We all know the story. God gives Adam and Eve paradise. They are free to enjoy the garden and everything in it… with the exception of one tree. A serpent comes along and smooth talks Eve, getting her to question God and his instructions. She gives in. So does Adam. Paradise lost.
As I have heard the story told, Eve takes a lot of the blame. She, after all, eats the fruit first. Adam is portrayed as guilty by association. A victim of listening to his wife. But this is a pretty poor reading of the story. If we read it carefully, Adam actually drops the ball first. He messes things up BEFORE Eve takes the first bite.
The key is knowing the order of things:
- God creates Adam.
- God tells Adam not to eat the fruit from the tree of good/evil.
- God creates Eve
Did you catch that?
God’s instructions about the tree are given to Adam, not Eve. Eve was not even created yet. Sure, by the time the serpent comes slithering around, she knows the rules. But she only knows the rules through Adam. He is the person God spoke to about right and wrong. He is the one who was told the truth. He was the one given this responsibility.
So, fast forward to when the serpent is smooth talking Eve. Where is Adam?
He is right there, but he is silent. He is standing in the middle of the lies and deception, completely quiet. He is standing there as someone who knows the truth, but does nothing. He stands there as someone who God has spoken to, yet does not speak up.
This is the sin of SILENCE.
Growing up in the church, I was taught that sin is stuff I do or say. It is cussing, or drinking too much whiskey, or looking at a pretty girl. But I don’t remember being taught about how silence can be a sin.
You see, sin is not just what we do, it is also what we don’t do. It is not just what we say, it is what we fail to say.
The fancy way to say this is there are sins of commission (things we say and do). And there are sins of omission (things we do not say and do). The church has done a pretty good job at teaching people about sins of commission. But I fear we have failed to teach people about sins of omission.
The result is a church who often stays quiet when it should be speaking up. Remains silent when it should be prophetic. Keeps the peace when it should be marching in the streets.
I find this all to be extremely relevant. We are living in a world with a lot of loud voices. Voices of fear and blame. Voices of hate and slander. Voices of selfishness and scapegoating. Voices on the right and left. Each of these voices is the voice of the serpent trying to get us to doubt the simple teachings of Jesus. To question love, grace, and truth.
And it is precisely in times such as these, we need to speak up. Because silence in the face of evil is a prelude to tragedy.
Silence in the face of well-crafted lies is a prelude to tragedy.
Silence is the face of fear and hate is a prelude to tragedy.
Silence in the face of racism is a prelude to tragedy.
Silence is the face of immorality is a prelude to tragedy.
Silence is the face of sexism is a prelude to tragedy.
Silence in the face of injustice is a prelude to tragedy.
Silence in the face of spiritual apathy is a prelude to tragedy.
The world needs to hear the church’s voice again. If you have forgotten, this voice is both powerful and gentle. It booms with truth, yet whispers grace. It does not speak on behalf of a political leader, nor does it endorse a political party (or if it does, it has gone astray). It will not be labelled by the powers of this world- conservative, liberal, right or left. It does not show partiality to race, or wealth, or human popularity. It is a voice of its own. It is a prophetic voice reminding the world to return to the God it has forgotten and forsaken. Reminding the world that God cares about justice, and sin, and condition of the human heart. It is a voice proclaiming there is such thing as “right” and “wrong”, and we are always to do our best to choose what is right. It is a powerful and unrelenting voice shouting that every human soul matters deeply to God and should be treated accordingly.
So, in the face of these false and misguided voices, let us not be silent! There is too much at stake.
