If you are a Christian, and you attended a church that teaches the Bible, you’ve probably heard of this term before: “original sin.” This is the word most Christians use to describe the first—or original—act of disobedience by a person against God. Namely, Adam (and Eve) when he ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
But this is more than just a term. It is a doctrine widely taught in the Church. Most churches teach the doctrine of original sin based on a passage from Romans: “Through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned…” (Romans 5:11). The doctrine of original sin is this, that because Adam sinned all those years ago, every other human being became a sinner. And because we are sinners through this one man’s disobedience, death—and everything associated with death (sickness, pain, toil, and suffering)—came to us.
What this doctrine means is this: you are not a sinner because you sin. You sin because you are a sinner. Most pastors leave it at that. Adam sinned, so we all became sinners. Doesn’t sound “fair” to the modern person. That’s why Paul adds “because all sinned.” Even if you don’t like the idea of original sin, you can’t get around the fact that you have in fact sinned and prove the “theory” accurate.
Most Christians accept this doctrine. Paul elaborates on it quite a bit in the rest of Romans 5. But there is much more to it than what we normally say. Why is it that Adam’s one act of disobedience condemned the rest of humanity? How could his action lead the rest of us to sin? Why is it so hard for human beings, apart from Christ, to do good and reject evil? In other words, why was Adam’s original sin so damning?
Do you have an answer to that? Probably not. But if we actually look at what Adam did and the consequences of his sin as explained by God, it comes into focus very clearly. When we begin to understand the nature of Adam’s sin, we will begin to understand why we struggle today—and why grace is so important.
I’m Adam Casalino and this is the Gospel Talker Podcast.
Don’t confuse me with the Adam we’re talking about today. I didn’t do it, so don’t blame me! There are two Adams in the Bible, the first Adam who committed the original sin. And the second Adam (or last Adam), who gave his life to save us. As I said, the first Adam sinned and doomed humanity to death. But why did this particular act of sin result in such a massive and far-reaching consequence?
To understand the consequences of original sin, we need to understand the _nature_ of Adam’s disobedience. What he actually did, why he did it, and what it meant for him and his wife to do it. That will tell us what it meant for the rest of humanity. Consider this odd conundrum: Adam and Eve sinned by eating a piece of fruit. That was it. The next sin recorded in the Bible was when one of their sons kills the other one! We go from eating fruit to murder. That’s a huge jump, if you ask me.
How is that possible? How can eating a piece of fruit led to murder… and much worse?
Just look at what happened to humans, creatures made in the image of God, after Adam’s sin. This is from Romans 1: “They are filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.” (Romans 1:29–32).
How did we go from just eating a piece of fruit, to all of _that_? Well, it makes sense when you understand what Adam actually did. Let’s go all the way back to before Adam sinned, to the place humanity was meant to live and thrive in: the garden of Eden.
We need to remember how the earth was, before sin. Genesis 1 describes God creating the world. At the end of the chapter it reads: “Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31a). After God made the world, the stars, the animals, the plants, and humans he said it was “very good.” The world was a perfect paradise for humanity.
This is an important thing to keep in mind. At the start (before there was sin) we see what God had intended for humanity and the earth. We are so used to things as we see them today, that we wrongly think and act as if the present world is how God wanted things to be. What the world is today, isn’t normal. Death isn’t normal. Sin isn’t normal. Just because God showed mercy and has continued to intervene in humanity since the fall _does not_ mean this is how he wanted life to be. He didn’t want there to be sin, sickness, suffering, or death.
God’s will means God’s _intentions for us_. Just because something happens in life doesn’t mean it is God’s will. We know what God’s will is, **based on what we know about his character**. The scriptures reveal who God is, including his ways and character. And all his ways are good. Genesis 1 and 2 reveals God’s character as a kind, loving creator who wanted his creation to live in peace and prosperity. Anything that is the opposite of this—or threatens this—has never been God’s will.
Genesis 2 elaborates on what God did for us even more. This chapter describes the original home of humanity, a beautiful garden set among a mountain range called Eden:
Genesis 2:8–17 (NKJV)
8 The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed. 9 And out of the ground the LORD God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 10 Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads. 11 The name of the first is Pishon; it is the one which skirts the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12 And the gold of that land is good. Bdellium and the onyx stone are there. 13 The name of the second river is Gihon; it is the one which goes around the whole land of Cush. 14 The name of the third river is Hiddekel; it is the one which goes toward the east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates. 15 Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17 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.”
What do we learn from this passage? Well, that God created man and put him in a garden. The garden of Eden was humanity’s original home. Not a palace, not a desert, not the ocean, but a garden. A beautiful natural habitat that was carefully cultivated to provide rest and pleasure. Who planted that garden? Who originally cultivated the plants and trees? God did. Why did he do all this? He was providing a home for Adam and his future family.
The text tells us that he planted trees that were pleasant to the eyes and were good for food. In the previous chapter, God told Adam that he could only eat seed-bearing fruit. In chapter 2, we learn that God had put in the garden all the trees that produced fruit. In the last chapter, God told humanity to rule over the animals. What does he do next in chapter 2? He brings to Adam all the animals, so he can learn about his “subjects” and give them names. But that wasn’t enough, was it?
Genesis 2:20–22 (NKJV)
… But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him. 21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.
What are these two chapters telling us about God and his relationship with Adam? This is very important if you want to understand original sin and how terrible it was.
Sometimes the Bible communicates things to us by indirect reference. Meaning, there are truths we glean from the text by “reading between the lines.” This is called by some scholars “telegraphing.” It is a very common tool in ancient texts, but you have to think about what you are reading and use the common sense God has given you to see it. What is one of the themes Genesis 1 and 2 is telegraphing to us?
These first two chapters of the Bible establish a very important truth. **Everything Adam needed, God had provided.** Some of what he needed, God made before man existed, like the earth, oxygen, sunlight, and so on. Some of what he needed, God provided after Adam was created, so Adam could see God providing for him. That includes the garden, the trees in the garden, the animals he brought to Adam, and of course his wife.
In chapter 1 God calls Adam to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth with offspring, as well as to rule over the earth. He then establishes for Adam this fact: that what Adam needs to do all this, God has and will provide. Even later, we see God providing even more—including his own presence when he appears in the garden to spend time with Adam and Eve in the cool of the evening.
Everything and anything Adam and his wife needed, God was providing. This is a very important truth the entire Bible spells out for us again and again: God is our source for everything. We are not supposed to look to anything else to provide what we need or even want. There are some Christians who think that God only cares about what they need, not what they want. They think this because they assume their “wants” are by default selfish or sinful. Other Christians think that God only provided them with salvation. He made sure their sins were forgiven so they will go to heaven. Everything else in life is up to them! As if asking for anything else from God is “too much” or greedy.
But Genesis chapters 1 and 2 establish, from the very beginning, that everything we need or desire is supposed to be provided by God. When we look to anything else, including ourselves, the world, our circumstances, we are wrong.
Jesus himself said this again and again. In John 6, he calls himself the “bread of life.” What does that imply? That Jesus Christ is the very one who provides what we need for life. Bread is food that keeps your physical body alive. But Jesus is the “bread” that sustains _every part of your life_. Don’t overlook the fact that he uses food as an analogy for this truth. A certain kind of food is what caused the fall; eating is used at times in the Bible to describe how humanity receives what it needs to live. So, it’s not a big surprise that humanity fell through eating and Jesus describes himself—our source of life—in terms of food.
Faith, then, isn’t just believing facts in the Bible. Faith is depending on God for everything in your life. That is the heart of worship. People say an idol is anything you worship instead of God. But they are only partly right. They often miss what worship is. You worship whatever you depend on to live. It could be literal, like money to buy things. Or it could be something that gives your life meaning or value. Whatever you look to that gives you life, that is your god (or gods). Faith and worship are connected, if not the very same thing.
Calling Jesus “Lord” doesn’t just mean you obey him. It means you look to him, not anyone else, to provide for you. If Christ is the Lord of your life, it means you believe he is the source of your food, money, clothing, housing, wisdom, hope, love, peace, joy, purpose, and so on. **Literally everything that you need or want out of life**. To look to anything else is to worship a false god.
Does the beginning of Genesis say all that? In a matter of speaking, yes. God made Adam and he consistently demonstrated to Adam that he was his provider. Adam would have understood all this based on what God said and what he experienced. This truth doesn’t need to be stated in black and white for us to see it (although elsewhere in the Bible it is plainly stated). Adam knew who his creator was and that this creator was going to lead him and sustain him forever.
Perhaps now you are beginning to understand more about this original sin. But let’s make it plain. You know the story. The serpent lied to Eve, so she would eat the fruit. What was the lie? That if they ate of this fruit, they would become like God. The Bible said Eve ate the fruit for three reasons:
Genesis 3:6 (NKJV)
6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
The fruit from the tree was “good for food,” “pleasant to the eyes,” and “desirable to make one wise.” We can assume those were the same reason Adam ate the fruit, since the text says he was there with her. Good for food, pleasant to the eyes, and desirable to make one wise. Those are the three driving forces of human life. In other words, what gives us our will to live.
What we need, what we want, and what we want to become. Adam and Eve ate fruit God forbade them from eating, because they thought it would provide for them the three things we need out of life.
It is further significant that this was done through an act of eating. Human beings are not self-sustaining. We need a lot to survive. We need food, sleep, water, etc. We are like batteries constantly need to be recharged. Eating is a major way we receive what we need to live. Adam and Eve understood this, so it was natural for them to eat this fruit to get what they wanted. It’s the same reason we are commanded to eat from the Lord’s table, his flesh and blood in the communion elements. Because, instead of eating something else to survive, we are acknowledging by faith that Jesus is our sustainer.
What we need, want, and want to become. Do these categories really summarize all that we want out of life? Generally speaking, yes. You can slice them up a bit more if you like, but they cover all desire humans have. And if you don’t have desires driving you, you have lost your will to live. There is no reason for you to get up in the morning! Life is driven by desire. Even needs are things we want, since we know we need them to live and we end up wanting them. Things that are pleasant to the eyes are not “needs” but because they are pleasant, or make us happy, we desire them. And becoming wise describes the drive for humans to become better than what they are. To grow, achieve, learn, or improve.
Adam and Eve fell for the lie that this fruit would give them everything. Sounds pretty odd, right? Can one piece of fruit do all that? Apples can’t can give you that much. Most fruit just fills your belly for a little bit and then you need to eat again. Why did Adam and Eve think this fruit could do so much more?
Before we answer that question, we need to make something crystal clear. Did God provide for Adam what he needed, wanted, and wanted to become? Yes, and then some. We already established that God provided Adam with every tree that was good for food. So that was taken care of. The Bible says God put Adam in a beautiful garden, full of trees, animals, rivers and other natural features. On top of all that, he gave Adam the crown of creation, the woman. Just imagine how beautiful the very first woman would have been. And she received Adam—the most handsome and manliness man to walk the earth.
God had clearly given them all that they could need or want. But what about wisdom? The Bible says that God made man in his own image. God is all-knowing and all-wise. Adam and Eve weren’t apes or cavemen. They were intelligent beings able to reason and understand. God had already given them wisdom, because they were made like him. And we know that if they needed more wisdom, God was the only one who could give it to them. There was no reason for Adam to look to a forbidden fruit for things God had already given him—and would continue to give to him!
And let’s not forget there was another tree in the garden, the tree of life. Books have been written considering this tree. What was it? How did it work? Where did it go? What we do know is that God didn’t forbid Adam from eating from it. This tree represented God’s provision, how God wanted Adam to succeed. Eat from the life God gives to him and he will live. Neglect what God is providing, as Adam did (the Bible never mentions Adam eating from this tree), and we die.
So, now you see the essence of Adam’s sin. He looked to a piece of fruit to give him what only God could give him. You could call that a kind of idolatry. Add to that the fact this was a willful act of disobedience, you get your sin. But that doesn’t explain why the rest of humanity were made sinners. Adam failed in that he chose the forbidden fruit over God. Why should that doom the human race?
The conventional answer you might have heard was probably, “God chose it to be that way.” Adam sinned, so God pronounced judgement on him and his descendants. Gee, thanks God! That kind of answer makes God out to be a cruel and vindictive judge. Inconsistent with what we just learned about him in Genesis 1 and 2. Notice the warning God had originally given Adam:
Genesis 2:17 (NKJV)
“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.”
“The day you eat of it, you will surely die.” That sounds like a clear warning, doesn’t it? God said if you eat this fruit, you’ll die. And a warning implies intent. God did not want Adam to eat of the fruit. Notice, God didn’t say, “If you eat it, I’ll kill you.” No, he said you’ll die. The consequences of Adam’s sin were the natural results of his actions. It was not God, boiling over with rage, hitting Adam with all these horrible consequences—including the doom of the rest of humanity (who would come from Adam).
That’s not to say God doesn’t have wrath. As we read in Romans, humanity has only gotten worse since the garden. Humans have continued to willfully disobey God in greater and greater acts of evil. God had every right to condemn Adam, as what he did was blatant disobedience. And God has every right to condemn the rest of us, because of our blatant sin. The fact that God has provided a means of forgiveness is the real surprise, which only emphasizes his goodness and amazing character.
But, that is not what brought about the consequence of all people becoming sinners. Not God’s wrath, but the actual thing that Adam did. Remember, we said that Adam chose this fruit over what God had provided. He ate the fruit thinking it would give him those three things. We already established that God had provided those three things, and then some. What was Adam choosing, though, over God?
That is the crux of the issue, because this fruit wasn’t just some ordinary piece of fruit. Before we get to that, let’s make one thing clear. On what grounds did God provide Adam with everything? Meaning, why did God bless Adam with all this provision as well as a calling to rule over the world? Did Adam do anything to earn these blessings? Of course, not. Adam wasn’t even alive when God did a lot of this stuff. And afterwards, God was just bringing blesses into Adam’s life because he needed them. God did all this out of his own goodness and love for Adam.
That is a picture of grace, undeserved favor. God favored Adam, gave him life and all these things, without Adam doing anything to deserve it. Some have said that Adam was under a certain kind of covenant in the garden. That isn’t correct. Covenants didn’t exist yet. A covenant is a binding agreement between two parties that requires the shedding of blood. Meaning, something has to be killed to make the agreement binding. There was no need for such things in the garden, because death didn’t even exist yet. Adam didn’t have a covenant with God, just a relationship. He didn’t have a covenant of grace. What we see in Genesis 1 and 2 is a _picture_ of grace. Meaning, we see God’s grace being illustrated in what he did for Adam; Adam didn’t have a binding covenant of grace as we do with Jesus Christ.
God is communicating to us what grace looks like in these chapters. He is providing abundantly for Adam and his wife. Not because they did something to earn it, but out of grace. Had they continued looking to God for everything they needed, everything would have been fine. Of course, that’s not what happened. As I said, Adam turned away from God as his provider and ate from the tree. So, if the God’s provision represents grace, what does the forbidden fruit represent?
We know this was the “tree of knowledge of good and evil.” Many Christians have struggled to understand why it was sin for Adam to eat from this tree. Shouldn’t we know what good and evil are? Aren’t we told by pastors to teach our children right from wrong? Doesn’t the Bible devote considerable time explaining good and evil? Why was it so bad for Adam and Eve to eat fruit that gave them this knowledge? Some conclude the problem was that they gained knowledge of evil as well as good. They called the time before the fall the “age of innocence.” But that’s not really going on.
People have long believed that a person “loses their innocence” when they begin to learn about bad things. That is based on a wrong understanding of this text. Knowing good and evil isn’t bad. God knows the difference between good and evil—and he’s never sinned. Nor does he tempt people to sin. Conversely, Satan knows good and evil and that doesn’t make him good, does it? Knowledge by itself is not the problem.
Let’s just think about this tree for a moment. It is obviously supernatural, as the fruit conveys knowledge to the eater. So, eating of this tree imparted to Adam and Eve the knowledge of good and evil. What do we generally call that kind of knowledge? Morals. Right and wrong. Good and bad. What is the value of knowing right and wrong? Even in our society, we say that we need to know right from wrong… why? **So that we will do what is right and reject what is wrong.**
That idea, knowing right from wrong so you can reject wrong and do right, is what we call morality. Or moral law. The problem, obviously, is that even with that knowledge, we often do wrong. Knowledge isn’t enough, is it? I can know perfectly what is right and what is wrong in any given situation. That doesn’t mean I have the power to actually resist the temptation to do wrong and do good, correct? So, what good is knowing good and evil, if you can’t actually do it?
This is my point: Adam’s sin wasn’t just that he disobeyed God. It was he thought he’d get by eating this fruit. Remember, the serpent said they’d become like God if they ate the fruit. Like God how? In knowing good and evil. Adam ate from that tree because he wanted the knowledge of good and evil. Why? Because he assumed that with that knowledge he could do good, reject evil, and achieve all that he wanted to achieve. All that he wanted or needed out of life, he thought, he could get as long as he did good and avoided evil. This was the lie that ensnared him and lead to his disobedience.
Remember what I said about “telegraphing”? The text doesn’t explicitly say that’s what Adam wanted. But we have to reason that out. Why would he want knowledge of good and evil? To do evil? Of course, not. He thought that if he had knowledge of both, he would be able to reject evil, do good, and thrive. But, because he’s not God, he did not have any power to do that. Thus, he chose to put himself—and his descendants—under a massive weight none of us could carry: the weight of being perfectly moral.
And this is the reason humanity became sinners. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil was a picture of the law. Many years before Moses came down the mountain with the literal Jewish law, Adam and Eve chose moral law over God’s provision. They thought that if they had knowledge of right and wrong, they could use that knowledge to do good, reject evil, and get everything they wanted—and live full lives. They chose moral law as their god, instead of the true God, who was giving them everything freely.
Consider the irony of their choice. How did God intend for Adam and Eve to succeed? How did he want them receive abundant life? By eating from the tree of life. God’s intention was for humanity to achieve success in life by simply receiving it from himself. Instead, Adam wanted to _earn_ success in life by obeying moral law perfectly.
How hard is it to eat something? Not very hard, especially when God gives it to you. How hard is it to earn a good life (the kind of life God wants you to have) by doing the right things all the time? And never, by the way, failing by doing the wrong things? That, my friend, is impossible.
**This is the real original sin: choosing law over grace.** God gave Adam everything free of charge. His mandate for Adam to rule over the earth was made possible because God was providing everything Adam needed to do it—including the tree of life that would have provide far more than Adam could have dreamed of receiving. Adam didn’t have to work for it. He didn’t have to earn it. He didn’t have to prove to God anything. He just had to enjoy what God gave him—ie: eat it.
Instead, he rejected all that and ate from the wrong tree. He picked morality over God’s goodness. Adam thought that by following moral law, he would be better able to rule over the earth. For that to be true, however, it required Adam to perfectly do good and reject evil all the time. That meant Adam was more confident in his ability to follow the law, than in trusting God to take care of him. So, we see, he was also rejecting faith and dependence on God, in exchange for trusting in his own self-effort. What Paul calls trusting in the flesh.
Let me go over this again, since it is so important. The tree of knowledge of good and evil was a picture of the law. It gave Adam and Eve knowledge of morality, or moral law. Morality isn’t bad in and of itself. But when you eat from it, instead of from the life God gives you freely, morality becomes your master. It demands you obey it, if you want to receive its “benefits.” Adam thought that through his self-effort he could perfectly reject evil and do good—as the law demands—so he could achieve success in life. He was so confident in his ability to do good that he rejected God’s provision and (ironically) disobeyed God. You see pride at work in this choice as well.
Adam and Eve chose moral law, right and wrong, over God’s loving provision. They made rule keeping their master, not God their kind creator. You do the same thing. So does everyone else in the world. Even fallen sinners who reject the gospel think in terms of law: doing good to achieve and rejecting bad so you won’t fail.
By making this choice, Adam doomed the rest of humanity. Why? Because this knowledge was passed down to his descendants. We all are born with this sense in the flesh: that if we do the right things, we will succeed. But if we do the wrong things, we fail. Life wasn’t meant to be that way. There was not supposed to be a war between good and evil inside of us. We were only supposed to “eat from the tree of life” to thrive. What would you prefer, eat freely from a tree, or struggle to be perfect all the time?
This is the crux of original sin: mankind rejecting God as their source and choosing morality instead. Ironic, yes. Tragic, you better believe it. But it is the truth. Let’s push further into the consequences of Adam’s decision. He thought that by taking on the burden of knowing good and evil, he could become like God and rule over the earth the “right way.” Remember, morality isn’t a bad thing. Making it your master is. Because, here’s the kicker, you cannot be good through your actions.
This is the big lie about morality. **You cannot become good by what you do**. That presupposes that there is already something inside of you that enables you to do good. Namely, this thing called “goodness.” But if you already have goodness within you, then you don’t need to “do good” to become good. If you are already good, you don’t need moral law. And trying to become good by obeying morality means you lack the very thing that can make you good!
Do humans have goodness in them by default? Not according to the Bible:
Matthew 19:16–17 (NKJV)
16 Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?” 17 So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God…”
The man talking to Jesus thought he could earn eternal life by doing something good. But Jesus says only God is good. No one is good but God. Jesus is telegraphing, to him, this obvious fact: if only God is good, then we can’t be good. We certainly can’t be good by doing something good.
Most non-Christians think they will go to heaven so long as their good deeds outweigh their bad deeds. This isn’t from the Bible, it has more in common with ancient Egyptian paganism. We cannot be good by what we do. That doesn’t mean we can’t do good things. But it does means that following moral law to become good is a LIE. Adam wasn’t good. Remember what I said about humans being batteries? We are just vessels that need to be filled. Not just with food, but with God’s goodness. Adam could only be good, hear me on this, only when he was relying on God for his goodness. As long as Adam was depending on God, he was receiving from the Lord his goodness. That is what made him good, prior to his sin.
The moment Adam rejected God and made moral law his master, he lost God’s goodness. Because nobody can be good by doing good. You cannot become good through self-effort. Nor can you live a successful life by doing all the right things. That’s true for Christians too. Life is about one thing: knowing Jesus Christ. And a relationship with him is one of constant dependance on him for everything.
There is no other alternative. To reject Christ is to live under a burden: trying to succeed through your self-effort to do good. How has that worked out for humanity? How did that work out for Adam and Eve? What happened the moment they ate from the tree? Did they become like God? Not even close.
Genesis 3:7 (NKJV)
7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.
What’s going on here? Why did they cover up their naked bodies? Adam says in verse ten that he was afraid, because he was naked. Now, if you are following the text, you would assume Adam was ashamed because he ate a piece of fruit. Instead, he was ashamed—even to the point of being afraid—because he is naked. What does being naked have to do with anything?
They hadn’t sinned in any way that related to being naked, right? What was their sin? As I explained, their sin was eating the fruit. By eating that fruit, they were rejecting God as their provider and taking morality as their master instead. That’s interesting, isn’t it? The moment they received this moral knowledge, this law, they felt ashamed for being naked—even though they hadn’t sinned with their naked bodies.
So, why were they ashamed? Because now they know what sexual sin is. And seeing their exposed bodies put shameful thoughts into their minds. This is important, because again _they hadn’t sinned sexually_. But just by knowing moral law, they were ashamed. Paul says in Romans that through the law comes the knowledge of sin. We have been told, even in church, that living by moral rules is necessary for being good or righteous. But the Bible says the law, which contains moral knowledge, only makes us more sinful.
We have it backwards. We are working so hard to impose moral law onto Christians, but it only serves to point out their failures. The moment Adam and Eve ate the fruit, this knowledge of morality acted like a heat-seeking missile. It zeroed in on anything that could have been construed as sinful and made them ashamed—even over sins they hadn’t committed. This is the consequence of making the law as your master instead of God.
Adam thought this knowledge would equip him to succeed. Instead, he failed. He could not do anything to become good. And this knowledge only pointed out his failures, making him feel sinful, dirty, and ashamed. This is what law does to a person; it doesn’t make them good, it makes them more sinful.
As it was for Adam and Eve, so it is with us. The more we think moral law will help us, the more we will fail. I’m not saying we need to live without morals. Remember, the knowledge itself isn’t the problem. God knows good and evil and he’s all good. It is the mindset that makes moral law our guiding light, our master. The mindset that we can actually do enough good that we can succeed in life or please God. The world believes this, of course. How often do people talk in this way: “If you follow my program, you will see results.” You’ll lose weight, earn a six-figure income, land your dream mate, and so on.
Humans still operate as if following “the rules” will save them. They think they can actually, through all their hard work, do the right things and avoid the wrong things. But God quickly explains what Adam did to himself and to his descendants. After rebuking the serpent and explaining the fallout of Eve’s actions, he says this to Adam:
Genesis 3:17–19 (NKJV)
17 Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. 18 Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you shall eat the herb of the field. 19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.”
There’s a lot to this curse, but we’ll focus on just one part. God says Adam will eat bread by the sweat of his brow. God is explaining to Adam that he no longer has the abundant provision of the garden of Eden (which was our picture of grace). He wanted law as his master, and oh boy did he get it! Only through Adam’s (and our) blood, sweat, and tears, will he be able to get anything out of life. Work isn’t a curse; the curse is _toil_. Work that is hard, grueling, and unsatisfying. Work that requires our blood, sweat, and tears. And even then, the best we can get is a bite of bread. After all that, we will still die, returning to the earth.
This is what self-effort gets you. The world says we can achieve anything if we work hard enough, doing all the right things and avoiding the wrong things. Even Christians believe that if we work hard at “obeying” God, we will succeed and maintain his favor. It’s the curse operating in us that tells us that. Because Adam chose law over grace, humanity was doomed to this futile way of living. Life became hard toil, filled with sorrow, sickness, and misery. This wasn’t God’s doing, this was the natural result of making law our provider, not our gracious creator.
So, this is the full picture of original sin. It wasn’t merely that Adam sinned and—boop!—we all became sinners. It was that Adam and his wife rejected what God was freely giving them and chose moral law instead. The consequence was that humanity was doomed to toil, trying to eke out a living through futile self-effort. This is so engrained in human nature, we don’t even see it. Even Christians think this is normal, to struggle and strive to please God, instead of enjoy what he wants to give us by grace through faith.
But we are not doomed to continue under this curse forever. The Bible says Jesus took on this curse for us, so we can be saved. He paid the price for our sins by shedding his blood on the cross. With our sins forgiven, there is no more reason for the curse to be on us. In fact, the Bible says that blessings of Abraham (a man who depended on God by faith) have come to us Gentiles when we believe in Jesus.
No Christian should be feeling the effects of the curse today. That doesn’t mean we don’t experience problems in this life. What it does mean is that we now have full access to God for help to overcome those problems. We are not supposed to be toiling away, hoping our good works or performance is earning us favor with God. Instead, we have unmerited favor with God through Christ and can freely receive from him all that we need, want, and want to become.
There are still many Christians, sadly, who do not believe this. They call this truth a “false gospel,” because they believe a lie. That we have to suffer in this life to become worthy of our heavenly inheritance. Friend, this is not even remotely true. Yet for centuries Christians have rejected the plain truth of the gospel to embrace suffering, self-effort, or the law. All because, in the end, it pleases their fleshly pride. Don’t let yourself be one of them. Reject self-effort in all its forms. Believe you are righteous by faith in Jesus Christ. Stand firm in the promises of the Bible that you are blessed, not cursed. And start seeking God today for the things you want out of life.
