Day 34: How Did God Test Adam?
Today, we begin to deal with the question, “What Went Wrong?” If we want to understand all the violence, hatred, chaos, and confusion that exists in our world (and in us) we need to understand the reality of the choices that the first man Adam made. Adam is not a mythological figure from the land of make-believe; He was the first human, the physical “father” of us all, and the choices that he made have had devastating consequences for us all.
Romans 5:12
Therefore, sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned…
The Lord God gave us an incredible gift and responsibility: the ability to choose. The first man Adam, the physical “father” of us all, chose to rebel against God and brought sin, death, and condemnation into our human experience.
So far we have seen that God created us to be His image and likeness in Creation. In fact, when God finished his creative work He said, “This is all very good” (see Genesis 1:31). There was nothing wrong with the first human beings that God created. We have also heard that God is love and desires to be loved. God is not an Tyrant Father, nor is He a Divine Sugar Daddy; he really cares for us and desires for us to live according to His truth, goodness, and glory.
So as we look at our world we see the evil and suffering we have to ask ourselves, “How did this happen?” In this session, we will explore what went wrong at the beginning of the human experience and see how our common ORIGIN has set the framework for our existence as human beings.
In these sessions, we are going to focus on the choices that Adam—the first man, the physical father of us all—made. Although Eve was technically the first to rebel, it was Adam who was given the responsibility in overseeing all things in the beginning and thus he is the one who is blamed for all our problems (see Romans 5:12-21; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22, 45). We are going to consider four key questions:
How Did God Test Adam?
How Did Adam Respond?
How Did Adam’s Response Affect Him?
How Did Adam’s Response Affect the World?
WORDwork:
Genesis 2:8–17
The Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there He placed the man He had formed. 2:9 The Lord God caused to grow out of the ground every tree pleasing in appearance and good for food, including the tree of life in the middle of the garden, as well as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. …
2:15 The Lord God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden to work it and watch over it. 2:16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree of the garden, 2:17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die.”
What was in the middle of the Garden in Eden?
For what two purposes did God “rest” the man in the Garden? (v15)
What commands did God give to the man? What would be the consequences of Adam’s response?
Immediately after God creates Adam, He places (“rests”) Adam in the Garden in Eden so that Adam can “work” and “watch” (the same Hebrew word for “protect” or “guard”) the Garden. Here, God grants Adam certain responsibilities. As Adam and Eve kept company with God they would rule the Earth in God’s truth, goodness, and glory as these virtues captivated all their thoughts.
It is very important for you to understand that there was nothing wrong with Adam or Eve at their creation. There was nothing flawed about either of them. They are both judged to be “very good” by God which means that they are equipped and able to carry out the purposes for which God had made them. They had not yet been tested to see if they would live in line with God’s reality.
The only command that God gives Adam is “You can eat from any tree, but don’t eat from the one tree—the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” The way Adam responds to God’s instruction will set the course for human history. Adam’s response would bring either great glory or great shame. The only question he will have to answer is, “Will I be careful to hear and accept God’s wise counsel and live according to His reality?”
God also grants the power of choice to Adam and Eve. With the ability of choice also comes great responsibility. The destiny of the whole human race would be shaped by the choices that these first two humans would make. God had equipped them and empowered them to fulfill His purposes if this is what they chose to do. Their choices would result in either life or death, freedom or slavery.
If you look at the circle diagrams we have added a couple of things. First is the relationship of fellowship that exists between God—Father, Son, and Spirit—and humanity. The second thing to notice is that Adam had LIFE flowing out of his depths, his heart, while in right relationship with God.
In this passage, God makes it clear what will happen if Adam chooses one way or another. If He follows God’s instruction, He and Eve will live (and be free). Yet if they choose to eat from the one forbidden Tree they will die (and become enslaved). As we just said, Adam’s soul was created good. This is to say that he had the ability and capacity to live for the glory and pleasure of God. Adam has everything working for his advantage. The only question is “How will he respond to his God given responsibilities?”
*You can find a complete list of all the MilktoMeat readings here.
