by John D Carmack

Created on: February 12, 2009

Humans were created in the image of God, but Adam and Eve were created as a mortal, finite human beings. The Tree of Life in the middle of the Garden of Eden symbolized that one day they could be granted eternal life. There was only one problem. Adam and Eve had to pass the test.

God is a moral agent. His character is righteousness. He has free will. He created the universe as an expression of His creativity. He created mankind to be in His family. He has free will, and He gave free will to His potential children. God wants people in His family who want to be in His family. God wants people in His family who will cooperate, share and get along with one another. In order for this to happen, they have to want to be there.

Adam and Eve were placed into a garden called the "Garden of Eden". Adam was given the job of tending the garden. So, no matter what you might think, work is not part of the curse! However, it would have been rewarding work with no thistles and perfect soil to work with. Best of all, Adam and Eve had direct access to God. He walked with them in the Garden. He talked with them. They could ask questions, and He could give them answers.

We aren't told how long this blissful condition lasted. Some believe they weren't in the Garden long. Certainly, some of what we see gives a real sense of naivet, but it is possible that is the result of a great deal of sheltering. However, we are told that there was a serpent, and we are told that serpent was "subtle". Strong's gives one definition of the Hebrew "'aruwm" as "shrewd". We certainly get the impression that this was an intellect that had gained knowledge through time. The serpent certainly understood motives and emotions and took advantage of the naivet of Eve.

We can see the naivete of Adam and Eve quite clearly when they attempted to hide from God (Ge 3:8). How do you hide from your Creator? Obviously, you do not. A small child may try to hide behind a chair, not aware that you can see arms and legs sticking out from behind it. Another game a very small child might play is to cover their eyes and declare, "You can't see me!" Well, Adam and Eve had lived in this protective environment all of their lives. They had not up to this point sinned, and their reaction to the experience was emotional rather than logical. Regardless of whether it was a week, a year or a decade later, Adam and Eve were essentially grown children!

God planted two trees in the middle of the Garden. One was the Tree of Life. The Tree

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