The Greatest Love Story Ever Written! (Part I)

If I were to ask you what was the greatest love story ever written, what would your answer be? What would you say to me? Could it be "Gone with the Wind"?, "Romeo & Juliet"?, "Titanic"? Well, the truth is, you are free to take your pick. But if you were to ask me the same question, my answer would be: None of the above. That is the case, because to me, the greatest love story ever written, was not based on fiction; but rather on reality and truth. This particular story is full of wonder, love and grace. And it took place over 2,000 years ago; in a little town called Bethlehem. But before I tell you more about this amazing love story, allow me to give you a little background information in order to help you understand the reason why this story came to be. Please bear with me.

You see, a long, long time ago, even before the world began, The Greatest author of all already had it all planned out. He had already written everything. The History of the world in which we live, and the History of mankind. Nothing escaped Him. He never neglected one little detail about what He was set out to do. "And was that?"-you ask. Well, He made the heavens, the Earth, and the entire Universe! He made the solar system and all of its planets, He made all of the wondrous galaxies, (many of which, we humans, are not even aware of), within an incredibly vast space which we know of as the Universe. And everything He made was made with the utmost attention to detail; reflecting His perfect nature, and unprecedented, unlimited, creative ability. But here's the most impressive part of all: Everything in the Earth-that is, everything we see around us-light, darkness, the sky, the land, vegetation, the sun, the moon the stars, fish, sea creatures, birds, and every other kind of animal there is-came to be at the sound of the Creator's voice. At the sound of God's spoken word! Are you impressed yet? (Because I sure am!) But wait, there's more! This is the part where you and me come to be...So, shall we?

On the sixth day of this creation process, God created human beings. He created both male and female. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Let's take our time to better understand the process involved in the creation of human beings. First, God created/made man from the dust of the land. Then, He breathed the breath of life into his nostrils; thus creating the man in His image by giving the man a spirit, and subsequently, life. In other words, the breath of life is the spirit. What gives us life is the spirit existent within each and everyone of us. And we were made in God's image when we were given a spirit. For God is the Breath of Life.   

Once the man was given life, God called him to name all of the animals that God had made. So that is what the man did. But he could not find a partner or a helper that was suitable for him. So God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, and made a woman from one of the man's ribs. The man was very pleased with the companion God had made for him; for he saw that what God had made was flesh of his (the man's) flesh, and bone of his (the man's) bone. After that, God placed both man and woman in the Garden of Eden; an exquisitely beautiful garden, which contained an endless variety of fruit-bearing trees from which the man and the woman were allowed to eat. However, there was one particular tree in the the Garden of Eden, from which both man and woman were specifically told not to eat. This tree, was the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  In fact, God warned them saying:  

"You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden-except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die." 

(Genesis 2:16b-17).

Unfortunately, one day as the woman was walking around the Garden, a serpent (the devil) deceived her, and convinced her to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil; the tree from which God had forbidden them to eat. As she took a bite of its fruit, she found it to be very appetizing; and offered some of it to her husband; who in turn, ate from the forbidden fruit. As soon as he did, both the man's eyes and his wife's eyes were opened. They soon realized that they were naked, and became ashamed of it. So much so, that they gathered fig leaves to cover up their nakedness.

In the late afternoon, as the "cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the Lord walking about in the garden. So they hid from the Lord among the trees."  

(Genesis 3:8). 

Note, when the man and his wife sinned against the Lord by disobeying His command and eating the forbidden fruit, they were ashamed and hid from His presence. They were ashamed not only of their nakedness, but of their disobedience of God's command as well. So you see, their sin separated them from God. It prevented them from the privilege of  having fellowship with the Lord as they did before. They were now corrupted by sin, and ashamed of their deed. 

Since Adam and Eve sinned against the Lord, their seed or their offspring (a.k.a. the entire human race) were conceived in sin, and inherited a sinful nature. As a result of this inherited sinful nature, we sin every day. For our flesh is sinful and weak. Therefore, we have all fallen short of the glory of God, and a veil was drawn between God and mankind. For God is Holy, and cannot behold or tolerate sin. Thankfully, the All-Knowing God, had already drafted a plan of redemption for mankind, in order to restore their fellowship with the Lord their God and vice-versa. And that's where Jesus comes in! But we'll have to wait until next time, as we continue the narration and discussion of the greatest love story ever written! A story that changed the course of History! A story of selfless love, grace, and redemption!

Until next time...

May the Lord bless you!

All glory, honor, and praise to be to God!

Both now and forever!

Amen!