T4tU Post #2 – Biblical Theology (Sin and the Fall)

Right...first, an apology. I had intended to batter these first four posts out quickly (maybe even a day each), but then I went on holiday at short notice, and had family to stay in London, so this went to one side for a bit. So by the time I've finished the first four posts, I'll probably be well into my new job (provisionally, I start next Monday). Sorry for those of you who got bored waiting ... who knows if this is worth waiting for! Anyway, on with the show...

Last time, I had a think about Creation, and how it helps understand the place of unemployment – how it fits in with God’s plan of creation, and how it sits at variance with it.

Today, I’m going to spend a bit of time looking at another part of the big bible narrative – sin and the fall.

I should say what I’m trying to do with these first four posts is understand better where unemployment sits in this big bible narrative, the better to understand the deeper biblical issues here, rather than just the superficial presenting issues.

Sin and the Fall

The origin of sin (Genesis 3)

In Genesis 3, Adam and Eve rebel against God, and Adam – our first human father – set the pattern that has been that of our race ever since. Amongst the features flowing out of their rebellion were the following:

• God’s judgement on sin: death is now a definitive feature of human existence
• Fractured relationships
• With God – the personal, close relationship enjoyed by Adam and Eve with the LORD is damaged horrendously
• With other humans – there will be constant strife where once there was fellowship
• With creation – the ‘creation mandate’ remains, but the hard work will be met with ‘thorns and thistles’ and the natural course of life will be met with pain. Futility is a feature of life

The nature of sin (Romans 1:21-23)

Paul gives an outline of what sin looks like in the human race:

• Humans have knowledge of God
• Humans choose to ignore God, despite what he’s given them
• Humans do not thank God for what he’s given them in creation
• Humans consequently become hardened towards God
• Humans claim to be wise but are foolish because they do not fear God (cf. Prov 1:7)
• Humans exchange the creator for a created thing

The effects of sin (Romans 8:18-30)

Again following David Wilkinson’s breakdown of the passage (in The Message of Creation), sin has certain effects on creation and our relationship with it.

• This is a suffering creation – suffering is a normal and to-be-expected (although not welcome) feature of it
• This is an expectant creation – it’s limited and it knows it is … it’s waiting for some monumental future event to change things
• This is a frustrated creation – humans are fallen and so can’t play their part in creation properly, and so creation is disjointed
• This is a groaning creation – there is a tension between there being some continuity from this creation to the new creation and there being a massive discontinuity. Redeemed people who have the fellowship feel this tension even more keenly, as this is creation fit for sinners. Like two tectonic plates, as this creation rubs against people bound for the next one, the rumbles build up and at some point, there will be a massive seismic event
• This is a hopeful creation – all of these features are sad and difficult, but point to a future event when creation will be unleashed to be what it is meant to be. It will be liberated by the great liberator, the Lord Jesus Christ.

All of these mean that there is an appropriate way to respond to suffering and difficult situations – not the ‘ostrich’ approach of burying your head in the sand (suffering is nothing), nor rocking in the corner (suffering is everything). I’ll mention a bit more of this when it comes to looking towards the New Creation, but we have a responsibility to recognise the reality and finitude of suffering in this fallen creation.

Also, again we see the inherent frustration in our creation – things don’t work the way they did in pre-fall Eden.

Obviously, this tracks mainly the effects of sin on creation, and the natural outflow for our broken relation with it (I’m following that line because the nature of work is closely tied to the theology of creation we hold, and so the absence of work is informed by that too!). Having said that, being a sinner has other personal effects on us. It makes us rebels and spiritual adulterers, law-breakers and morally dissolute. Sin needs a solution.

God and suffering (Job 38-40)

God’s discussion with Job shows us some key features about God’s perspective on suffering in a sin-wrecked world.

• The LORD is greater than our intellects – He knows what’s going on (and has even allowed it!) … but more than that, he understands why it’s happening
• The LORD is greater than our circumstances – He filled the storehouses with snow, He set the boundaries for the oceans, He made the great beasts of the Earth, He measured out space and time and all there is, was and will be. How quickly do I forget that when compared to my personal situation?
• The LORD is greater than our expectations of Him – He understood what the end would be for Job, what the big gameplan was for the righteous man. And not just in terms of camels and kids at the end of life … but in terms of eternity. His gameplan is of staggering, magnificent scope – and His provision in the eternal-term will be not only sufficient, but outstandingly generous.

So what for unemployment?

So what does all this give us in our understanding of unemployment? Here’s some suggestions…

1. Loneliness is a feature of the Fallen World – human relationships were seemingly irreparably fractured that moment in Eden, and have remained so as we each followed in our daddy Adam’s line. Consequently, a creation intended for companionship and partnership is instead marked by individualism, combativeness, and ultimately isolation and loneliness. Whilst there ought to be some restoration of this in the establishing of the Church, too often, when you’re out of work, you’re stuck with your own company, and confronted again and again with this feature of the fall.
2. Frustration is a feature of the Fallen World – The Creation mandate involved fruitful work, and suddenly, work is no longer fruitful. However, this effect is dulled in the place of employment when you get paid at the end of the month! When you spend your days sending application forms, filling out you CV, attending interviews, and have no guarantee that it will produce fruit, you can feel like a farmer in the worst year for crops. And it’s easy to forget that you’re still working when there is no payslip for the hours you devote to your task. One of the insulating factors, protecting us from realising that this is a frustrating world, doesn’t appear in your bank account each month!
3. Suffering is a real part of this creation, but not a final part of the final creation – we need to be both realistic (hard things will happen) and yet not fatalistic (bad things are not the end of the story)
4. Idolatry is a feature of my sinful heart – We can’t define ourselves by our job … nor by our lack of one. And yet we try to! How often have I started saying, ‘I’m out of work just now …’ and then gone on to apologise for that status, to justify myself in someone else’s eyes? There’s idolatry grasping at my worldview at every turn. I define my existence and am so often controlled by my lack of a job that I have swapped the covenant God for a Jobseeker’s allowance…
5. Sovereignty is an undeniable factor of God’s character – to be honest, it’s easy to say (but not necessarily to hear) – that God’s in control. I’ve heard very few phrases more often from well-meaning brothers and sisters over the last six months. But there’s knowing this is true, and knowing this is true. And to be honest, there’s also a difference to saying it, and knowing it to be true. But God’s sovereignty is more than just ‘He’s got something lined up for you,’ and ‘God’s in Control.’ Oh, so much more. Let’s think about that another day, though…

Right, then. I don’t know I’ve really done this justice, and it’s a bit rambly … but hopefully there’s something helpful in here. As I’ve said previously, the aim of these first four posts is to understand and explain a bit more about unemployment in the big bible story. That way, we can begin to respond to it more biblically later on…

Next time, Jesus and the crux of redemptive history … and what it means for this topic.