From Garden to Glory: 10 Days Through the Bible's Grand StoryChikamu

Day 3: But Then an Evil Serpent…

THE SIN

Here it is—the point in the story that changes everything. It is akin to Snow White’s teeth sinking into the apple or Sleeping Beauty’s finger reaching out and touching the needle, or Scar killing Mufasa—there is no going back. Have you ever watched a movie and, knowing what is going to happen, wanted to yell at the characters on the screen, “No! don’t do it!” That is how we should feel upon reading the first several verses of Genesis 3. We should want to tell Eve to stop talking with that snake, stop listening to his ideas, and, for goodness’ sake, put that fruit down.

But, instead, I think most of us wonder what the big deal is about eating some fruit. Why did so much devastation come from something that we might do every day? And if God had made the fruit, why was it so wrong to eat it? Was the fruit the issue?

The fruit in and of itself was not the problem. In Genesis 2, we read that God had generously given Adam and Eve many trees with much fruit, an abundance of riches, and, in addition to everything else, he had given them access to the tree of life.

But, out of all the good things that God freely gave Adam and Eve, he sovereignly chose to prohibit one thing—the tree of the knowledge of good and evil: “Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:17). Many, many trees were in the garden for their delight, and only one was forbidden.

One question most of us ask is, Why did God give Adam and Eve the prohibition in the first place? Why didn’t they have total freedom to do whatever they wanted? We must remember that Adam and Eve were not created to live autonomously, independently, or self-centeredly; they were created to live in right relationship with their Creator. Adam and Eve were given both privilege and responsibility. They were created to resemble and reflect their Father, the King. And both kings and fathers are to be obeyed. God had every right to set a boundary on them and his created order—this was his world.

After Adam and Eve disobeyed, we read that their eyes were opened all right, but the result was far from what had been promised: “The eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked” (Genesis 3:7).

Have you ever experienced something like this? Has the enemy ever whispered a promise in your ear on the front end of a sin, and then, on the other side, the place from which you cannot undo what has been done, you realized that promise was a lie? Of course it was a lie! That is the language of our enemy. Jesus said that “he [the devil] was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44).

But, oh, how we long to believe him sometimes. What he promises seems to be just what we desire or think we need. If he is currently trying to convince you that God’s Word is not true or that your life would be richer if you disobeyed, then run! Run the other way. If you do not run when Satan lies, you will get to the other side and feel the same shame and fear that Adam and Eve felt.

This is the saddest part of the story. And, really, it should be the end of the story. As one of my professors said, the story should be God made it, man broke it, the end. But the glorious hope of the gospel is that humanity’s fall into sin was not the end. Keep reading, and see the grace of our mighty God!