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It takes Two to become One ( 1+1=1 )
It is God who said, "It is not good that the man should be alone." That lets us know that marriage is His plan. Marriage is the Lord's answer to our aloneness. You see, Adam was all by himself until the Lord gave Eve to him. There was no one else around for Adam to relate to. Therefore, Adam did not realize the depth of his aloneness. Yes the Lord was there, but for Adam there was no help meet found! At that time Adam's relationship with the Lord was good. There was fellowship and good communication between Adam and God. But, God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone." Now when the Lord Himself says that Adam was alone, then believe it or not, Adam was alone. It is awesome that such a statement could be made considering the fact that the Lord walked with Adam in the cool of the day.
Yes, there was God, there was Adam, and there was all creation, but Adam was alone! We do not know that Adam was "lonely", we just know that he was alone. Somehow the fact that he was alone moved the heart of God to do something about it. Follow very closely here for this is extremely important for you to grasp. God Himself solved Adams' aloneness! The Lord did not allow Adam to do anything himself concerning his situation. You see, Adam would not know how to remedy his aloneness. This is where the goodness of God really shines forth. The Lord saw Adams' need and met that need. What we need to see here is the way in which God met his need.
First, the Lord Himself declared the need. Adam was alone. Then the Lord provided the method. He caused a deep sleep to come on Adam. Then, He took something of Adam out of Adam and made something for Adam out that which came from Adam. Then He presented to Adam that which came out of Adam.
It is very important to note several things here, first, the very thing that Adam needed was already present. Eve came out of Adam! That tells us that she was already here, although she was "hidden" in Adam. Second, the Lord called "their name" Adam. It was the man who later called her Eve. Third, the man called her woman or "womb-man". Fourth, and this calls for some serious consideration, God "created" man but He "made" the woman. Simply put, to create means to bring into being in concept, design, and reality that which did not exist prior to its being created. To make means to bring forth out of existing sources. The woman or "womb-man" came forth from the man. Now this is very important to remember, although God "made" the woman to be a help meet for the man, we must remember that the Bible says "......male and female created He them," Genesis 5:2 and called THEIR NAME Adam in the day when they were created.
As confusing as this might be to the natural mind, there is a wonderful truth revealed here. That truth is this, the woman is a creation of and also made especially for and designed specifically with the womb. Hence "woman" or "womb-man". Now we all know that the womb is necessary for birthing. The womb is simply that place of protection and provision for the infant until the infant outgrows it's need for that particular environment. Infants should "outgrow" the womb. The womb is a temporary home for the infant! There is no way that Adam could have fulfilled God's plan while he was alone. Although Eve was there "in" Adam the whole time, yet God's plan was also tied to the woman or the "womb-man." At this point, it would be enlightening to expose a misconception. The most accepted basis on which to debate the differences between men and women is the womb. But, we too quickly leave that basis and find ourselves discussing, physical strength, mental dispositions, and emotion. Let's get real here! Men normally are stronger physically than women with one exception. Men do not have a womb! The strength of the womb is unknown by personal experience to the male.
With the womb comes the strength to capacitate the womb. To conceive, carry, and give birth to a child requires a great stamina and strength. This is no way diminishes the role of the man, but it should help us to understand the dignity of the woman. She is not less than the man.
I want to plant this seed of truth so that by the time you finish this study the seed will have germinated in your thinking and will have brought forth the fruit of greater understanding. That truth is this "...there is neither Male nor Female: for ye are one in Christ Jesus..."
Now that we have established the fact that Eve came out from Adam, and that Eve is Adam's help meet, let's draw some truth out of all this.
First, "...In Christ Jesus there is neither male nor female..." This is what the Lord was revealing when he called THEIR name Adam. (Genesis 5:2) Now that will be clearly seen in 1Corinthians 15:22 where the Bible sates, "...in Adam all die." Knowing that it took the man and the woman to constitute Adam we see something revealed....Genesis 1:26 "Let us make man (mankind...male and female) in the likeness of our image." So, man or "mankind" is made up of male and female.
The first Adam is usually thought of as male. Remember out of Adam, the first man, came Eve, the first woman. If we are not careful in our thinking, we will determine that Eve (or the woman) was only an afterthought in the mind of God. We will think that if Adam had not been "lonely" God would have never made the woman!
It will be good at this point to bring into focus several things. In 1Corinthians 11:17, we have a very revealing truth. The man is the image and glory of God: the woman is the glory of the man." Now this word "man" in this verse of scripture means "her husband." The word "woman" means the man's wife. Without going to great lengths to unravel this scripture, let's look at the more apparent meanings. Even this will be somewhat involved.
Lets look first at God's intention for man. "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness..." Now that word for man is mankind, remember, "Male and female created he them." It is important to note here "image and likeness" does not necessarily mean two things. A clearer reading would be, "In the likeness of our image." To read it like that helps us un-tangle the language a bit.
Also, and this is very important, we need to define the word "God" used in this verse. As you probably already know the word used to describe God in the Bible can mean different things at different times, depending on what God is revealing concerning Himself or His nature. In this instance (Genesis 1:26) the word used for God is "Elohim." Elohim is the word used to reveal God as creator, Now when God said, "in the likeness of our image," He was revealing Himself as creator. Of all the things God made, only man creates! Everything else is confined and limited to survival; how to find food, how to care for its young, where to live... in other words, restricted to instinct. But man can and does create!
To create means to bring into being in concept, design, and reality that which did not exist prior to its being created. Only man does this. Please pay close attention here! The above is a very simplistic explanation. We could go on and on in this one particular thought. However, at this point, we have uncovered all we need for this study.
Now, back to the main theme. Mankind includes male and female! Adam in Genesis 1:26 means mankind. "Male and Female, created he them!"
Follow this, if He created "them" male and female, then male and female must be necessary to His plan! There is no afterthought concerning the woman, she was always in the plan of God!
But we need to continue looking at 1Corinthians 11:7-12. Look at verse eight, "the man is not of the woman, but the woman is of the man." Eve came out of Adam! Adam did not come out of Eve! "Neither was the man created for the woman, but the woman for the man." verse 9.
Remember, the Lord God brought the woman to the man, Genesis 2:22. Amazingly, Adam knew where she came from. "Bone of my bones, flesh of my flesh! " said Adam. He also called her woman (womb-man). He knew where she came from and he knew her role in God's plan. She is the womb-man!
Now that we have established that the woman is the womb-man, let’s explore this in more detail. The first thing that needs to be seen is this; the man is a "fountain", and the woman is a "well." As you know, a fountain has a continual source and supply while, a well is dependent , needing a source to supply.
Remember, the woman was taken out of the man. Look at it this way-she issued forth from the man. The man is a fountain! A fountain sends forth an issue. Now, always remember this....the root determines the fruit! Here’s a good question, if it is true that the root determines the fruit, then who is responsible for the nature of the fruit? Everything reproduces, "after its kind." That is the law of Genesis.
Remember this principle; where there is fruit, there is a root! Just where does this fit in here? Well, I just want this to server as a reminder that things can be traced back to a place of origin. For instance, we may see a person who has emotional problems, we know those problems a root, or if you will, a beginning. A root is formed by planting a seed. So we see from this that a seed was planted, a root formed , and the fruit becomes the emotional problem. Had the seed not been planted, the fruit would not exist! There is a tremendous truth revealed here. That truth is this: if a seed is planted in the right place under the right conditions, it will reproduce itself MANY TIMES OVER! Be careful not to plant bad seed! Another important thing to remember here is that good seed must be carefully planted and cared for in order for them to produce good fruit. Weeds, on the other hand, just seem to "pop" up. Well, weeds come from seeds also. The problem with weeds is that they produce no good fruit, they just take up space, they rob the nutrients form the good plants, and they are most un-sightly. We are not always sure how the weeds get here but, we do know they are here. Sometimes we may not recognize a weed until it comes time for fruit to be produced. When we see no fruit, then we know it is just a weed taking up space and we need to remove it.
Moving on, let’s fit all this together see what it means in the context of relationship between a husband and a wife. We have seen that the woman came out of the man. Just ponder this; "How can we love the root and yet despise the fruit?" The fruit is helpless in that it receives its whole identity from the nature of the root. Remember, the root receives its nature from the seed. First, Adam was a seed planted by God Himself. Now remember, "God called their name Adam!" Do you now see that what happened in the garden or Eden, when Adam transgressed, has produced the bad seed?
Let’s return to the law of Genesis, "whose seed is in itself."(Genesis 1:11) We see by this that the fruit contains the seed that will produce the same fruit again! In other words, no matter how many times you plant an apple seed, you will always get apples! You know that! Wouldn't’t it be foolish for someone to plant an apple seed to make an orange tree so that they pick bananas from and orange tree that was produced by the apple seed?! We need to remember "....God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." (Galatians 6:7)
With this in mind, let’s draw one of the greatest truths from this scripture. If you sow, you reap! Although others may be directly or indirectly affected by what you sow; YOU still reap! No one else can reap for you. There may be times when it looks like we, "got away with it", but the truth is you reap what you sow! Sometimes the consequences of our actions are less apparent to others and at times less apparent to ourselves, but, believe it or not, YOU REAP!
Again, the Law of Genesis, "While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease." (Genesis 8:22) Now I ask you, is there cold and heat? Is there summer and winter? Is there day and night? Then there is also SEEDTIME! There is also HARVEST!
At this point we need a ray or hope. God can and will help us to make all the changes necessary in order for us to produce good fruit. We are not without hope! Jesus Christ made it possible for us to experience change in our life. The more we get to know Him, the more we can change! He is our hope! Change comes when we do things His way.
With these things in mind it will be easier to focus . The Bible is our instruction book.. We find in it all those things necessary for godly living. So, let’s go to the word concerning "......male and female made He them."
When the Lord saw Adam alone, [remember, Eve was in Adam] , He caused a deep sleep to come on Adam. While Adam was asleep, the Lord "took" Eve out of him. The Bible tells us that He , "took a rib" from Adam and made the woman.
The word "rib" is interesting in that its meaning reveals many spiritual truths. Strong’s Concordance # 6763....feminine-...curved, a door, leaf, side, (floor or ceiling) timber or plank-flooring-beam, board, chamber, corner.........#6760......to limp,(as one sided);-halt.
If we will allow the Holy Spirit to teach us the depth of this seemingly simple act of removing a rib and "building" a "womb-man", we will be richer by far! Much revelation is contained in this deeply significant act of rib-removal! What God did here far exceeds our puny concepts by infinity!
Please bear with me. This deserves a good long look. It would be unwise to leave this point unfinished. I will be as brief as possible.
If Adam was alone before Eve was removed,"taken", from him, then Eve was still in Adam. Now while Eve was still in Adam, the Lord said, "It is not good that the man should be alone."
God caused a deep sleep to come on Adam. Then the Lord took a rib from Adam’s side and , "....closed up the flesh instead thereof...." Out of Adam’s side came his bride. Remember, they pierced the side of Jesus while He hung on the cross. See the bride of Christ come from His side? Can you see what the Lord was revealing in both of these instances? What came from Adam was actually part of himself. What flowed from the side of Christ was actually part of Himself. Remember the phrase, "...and closed up the flesh instead thereof..."? The Lord "made" the woman with the rib that came "out of Adam"! See the principle of "Issue" as a fountain issues? Instead of making another "mud-man" from the dust of the ground, the Lord made the woman out of the man!
The word "made" is found in Strong’s Concordance Old Testament section at #1129. Its meanings are....build, (lit. and fig.) - (begin to) build(-er) obtain children, make repair, set (up) surely.
Eve, (so named by Adam), came out of Adam. I do not want to labor this point, but, it deserves attention. Whatever Adam was....SO WAS EVE! Whenever the Lord brought Eve to Adam he knew where she came from. Original language would read to us today like this, "At last, another ME!" To us it would be like something like; alter ego; another SELF!
Now from this point we will make our attempt at revealing some deeper spiritual truths. So, take a deep breath, stretch, and we will continue................!
Pastor Jerry Mercer
Church of New Beginnings
2673 Nursery Road
Blackshear, GA 31516
912-283-0343
All Bible Studies © 2003 Jerry Mercer