Genesis 3 - In the Garden of Eden, Adam & Eve were given one rule: don't eat the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. But when they succumb to the serpent's temptation, they both shift blame. Adam blames Eve, and Eve blames the serpent. This first sin set a precedent for defensiveness and blame that we've been trying to shake ever since.

GENESIS 4 - Defensiveness runs in families, doesn't it? After Adam & Eve's first son Cain murders his brother Abel, the Lord asks Cain where Abel is. Cain's response, "How should I know? Am I my brother's keeper?," sounds an awful like those times we deflect from our own guilt, too.

EXODUS 32 - In the famous "golden calf" incident, the Israelites convince Moses' brother Aaron to make for them an idol of a golden calf to worship while Moses is talking to God on Mount Sinai. When Moses confronts Aaron, Aaron blames the people. But Aaron is their priest; he shouldn't have been so easily blown off course.

1 SAMUEL 15 - When the Lord commands King Saul to totally destroy the evil Amalekites, Saul instead keeps their choice livestock for himself. When the prophet Samuel confronts Saul, Saul plays dumb: "What? You mean these cows?" His response is the same as ours when we're confronted with the results of our greed.

2 SAMUEL 12 - In the infamous scene, King David's passions overcome him, and he takes Bathsheba, the wife of his loyal general. When he is confronted by the prophet Nathan, he realizes that his sins of adultery and murder have caught up with him.

MATTHEW 25 - In Jesus' Parable of the Talents, two servants double their master's money. But out of fear, the third servant buries his, blaming the master for his actions. Too often, we too let fear dictate our decisions.