Pastor Chad Harrison, Trinity Baptist Church

Genesis 3:1: Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

Gen 3:2: And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:

Gen 3:3: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.

Gen 3:4: And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

It was just like any other day in the Garden of Eden, perfect! Everything was perfect from the oxygen to breath to the perfect soil in which grew the most lush vegetation. A man or woman could not ask for anything more. What a loving God to give Adam and Eve such a wonderful place to live.

However, on this day, the series of events that took place would forever change the course of mankind.

Allow me to point out some observations from the text.

1. A serpent’s company
We see in the text that Eve seems to be just casually talking with Satan in the form of a serpent. Isn’t it tragic how vile Satan is, and isn’t it tragic how Eve seemed to be willing to casually chat with this serpent and not flee its company!
Eve seemed to have the attitude that she could balance right on the edge of the cliff of sin yet still remain comfortable in a holy environment. This may not have been Eve’s first conversation with the serpent, she may have made small talk with the serpent multiple times in the past. Whatever the case, Eve was certainly giving place to Satan and the opportunity was not squandered by the evil beast.

2. A simple concern
In verse one the serpent speaks. To begin the conversation the serpent asks a question. The serpent asks Eve what God said when He gave the instructions about the tree in the midst of the garden. He expressed concern about what God said in order to pressure Eve to say too much.
Just like Eve, most Christians are not prepared to give an answer about the things God has said. If we as Christians would take a little time each day to read our bibles we would be much more familiar with what God wants us to know. Satan was able to raise doubt in Eve’s mind because she misquoted the Lord.
The Lord told Eve that she could not eat of the fruit, however when asked by Satan, Eve added to the words of God “neither shall we touch it lest ye die.” Had Eve quoted the Lord there would have been less opportunity for Satan to do his deceiving work.
We must remain familiar with what our Savior has said in his word. We must also be careful to not place our personal opinions on the same level as scripture. God’s Word is perfect but our opinions are not. Eve could have chosen to not touch the fruit but it was not a regulation the Lord placed on her.

3. A subtle compromise
After the serpent began his work of deception on Eve, he placed a seed of doubt in her mind from which grew the sin that ultimately cursed mankind forever. Eve probably did not think her decision that day would totally change life as she knew it, but it did. Eve compromised what God had said to do not because she wanted to destroy the life God had given her but because the subtlety of Satan pressured her to sin.
Satan is in the business of ruining anything that is of God. If he can ruin your family, he will. If he can cause you to destroy a relationship that’s good, he will. If he can destroy your children he will jump at the chance. He would love to destroy your church, your pastor, and your joy. I once heard that if you give Satan an inch, he will be your ruler! I think that is pretty accurate.

4. A serious consequence
Because of the decision Adam and Eve made that day in Eden, we are now in the position of fighting every day a desire that is in us to do wrong. Adam and Eve doomed mankind with one decision. This thought should encourage us to desire to make every decision with pleasing God in mind.
None of us are perfect, but we should realize that we are an example to others. Eve would have been better off to have run from Satan in fear rather that trying to debate him in pride. Resist the devil and he will flee.

The consequences of sin are too great to mess around with. Let’s do our best to just run in fear to our Lord when Satan tempts us to do wrong rather than trying to fight him on our own. The decisions we make today ultimately shape our tomorrow.
I am so thankful that the Lord has given us a way to escape our own punishment. Jesus loves you and the best decision you could ever make is to accept Him as your Savior. I urge you to consider accepting His love for you and making Him the most important influence in your life.