Our Groom Awaits Us
It Is Not Good for Man to Be Alone
>>>>Read Genesis 1&2 (with special attention to 1:25-28 and 2:18-25)<<<<
Then the LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him." Gen. 2:18
Do you find it odd that the Bible has history in it, yet it cannot be considered a history book? There are large gaps in time sequences and incomplete historical accounts in this book. Maybe you think of it as a book filled with wonderful stories; however, the individual stories lack details that a complete story would normally include. I find myself with many questions after I read a Bible story.
God has not written a history book or a storybook, He has written a revelation of Himself using parts of history and carefully constructed stories in order to make Himself known. If we want to find Him in this book, we have to actively search for Him. Let me say that another way. You can find other things to focus on as you read your Bible, but you will only find Him if you actively look for Him! Well, you might say, He could have made it easier – why didn't He organize everything in an easy-to-learn format? We'll have to ask Him that question when we see Him; in the meantime He has given us the best of all teachers: the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of the living God lives within each believer – He is your intimate, personal Teacher and He longs to reveal the secrets of God to your heart and mind. If you forget to rely upon Him you will only find fragmented history and sketchy stories – simply remember to depend upon Him for revelation.
Genesis 2 records a 'sketchy' story about the creation of woman. God records only details necessary to accomplish His purpose, so it is important to look closely at the information He includes. First, notice the general sequence of events: the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed life into him. After man was placed in the garden to take care of it, God stated that it was not good for him to be alone. Adam needed a suitable counterpart – one who would complete him, work in harmony with him, and correspond to him. It seems logical that the next step would be to fulfill the need. Why did God follow "I will make a helper suitable to him," with an assignment to name all the animals? It is for the sake of revelation – God wants us to recognize the very thing Adam recognized.
As the animals appeared before him, pair after pair, Adam realized that every male animal had a female counterpart – but there was no suitable counterpart for him. God knew it was not good for the man to be alone, Adam learned it for himself – and this narrative is written down so that you (and all readers down through history) would know God's mind concerning the creation of woman. Notice that Adam and the animals had been created from the dust of the earth, but Adam's counterpart did not come from the earth – she was taken out of man (Adam means man). This was an entirely unique creation. God built (literal translation) the woman from a rib that was taken out of Adam. When God brought her to Adam, he said,
"This [is] the [proper] step! Bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh! For this it is called Woman, for from a man hath this been taken" (Gen. 2:23 - Young's Literal translation).
God breathed life into Adam, but no breath of life was given to woman; her life comes from Adam. Genesis 5 offers more insight into the creation of the woman:
In the day of God's preparing man, in the likeness of God He hath made him; a male and a female He hath prepared them, and He blesseth them, and calleth their name Man, in the day of their being prepared. Gen. 5:1-2 (Young's Literal Translation)
The creature made in the likeness of God was male and female, and He called their name Man. The female was hidden inside Man until God took her out and gave her bone and flesh. Adam called her woman, "for she was taken out of man" (Gen. 2:23). This puts a new perspective on Genesis 1:28 where we read that God blessed them and gave them shared dominion over the earth. The blessing belonged to the woman even before she was taken out of man. The couple was told to be fruitful and multiply – this command required that the man and his counterpart have union in order to maintain 'one flesh' (Gen. 2:24). The beautiful purpose of their union is to bring forth fruit, and more fruit and more fruit – multiplication! God has declared His desire to have, and to love, countless children.
The union of the woman with the man changes "not good" to "very good" because of the relationship they shared; the fruit of that relationship would please God and fulfill the purpose of His creation. For Adam and the woman, as real human beings who lived on the earth, this means populating the earth with creatures made in the image of God. Remember, we are in Genesis 2, before the fall of mankind – the image of God was still intact in the heart and mind of mankind. (After Genesis 3, man existed in the sinful likeness of fallen Adam)
That is the human story – how does it reflect Christ and His Church? In this story, we learn the heart of God toward mankind, but we also see what is in His heart for His Son. Adam would not carry out God's purpose for mankind. In Genesis 2, he is set before us as a picture (a type) of the Man, Christ Jesus, who would come. Genesis 2:24 states, "For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." Paul quotes this verse in Ephesians 5:31 followed by this surprising statement: "This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the Church."
Eden, Adam and the Woman – Unfolding the Type
The longing of a man's heart is satisfied when he leaves his father and mother and joins himself to a wife. When we look into the future we tend to think of Christ as King over all the earth – He will be all-powerful, crushing the enemy and hurling him into the fiery pit. However, here, we have a picture of Christ (Adam) and the Church (the woman). While the Scriptures do tell us about the King's dominion over all things, we do not see it emphasized here. Here, we see a picture of One who will have the longings of His own heart satisfied when He is joined to His Bride. The woman, in Genesis 2, is not a subject of the King, she is part of His body – can you think of a more intimate relationship?
The word Eden means pleasure, yet even in Eden Adam was not completely satisfied, for he was alone. He was supreme in his position over all the other creatures, but there was not one that could respond to his heart. This is a picture of Christ, creator and ruler over all of His creation, yet without an object that could respond to His heart of love. He required a creature that was "His like," a counterpart who could share His thoughts and return His affection. He required a complement that could, and would, share dominion and communion with Him. This creature would have to be well suited for Him – not created from dust, with an affinity for the world system – but a new creation with whom He could share union (2Cor. 5:17).
The woman was hidden in Adam; she received her life from him. This gives us a picture of the Church receiving life from Christ. Believers, either individually or as the body (the Church), have no existence apart from Christ. We are no longer creatures of the earth in God's eyes. Born again into a spiritual realm, we have become one with His Son (Eph. 1:5; 2:6).
. . . Your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. Col. 3:3b,4
From eternity past, the Church was in the heart of God (Eph. 3:9); she is presently being built together as a dwelling place for Him (Eph. 2:22), and she will reign with Him for all eternity as His treasured Bride. The first chapters of Genesis begin with a picture that discloses the desires of God's heart and the last chapters of Revelation show that desire fulfilled. The pages between Genesis and Revelation give us: pictures to help us understand how God prepares the Bride and what is required of her . . . pictures of His phenomenal love for us . . . even details about the marriage ceremony itself! There is nothing you or I can do to make ourselves a suitable Bride for Christ. He will do it!
What shall we possess along with Christ ? Not the kingdom only . . . but all His own blessedness. In the truth of oneness, all else is lost in Christ Himself. We shall be as Eve was with Adam – two people, yet without losing their identity – counted as one person in Christ. ~ J. Denham Smith
LJ 5/10
