Paradise Lost & the Last Enemy

What if Eve had not listened to Satan’s temptations? What if Adam had stepped up and protected Eve from eating the fruit? What if sin and rebellion had never entered into this world? What if…? The reality is they did disobey God and since then, mankind has continued to choose independence from God. We have continued to rebel against our creator. We continue to choose our own way.

God told Adam and Eve that they would experience death if they ate the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good & Evil. One type of death, spiritual death, separation from God, was immediate and they were banished from the garden. The other type of death, physical death, did not manifest itself until later. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians that death is the last enemy to be defeated.

Carla and I have experienced that last enemy several times in our marriage. We lost our firstborn son, Zach, when he was 18. I lost my dad when I was 41. I remember my mom asking him to stay, to fight to live if he loved her. I remember telling her that he wasn’t giving in to death because he did not love her, but that he loved Jesus more. My dad passed later that morning. Several years after Zach died, I lost my mom. Because of the ravages of dementia, she did not even know who I was at the end. We watched one of our best friends die of a heart attack on our dream couples’ trip to Italy. Carla and I did CPR on him as he left this life. What if…? The last enemy still exists and I thank God that he gave me a partner in Carla to walk those dark moments with me.

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One day, the last enemy will be defeated. There will be no more death or sickness or suffering.

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As Carla and I approach our 41st anniversary, we find the last enemy at our door once more. My father-in-law is facing that enemy.  It seems ironic that I had my own father in my life for 41 years and now I may be losing my father-in-law of 41 years. Selfishly, I don’t want him to go. He has been my second father. He has been such a gift in my life. Both my fathers set such an example for me to follow and a legacy for their families. I don’t want to suffer the pain of loss again. I don’t want to see my wife and her mom and siblings walk through that valley of death. But I will be right by her side and we will face it together as we have in the times before. I still wonder what if…?

I have felt the pain of losing a child, both parents, and a close friend. As I watch my mother-in-law come to grips with losing her husband, I know that I dread the day Carla or I have to face the last enemy. To lose the other half of your “one” is not something I want to experience. Unless Jesus comes before, I know that we will. If Adam and Eve had known the pain their disobedience would cause, would they have eaten the fruit? I would like to think they would not, but then I know I still sin and choose my own way and I have seen the fruit of their disobedience and my own.

Life in a fallen world is hard. We face the consequences of the original sin of Adam and Eve and those consequences brought by man’s continued rebellion against God. I think God allows us to experience those consequences so that we will not grow too fond of this world and to make us long for the next. One day, the last enemy will be defeated. There will be no more death or sickness or suffering. There will be no more sin. I long for that day! As John said in Revelation 22:20, “Come, Lord Jesus.”

What if…

Johnny