June 20 Daily Devotional

The First Marriage Disrupted

Charles and Norma Ellis

Bible Reading

Genesis 3:11-14

¹¹And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
¹²And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
¹³And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
¹⁴And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:

Devotional

We have seen that the first marriage, which in the beginning was a perfect one, was marred because of sin. God planned a relationship in which two persons would experience a beautiful unity with each other and with their Creator. This relationship was disrupted.

Further evidence of this disruption is seen in the way in which Adam blames Eve for his sin. In God's economy the man was made head of the family. The woman was given to help him. Eve should not have been persuaded by Satan to take the fruit. She should not have offered it to Adam. But, even then, Adam did not need to follow her lead. So he had to bear his own guilt before God. The roles as set forth by God were reversed. Responsibility was shed, and ugliness resulted.

Still another evidence of the disruption of the relationship between man and God is seen here. Adam blames God: 'The woman whom Thou gavest to be with me ..." (3:12). And Eve? She claims that Satan beguiled her (3:13). She, too, refuses to shoulder her own blame.

How well we can see ourselves in Adam and Eve! Now we are really beginning to identify with the first couple. Our generation, like theirs, is perennially guilty of failing to act responsibly. How freely we place the blame for our actions on mate, parents, society, God!

Father, make us aware of this failure even in our own marriage which You are redeeming. Help us to say, 'I did it. It was my fault. I'm sorry. Forgive me.' We want our marriage to be the beautiful unity You designed it to be.

We are happy to have obtained permission to post as our current daily devotional Heirs Together of Life: Daily Bible Reading for Husbands and Wives, published by The Banner of Truth Trust. Don't be misled by the subtitle. As the book's "Preface" indicates (see below), although Heirs Together of Life is "especially prepared for couples,"the authors declare, "Since the basis for this guide is God's Word, we believe it would have value for any reader."

Charles and Norma Ellis are husband and wife and the authors not only of Heirs Together of Life (which was first published in 1980 and continues in print today), but also of Wells of Salvation (first published in 1985, and likewise still in print today). The latter contains a series of short studies covering the entire book of Isaiah, while the former contains a series of almost 200 short studies covering the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. Both books by the Ellises can be ordered from the publisher, The Banner of Truth Trust. We trust that these daily Bible readings, posted daily on our site, will be helpful to you in your Christian walk before God. Whether married or not, all of us are members of families and members of the family of God.

Charles Ellis was educated at Wheaton College and Westminster Theological Seminary. Upon graduation from Westminster (where he earned not only a Th.B. but also a Th.M.), he was ordained to the ministry in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and pastored a number of OPC churches, including Immanuel OPC in West Collingswood, New Jersey; First OPC in Cincinnati, Ohio; Covenant OPC in East Orange, New Jersey; Knox OPC in Silver Spring, Maryland; and Lakeview OPC in Rockport, Maine. Less biographical information is available about his wife, but it is known that they served as parents of seven children. After retiring from the ministry, Charles Ellis went to be with the Lord in 2003, but he and his wife left us with a beautiful legacy in the two books they have given to the world, and we are proud to share the daily Bible readings from Heirs Together of Life here with you.

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