Genesis 3.4-6
“But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.”
Romans 5.12
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.”
Genesis 3 records that Satan deceived Adam and Eve, and they rebelled against God’s authority. Instead of obeying God’s authority, man chose self-rule. Therefore, man’s relationship with God was broken, and man moved from a condition of life to a condition of death. Death in this context doesn’t mean that life ceased to exist; rather, it meant that the image of God in man was broken. Life became distorted.
Because of the Fall, the Prime Directive was compromised. The distortion of the image of God in man resulted in the distortion of the rule of God through man. Man continued to have dominion over the planet, but his actions were now directed by a broken character. Man no longer reflected God’s character and no longer represented God’s kingdom. Life was out of focus.
“…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3.23)
This is the enormous tragedy of the Fall. Because of man’s disobedience in the garden, all three dimensions of the image of God in man were distorted, and man’s identity was terribly damaged. What had been an integrated system of three essential elements working together now became a broken system that no longer operated in alignment with God’s design.
- Distortion of the moral dimension. Ever since the Fall, man has a tendency to declare and desire as right things that are wrong, and to declare and desire as wrong things that are right. Ever since the Fall, man’s passions and impulses are seriously misdirected. Man’s character was damaged.
- Distortion of the functional dimension. Ever since the Fall, man failed to perform with excellence. He had a tendency to think and act foolishly, and to create and build things that work poorly and display ugliness. Man’s competence was compromised.
- Distortion of the relational dimension. Ever since the Fall, man’s relationship with God has been broken. Same for man’s relationship with other people. Man’s connections were damaged.
To repeat, mankind continued to have dominion, but now did so in a broken and distorted way. Mankind continued to “be fruitful and multiply,” but all the subsequent offspring bore the damaged and distorted image (what theologians refer to as “original sin”). From Genesis 3 onward, creation has suffered under broken people exercising dominion in a broken world.
*Important Note: The Fall damaged the image of God in man, but it did not destroy it. Every person retains a vestige or remnant of the image of God within them. This means that unredeemed people can at times do good things for the right reason; they can at times think wisely and act productively; they can at times create and build things that work effectively and display beauty. They can at times build healthy relationships, but they cannot do it consistently, nor do any of their effective actions save them from their condition of sin.
Monday we will look at the good news of our redemption in Christ.
“… the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6.23)
