My sister and I blamed each other when we were growing up. When we did something wrong, we would blame it on the other one. I used to blame my wife when things went wrong when we worked together. Even if it was an employee’s fault – an employee that I hired, I would still blame my wife for their mistakes.
Do you ever blame someone else for your problems? Maybe you have a drinking problem or a drug addiction or anger issues. Do you blame your mom or your dad? Do you blame an old girlfriend or an ex-wife? Do you blame your boss or a co-worker when things go wrong at work? Is it everyone else’s fault except for yours?
The blame game is nothing new. Human beings have been doing this from the very beginning. That’s right, it started with Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. Genesis 3:1-21: Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. 7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
8 And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. 9 And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? 10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. 11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. 13 And 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. 14 And 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: 15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. 16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; 19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. 20 And Adam called his wife’s name Eve; because she was the mother of all living. 21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
First of all, Adam tried to cover himself up. We tend to do that. When we do something wrong, we try to cover it up. We don’t want anyone else to see our faults or our indiscretions. Then Adam tried to hide. Just like a criminal tries to hide when the police put out an all points bulletin trying to find a suspect. Remember the Boston Marathan bomber that was caught? They found him hiding in a boat in someone’s back yard. We try to hide our sins in this same way. We try to hide them from others and we may even try to fool ourselves as well as foolishly try to hide our sins from God.
Then when all else fails, we play the blame game. Eve blamed the serpent. Adam blamed Eve. But notice that Adam even tried to blame God! He said, “the woman whom thou gavest to be with me.” Adam even tried to partially blame God for his own sin.
Who do you blame when things go wrong? Who do you blame today for your problems? Do you blame your mom? Or your dad? Your brother or sister? Who do you blame when there’s really no one else to blame but yourself?
Because of Adam, sin entered into the world. Because of Adam, we are all born with a sinful nature. We are all sinners and we all deserve the wrath of God over our sins. It’s not our parent’s fault or your neighbors. We are all guilty sinners and it is our own fault. There is no one else to blame. Ezekiel 18:4 says, Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sins, it shall die.
We have all fallen short of God’s glory. We all deserve God’s wrath over our sins. None of us have kept the 10 Commandments. We are all sinners. We are all weak. But God is not weak. Psalm 18:30 states, As for God, his way is perfect, the word of the LORD is tried; he is a buckler (or shield) to all those that trust in him.
Psalm 19:7-14 says: 7 The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.
11 Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward. 12 Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. 13 Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. 14 Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.
Jesus is the redeemer. Job 19:25-26 states, 5 For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:26 And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God. Jesus is the only redeemer. He is the only Savior. Do you know Him? Are you saved? Have you surrendered your life to Jesus Christ? Are you a new creature in Christ?
Have you been born-again? Born of the Spirit in addition to your natural birth? Have you turned from your sins and turned to the King of kings and the Lord of lords? Have you repented and put your faith in Jesus?
If not, stop playing the blame game. Own up to your own mistakes. Take responsibility for your own sins. Admit that you are a sinner. Admit that you have fallen short of the glory of God. Admit that you need a Savior. Stop blaming others for your sins. Cry out to God to save you. Trust Jesus. Repent and believe the Gospel.
Do this today and be cleansed from your sins. Be forgiven, truly forgiven by the Master. Be forgiven from the One who bore your sins while He hung on the cross. Be cleansed and made whole. Truly bow your knee and confess with your tongue that Jesus Christ is Lord and surrender to His Lordship. Be saved today. Repent and put your trust in Jesus. If you refuse the gift of salvation that God freely offers you, then on Judgment Day you will have no one else to blame but yourself. You and only you will be to blame for your being cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where you will suffer torment forever.