What Happened?
Scripture Reading — Genesis 3:1-10
The man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God ... walking in the garden ... and they hid. Genesis 3:8
Do you ever wonder how things went so wrong in the Garden of Eden?
God could easily have created Adam and Eve so that they would not only have been perfect but also wouldn't have sinned. God could simply have left out the one tree in the middle of the garden and given them no choice. Then life would have been perfect, right?
But think of it this way: If my wife had been created to say kind words about loving me, and if she was programmed to say yes when I asked her to marry me, wouldn't it seem that I was married to a robot? What satisfaction would there be in having someone say they love you when they have no choice?
The value behind real love is in the relationship. And the value of the relationship has to do with choice. My wife's love for me is significant precisely because she doesn't have to love me.
But that also means there's a risk. When there is the ability to choose for, there is also the option to choose against.
Adam and Eve exercised that option. And their choice hurt God deeply.
I can't undo what Adam and Eve did, but I can ask myself, "What do my choices say to God about where I am in relationship with him?"
Lord, it's so easy to define our faith by talking about the good we do or the bad we avoid. Help me to see today what my choices and behavior say about you in my life. Amen.
About the author — Henry Kranenburg
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