Developing A Biblical World View

Man is the greatest of all God's creations. Man was made in the image of God. He has a living, eternal soul which animals do not have. He has a spirit and a mind which enables him to learn about and communicate with God. The Spirit of God actually came down and walked and talked with man in the beautiful garden in which he lived (Genesis 3:8).

Because of his special position in creation, man was to reflect the God in whose image he was made. He was to communicate with and praise the God who made him:

Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him. . .

This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise. (Isaiah 43:7,21)

Adam and Eve were to reproduce and fill the entire earth with people just like themselves. . . people who were holy, reflected the image of God, and communicated with and praised their Creator. But something terrible happened to spoil this beautiful plan.

THE FALL OF MAN

Genesis chapter 3 contains one of the saddest stories in the Bible. It records what has come to be called "the fall of man." Man was created in God's image. Just as God has freedom of choice, man had freedom of choice. He is free to make his own decisions.

In the Garden where Adam and Eve lived there were many trees, but there were also two special trees. One tree was called the tree of life (Genesis 3:22). If Adam and Eve had eaten of the fruit of that tree, they could have lived forever and never died.

But there was another tree in the garden. This tree was called the tree of the "knowledge of good and evil" (Genesis 2:17). God forbid Adam and Eve to eat the fruit of this tree. He did not want man to experience evil with all of its terrible results so He warned that eating the fruit of this tree would cause death.

But man did not heed God's warning. God had an enemy named Satan. Satan had once been a beautiful angel of God, but decided he wanted to be as great as God. Satan led a rebellion of angels in Heaven. You can read about this in your Bible in Isaiah 14:12-17.

Satan did not want man to serve God. Satan came first to woman, then to man in the Garden of Eden. He was disguised in the form of a serpent. He tempted them by making false promises. They yielded to the temptation, sinned against God, and ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

The results of this fall of man into sin changed the whole world. The plants and animals were no longer easy to control. Man had to struggle for dominion over them. Animals turned wild and fierce and the earth brought forth weeds and thistles. Terrible changes in weather came in the form of floods and similar disasters.

All the evil in the world today--all the plagues, suffering, and tragedies--are results of this first fall of man. Sin entered the world, and along with it, suffering. The punishment of death was brought on man, just as God had warned. All men will experience physical death until the end of time as we know it.

But even worse, man was separated from God by sin. The image of God that was to be reflected in man was spoiled. Because of sin, man lost his relationship and communication with God.