Christianity Oasis Forum

[Netchaplain]

I do not believe Satan transferred sin to Eve that wasn't already resident within her and Adam. Their disobedience was evidence of possessing a sin nature prior to the act. I believe the Enemy did not inject something but rather revealed something preexisting.

Eve's disobedience was due to deception, for "Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression" (1 Tim 2:14); "the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty" (2 Cor 11:3). The evidence of her sin nature was that she saw, "a tree to be desired to make one wise" (Gen 3:6); and we must realize this was before the temptation.

These three causes of Eve in Genesis 3:6 have been paralleled with 1 John 2:16; "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh (good for food), and the lust of the eyes (pleasant to the eyes), and the pride of life (desired to make one wise), is not of the Father, but is of the world." She was familiar with the fact that "out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food" (Gen 2:9), but this scenario did not apply to a tree to be desired to make one wise.

Adam's disobedience was due to putting God's word second to his wife, for he "hearkened unto the voice of thy wife" (Gen 3:17). Scripture is not clear concerning Adam's reason for the disobedience, other than "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat" (Gen 3:12). This sounds like blame but I think Adam was just stating a truth, not blaming Eve because my conjecture is that out of compassion for Eve, he was willing to die with her.

The crux of this concept is to portray that God in His omniscience "worketh all things after the counsel of His own will" (Eph 1:11); "according to His own purpose and grace" (2 Tim 1:9). Simply put, what transpired was the way He desired it to go, or He would have done it another way.

[Netchaplain]

It's true that until they were tested (for their learning, not God's), disobedience was not in their mind, but it's tendency was shown to be in their heart and I think God placing the tree there was His first lesson to begin revealing to man His will and desires. I believe God's plan was for man to "become as One of Us, to know good and evil (Gen 3:22)", which is related to Their desire to "make man in Our image, after Our likeness" (Gen 1:26).

There's no other reasonable conception for Him placing it in the Garden, and in the middle, along with the tree of life (Gen 2:9; 3:3). I believe this is where He chose to start teaching us because He had to start somewhere. There's a good reason why God allowed the temptation, it wasn't a casual or unforeseen occurrence because all occurrences are foreknown and pre-planned according to His purpose.

Though no act of disobedience was present prior to the temptation, this does not confirm the absence of its tendency in them. The Enemies beguilement did not implant the desires Eve had within her (Gen 3:6), His temptation was an arousal to what was already there, prior to the act of disobedience, for it shows these desires in her after the temptation but prior to the disobedient act.

Either Eve possessed the tendency prior to the act or the Enemy implanted it in her heart and mind. I do not think the Lord would allow the devil to implant evil in them or he could have his way with them.

I believe Satan can only test our desires (for our learning), not force his desires for our defilement. I believe if God did not intend man to sin, He would have not allowed the sin nature (old man) to become part of us and the tree would have not been of a necessity in His plans, nor the devil, whom God planned prior to creation in using.

I believe it is noteworthy to point out that any concept which does not relate to receiving salvation or that does not necessarily promote growth within it (such as my post in this thread) should not be considered essential to the believer.