Taking God at His Word

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?" (Gen. 3:1)

Question 13: Did our first parents continue in the state wherein they were created?
Answer: Our first parents being left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the state wherein they were created, by sinning against God, (Ecclesiastes 7:29) by eating the forbidden fruit. (Genesis 3:6-8).[i]
 
The sin of Adam and Eve against God, the rebellion of the creatures against their Creator, the partaking of the forbidden fruit, was an act of cosmic treason against God.  It was without a doubt the darkest day in human history.  This was the day on which Adam and Eve plunged the entire world, all of humanity, into the throughs of sin, misery, despair, grief, and sorrow.  What is interesting to note is the way in which Satan tempted Adam and Eve to rebel against God.  He says to them, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”  Notice: “Did God actually say…”  Satan wants Eve to question the word of God.  This is almost always how temptation begins.  This is how Satan sews seeds of doubt into the minds of the believer.  He first gets us to question the word of God.  ‘Does God’s word really say you have to forgive those who sin against you?’  ‘Is internet pornography really a sin according to God’s word?’  ‘Is that really what God says?’  ‘Is that really what the Bible teaches?’  The woman does not fall for this first trap and responds in defense, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’”  So then, the devil takes a different approach.  One he still uses today.  He says to her, “You will not surely die.  For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:1-5).  In other words, ‘Fine.  That is what God said, but don’t take his words so literally.  "You will not surely die."  You won’t truly die.  Besides, God is just trying to keep something good from you.  God doesn’t want you to have more than what you have now.  God doesn’t want you to be truly happy.’  All of these lies are the same lies the devil uses today with incredible success, wreaking havoc on countless lives, leading people to internet porn addiction, causing them to have extramarital affairs, leading them to cheat on their taxes, and a host of other sins.  Don’t buy into the lies.  Read God’s word.  Take it at face value.  Believe it.  Trust it.  Your life will be the better for it. 

[i] “A Catechism with Proofs” by Charles Haddon Spurgeon