genesis 3, we've been working our way through this chapter.

[0:23] And I'll just quickly highlight the outline it's been thus far. It's been, we're four sermons in.

[0:37] And believe it or not, I don't believe it, but we are. I'm kind of shocked that we're still here, but here we are. The first sermon, the first thought was from the first five verses of the cryptic conversation where Eve listened to the serpent and engaged in conversation, which led to her fall.

[0:56] Then it was verse 6, the captivating crop, where her eyes now, not her ears, but her eyes were fastened upon the forbidden, which further led to her falling.

[1:08] And then we studied in verse 7 the covering, the camouflage covering of them sowing fig leaves and then hiding themselves amongst the trees of the garden and learned a few things about covering and attempting to covering, which never works.

[1:23] And then last week we studied from verses 8 and 9, the concealed couple. So not talking about their covering specifically, but of them. And we learned a few things. We saw that God showed up just like he always does.

[1:35] He didn't change a bit. He came looking for them and they were nowhere to be found. And we also studied that the separation there was caused by the sinner. Just like everywhere else in the Bible, it's the sinner that walks away from God and that moves away from his presence and he doesn't go anywhere.

[1:52] And then the last thing we studied was that the sinner will have to give an answer for their sin. And God called to Adam and said, where art thou, Adam? That's a question God never should have had to ask, but because of sin, he had some questions and demanded an answer.

[2:09] And we're going to kind of pick it up with that thought of that answer this morning. And I think we've already learned a lot from this story.

[2:20] And if you sit here and think, oh, this Bible is just some old sacred book, you know, something from the past and it's just, you know, blow the dust off it. It's for the old people to some relic of religion or something.

[2:32] If you think, if that's all you see of the Bible, you're missing out. Because in the very first story of mankind, the very first thing, we haven't even gotten through with it.

[2:44] We've already spent over a month of sermons on it. And each week, in my opinion, is so very relevant to you, to me.

[2:55] It's dealing with our sin. It's dealing with the serpent. It's dealing with a relationship with God. And there's so much to learn here. And so, very enlightening, very relevant, studying verse by verse through this chapter.

[3:09] And so we're going to continue through the chapter and pick it up where this guilty couple are. They are no longer concealed like they were last week. Now they're out in the open and they're face to face with their creator. And now they're being forced to answer for their actions.

[3:23] And so this morning, I want to call this the coerced confession. The coerced confession, starting in verse 10. And he said, I heard thy voice. This is Adam returning reply to God.

[3:35] I heard thy voice in the garden. And I was afraid because I was naked and I hid myself. And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?

[3:50] And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree. And I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me.

[4:02] And I did eat. So we're seeing a reluctant confession and a reluctant admission of guilt from both parties, Adam and his wife.

[4:14] Never have they been in this spot before. Their guilty instinct was to hide. They heard the voice of the Lord. Run and hide. But that failed.

[4:25] And nobody can flee from the presence of the Lord. Ask Jonah. He tried. That didn't work for him either. It won't work for you either. You can't get away from God. You can't hide from God. You can...

[4:36] David said, If I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. You're not going to get away from God. And so that hiding failed. And God caught up with him as he always does.

[4:48] But now they're going to have to face the music. Now the couple's going to have to give account of their actions. It's time to come clean. And how then would the man and the woman respond?

[5:02] How would they respond to being questioned by God and admit or give confession to something that they did wrong? What are they going to do?

[5:13] Are they going to lie? That would be a first, I'm sure, for them. I don't even think that's a concept to them at the moment. I don't think they're not used to doing that. And I don't even know if they have it in them as they're in front of God, their creator.

[5:29] So whatever they're going to do, it's going to be the first time they ever did it. And they're going to confess. And so the first thing I want us to learn and study from this passage is that their confession was motivated by fear.

[5:44] I called it the coerced confession. And that is God's very presence is what's compelling them to speak out. When they hear the voice of the Lord, Adam said it in verse 10.

[5:57] He said, I heard thy voice in the garden and I was afraid. I was afraid. Why, Adam? Why did you fear God today? You didn't fear him yesterday.

[6:08] What are you so afraid of? What we understand is because he was guilty. Because he sinned. Because he knew God would disapprove of what he had done. And he didn't want to face sin.

[6:21] So when he was caught, I believe he's still very afraid in the presence of God. He was afraid just hearing his voice. Now he's face to face, front and center.

[6:33] He's fear and trembling kind of guy right now. He's not confident. God's not making small talk with him. He goes right to the point, what's going on, why? And I want an answer.

[6:44] And they're going to answer. And they're going to answer right away. And their answer, or their confession is motivated by fear. I want to point out though, that they didn't fear him until their eyes were opened.

[6:56] They didn't fear. Apparently they didn't fear him at all until they knew they were guilty. I think if they would have feared their creator, the way they ought to have and should have, they probably never would have wanted to look in the first place.

[7:08] Or even speak to that serpent in the first place. Now, I want to say something about fear though, because we see it in the passage. And so many times you might be tempted to think that this is not the way we should approach God or shouldn't be part of our relationship because God is love and he loved us and we love him because he first loved us and God so loved the world.

[7:32] And there's so much of that, that fear has just kind of been brushed aside from the pulpits of America, but it's never been extracted out of the Bible though.

[7:43] It's still here. And I wanted just to know that fear is a very good motivation for certain things. And the reason I believe many people are lost today and have never come to Jesus Christ for their salvation is because they don't fear God.

[8:00] It's true. They don't understand perhaps that, let me look at it this way. When you got saved, did you get saved because you heard that God loved you? Or is it because you heard that you sinned against a holy God and he was going to judge you?

[8:16] And his word said he'd cast you into hell for your sins. Now, that should be the motivation, the fear to drive you to receiving salvation, the free gift of eternal life.

[8:28] You find out that God loved us and gave his son for us. You find out that too, but you're afraid of him more than you think about the love. Fear is a good motivation for you to take Jesus Christ as your savior and get out of hell.

[8:42] I was afraid of him. I still am. Now, men don't fear God. They don't fear him because he hasn't punished them. Because in the verse in Ecclesiastes, I'm not going to quote it right, about because sentence is not executed against a work speedily, therefore the hearts of men is set in them to do evil, something like that.

[9:03] They continue in sin and sin because they haven't been judged yet. But you read this book, they're going to get judged, and God's not going to let it go undone. But because they haven't been judged, they haven't faced the wrath of God, they don't fear him.

[9:17] They can pretend somebody writes a book, God doesn't exist. We came out of some soup years and years ago. And so if there's no God, there's no reason to fear anything, and I can do what I want.

[9:28] But fear is a good motivation. Maybe there is too much love and peace and acceptance promoted from pulpits, and from schools, and from authorities, that nobody gets a balanced view of what God is and who he is.

[9:43] That's not a balanced view of who your God is. When you know that God punishes evil and that he's angry with the wicked every day, I think fear can be a big help to you. I want to show you something. Keep your place.

[9:54] But go to Hebrews chapter 12, and let's just look at a passage here in the Bible that will kind of back up this thought of the person of God.

[10:09] It may not be what you hear in a typical Sunday morning, but it's what you'll read if you read your Bible. Hebrews chapter 12, fear can be a big help to you.

[10:24] In Hebrews 12, I'm going to start in verse 18, where the writer here is looking back upon when Moses went upon Mount Sinai and received the Ten Commandments.

[10:38] And he's kind of quoting or giving a shorthand version of what took place back in Exodus. And so in verse 18, he says, For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched.

[10:51] Now he's really going to be teaching you there's a spiritual mount, a heavenly thing that he's presenting where God is, but he's going to use this analogy of the Old Testament and the mount on earth to teach something about God.

[11:06] In plainer words, nothing's changed with God. For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, which voice they that heard entreated that the word should not be spoken to them anymore.

[11:23] So what he's saying is, back then when those Jews around that Mount Sinai heard the voice of God, that loud quaking fire, tempest, thunder, clouds, all of it, they said, Please, Moses, you talk to God.

[11:38] We don't want any parts of this. We're scared to death to be anywhere near that God. They entreated that the word should not be spoken to them anymore. Verse 20 says, For they could not endure that which was commanded.

[11:50] And if so much as a beast touched the mount, it shall be stoned or thrust through with a dart. And so terrible was the sight that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake.

[12:02] But ye are come unto Mount Sinai, unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn that was written in heaven, to God the judge of all, and the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood that sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

[12:26] Now, verse 25, See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escape not, who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth, but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.

[12:49] And this word, yet once more signifying the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Wherefore we, receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.

[13:09] Why? Verse 29, For our God is a consuming fire. So, the comparison of a walk with God today, and a serving of God today, comparing it to the person he showed himself to be in Moses' day, is saying he hasn't changed a bit.

[13:31] He's not was a consuming fire, he is a consuming fire. And most will say, Well, God is love. We know that. Did you forget also that there's a balanced nature to God, and whatever's on this side is on this side, and the opposite, he's a consuming fire.

[13:46] And so you do well to fear him. Somebody asked me just the other day, Are we supposed to be afraid of God? And I said, Yeah. Absolutely.

[13:57] I'm afraid of him. If he walked in this room, I'd be hiding under that pew, or under that piano skirt. I wouldn't want to be, you don't understand. I wouldn't be like, Hey, what's up?

[14:08] Bro it up. We wouldn't be shugging. If you know that is a hug, shoulder hug, shug. No, no, no. If God walked in this room, in his holiness, we'd be, we'd probably disintegrate.

[14:23] Our bodies couldn't stand to be in his presence. Fear is a good thing. And had Eve known, or considered, how God would react, to her decision, if she would even have thought, to consider, what the vengeance, of a holy God, could be, or would be, against her decision, I'm certain, that she would have thought twice.

[14:48] If she knew, how this was going to play out, for her and her husband, I'm sure she would have avoided, the fruit entirely. Now, what they didn't have taken, into account, was who they were sinning against.

[15:01] They weren't thinking about him. Turn back to Proverbs. Proverbs chapter 1. I'm going to show you two verses.

[15:14] Verses you may know already. But let's see them, in a light of what we're, studying with Adam and Eve. Proverbs chapter 1.

[15:27] And read, verse number 7, to yourself. And then I'll ask you a question. Proverbs 1, verse 7.

[15:40] Read that when you get there. I'll give you a second. And now let me ask you this.

[15:51] You can fill in the blank. The fear of the Lord, is the beginning of what? Oh, Greg. Did you read a verse? First half of the verse.

[16:04] Alright. The fear of the Lord, is the beginning of knowledge. Okay. That's what the Bible says. Look at chapter 9. There's another verse, I want to put right beside this. We'll couple these together.

[16:16] Proverbs chapter 9. And Greg, you're going to get a chance. Get ready. Verse number 10. Now don't blow this one. Read verse number 10.

[16:30] And I'll ask you the question. The fear of the Lord, is the beginning of what? Wisdom. Alright. We got them in the right order here. The fear of the Lord, is the beginning of knowledge.

[16:46] It's the beginning of wisdom. Now back in Genesis 3, what was Eve expecting, when she partook of that fruit? It's the tree of the knowledge, of good and evil.

[17:01] And the serpent told her, you're not going to die. You're going to be as gods, knowing good and evil. And she's expecting that. It said in verse number 6, that it was a tree to be desired, to make one wise.

[17:17] She's expecting knowledge. She's expecting wisdom, from the fruit of that tree. Yet your Bible tells you, those things, are obtainable, through the fear of the Lord.

[17:30] Yet she didn't fear the Lord, but sought to get that knowledge, and sought to get that wisdom, from a forbidden source. Something she should have, stayed far away from. Did it work out, the way she expected it?

[17:45] She should have feared God. I believe if she would have, been confronted by the serpent, and tempted, and lied to, and said, God did this, and she had a decision to make, and so did her husband, and could have said no.

[18:01] The creator, the Lord God, said no. Said don't eat of it. And then the knowledge, would have started to come in, right there, of this is wrong.

[18:12] He said so. We're to obey, and fear him, and do what he says. This was never even a, presentation, up to this point. I'm sure they didn't even consider it.

[18:23] They're just living their lives, doing what they want to do. Don't eat that tree. And now that tree is, somebody's telling them, eat it. It's fine. And they would have had a decision to make. And if they would have chose the fear of the Lord, wisdom would have entered.

[18:36] It had began the wisdom, and the knowledge that could have grown, in a different way, than it ever did. But they messed up. Their confession, in chapter three, to the Lord God, was motivated by fear.

[18:52] They were afraid of him. I wonder this morning, are you afraid of God? Like I said, that thought troubles some Christians. Oh no, God's wonderful, and he loves me. Do you fear him?

[19:05] This is how I see it, and maybe this will help you, is looking at children, looking at the youngest of children, a toddler, a three, four, five year old, they'll obey their parents, if there's a reason to obey their parents.

[19:20] And the reason would be fear. If a parent will be faithful, and train up a child, and punish, and correct the child, and steer them, I said no, and that means no, and if you disobey me, you'll be punished, and the child learns quickly, to fear the parent.

[19:39] Does a three year old, obey their mom or dad, because they love them? The seven year old, they love you so much, I'll just do whatever you say. That's not even part of it.

[19:50] It's true, it's not. But they fear them, if the parent's faithful, and doing their job. The child will fear the parent, they'll obey the parent, and it'll be 100% motivated by, if I don't do this, this is what I'll get, and I know it.

[20:05] And they're afraid. As they mature, and get older, and become teenagers, they begin to understand, that the knowledge, and the wisdom, is coming into them, through fear, that this is what's right to do.

[20:19] This is what's expected of me. And so, if I go against what's expected, I know I'm doing wrong. They've got the knowledge, and the wisdom, it's grown in them, because of the fear, that was instilled in them, as a child.

[20:32] You see that? And that individual, that's growing up, and developing, is obeying, or doing what's right, now in a different way, somewhat fear perhaps, but in another way, because now they know, this is what's right.

[20:46] This is what, the choice they're supposed to make. When you become an adult, or get older in life, do you fear your parents anymore? You probably don't fear them at all, in that sense.

[20:58] But you know what you do? You love them. And the relationship changes, and it shifts over to, I'm going to do things, that help you, and please you, and I won't even make certain choices, because I know it will upset you, and I don't want to upset you.

[21:12] Not because I'm afraid of you anymore, but because I love you, and you've done so much for me, and now I'm old enough to realize, you did so much for me. And the relationship, I think, really, really matches the truth, in your relationship with God.

[21:29] It starts with fear, and when you fear him, and are afraid of hell, and his judgment, and his holiness, and your sin against him, and then you learn in the book, and you see how, he's done some, some real, just destructive things, to individuals, to cities, to nations, you see his power, and he doesn't put up with it for long, and so you get an idea, of the nature of God, and his wrath against unrighteousness.

[22:03] It's a healthy thing to fear him, and that wisdom, and knowledge starts coming in, as you fear God, you grow to understand, what he expects of you, and you begin to comply, because you get it, and you understand, and as you grow, in a relationship with him, you start to see, everything he's done for you.

[22:23] You don't get saved, and realize it all. You don't walk with God, for a year or two, and it's just, oh my goodness, he's done so, you know, but you're saved, for some years, and some time, and walking with him, you begin to see, like a child growing, and maturing, this parent of mine, my father, loved me so much, has done so much for me, throughout my life, not just the giving his son, for my sin, but then even the personal, walk with him, and care, and protection, and love, and you love him, and the relationship changes, all right, but getting back to Genesis 3, with these two, their confession, was motivated by fear, and as you grow older, maybe you'll fall in love, with God more, than fear him, but don't forget, he hasn't changed at all, and if you step off, into sin, and you step off, into the world, you're stepping out, of his circle of protection, and away from, his desire for you, you'll reap what you sow, and I'm afraid of that, amen,

[23:25] I mean it, I'm afraid of God, I don't want to step out, of walking with him, now secondly, notice that their confession, was in response, to confrontation, in verse 11, God just point blank, says, who told thee, that thou was naked, hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee, that thou shouldest not, what I notice, is God gets right, to the point, he doesn't say, hey I like your aprons, that's cute, where'd you come up with that, he doesn't talk that talk, he doesn't tip toe, and say it's a beautiful morning, it's a nice sunset there, or this garden's really nice, and he gets, right after the point, confronting them, for why are they hiding, why do you suppose, you're naked, and gets in their face about it, did you do, what I told you not to do, is right first thing, out of his mouth here, now some people hear this, they hear confrontation, confrontation, and they think of striving, and fighting, and arguing, and a lot of people, tend to avoid it, as much as possible, and I get that, confrontational people, they're just not pleasant, you know, they can ruin your day quickly, and I know that,

[24:41] I understand that, but I want you to understand, on a different hand, this is what God is doing, with the man and the woman, because of sin, and confrontation, in this case, is necessary, and it's needed, in this situation, as in all situations, where sin is present, confrontation is necessary, confrontation gets things exposed, in hopes of getting them right, and getting them resolved, confrontation is not fun, sometimes it's not easy, sometimes you get that, fidgety feeling in your gut, and you get that nervousness about it, because you just don't want to deal with it, as parents, sometimes you don't want to deal with it, as a boss, you just, you wish it would fix itself, you just don't want to have, to confront them, and implement some kind of punishment, or judgment, or something, it's easier to let it go, but it doesn't get better, confrontation helps, people don't like it, but it can be very, very helpful, and when God confronts the couple, he gets a confession out of them, now, turn your Bible, to 2nd Corinthians, and find chapter 11, no 7, 2nd Corinthians chapter 7, 2nd Corinthians chapter 7, confrontation is beneficial, without it, things carry on, people pretend, things are okay, sometimes people imagine, they'll get away with it, until there's confrontation, and then, as we see in Genesis 3, you get a confession, now, the apostle Paul, confronted this church, at Corinth, in his first epistle, on several counts,

[26:36] I mean multiple counts, he confronted them, about some things, that were out of order, and wrong, in their local church, and there was one specific thing, mentioned back in, 1st Corinthians chapter 5, that was a specific sin, that wasn't even named, among the Gentiles, it was so bad, and he dealt with it, and he got on this church, about what they were allowing, and practicing, and his confrontation, brought about a response, I want to start reading, in verse number 8, Paul says, for though I made you sorry, with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent, for I perceive, that the same epistle, hath made you sorry, though it were, but for a season, now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed, to repentance, for ye were made sorry, after a godly manner, that ye might receive, damage by us, and nothing, for godly sorrow, worketh repentance, to salvation, not to be repented of, but the sorrow of the world, worketh death, now verse 11, he gives a list, of what he sees, in these people, since their sorrow, and their repentance, for behold, this self same thing, that ye sorrowed, after a godly sort, what carefulness, it wrought in you, yea, what clearing, of yourselves, amen, that's a good thing, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge, and all things, ye have approved yourselves, to be clear, in this matter, if Paul hadn't written, that letter of confrontation, to that church, they'd have carried on, and gotten worse, and more confused, and muddied, in their worship, and practice, within the church, sin would have continued, to abound, but he brought on, the confrontation, directly, to their face, and they repented, and they were made sorry, they sorrowed, after a godly sort, and in the end, they've cleared themselves, confrontation, is a good thing,

[28:42] I've got other examples, I won't take you through them, so go back to Genesis 3, one I'll mention, in Galatians chapter 2, Paul confronted Peter, to his face, the apostle Peter, one of the pillars, of the early church, in Jerusalem, because he was, he was, he wasn't walking, according to the truth, of the gospel, is what Paul called it, and so he, he confronted him, to his face, and things got cleared, because of the confrontation, because there's something, more important, than Peter's feelings, or his reputation, it's that the truth, of the gospel, is not distorted, and not confused, and there's some things, more important, than your feelings, and they're more important, than your reputation, as well, so, confession, was a response, to confrontation, God is a great, confronter, he is composed, he is balanced, he's not just, just to send the fire, on you, and damn you, and burn you up, but he won't ignore things, and he won't overlook them either, remember in Joshua chapter 7, when they took the accursed thing,

[29:50] Achan, remember that, and Joshua's on his face, crying to God, because they're, fleeing, before their enemies, before this little town of Ai, and God's like, get off your face, Joshua, Israel hath sinned, and now we're going to get it, taken care of, in David's life, King David, a great king, yet, fell in certain sins, multiple sins, and what happened, God confronted him, with a faithful prophet, Nathan, that showed up, to tell him a story, and say, David, thou art the man, talk about a confrontation, and that's not the only one, you could go through these, you could read through your Bible, and read of the kings, some of these wicked kings, and God sent a preacher, to that king, and it's even in, John the Baptist, in the New Testament, times of Christ, he sends a preacher, to that leader, to point out his sin, and to call him out, he confronts him, that's something God does, he confronts men, when they're guilty, and when they're sinful, I was caught, many times in my life,

[30:51] I was confronted, I call it, God confronting me, getting caught, by a teacher, or by my parents, or by some authority, throughout growing up, and throughout different stages of life, getting into sins, some seemingly minor, some major, that could have really, changed the course of my life, and the faithfulness, and mercy of God, confronted me, and put a roadblock, in front of me, and said wake up, you keep going down this road, you're going to be in trouble, and it allowed me, to step back, and say oh God, I don't want to go down that road, I really, I really in my heart, don't want to, and yet I'm, I feel so drawn to it, and God helped me, and he brought about a confession, by the confrontation, had God just left me to myself, I can tell you, where I wouldn't be standing right now, I can tell you that much, now the confrontation, is what they feared, in the garden of Eden, and that's why they hid, they wanted to avoid, facing God, and that's why some people,

[31:59] Christians won't pray, they don't want to face God, they won't read their Bible, because they don't want to hear from God, because they know in their heart, God is going to confront their sins, and he doesn't like, what's going on in their life, he doesn't like, what's going on in their heart, so they stay away, and hide, amongst the trees, sooner or later though, sooner or later, God will confront you, he'll get through, whether it's in this life, or the next, you're going to face God, and he will confront you, over your sins, now come back, in Genesis chapter 3, and I want to point out, one more thing, about their confession, their coerced confession, it was coerced, or motivated, compelled by fear, they were afraid of God, and that's a good thing, it'll bring about a confession, secondly, it was, brought on by confrontation, which is another good thing, that God will confront you, and not just leave you, to your sins, and the third thing,

[33:12] I want us to see, about their confession, is that their confession, was lacking, something, it was weak, and a few things, one of them, I'll just say, there was personal responsibility, you see that, in verse number 12, God asked the question, has thou eaten of the tree, did you do it, and Adam responds this way, in verse 12, and Adam said, the woman, the first two words, out of his mouth, are the woman, because right now, he's in front of God, and the spotlight, and God's eyes, and attention are on him, and he's guilty, and who likes that feeling, and so he says, the woman, get the attention off of me, the woman that thou gavest me, oh, oh, it's my fault, huh, because I gave you the woman, is that what you're saying Adam, the woman, whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and then, and I did eat, and now, okay, so he turns to the woman, the Lord God said to the woman, what is this that thou hast done, and the woman said, spotlights on me, don't like this, he's looking at me, thanks a lot Adam, the serpent, and I don't think she's looking,

[34:24] I don't think the serpent's anywhere nearby, at this conversation here, but, that's what she does, it says, me, what, you're going to blame me, and what does she do, the serpent, and you see, the immediate response, of both guilty parties, is to, alleviate their responsibility, is to get the spotlight of guilt, off of them, even when they admit, the last thing they both say is, and I did eat, before they ever admit it, before the confession is, get the blame off of me, it doesn't seem to be too authentic to me, it doesn't seem to be so sincere, when they're trying to dodge the issue, and that's not surprising, I mean, I'm not surprised, to see that, and to read that, because when I read the Bible, there I am, right in the middle of this story, and there you are too, and that's exactly the way you respond, when you're guilty, there's a reason, you know what their confession, wasn't short on, wasn't short of excuses, wasn't short of reasoning, the woman whom thou gave to me, the serpent, he did it, he beguiled me, is it reasonable, for them to assume, that shifting the blame, alleviates their personal responsibility, is it reasonable, for you to assume, that because you can point the finger, somewhere else, that it alleviates, what you did, the very action, that you committed, so some kids get into some trouble, and they commit a crime, and something happens, and they stand in the courtroom, does the kid get to say, well he was there, and he was there, and so was she, does any of that matter, when it's their name on the docket, we're here to talk about, what you did, we're here to discuss, your role in this, your guilt, you're charged, you are charged, with this, this and this, they've got their own charges, the man has his own charges, the serpent has his own charges, it's for the woman here, to admit her guilt, do you think blaming society, is a, is an acceptable reason, for why you did what you did, do you think blaming your upbringing, and I didn't have a Christian home, and my dad was mean, and my mom didn't love me, and she went out and partied, and do you think that the trouble, and struggles that you could have experienced, in your youth, is going to be a reason, and an excuse for the actions, that you've committed, is that, is that reasonable before God, do you think that the friends, that you have, you can blame, do you think you can blame, the government, for the things that you do, do you think you can blame, your siblings, or your spouse, does any, anyone, ever give you validation, for your sin, before a holy God, we studied it last week, we must all appear, before the judgment seat of Christ, and every one of us, shall give account of himself, to God, people get to get away, with it down here, and they're going to think, that I can get away, with it up there, by pointing the finger, and shifting the blame, and understand, this confession, but this couple, was lacking something, it was lacking, personal responsibility, and it was lacking, something else, and I want you to turn, and this is the last place, we'll look in the Bible, this morning, look at Psalm 51,

[37:58] Psalm 51, God has been dealing, with sinners, for 6,000 years, some of them find mercy, some of them, have to suffer more, than they needed to, for their actions, the ones, the ones that find mercy, seems to be the ones, that own up to the guilt, and take personal responsibility, for their sin, and for their part, the ones that are honest, and the ones that are transparent, in Psalm 51, I'm going to read, this entire Psalm, with you, because you can't beat this, there is nothing, in this book, when it comes to, confessing sin, and guilt, that is better, than what we're about, to read right here, nothing, I've gone to this, many times, in my walk with God, and read it, and read it to him, on my knees, with tears, this is where David sins, and he's guilty, on many counts, and he tries to hide it, cover it up, and finally, he has to, he gets confronted, and he has to face up, and own up to it, and look how David responds, this is the sin, that he's committed, with Bathsheba, and committing adultery, and then having her husband,

[39:23] Uriah killed, in battle, and saying, oh you know, don't worry about it, the sword devours, one as it does the other, pretending that, that's what happened, no that's not what happened, David was guilty, and he gets right, and this is an example, a much needed example, for you and I, to understand, and a pattern, for us to observe, in our confessions, before God, Psalm 51, verse number one, a broken man says, have mercy upon me, oh God, according to thy loving kindness, according unto the multitude, of thy tender mercies, blot out my transgressions, that's plural, wash me throughly, from mine iniquity, and cleanse me, from my sin, for I acknowledge, my transgressions, and my sin, is ever before me, against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil, in thy sight, that thou mightest be justified, when thou speakest, and be clear, when thou judgest, behold I was shapen, in iniquity, and in sin, did my mother conceive me, behold thou desirest truth, in the inward parts, and in the hidden part, thou shalt make me, to know wisdom, purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean, wash me, and I shall be whiter, than snow, make me to hear joy, and gladness, that the bones, which thou hast broken, may rejoice, hide thy face, from my sins, and blot out, all mine iniquities, create in me, a clean heart,

[40:57] O God, and renew, a right spirit, within me, cast me not, away from thy presence, and take not, thy holy spirit, from me, restore unto me, the joy, of thy salvation, and uphold me, with thy free spirit, then will I teach, transgressors, thy ways, and sinners, shall be converted, unto thee, deliver me, from blood guiltiness, O God, thou God, of my salvation, and my tongue, shall sing aloud, of thy righteousness, O Lord, open thou my lips, and my tongue, or my mouth, shall show forth, thy praise, for thou desirest, not sacrifice, else would I give it, thou delightest not, in burnt offerings, the sacrifices of God, are a broken spirit, a broken, and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise, do good in thy good pleasure, and design, build thou the walls, of Jerusalem, then shalt thou be pleased, with the sacrifices, of righteousness, with burnt offerings, and whole burnt offering, then shall they offer bullocks, upon thine altar, there's a restoration, by the end of that psalm, but it starts with, an open and honest confession, and a plea, an admission of guilt, and a plea, for a cleansing, and he tells them, that the sacrifices of God, are a broken spirit, a broken, and a contrite heart,

[42:27] O God, thou wilt not despise, you know, what was missing, in their confession, a broken, spirit, and a contrite heart, there was plenty of blame, there was plenty of excuses, plenty of human reasoning, so from the very beginning, we learn man has trouble, admitting his guilt, the very first couple, the very first sin, the very first confrontation, with God, and he doesn't want to tell the truth, there's something in man, it's in you and me, that doesn't want to admit, what we are, who we are, and what we've done, we want to save face, we want to pretend, we're okay, it was them, and I just went along with them, because really, inside, I'm a pretty good person, and the truth is, no you're not, and God knows, what's inside of you,

[43:28] Bible says of Jesus Christ, that he knew, he knew what was in man, he knows your sin, he knows your dirty heart, he tells you, what's inside of you, in this book, he tells you, what's inside of you, the first time, that pride, shows itself, in the human race, is right here, in Genesis 3, in their failure, to admit their guilt, it's not a, it's not an arrogance, or a cockiness, that you may think of, but it's keeping him, from telling the truth, it's trying to preserve, and pretend he's better, or she's better, than she is, it's trying to, preserve, their righteousness, there's pride, inside of them, and pride, will not bow, and pride, will not accept blame, pride, will always point the finger, somewhere else, and deflect, pride attempts, to preserve, personal innocence, their confession, was motivated, by fear, and it was in response, to God's confrontation, but it was missing, the sorrow, and the contrite spirit, and heart, we can learn, some things this morning, from the confession, of this couple, we can learn, number one, that fear is healthy, fearing God, is helpful, fearing God, is necessary, and it'll help you, to get right, and it'll help you, to stay right, if you fear him, if you don't fear him, you're the fool, and you're going to, ruin some things, in your life, you're going to make, bad decisions, because you're going to think, eh, he's not going to really, judge me, for this one, he hasn't judged them,

[45:22] I can get away with it, did the Bible say, you can get away with it, I mean, did God say, you won't get away with it, is he a liar, you better fear him, it'll clean up your life, it'll make you worry, about where your soul, ends up in eternity, if you fear him, fear is healthy, and helpful, secondly, we learn God, is a great confronter, and sooner or later, you're going to be confronted, whether it's in this life, or the next, I would recommend, that you learn, how to get honest, with God, and what we saw, finally, is that confession, without contrition, is weak, it's lacking, something, and it will never, resolve the issues, you and I, need to learn, how to confess, and not according, to this pattern, we should fear God, when he does confront us, and receive that confrontation, and then do what David did, and get on our face, and say, have mercy upon me, oh God,

[46:32] I have sinned, please have mercy on me, I don't want to live this way, David goes on to plead, and say that he'd get restored, he wanted to experience, joy and gladness, in the presence of God, he wanted to get so far back, that he was going to teach, transgressors, and that he was going to teach, sinners, and convert them unto God, because he was going to get, so far away from that sin, that he's going to say, hey, don't mess with that one, and God will have mercy, David was a great, a great confessor, this morning, we need help, in our confessions, you don't need to confess, to a priest, you don't need to confess, to me, you may not need to confess, to any person, or human being, on the planet, but you need to learn, how to get honest with God, to have a private conversation, before him, on your knees, privately, find a quiet space, and spend time with God, and if you'll be open with God, and admit your sin, and guilt before him, you will find mercy, you will find grace, to help, you will find restoration, because God's arms, he's not willing, that any should perish, he's looking for you to repent, but if there's sin, in your heart and life, and maybe even this morning,

[48:05] God's kind of pricking you about it, and confronting you about it, in your spirit, the response is, confess it, don't shift the blame, don't think you're going to get out of it, God's no fool, he knows your guilt, the best thing to do, is get it clean, so there's the coerced confession, from this couple, the sin they brought on, and the mess they got in, and the confrontation with God, and God still confronts today, are you hiding, or are you going to stand up, and give an answer now, before you have to do it later, let's pray, our Lord, so, and then, first of all, and then, what's wrong, now, what's wrong with you, and I walk my gospel, and particularly, are you here for the only thing?

[49:02] or feel that cynical, and I try to never speak about it today, but be true, and quite this, and so, and I walk my gospel, so that time you have to say,长, this, and I walk my gospel,