Search
In this chapter we will consider the process and the result of man’s first fall.
The first step in the process of man’s first fall was failing to exercise the spirit. Eve assumed the headship and went beyond God because she did not exercise her spirit. God created man with a spirit to contact Him (Gen. 2:7; Prov. 20:27; Job 32:8). After man was created, he should have used his spirit to contact God and live before God. Man is preserved by God when he lives according to his spirit, but in the garden man did not exercise his spirit to contact God. Instead, he went beyond God and fell into the hand of the evil one. If man had remembered God’s right and authority over him and had exercised his spirit to ask God about Satan’s words, he would not have gone beyond God and would not have fallen. Therefore, the first step in man’s fall involved setting God aside by not exercising the spirit. Going beyond God to contact something outside of God is the first step of man’s fall.
Genesis 2:16-17 says, “Jehovah God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden you may eat freely, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, of it you shall not eat; for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” By saying this, God was making known that man should only pay attention to God, contact God, receive God, and gain God. Man should not pay attention to, contact, receive, or gain anything other than God. Whenever man pays attention to things other than God, he gets into trouble and falls into the hand of the evil one, Satan. Man fell because he neglected this matter, went beyond God, and paid attention to something other than God.
The tree of life signifies God, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil signifies everything other than God. God’s forbidding man to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was a serious warning and reminder that man should contact only God; otherwise, his end is death. Man violated this principle in the first step of his fall by going beyond God and paying attention to something other than God.
The second step in the process of man’s first fall was the soul being exercised. When Eve spoke and reasoned with the serpent, she exercised her mind first (3:2-3). This was the second step in her being deceived. Verse 6 then says, “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 oneself wise, she took of its fruit and ate.” All these are matters related to the soul. To be desired indicates that her emotion was exercised. To make oneself wise indicates that her mind was exercised, because wisdom belongs to the mind. Took of its fruit and ate indicates that her will, her determination, was exercised. The functions of the mind, emotion, and will in man’s soul were all exercised. Thus, the second step in the process of man’s fall is the soul being exercised.
The first step of man’s fall involved not exercising the spirit. The second step involved exercising the soul. Not exercising the spirit is to go beyond God, and exercising the soul is to assume the headship, because our person is in the soul. In our entire being, the soul represents our person, our personality. When one’s soul is exercised, one’s person is exercised.
If Eve wanted to contact God, she could not have done so by just exercising her mind, emotion, or will, because the mind, emotion, and will are not faculties for contacting God. Man cannot contact God by exercising his soul; man must exercise his spirit to contact God. If Eve had exercised her spirit instead of her soul, she would not have gone beyond God or assumed the headship. If Eve had said, “I will go ask God,” when the serpent tempted her, she would have exercised her spirit, not her soul. If she had exercised her spirit, she would not have gone beyond God or assumed the headship. However, because she set God aside, went beyond God, and ignored God, she exercised her soul in her decision to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Man is taking the way of the fall when he uses his soul first, rather than his spirit, in anything. Many people exercise only their soul in their daily living; hence, their way before God is the way of failure. For instance, in the matter of marriage some young saints do not use their spirit to pray, to have fellowship with God, or to ask God what to do concerning their marriage. They use their soul rather than their spirit. Furthermore, they mainly exercise their emotion, their loving faculty, and then their mind to consider. Only then do they decide. All these are matters related to the soul. A young saint rarely uses his spirit first in order to contact God when proceeding forward in the matter of marriage. If he uses his spirit to contact God first, he will not go beyond God or assume the headship in the matter of his marriage. If he first exercises the faculties of his soul and follows his soul to take the way of the soul—exercising his emotion to see marriage as desirable, then exercising his mind to consider it as being good, and then determining to proceed according to the resolution of his will—he will assume the headship and go beyond God. In such a situation he will fail and fall.
Christians on the proper way should first exercise their spirit in every matter. Once we use our spirit, our soul stops. Once we use our spirit, we contact God and put God first. Rather than assuming the headship, we are safeguarded. This should be the principle not only in our marriage but in every matter, great or small, in our Christian life. Regrettably, many Christians do not live according to this principle; most live according to the fallen principle of exercising only their soul. They begin with their preferences, consider and plan according to their thoughts, and then decide according to their will. All three steps are matters related to the soul. Every time that Satan tempts us and we exercise our soul instead of our spirit to contact God, Satan succeeds, and we are taking the way of the fall.
The third step in the process of man’s first fall was the body acting. Once Eve’s soul was exercised, her body responded with action. The soul directs the body. When Eve saw that the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was a delight to the eyes and desirable, she decided to take it and eat. Taking and eating the fruit were actions of her body. First, there was a seeing with her eyes. Second, there was a taking with her hands. Third, there was an eating with her mouth. Fourth, there was a giving to her husband. After Eve took the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and ate, “she also gave some to her husband with her, and he ate” (v. 6). This may be likened to a wife who plays mah-jongg and brings her husband into playing it as well, or a wife who goes dancing and brings her husband into dancing. Romans 1:32 speaks of such ones, “who, though fully knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, not only do them, but also have fellow delight in those who practice them.” All sinners not only commit sins themselves but also want others to do the same. If our colleagues like to play mah-jongg, sooner or later they will want us to play mah-jongg. They like it best when we wallow in the same mire.
I came across this kind of temptation when I was young. Some of my friends asked me to play mah-jongg. I did not understand the game at that time, but they said, “It does not matter. It is all right if you do not understand.” Then I asked, “What if I lose money?” and they said, “The money you lose is on us; the money you win is yours.” Thus, I followed along. It was truly the work of the devil.
I am told that opium smokers also use all kinds of methods to bring others into smoking opium. Sinners all like to bring others along into their sinning. After Eve took the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and ate, she gave some to her husband, and her husband ate. Man’s first act of sin was then complete.
There are only three steps involved in committing sin. The first step is not using our spirit, that is, going beyond God. Man has three parts: the innermost is the spirit, then there is the soul, and the outermost is the body. We should use our spirit first, let our spirit direct our soul, and then let our soul direct our body. Then we would not sin easily. If, however, we use our soul instead of our spirit, we assume the headship, and our soul is the decision maker. This is the second step. Once the soul becomes the decision maker, it directs the body to do things that offend God. This is the third step. This is the process every time we sin against God. Every offense in God’s eyes occurs according to these three steps.
Many Christians do not like to pray about matters in their life. A saint once said to me that he would like to do a certain thing, and he asked, “Brother Lee, do you think I could do it?” I responded, “Have you brought this matter to God first in prayer to see what is His will?” He said, “Honestly, I dare not pray. I know that once I pray, God will not want me to do this.” Christians have many stories like this, and they are unwilling to pray about many matters. For example, a brother may be unwilling to pray about proceeding with the matter of marriage, because he knows that as soon as he prays, God will not want him to proceed. He, therefore, decides not to pray. Not praying means that he is suppressing his spirit, setting God aside, going beyond God, and assuming the headship. When only his soul, including his mind, emotion, and will, is exercised, he determines the course of his marriage and, as a result, offends God. Without exception, these three steps are involved in all our offenses toward God. This is an ironclad principle.
Whenever we encounter a matter, we should ask God reverently from deep within about His feeling, that is, whether there is permission or forbiddance, peace or uneasiness, or joy or sorrow. If the inward sense is one of permission, peace, and joy, then we may do it according to His will. If the inward sense is one of forbiddance without peace or joy, then we should be subdued and, according to His will, not do it. When we are subdued in our spirit, we are subdued before God, preserved from the schemes of Satan, and preserved from falling.
The first result of man’s first fall is that the soul was corrupted. Even before man ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, man’s soul accepted Satan’s words. Satan’s words represent Satan himself. When Eve accepted Satan’s words by exercising her soul, every part of her soul was exercised, including her mind, emotion, and will. This means that she accepted Satan’s words and proposals into every part of her soul. Even though the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil had not yet entered into her body, Satan’s words, which were Satan himself, had already entered into every part of her soul. Every part of her soul was corrupted and defiled.
Man’s mind was originally pure, and man’s will and emotion were pure as well. At that time every part of man’s soul was undefiled, unpolluted, and without mixture. Man was simple and pure in his thoughts, emotions, and determinations. However, when Eve accepted Satan’s words and opinions, Satan himself entered into man’s soul. Thus, man’s mind, emotion, and will were no longer simple but complicated. Furthermore, man’s soul was no longer pure; it was polluted and corrupted. The corruption of the soul was the first result of man’s fall. Whenever man falls and sins, the soul is the first part that is corrupted.
The second result of the first fall is that man’s body was transmuted. Once man ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the element of that tree entered into his body. Man’s body was originally created by God, and it was pure. After man ate of the fruit of that tree, his body was transmuted. To eat is to take something into the body. For man to take in the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil means that he took it into his body. Thus, man’s body now has the element of Satan in it, which has resulted in its transmutation. Man’s body has been transmuted because sin, which is the life of Satan, is in it.
In man’s body there is also lust, which is like an addiction. Drinking results in addiction. Smoking results in addiction. Going to the theater and playing mah-jongg are also addictions. The Bible calls the lust of these addictions, which dwell in man’s body, sin (Rom. 7:17). Such lust, such sin, dwells in man’s body and enslaves man to do many evil things against his desire. I have seen many opium smokers who were miserable beyond description. They knew that they should not smoke opium, and often they determined to never smoke again. Yet their addiction could quickly take over to the point that they were unable to withstand it, and they had no control over themselves. Even though they knew they might die, they could not stop smoking opium. This shows that sin, lust, is in man’s body.
This sin, this lust, entered into man’s body when he ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Once the element of this tree entered into man’s body, his body was changed, transmuted, into the flesh. The body is positive, but the flesh is negative (3:20; 6:19; 7:18, 25). The body is God-created; the flesh is a transmutation of the body.
Once man fell in this way, his body became the flesh. Every kind of corruption is hidden in our body. Therefore, Romans 7:23 says that the law of sin, the power that causes man to sin naturally, is in our members. There is a law of sin in the members of man’s body because the element of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil entered into man to corrupt and transmute his body. This is the second result.
The third result of man’s first fall is that the spirit was deadened. The first significance of the spirit being deadened is that it cannot contact God. The spirit was originally an organ for contacting God. Now that the spirit has been defiled and deadened, it cannot contact God. This does not mean that the spirit is gone. The spirit still exists, but it is unable to contact God. For example, man’s eyes are able to contact colors, but if an eye is blind, it is dead. Once an eye is dead, it is insulated from colors and unable to contact colors. The spirit is for contacting God. Once the spirit is dead, it is unable to contact God. This is the first significance of a deadened spirit.
The second significance of the spirit being deadened is a loss of function. Once an eye is dead, it is not only cut off from the object of its contact, but because it is blind, it also loses its function. Man’s spirit was originally capable of contacting God, worshipping God, having fellowship with God, understanding God’s will, and knowing God. When the spirit was deadened, it was cut off from God and lost its function.
In order to know of something’s existence, we must have an organ to substantiate it. For example, would a hymnal with a green cover or would a blackboard exist to us if we were blind? We would not sense their existence, because the function of our eyes to substantiate colors has been lost. Although others can see colors, we could not. However, this does not mean that there is no such thing as color; rather, it only means that we cannot substantiate colors, because we have lost the function of our substantiating organ. It is the same with sound. If a person is deaf, he cannot substantiate sound and thus senses no sound. Similarly, if a person loses the function of his nose and tongue, he will not sense the flavor of his food. This does not mean that there is no such thing as flavor but that his substantiating faculties have lost their function. Many people say that there is no God, but this does not mean that there is really no God. It only means that their God-substantiating spiritual sense has been lost because their spirit is deadened. God exists, but they have no sense of Him, just as we will not have a sense of flavor, sound, or color if our faculties lose their function. It is not that these things do not exist but that our ability to substantiate them has been lost.
God is invisible and intangible. God can be contacted only in the spirit. The Bible says, “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit” (John 4:24). Man’s spirit is dedicated to contacting God, but because man became corrupt, his spirit was insulated and cut off from God. Once it was cut off, its function stopped, and it was deadened.
The fourth result of man’s first fall is that man was constituted a sinner. When man’s soul was corrupted, man’s body was transmuted, and man’s spirit was deadened; his whole person was damaged. This is the condition of a sinner. All the persons in the world are sinners because they have Satan’s life within and have been corrupted by Satan. The life of Satan is the sin that dwells in man, the evil that is present with man (Rom. 5:19; 7:17, 20-21). Therefore, man is constituted a sinner.
When man fell and was fully corrupted, God could not ignore this matter. He had to deal with sins because He is not only a Lawmaker but also an Executor of the law. Since man sinned and violated God’s commandment, man had a record of sin before Him. Thus, there were two major problems after man fell: first, man had a sinful life, a sinful nature within him, and second, man had a record of sin before God.
In both the East and the West, past and present, many sages have debated whether man’s nature is good or evil. Some believe that man’s nature is evil, and others believe that man’s nature is good. There is a debate because there are indeed two elements in fallen man, a good element and an evil element. Man’s good element comes from God’s creation; man’s evil element comes from Satan’s life. Before a person is saved, he has the elements of good and evil in him, even though he does not have God’s life. Sometimes we really have good thoughts and intend to honor our parents. This is related to the element of good in us. But at other times our heart is filled with murderous thoughts, envious hatred, and disobedience to parents. This is related to the element of evil in us. This is the reason that sages throughout time have debated about the nature of man.
Under God’s shining we know that such a debate is unnecessary, because man has both the good created life as well as the corrupt fallen life. The element within our created life is good, and the element within our fallen life is corrupt. The good element is from God’s created life; the corrupt element is from Satan’s corrupt life. Although man can still manifest the good element, he manifests the corrupt element much more. Therefore, as a vessel, man has been corrupted.
Not only is fallen man corrupt in himself, but he has a record of sin before God. Man’s sinning always has these two aspects. For example, a mother may tell her children not to play with their drinking glasses, but when she leaves them alone, they ignore her words, play with their glasses, and break them. When the mother returns, she can tell from their actions that they have violated her word. Thus, the children have a record of sin, a transgression, before her. This transgression, however, does not have anything to do with the physical being of the children. The mother may also tell her children not to drink a substance in a bottle lest they be poisoned, but when she leaves them alone, they may taste the substance out of curiosity. This transgression has a different consequence because now they have taken a poisonous substance into their body. Their drinking not only violates the mother’s commandment, which results in a transgression outside their body, but also it has poisoned their body. If it were merely a transgression outside their body, the mother would need only to forgive them. However, since a poisonous substance has entered into their body, the problem cannot be solved by outward forgiveness alone. The mother must seek emergency medical treatment.
The fall of our forefathers in the garden of Eden can be likened to both examples. After man fell, he had both a record of sin before God, having a transgression outwardly, and Satan’s poisonous nature in his body inwardly.
As Adam’s descendants, we all have Satan’s poisonous nature within us, whether we are Chinese or foreign, educated or illiterate, good-natured or ill-natured. Whether we believe this word or not, the facts speak for themselves. We need to consider all the instances in our lives when we acted against our inward desire and will. Often we have an inward desire to not do evil, to not fall, or to not do devious things, but at a certain point there is a driving power within us that pushes us to do immoral things against our will. We often do many dishonorable things against our will, and even though this makes us unhappy, we have no ability to refrain from doing them. There is a power in us that takes us captive. This power is Satan’s poisonous nature. This proves that we have been corrupted inwardly, having a poisonous sinful life with its corrupting element.
Just as an empty vessel is designed to contain something, Adam was made to contain God. However, Satan came into man first. After this, man became complicated and corrupt. Man first acted in violation of God’s commandment; therefore, he has a record of sin. However, man also has the activities of the devil within him. When we are careful, the devil may be constricted a little, but the devil can come out with just a little inward stirring. I once aspired to improve myself, and I had great ambitions in my childhood. As I grew, however, the more I wanted to improve, the more of a mess I became, and many devious tricks were manifested in me. I know that many people have even more tricks than I, but all these are the result of the devil coming into man and corrupting him inwardly.
The fifth result of man’s first fall is that man was not only constituted a sinner, having a record of sin before God, but he was also cursed by God. God said, “Cursed is the ground because of you” (Gen. 3:17). Adam was the head of the old creation, and he represented all the old creation. Therefore, Adam’s sinning brought in a curse upon the old creation that he represented. Because one man sinned, all creation was made subject to vanity, groaning, travailing in pain, and hoping to be freed from the slavery of corruption (Rom. 5:12; 8:20-22).
God also said, “Thorns and thistles will it [the ground] bring forth for you” (Gen. 3:18). This speaks of disharmony in creation. Originally, creation was in harmony, but when Adam, the head of creation, sinned and was no longer in harmony with the Creator, all creation lost its harmony as well. This disharmony has produced the killing and the lack of peace in the universe today.
Not only was the ground cursed to bring forth thorns and thistles, but God greatly multiplied the pain of the woman in her childbearing and made man eat bread by the sweat of his face (vv. 16-19). These are curses that man brought upon himself when he fell.
Being cast out of Eden is the sixth result of man’s first fall. Verses 23 and 24 say, “Then Jehovah God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to work the ground from which he was taken. So He drove the man out.” God formed man from dust and brought man into the garden of Eden so that he might contact the tree of life and be transformed into precious materials as symbolized by gold, bdellium, and precious stones (2:10-12; cf. footnote on verse 12, Recovery Version). Regrettably, however, man contacted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and was corrupted before he contacted the tree of life. Therefore, until the corruption that man incurred could be dealt with, God could only send him forth to return to the ground from which he came. Man was from the dust of the ground, and to dust he was to return. Henceforth, in his sinful condition man could no longer enjoy the pleasures in the garden of Eden or take of the fruit of the tree of life.
The seventh and final result of man’s first fall is death. God warned Adam that in the day that he ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he would surely die (v. 17). When Adam violated this forbidding commandment and ate the fruit of this tree, he experienced death. Death can be divided into a few steps. First, man’s spirit was deadened. This happened when he ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. At that time his fellowship with God was cut off, and he could no longer use his spirit to contact God. Second, his body died. Genesis 5:5 says, “All the days that Adam lived were nine hundred thirty years, and he died.” Third, there is an eternal death. Except for God’s redemption, Adam would be cast into the lake of fire, along with all those whose names are not written in the book of life. This lake of fire is the second death (Rev. 20:14-15).
Romans 5:12 says, “Just as through one man sin entered into the world, and through sin, death; and thus death passed on to all men.” Adam’s sinning brought in not only sin but also death. Who would have thought that one transgression would bring in such tragic results? All the tragedies in the world of the old creation are due to that one fall of man. The result of sin is indeed dreadful!
