Scripture:
Genesis 2:18
The Lord God
said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable
for him.”
In Genesis 2, after God made Adam and got him
started on his work, God said, "It is not good for the man to be
alone." What does that mean - "not good to be alone"? And was
Adam alone? He had God. He had the animals. Adam wasn't alone!
Except in the sense that he had no equal. God was
above him, and the animals were below him; he had no one beside him.
Until God put Adam to sleep and made "a
suitable helper" for him out of a rib in his side. Now, it's important to
note that Eve was made out of a part of Adam's side because that shows that she
was Adam's equal. She wasn't made from a part of Adam's head, which would
symbolize that she was above Adam in status like God was above Adam. She wasn't
made from a part of Adam's foot, which would symbolize she was lower in status
than Adam like the animals were lower than Adam. She was made from a part of
Adam's side, symbolizing that she could stand side by side with Adam as his
suitable helper.
Now, even though Eve was taken from a part of the
man, she wasn't a man. She was a woman. She was like the man but different. And
I think it is this different-but-equal status that she held with the man that
made Eve an even more suitable companion than if she would have been just
another man.
Men and women are very different. Maybe you've
noticed that. We have a lot of similarities; we're far from being polar
opposites as some people seem to think, but we also have a lot of differences.
In general, a man has different personality
traits, strengths, and weaknesses than a woman's general personality traits,
strengths, and weaknesses. This difference is what helps us to complement each
other and work so well together. We can balance each others' perspectives; we
can cover for each others' weaknesses with our complementary strengths.
It wasn't good for Adam to be alone because he
needed an equal-but-different companion to be a suitable helper for him.
How has God blessed you with an
equal-but-different companion? How can you work better with that person to more
fully complement each others' differences? If you haven't found that person
yet, what are some qualities that would be different but complementary to your
own qualities in another person? What type of person do you feel would balance
and complement your personal strengths the best?
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