And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
Character is the way you act when no one is watching. The late great UCLA Basketball coach John Wooden said that. It is relevant to the extent that many public personae are phonies who are totally different in real life. The problem for phony celebrities is that in this hyper video age, rarely is no one watching. They will be recorded doing something eventually. In the Garden of Eden, it was impossible for Adam and Eve to go unwatched. It did not prevent them from trying to hide from God, however. No number of trees was going to hide them from God. They were nabbed.
There is scarcely a person on earth, Christian or pagan, who does not have a secret besetting sin they commit when no one is watching. For the Christian, it is silly to think we are getting away with it. The prudent thing to do is to get rid of it. There are no trees to hide behind when God is “walking in the garden”. It is time we gave up the fight and surrendered the last sin to his sovereign will. Today, let us all offer up to God the way we are when no one is watching so he can make us more like himself, “walking in his ways”.
Lord, thank you that all our sins are forgiven. Please help us to surrender the sin we hide because nothing is hidden from you. You know our hearts. Make ours more like yours. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church