Genesis 3:6
"When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it."
Here the keyword is "saw." What we see when our eyes are blinded by a sinful desire is very different from what we see when our actions are guided by sober judgment. When Eve looked at the forbidden fruit, she saw without fully seeing, she considered without fully considering. She saw the fruit, but she did not see the "No trespassing for you will surely die" sign in front of the fruit.
When we desire what is forbidden, our perception of the thing that we desire becomes distorted. Also James warns us that "after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death." (James 1:15)
So, at all costs, we must avoid falling under the spell of the forbidden fruit. How do we do that? The Bible says "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." (Romans 12:21) It also says that we should "Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart." (2 Timothy 2:22)
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I'd say that the "problem" with all people, myself included, is that we can't really be good or do good, for we all fall short (Romans 3:23), even after doing our best. Furthermore, to God, our very best & noble efforts are like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6), or like rubbish (Philippians 3:8).
ReplyDeleteTherefore, until & unless we are transformed by the work of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8,13), we can't put our sin to death (Romans 8:13), we can't crucify our sinful nature (Galatians 5:24), & we have no power to live by the Spirit (Galatians 5:16).