Post by Church Captain on Aug 15, 2007 12:30:04 GMT -5
What really happened in the Garden of Eden?
Most know the surface story of mankind's descent into tragedy [Genesis 2: 7-25, 3:1-13]; but let's read between the lines, spiritually, to understand exactly what happened, so as to protect ourselves better from our worst enemy's deceptions.
..........The 'Maker of All Things' had given every growing thing's fruit in the Garden to the Man and his help-mate (woman) to eat, "except the tree that gives knowledge of what is good and what is bad".
----> The bad knowledge had come from the sin of satan (self-centered pride) and the demons, when they lost their "day jobs".
Before that everything was good. To internalize (ingest) good with a little bit of evil in it (the tree's fruit) would be like the poisoned fruit Snow White ate (it only takes a little to ruin the whole thing).
Had Adam and Eve gone to GOD and asked Him to explain the knowledge of evil (bad), He would have explained it without it corrupting them (learning about evil without becoming evil).......
......So, only one tree's fruit was off-limits, because of the poison it contained. Adam and Eve must have gone by that "Tree of the knowledge of Good and Bad" many times, building their curiosity (no mistake, yet).....
......On the day in question, satan attacked the more easily deceived of the two, the woman (as is still the case today), who should have been with her mate, helping him.
It would be like the Black Knight going around to the back door of the Castle and gaining murderous entrance through battle with the Queen, instead of challenging her White Knight, warrior-trained husband.....
........So Eve was wandering by when she saw the snake reach up, take some fruit ("touch"), eat it, and start talking [Gen. 3:1].
Now, would you casually respond if an animal started talking to you?? We would all most likely freak out and split the scene! Why didn't Eve??
.....If she had considered the relationship with her mate, {her 1st priority}, she should have gone to her husband Adam and said, "Dear, what is a talking animal doing in the Garden?".
After all, Adam was her spiritual head, and better inherently trained than she to confront this scene. She should have further said....."Honey, I wasn't even in existence when you named the animals; you're the animal expert, and my leader.....so please deal with this for us".
She didn't though; the first in a string of mistakes that led to sin, and spiritual death, that very day! [Genesis 2:17 and Ephesians 2:1 & James 2:26]........
......The "serpent" conned Eve into misquoting GOD (3:3 "touch it"). She added that because she had seen the snake touch the fruit.
......Remember, Eve's attention was on the tree and it's fruit, not on the snake and it's possible deception; that is why she talked to this hybrid creature so casually. She gave no credit to the snake for talking like a human; she was led to believe that this was a result of the snake eating the fruit [3:6 "good for food"].
So when the serpent said what satan was deceiving thru it, Eve believed the lie that she "would be like GOD and know what is good and what is bad".
..........In her highly intelligent, yet naive logic, she figured that if the fruit of this forbidden tree could make an animal be like a human being, then it could make a human be like GOD. (Do you see the natural, logical progression, dear reader?).....
.......What happened in the Garden was the first unnatural role reversal between man and woman that has plagued and poisoned the human race to this day! Eve was tricked, ate, died spiritually, and then turned and offered the murderous fruit to her husband, who ate and died spiritually too. (GOD is primarily spirit; so the best part of them, "other-centeredness", died that day---> "in His image they were made").......satan was the first murderer, Eve the second; and this was passed on to Cain.
.......Eve knew she had died when she ate; but she handed it over to Adam knowing ("knowledge of good and EVIL") what it would do to him [murder is defined by "intent"].
Had she not gone from "others-centered" life to "self-centered" existence, she could have said to Adam ---> 'My husband, I have sinned and died....go to GOD and have Him make you another help-mate worthy of Him and suitable for you....and I will go somewhere separate and die physically, alone.'
But she was now "self-centered", the way we are all born (spiritually dead, as a result of that disaster) and only thought of herself, not wanting to be alone in this misery......exactly how satan first felt when he led 1/3 of the angels in rebellion, and then went after the human race when we were created ("misery loves company", although it does no good).............What is our lesson here?
Trust GOD (His name is Jesus Christ now) and believe what He says without having to make all the same mistakes and sin ourselves! We will have no life if we keep choosing death!...............................................[Most quotes: GOOD NEWS BIBLE, Industrial Strength 1976 edition]
Most know the surface story of mankind's descent into tragedy [Genesis 2: 7-25, 3:1-13]; but let's read between the lines, spiritually, to understand exactly what happened, so as to protect ourselves better from our worst enemy's deceptions.
..........The 'Maker of All Things' had given every growing thing's fruit in the Garden to the Man and his help-mate (woman) to eat, "except the tree that gives knowledge of what is good and what is bad".
----> The bad knowledge had come from the sin of satan (self-centered pride) and the demons, when they lost their "day jobs".
Before that everything was good. To internalize (ingest) good with a little bit of evil in it (the tree's fruit) would be like the poisoned fruit Snow White ate (it only takes a little to ruin the whole thing).
Had Adam and Eve gone to GOD and asked Him to explain the knowledge of evil (bad), He would have explained it without it corrupting them (learning about evil without becoming evil).......
......So, only one tree's fruit was off-limits, because of the poison it contained. Adam and Eve must have gone by that "Tree of the knowledge of Good and Bad" many times, building their curiosity (no mistake, yet).....
......On the day in question, satan attacked the more easily deceived of the two, the woman (as is still the case today), who should have been with her mate, helping him.
It would be like the Black Knight going around to the back door of the Castle and gaining murderous entrance through battle with the Queen, instead of challenging her White Knight, warrior-trained husband.....
........So Eve was wandering by when she saw the snake reach up, take some fruit ("touch"), eat it, and start talking [Gen. 3:1].
Now, would you casually respond if an animal started talking to you?? We would all most likely freak out and split the scene! Why didn't Eve??
.....If she had considered the relationship with her mate, {her 1st priority}, she should have gone to her husband Adam and said, "Dear, what is a talking animal doing in the Garden?".
After all, Adam was her spiritual head, and better inherently trained than she to confront this scene. She should have further said....."Honey, I wasn't even in existence when you named the animals; you're the animal expert, and my leader.....so please deal with this for us".
She didn't though; the first in a string of mistakes that led to sin, and spiritual death, that very day! [Genesis 2:17 and Ephesians 2:1 & James 2:26]........
......The "serpent" conned Eve into misquoting GOD (3:3 "touch it"). She added that because she had seen the snake touch the fruit.
......Remember, Eve's attention was on the tree and it's fruit, not on the snake and it's possible deception; that is why she talked to this hybrid creature so casually. She gave no credit to the snake for talking like a human; she was led to believe that this was a result of the snake eating the fruit [3:6 "good for food"].
So when the serpent said what satan was deceiving thru it, Eve believed the lie that she "would be like GOD and know what is good and what is bad".
..........In her highly intelligent, yet naive logic, she figured that if the fruit of this forbidden tree could make an animal be like a human being, then it could make a human be like GOD. (Do you see the natural, logical progression, dear reader?).....
.......What happened in the Garden was the first unnatural role reversal between man and woman that has plagued and poisoned the human race to this day! Eve was tricked, ate, died spiritually, and then turned and offered the murderous fruit to her husband, who ate and died spiritually too. (GOD is primarily spirit; so the best part of them, "other-centeredness", died that day---> "in His image they were made").......satan was the first murderer, Eve the second; and this was passed on to Cain.
.......Eve knew she had died when she ate; but she handed it over to Adam knowing ("knowledge of good and EVIL") what it would do to him [murder is defined by "intent"].
Had she not gone from "others-centered" life to "self-centered" existence, she could have said to Adam ---> 'My husband, I have sinned and died....go to GOD and have Him make you another help-mate worthy of Him and suitable for you....and I will go somewhere separate and die physically, alone.'
But she was now "self-centered", the way we are all born (spiritually dead, as a result of that disaster) and only thought of herself, not wanting to be alone in this misery......exactly how satan first felt when he led 1/3 of the angels in rebellion, and then went after the human race when we were created ("misery loves company", although it does no good).............What is our lesson here?
Trust GOD (His name is Jesus Christ now) and believe what He says without having to make all the same mistakes and sin ourselves! We will have no life if we keep choosing death!...............................................[Most quotes: GOOD NEWS BIBLE, Industrial Strength 1976 edition]
