ROOTED - Tuesday, June 24, 2025
Genesis 3:6
6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate.
Reflection: Question #13, The Forbidden Fruit, Part 2
Written By: Pastor Jesse Caro
Question: What was the sin our first parents committed that caused them to fall far from the state they were created in?
Answer: They ate the forbidden fruit.
As I mentioned yesterday, many of our foundational beliefs are introduced in the first chapters of the Book of Genesis. I treat these narratives as an accounting of actual historic events and am nervous to not do so. I say that because I think there are major problems that arise if one considers the first few chapters of Genesis as allegory, and I am not of that opinion… at all. Having said that, I think that one of the most important things that can be gleaned from the Forbidden Fruit story is not merely that it Happened (and, again, I believe it did) but that it Happens. That is, this story has played out tens of thousands of times in human history. Not the particulars, of course, but the pattern of sin that we see with Adam and Eve.
Eve hears God (you will die, don’t eat) and obeys. She hears, believes God, has an emotional reaction that causes her to not desire the fruit, and she, in turn, obeys. THEN she hears the Serpent (you will not surely die… you will be like God). She hears him, believes him, has an emotional reaction that causes her to desire the fruit, and, in turn, eats it. Belief impacts the emotions (feelings), which impacts what we want (desire), which impacts what we do. This pattern happens every day around the world, and in our homes. Knowing the truth, for the Christian) is step one (or you can believe the alternative: lies!). Truly believe what God says. Believe that it is best for you. Don’t believe lies. The extent to which you believe the truth, will impact how you “feel” (i.e. what you desire/want), which will impact what you do. But the first step is the mind! So, yes, Adam and Eve’s narrative happened, and happens.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, may we know and believe the truth, and knowing it, may it set us free from patterns of sin and disobedience.