Ep. 55 | Relationships | Genesis

Listen in as Pastor Eddie Blalock shares today’s daily devotional featuring Genesis 2:18-25. Let’s be Formed by The Word together!

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Every story has a beginning. And if you don't understand the beginning, you'll likely misunderstand everything that follows. Welcome to Formed by the Word. Currently, we're going back to the very beginning as we look together at the first 11 chapters of Genesis. These chapters explain our world, our struggles, and much about ourselves. We'll see beauty and brokenness, purpose and pride, judgment and grace. We'll watch humanity fall and see that God already had a plan to restore his relationship with us. The Bible doesn't start with a problem, it starts with a perfect God, and that changes everything. So, wherever you're listening, whether you're driving, working out, or just scrolling for something meaningful, lean in, open your heart, because the God who spoke in the beginning is still speaking today.

SPEAKER_01 0:56

Someone once said, I love people in small doses. If we're honest, we get that, don't we? People can be messy, they can be complicated, even frustrating. But here's the truth, the same people who frustrate us are often the very people that God uses to shape us. I've seen people who work hard and finally have everything they wanted: success, money, freedom, and still were not happy. Why? Because they felt so alone. Statistics dealing with loneliness indicate that you can have friends on social media and still be lonely. You can be in a large crowd of people and still feel like you're all alone. You can have the perfect environment and still be lonely. And that's exactly what we see here in Eden. From the very beginning, God said it's not good that the man should be alone. Now think about that. Before sin, before brokenness, there was a need for community. There was a need for other people in our lives. God created us that way. Isolation is not strength, it's a sign that something's missing. You are not designed to do life solo. Yes, we are created for purpose, but a part of that purpose involves people. Well, relationships help shape you to who you become. The people closest to you influence your thinking and your habits, and they even to some degree influence your direction in life. Scripture reinforces that principle. Paul wrote to the Corinthian church in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, bad company ruins good morals. This would imply that relationships are not neutral, they are formative. I've heard many people, many leaders say, show me your relationships and I'll show you your future. Perhaps you've heard that as well. The truth is you can have everything else right in your life and still be missing something essential if you're disconnected from others. I want to draw your attention to four things that I observe in our text today that I think can help us in this matter of relationships. First, we notice the problem of isolation. Now, I should say we're in Genesis chapter two, and we begin with verse number 18 today. Here's what it says. So God saw that loneliness was not good. You know what? That's the first time that we see something in creation that he calls not good. To this point, everything he created, he simply said it was good. But here, it's not good that the man is alone. So he made the man a helper. Now we can learn from this that isolation is not part of God's design. In fact, you can be surrounded by a multitude of blessings as well as people and still lack what matters a lot, a relationship. Even in paradise, isolation was a problem. The second thing we observe is in verses 19 through 22, and we observe a provision of a perfect complement. It says this, so the Lord God formed from the ground all of the wild animals and all the birds of the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would call them, and the man chose a name for each one. He gave names to all the livestock, all the birds of the sky, and all the wild animals, but still there was no helper just right for him. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, and while the man slept, the Lord God took one of the ribs and closed up the opening. Now here we see that God intended to put the man he had formed into a relationship. He sought out to find just the right helper for him. I think that's interesting. Now the word helper there is important. It suggests someone who is a strong supporter or even a partner. It speaks of someone who's not less important, but one who is essential. Then it's noted that God is not looking for just anyone for him to relate to. God wants him to have a helper, a partner that is, quote, fit for him. That is perfectly corresponding to him, just the right fit. So the search process begins and God brings the animals to him, and they come one by one, but none are found to be suitable. Now, this highlights the uniqueness of what Adam had for needs in a partner, right? So then we see next that God forms a woman and personally brings her to Adam and presents her to him. Notice that God doesn't just meet needs, he meets them perfectly and personally. God's provision isn't rushed along. He takes the time that it takes to make a perfect match. So next we notice the joy of this connection in verse 22 and following. Listen to this. It says, Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib and he brought her to the man. Wow. And the man said, At last, the man exclaimed, This one is bone from my bones and flesh from my flesh, she shall be called woman because she was taken from the man. Did you catch that response from Adam? When he saw the animals, his response was, eh. But when he met his bride, when he gazed into the eyes of the woman that God had formed, his response was, Wow. I've never seen anything like this before. This is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh, he says. So Adam responded with celebration. This is poetic, yes, but it is emotional and is extremely joyful. Boy, the celebration begins. Friends, when God provides a right relationship, it produces deep joy in our hearts. Don't take God-given relationships for granted. Rather celebrate the people God places in your life. Right relationships don't drain you, they bring you joy. Well, finally, this section shows us the design for lifelong unity in marriage. Verse 24 says, This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one. You've probably heard that before at a wedding, if nowhere else. But in our next devotion, I'll talk more about this verse as it relates to the marriage relationship. But just to whet your appetite a little bit, in his fine collection of sermons on marriage called Strike the Original Match, one of my favorites, Chuck Swindall, gives a great exegesis of this verse. He suggests that this verse shows us three things that are expected in the relationship of a husband and a wife. They are severance, permanence, and acceptance. Severance is leaving. A man leaves his father and mother. Permanence is cleaving and is joined to his wife or cemented together and acceptance or loving. The two are united into one, holding fast to a deep commitment and a strong loyalty. Well, let's begin to make some application here before we need to close because I think there are three things that we can say that really we draw from the text that we can apply. First of all, don't do life alone. Pursue meaningful, God-centered relationships. Don't be afraid of that. Don't be afraid to reach out. Don't be afraid to initiate. I'm not talking here now about marriage. I'm just talking about relationships in general. Don't do life alone. Second, trust God's design for relationships. You know what? His way is the right way. And the right way leads to connection, stability, and joy. The right relationship doesn't drain us. The right relationship gives us great joy. So don't do life alone. Trust God's design for relationships. And third, invest in unity, not just proximity. Being around people isn't the same as being connected with people. Being close to people in proximity doesn't mean that we have any unity, any connection. So invest in unity. Now that's not easy. That takes time. Proximity is easier, but investment in unity is important. Your relationships really are, my friend, shaping your future right now. Not later, not Sunday, but right now. The people you listen to, the people you follow, the people you spend time with, they're either pulling you closer to who God wants you to be, or they're pushing you further away. So the takeaway today is this: you are not created, remember this, you are not created for isolation. You were designed for deep, God-centered connection. Strong relationships don't happen accidentally, though. They're built through commitment and sacrifice. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for these who are listening today. God, I thank you that they have a need from you for community, for not being isolated, but being together with people. Now, Lord, I pray that you would help us to see that today and help us, oh God, to make a decision to not be alone, to trust your design for our relationship. And Lord, give us strength to invest in unity as we work along. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 9:52

Thanks for joining us today. We are so glad that you chose to spend a few moments with us in God's Word. If this episode has encouraged you, we ask that you leave us a review or maybe share this episode with a friend. Also, would you consider sending us a note to let us know what God is doing in your life? Pastor Eddie would love to hear from you. You can find this email in the show notes. Until next time, stay in the scriptures, keep following Christ, and allow your life to be formed by the Word.