the storyline of scripture, pt 4

The second plot movement in the storyline of Scripture is the Fall. The account of this occurs in Genesis 3.

The Fall of Man came as a result of the disobedience that took place in Eden when the man and woman ate the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In that moment man’s relationship to everything changed. He turned his back on the God who is perfect goodness, perfect holiness, perfect truth, and perfect life. That turn has resulted in all of the evil, pain, and sorrow that we find in the world today.

In judgment of man’s rebellion the Lord pronounced a curse. The curse has resulted in strained relationships, pain, and toil. In Romans 8 the Spirit reveals that the whole of creation was, at the Fall, subjected to futility and placed under a bondage of decay. As he observed this the prophet Jeremiah cried to the Lord saying “How long will the land mourn and the grass of every field wither?”

John Calvin in his Commentary on Romans wrote, “It is then indeed meet for us to consider what a dreadful curse we have deserved, since all created things in themselves blameless, both on earth and in the visible heaven, undergo punishment for our sins; for it has not happened through their own fault, that they are liable to corruption. Thus the condemnation of mankind is imprinted on the heavens, and on the earth, and on all creatures.”

The Fall is significant because it explains everything that is wrong with the world. It explains guilt, shame, and death. It explains the origin of evil in this universe. It explains why there is physical, emotional, and spiritual pain. It explains tsunamis, hurricane, terrorism, AIDS, black widows, and roadkill. It is the reason why things are not the way they are supposed to be.

On account of the Fall there is strife in our relationships with others and man's relationship with God has been ruined.

Here’s a few lines from the poets:

“So saying, her rash hand in evil hour
Forth reaching to the fruit, she plucked, she ate:
Earth felt the wound, and Nature from her seat
Sighing through all her works gave signs of woe,
That all was lost. Back to the thickest slunk.”
“...With liberal hand: he scrupled not to eat
Against his better knowledge, not deceived,
But fondly overcome with female charm.
Earth trembled from her entrails, as again
In pangs, and Nature gave a second groan;
Sky loured, and muttering thunder, some sad drops
Wept at completing of the mortal sin
Original; wile Adam took no thought...”
Milton in Paradise Lost: Book IX



“How tides control the sea, and what becomes of me
How little things can slip out of your hands
How often people change, not to remain the same
Why things don't always turn out as you plan

These are things that I don't understand
Yeah, these are things that I don't understand

I can't, and I can't decide
Wrong, oh my wrong from right
Day, oh my day from night
Dark, oh my dark from light
I live, but I love this life”
Coldplay in”Things I Don’t Understand”