Falling For the Lie

After creating man so glorious, God placed man on probation.

• This means that man was put to the test. 
• God wanted to test the faithfulness of man, whether man would obey or not. 
• Thus God said, “but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:17). 

At this time the devil, the fallen angel and arch enemy of God, came and tempted man. 

• How did he do this? By twisting the truth. 
• He took what God said and changed it just a little so that it became a lie. 

The devil was very crafty, very sly. 

• Moreover, the devil told the lie in such a way 
• that it appeared that what he offered man was better than what God offered man, 
• and man fell for the lie. 
• Man listened to the serpent and disobeyed God

I speak here of ‘man’ and not just Adam and Eve. 

• That is because Adam held another position as well as being the image-bearer of God. 
• Adam was also the head and representative of all those who would be born from him. 

Think of this example: 

• a teacher decides that he doesn’t wish to grade thirty-five exams. 
• Instead, he chooses one student to represent the class. 
• He will be the head and representative of all his classmates. 
• Whatever grade he receives on the exam will be “imputed” or reckoned to all the students. 

If he receives ninety five percent, 

• all the students receive ninety five percent on their report. 
• Yet if he fails the test, 
• then all the students fail as well. 
• The one student acts on behalf of all his classmates.

In a similar way, 

• God appointed Adam to be the head and representative of all men who would be born from him.
• Since all men are descended from Adam, all share in his sin. 
• What Adam did not only affected himself, but it affected all men. 
• His sin is “imputed” (charged to the account) of every child that was born to him. 

That is what Paul says in Romans 5:18,19 

• “Through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation. ...
• By one man’s disobedience many were made sinners.” 

Because of this, we do not speak about Adam’s fall, 

• but about the fall of mankind. 
• Adam’s sin is my sin. 
• We call this first sin “original sin.”

I might say: “That’s not fair!" 

• "Why should I be punished for Adam’s sin?” 
• Yet I must remember that God gave Adam that unique position as my head and representative. 
• Was it not God’s right as Creator to do what seemed good in His sight? 
• Indeed, this was God’s right. 

I must be careful not to measure God by my sense of right and wrong, 

• and restrict His actions to my sense of justice. 
• God had every right to test all men in the one man Adam. 

Later, I will see that God sent another Adam, the last Adam, my Lord Jesus Christ. 

• God sent Him to earth as man, so that He could take the test that Adam failed. 
• He did this as my Head and Representative. 
• He passed the test and God imputes to me His grade, His perfect obedience. 
• In Christ, I pass the test. 

More about that later. 

Adapted Excerpt From Van Delden's Only By True Faith