After reading the account of Adam and Eve in Genesis 3, I realize more fully how our actions impact others. It is becoming clear to me that my behavior will have an effect on others and could very well change the lives of people I care about. Sin became part of the world when Adam and Eve listened to evil when it spoke to them. Adam and Eve decided God was not enough and they exercised their free will to rectify the situation.
If God is perfect and all we need, why was Eve susceptible to Satan’s taunts? If the Garden of Eden was beautiful and stunning and filled with everything anyone could want or need, why did Eve want more? If God loves us so much, why did He put a stipulation not to eat from the tree in the middle of the garden? These are questions that have been asked for centuries, and an answer I have always been given is because one of the greatest gifts God has given us is our free will.
“Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?
The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” (Genesis 3:2-3)
Life would be simpler if we did not have this gift. Without free will there would be no need for us to have a mind, to have feelings and emotions. Without free will we would not know we were happy, we would just be. Existence would have no meaning. Think about it for a minute. What kind of books and movies get you excited? What stories do to encourage friends to read? Aren’t they stories of love and victory? Isn’t your hero or heroine the strong and courageous soldier who is fighting to regain freedom?
Free will is a gift to be cherished; it is a gift with a price tag.
Read Genesis 3 here
Listen to Genesis 3 here
