What happened at the Fall? (Part 2)

In the last blog, we left man at his most desperate state- fallen, apart from God, and trying to cover his own sin by his own effort. In this blog, I want to take us from this low point through to the breaking forth of new light. But to do that, it will be necessary to tease out the precious gems that are in the passages that we are considering together. This practice can sometimes be difficult, but the rewards for it are definitely worth the effort.


Genesis 3:7-8 states:

"And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden."


What is so precious about this passage, and where the light starts to shine forth, lies in the fact that God seeks out His fallen creation. The pattern that was established with the ruined earth is now confirmed again with the ruined man. We see in this passage the pattern that always exists... sinful, dead, and fallen man never seeks after the true God that demands obedience and offers unconditional love at the same time. We run. We hide. We try to cover our own sins. Other deities offer only a self-help form of salvation, which is no salvation at all. It matters little which religion you look at. Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Mormonism, and even modern day Judaism only offer a "good works" based salvation. It is my fear that Christianity has fallen into some of the same patterns as these religions when we require people to "act like they are saved" after simple faith in Christ in order to "stay saved" or prove to others that they are saved. It is my firm belief that God does want and expect us to do good works, but I am of the equal conviction that salvation is only based upon grace through faith in the "good work" of another, namely Jesus Christ.


Ephesians 2:8-10 states:

"For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them."


Notice that this passage in no way says that you have to do good works to prove that you are saved or to remain saved. The Lord is very clear that our salvation is based in the work of Jesus, that this salvation is a gift to us, and that it is apart from any work that we have performed, are performing, or will perform. Grace is God's unmerited favour. Faith is trusting what God has said. When we trust in what God has done in the person of His Son Jesus Christ, He shows us unmerited favour, and we are born spiritually. We are saved. This is a once only transaction. It can't be repeated any more than our first birth from our mother's womb. It can no more be undone than that birth either. We are born again to do good works, but we still have the free-will to choose not to.

What has brought about the confusion of good works and salvation is that we really don't understand what the Bible teaches. We confuse passages that speak to our rewarding in heaven, or the offer of rulership with Christ, with being saved eternally. This happens because we don't distinguish between the spirit and the soul. Now, hopefully, we can get into this topic more in another study. For right now, let's get back to Adam, Eve, and the God Who sought them.

Notice in the passage; "And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day." Funny. I've never heard a voice walk. This little phrase gives us a clue to which of the members of the Godhead sought after Adam and Eve. A voice implies that there are words being spoken. So, they heard the Word of the Lord God walking. Who is the Word of God? It is none other than the Lord Jesus. In John 1:1-2 and 14 we read:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.

And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."

What was this voice of the Lord God saying to Adam and Eve? What was Jesus saying to them?

"And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?" Genesis 3:9.

Why would God ever have to ask a question? Doesn't He know the answer? He is God, after all. God asks questions in order to get us thinking. He isn't seeking after information that He doesn't possess, because God knows everything. What is the significance of the question "Where art thou?" God wants Adam to do some self-evaluation. He wants Adam to realize his deep need for Him. He wants Adam to realize that he and God are now separated from one another because of Adam's sin. Adam had died spiritually.

"And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And He said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Has thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said, The woman whom Thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat." Genesis 3:10-12

It seems to me that God gives Adam a golden opportunity here. He could have judged his own disobedience. He could have ran to God, like a little child, and admitted his fault. What parent would reject their child, who has done wrong, when they come in honest, heartfelt repentance? Adam loses the opportunity though. He starts passing the blame. Even though the things he says are true, he doesn't own up to his part. He first lays some blame on God for giving the woman to him in the first place, and then he lays blame on the woman for him eating of the tree. It is almost as if Adam is saying that he had no fault or responsibility in the matter. Don't we do the same? We think that we can conceal from God our part in matters, but this is never the case. It is always better to come clean with God.

"This then is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us." 1 John 1:5-10

Eve was given the same opportunity that Adam was given. God gives her a chance to come clean to Him.

"And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou has done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat" Genesis 3:13

Eve had a choice to make. She chose to follow her husband's example and pass the blame, instead of coming clean with God. Men, for better or for worse, we are the leaders of our homes. We should set the example of how to respond to God. This doesn't absolve our wives of their own responsibilities. It only adds more responsibility onto us. Leaders are responsible for their own actions, and for the leadership they give to others through their actions. Women, you really don't want to have the leadership position in your home.

Because they both failed to come clean to God, their judgment becomes more harsh. But even in God's judgment, there is the promise of redemption.

"And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou has done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field: upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." Genesis 3:14

Isn't if funny how God doesn't even give Satan a chance to speak for himself? Satan's ultimate destiny had already been determined. There is to be no redemption for Satan and his demons. But in this proclamation, God foretells of the Redeemer Who is to come. This Redeemer is to be at war with Satan's seed, the Antichrist. This Redeemer will wound Satan's head, and will also be wounded by Satan. Jesus is the Seed of the woman. He was crucified (wounded) on the cross (Isaiah 53). Satan's head will be wounded and there will be war between Christ and Antichrist.

The warning about partaking of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was that they would die in the day they ate of it. Did they? It appears from the text that they are still walking around and talking to God. Death, fundamentally, is separation. When we die physically, we are separated from this world, our friends and family, and our body. Spiritually speaking, man was separated from God the instant he partook of the fruit, thus the need for God to seek him out. What about physically? Did man die in the day that he ate of the fruit? Yes, he did. Adam and Eve could have lived forever in the original bodies that God fashioned for them. They could have done this because those bodies were sinless, up until the fall. When sin entered, death entered. At what age did Adam actually die? He was 930 years old (Genesis 5:5). Take into account the following when you think about Adam's age at death:


"But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness, but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." 2 Peter 3:8-9


God doesn't lie. What he told Adam would happen happened. Adam died spiritually, soulically, and bodily in the day that he partook of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The instant they ate of the tree, they were separated from God (death), and within 1000 years (1 day according to scripture) they had died. Incidentally, not one man has lived to 1000 years old. All men die within 1 day of their birth. Methuselah, the longest living man, died at 969 years old.

"Unto the woman He said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception (thy sorrow with thy conception); in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. And unto Adam He said, Because thou has hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it was thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return." Genesis 3:16-19

Another consequence of the fall was that woman would have sorrow with conception. I'm convinced that this isn't just the physical act of birth. If you think about your parents, or any parents for that matter, which of the two feels the heartbreak of their children more? Which one is usually the "worry wart," so-to-speak? Honestly, it's often the mom. In fact, if you accidentally injured a child, which parent would you rather face - the mom or the dad? Most mothers are fiercely territorial of their families. That is a good thing, but it is also a curse, because they are often tormented by it.

Because Adam listened to his wife, and not to God, he would now have to work hard for his food, rather than having it within arm's reach. Traditionally, it has been the man's job to go into the world and bring back food for the family.

"And Adam called his wife's name Eve (life-giver); because she was the mother of all living. Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them." Genesis 3:20-21

In these simple verses, we have the picture of salvation of the spirit. God had proclaimed that the seed of the woman would bruise Satan's head. In other words, there was to be a Redeemer Who was to come through the woman. Adam, in faith, names his wife Eve, or life-giver. It was a demonstration of his faith in what God had said. He believed that through Eve's seed there would be life again. In response, God gives another object lesson to Adam and Eve. He covers their nakedness with the skin of an animal. What had to happen to the animal for that to occur? It had to die. It's blood had to be shed. Had the animal done anything wrong? No. It was innocent. In this little illustration, God was showing Adam and Eve that the Redeemer would not only be bruised, but slain. His blood would be shed. He would be innocent of all sin, yet He would die in our place. Through His death our sin would be dealt with. Adam and Eve received the salvation of their spirits by grace through faith. Isn't it amazing? When we respond positively to God, He is quick to show us mercy. Adam and Eve were saved, even though they deserved to die and be eternally separated from God. Instead of remaining separated from God, God made them joined to Him spiritually again through grace by faith in the shedding of blood.

Now that they were saved, did they automatically regain their status in the garden? No. There were consequences to their disobedience. Now they would have to earn access to the tree of life through a lifetime of service to God.

"And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as One of Us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So He drove out the man; and He placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life." Genesis 3:22-24

Access to the tree of life is a promise only to those who are saved and overcome, not to those who are just saved. Revelations gives proof of this. Keep in mind that biblically speaking, you are not a part of a church unless you are saved. Consider what is said to the church at Ephesus in Revelation 2:1-7:



"Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith He that holdeth the seven stars in His right hand, Who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; I know thy WORKS (not faith), and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou has tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and has found them liars: And hast borne, and has patience, and for My name's sake has laboured, and has not fainted. Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou has left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou are fallen, and repent, and do the first Works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches (Christians, Believers, Saved Ones); To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God."



Adam and Eve, like all of us, had to be first birthed spiritually (spirit salvation), then they were placed back in a position to qualify for rulership (access to the tree of life). But this qualification has now become much more difficult. Adam and Eve had to only reach out and eat of the tree of life for them to seal the deal for rulership. As a result of their disobedience, the way to the tree of life was barred. Access can only be given now after spirit salvation, and a life lived in obedience. Sin always has consequences. Obedience has consequences, too.