Manipulation in the Garden

Listen to our friend Mo tell the story of the original manipulation.

The snake convinced Eve that by taking the fruit, she would gain what she desired. Eve saw three advantages to eating the fruit: it looked delicious, it was beautiful, and it would give her wisdom. But the snake had told her half-truths. In some ways, he was right. The fruit would not make her physically die immediately. And yes, it would give her a sort of “wisdom,” and she would gain some knowledge belonging to God. However, the snake focused only on what Eve would gain, not on all she would lose. By the end of this story, Adam and Eve had gained nothing—and had lost everything.

Because of their disobedience, Adam and Eve lost their blessing. They had to leave the garden, work hard to grow their own food, suffer through the pains of childbirth, experience conflict in their relationships, and eventually die. Satan had promised them prosperity, but because they chose to believe him rather than God, suffering, pain, sin, and death entered the world.

Adam and Eve learned through loss that true prosperity can be found only in the presence of God, who doesn’t manipulate us but desires for us to live in his truth. But God knows we will believe Satan. So just as God sacrificed an innocent animal to cover Adam and Eve’s shame, he sacrificed his own son to clothe us in his righteousness and restore us to the glory he designed us for in his presence. There we will find true prosperity.

Read More
If you’d like to read more about how Satan deceived Adam and Eve and the outcome of that deception, you can read all of Genesis 3. If you’d like to read more about how your shame can be removed, you can read Romans 10:9–13.