A few years back George Beane of Palmdale, California, stopped at a local Burger King and ordered 4 sandwiches at the drive-through window. Total cost of his bill: $4.33. However, when he handed the girl at the drive up window his debit card she absent-mindedly punched in the numbers … and then punched them in again without erasing the original ones – creating a total bill of $4,334.33. He signed the slip without checking it… and the charge went through to George’s checking account leaving him penniless. It was eventually rectified, but the newspapers got ahold of the story and billed the incident as “The most expensive meal in history.”
So that got me thinking… What’s the most expensive food? So a simple internet search revealed these: $2,420 White Truffle and Gold Pizza at Margo’s in Malta; $5,000 FleurBurger 5000 at Fleur in Las Vegas; $25,000 Frrrozen “Haute” Chocolate at Serendipity 3 in New York City. (see Most Expensive Dishes in the World)
But no matter what meal a rich person might buy, the cost of what they’d purchase pales in comparison to one of the most expensive meal in history – the one we’re reading about today. It cost more than Adam and Eve ever wanted to pay. And it literally bankrupted them and has been handed down to each of us.
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. (Genesis 3:1-8)
Eve made bad choices. She chose to add to God’s commandments. God didn’t say not to touch the tree. She chose to improve on God’s will. And that was all the wiggle room Satan needed to begin playing with her mind.
Why would that give Satan “wiggle room”? Because once you get used to the idea that you can improve on God’s Word then it gets easier to improve on other things God commanded. So Eve started out by making a bad choice – she added to God’s Word. And that’s the avenue Satan took to deceive her the rest of the way.
Satan told her that God lied to her. “You’re not going to die.” So Eve chose to disobey God. But at least Eve had an excuse – she was deceived. Eve was deceived… But Adam wasn’t. You look throughout the New Testament and you’ll never find Eve as being the bad girl in the story. Who gets the blame? Adam. Why does Adam get the blame? Because Adam made bad choices. He wasn’t deceived.
Where was Adam at? Adam was with Eve when Satan deceived her. He was there when Satan accused God of lying. He was there when Satan said they wouldn’t die. He was there when Satan implied that they’d have all kinds of advantages… if they just ate that fruit. And Adam was NOT deceived. He didn’t believe a word of what Satan was saying. But He chose disobey God.
They both failed. Eve failed because she didn’t trust God’s words. Adam failed because He deliberately chose to disobey God. And they both ended up eating one of the most expensive meals in history.
The wages of sin is death. Since the Garden of Eden, death has been a part of humanity for all time. To die in sins is eternal death in Hell. So the cost of Adam and Eve’s meal has been passed down to all of us.
But Jesus paid it all! On the cross, Jesus paid the sin for all mankind.
“… if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.” (1 John 2:1-2)
One man spoke of the contrast between the two trees: the tree in the garden of Eden and the cross of Jesus.
- The first tree was planted by God. But the second tree was planted by man.
- God forbade man to eat the first tree. But man is freely invited to draw near and eat of the fruit of the second tree.
- The eating of the first tree brought sin and death. But by eating of the second tree comes life and salvation.
- Adam, by eating of the first tree, was turned out of Paradise, while the repentant thief, by eating of the second Tree, entered Paradise.
Your sins have been purchased by the blood of Jesus. But you need to believe this and receive Jesus Christ as your own personal Lord and Savior.
You can read some of my similar articles: A Word of Suffering from the Cross, A Word of Salvation from the Cross, How Temptation Works.