The Lamb’s Skin
Before the presence of Adam and his wife, as they stood, they saw...God selected a LAMB, fastened it to the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and slew it before their eyes. The innocent victim, the LAMB of GOD was made naked, stripped of its skin to be made a covering for Adam and his wife's rebellion, guilt, shame, and self-ego. "The Lamb was slain from the foundation of the world" (Rev. 13:8).
The Lamb's Skin
What has been hidden is now being revealed. "We speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory" (1 Cor. 2:7).
Let's begin in Gen. 3...
7And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves aprons.
8And 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.
9And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself...
21Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins and clothed them.
In Genesis 3:21, the word "make" means: to do, accomplish, to advance, to appoint. Adam and his wife were uncovered, and their inner self nature exposed to God. Self-centeredness, rebellion is out in the open. They were caught, exposed fully at their lowest state of identity before God. Instantly, their spontaneous reaction was to hide from the presence of God. The purity and innocence of their former created identity of the Life of God in them was transformed to a life of knowing good and evil.
The WORD of the LORD is SPIRIT. God is Spirit and Truth. What God is going to do He has already done. There is simply a season in time for it to be manifested. This is what Adam, and his wife were trying to hide from. Everything about each of us was already preordained by God for a season in time to be manifested according to His richness and pleasure (Eph. 1:4-6).
When man disobeyed God by partaking of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge they were told not to eat of, they were instantly exposed before God with shame, guilt, and nakedness. The fruit from this tree did not just contain "evil" as man understood, but also contained what man called "good," yet whether good or evil, the result was death because it separated them from God LIFE into "self-life." Their condition of self-centeredness and rebellion was exposed to God. For the first time man was experiencing shame, a feeling they had never experienced before, and they did not know what to do with themselves. They tried to cover their shame with the resource they saw around them from the Tree of Knowledge by using its fig leaves (religion), but the pitiful covering did not keep the shame of their soul and flesh from being exposed. Then they tried to hide from God among the other trees in the garden, but the darkness of their "self" could not hide from the LIGHT, or presence of God.
Adam and his wife silently stood before God in cold, consumed fear having no clue to what He would do. Did God say, "Depart from me you wicked man and woman. I do not know you!" Did God strike them with His wrath of lightning and send them into a lake of fire to burn for eternity? The ultimate sin has taken place before God deserving what religion has preached would be man's consequence of sin, yet God did not do any of those things.
Before the presence of Adam and his wife, as they stood, they saw...God selected a LAMB, fastened it to the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and slew it before their eyes. The innocent victim, the LAMB of GOD was made naked, stripped of its skin to be made a covering for Adam and his wife's rebellion, guilt, shame, and self-ego. "The Lamb was slain from the foundation of the world" (Rev. 13:8).
The word "slain" comes from the Greek word "sphazo" which means to butcher, to slaughter violently, or to take off.
While Adam and his wife stood in the presence of God, their spirit, soul, and body were totally naked exposing everything that was in opposition of God and His image they were originally created in. The intensity of God's presence in their midst was so overwhelming; it instantly caused fear forcing a desire for them to hide from God. Suddenly, all innocence was removed and evil of the highest level was in the presence of God trying to hide from HIM waiting for God's response to their disobedience.
God's response to man's disobedience was not to throw them in a lake of fire or eternal hell, but to take the LAMB of GOD and slain it, remove the pure Godly covering of the LAMB and expose the LAMB's blood and inner heart. Then HE took the skin of the LAMB and made coats of skin to clothe man's sin, rebellion, and nakedness making a covering of atonement for man's spirit, soul, and body.
"Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins and clothed them" (Gen. 3:21).
In one majestic moment at the foundation of the world; in one wondrous act, God does this amazing thing: The CROSS, the ATONEMENT, and CHRIST as man's covering. When God covered man with the skin of the LAMB still dripping with the blood of the LAMB, God showed man that they were covered with the LIFE of the LAMB, and not the fig leaves of the Tree of Knowledge. This covering was so perfect that no sin could be seen before God. All that could be beheld in God's presence was CHRIST. All that pertains or ever will pertain to man's relationship with God is revealed at this moment.
God did the contrary to man's expectations, exceedingly, abundantly, and above anything man could have imagined.
The idea expressed in this covering God placed on Adam and his wife is the same word used in the Old Testament as Atonement; to cover. "For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh atonement for the soul" (Lev. 17:11).
In the New Testament Paul tells us, "Clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah) and make no provision for [indulging] the flesh [put a stop to thinking about the evil cravings of your physical nature] to [gratify its] desires (lusts)" (Romans 13:14 AMP).
Sin (wickedness, depravity, immorality, evil, iniquity, antichrist) is the nakedness of the soul, or estrangement from God. Atonement is man's protective covering. It is God's mercy, His presence, His reconciliation upon the redeemed soul of man. The Tree of Knowledge speaks using God's LIFE, HIS WORD to justify a means of good and evil which Jesus referred to as hypocritical to God.
Today, before we loved God, He loved us first. Before we chose Him, He chose and redeemed us. Before we encountered physical life from our mother's womb, God provided His eternal blood to give us His LIFE. For this cause, when we find ourselves naked, alone, and judged by the ways of religion, we can now come boldly to the throne of grace and mercy.
"Therefore, brethren, since we have full freedom and confidence to enter into the [Holy of] Holies [by the power and virtue] in the blood of Jesus, By this fresh (new) and living way which He initiated and dedicated and opened for us through the separating curtain (veil of the Holy of Holies), that is, through His flesh, And since we have [such] a great and wonderful and noble Priest [Who rules] over the house of God, Let us all come forward and draw near with true (honest and sincere) hearts in unqualified assurance and absolute conviction engendered by faith (by that leaning of the entire human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness), having our hearts sprinkled and purified from a guilty (evil) conscience and our bodies cleansed with pure water." (Hebrews 10:19-22).
Yes, there must be an alter call. Yes, there must be repentance. However, it is not about what we did, but for the sake of unveiling what God has already done.
May this teaching be a blessing setting your captive heart free to receive the grace and mercy of your Heavenly Father's love to come boldly into His loving presence. The SON has made you free (John 8:36).