Genesis 3:9-13 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. 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? And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. 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.
One of mankind’s favorite pastimes is to play “The Blame Game.” This game began in the Garden of Eden and is alive and well today. Husbands and wives blame their erratic or sinful behavior on their spouses. Children blame their bad choices in life on their parents. Some parents blame their prodigal children on their church. Pastors blame their poor preaching or ineffective ministry on disgruntled sheep. Citizens blame the government for crime. Players blame coaches and coaches blame players. And only God knows how many of us blame the devil! The “Blame Game” and pity parties are Siamese twins.
We are flawed people who are madly in love with ourselves and refuse to acknowledge our personal sins and blind spots. Thus, when (not if) we sin or am confronted about our (fill in the blank) , we go on the attack to insure that the reason for our erratic behavior is because of him, her or them. Making excuses is not repentance. As long as I am blaming another person for my sin, I have not repented. When David “owned his sin” in Psalm 51, his season of spiritual and emotional duress came to a screeching halt. Yes, we can be prodded and pushed into a proverbial corner at times. But one cause of prolonged seasons of darkness in the soul is because instead of blaming the “man in the mirror” for what I said or what I did, I blame others. Selah.
