Tree of Knowledge

So what is sin?

Sin is simply the disobedience of God.  What I find really interesting is the sinful nature of human beings.  As of now there are a lot of moral codes to live by and laws that we shouldn't break lest we sin.  No murdering, no stealing, no lying, etc.  But there was a time before those laws were even made.  There was a time when Adam was alive, and all he had to do was follow just one simple rule:  Don't eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge.

Don't eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge.  Just one tree, out of all the other trees available.  Just one fruit, out of all the other edible things in the garden.  Just one rule to live by, just one rule to follow.  And Adam breaks it.

What people don't mention is that in the middle of the garden next to the Tree of Knowledge was the Tree of Life.  Adam and Eve could have easily picked the fruit from the Tree of Life instead and lived forever in the presence of God.  After Adam and Eve were cast out from the garden, God sent down angels to protect the Tree of Life.  It is from this tree that we are to eat of when Jesus comes back for us, and that is what is meant by eternal life with Him.

But no, instead of taking the fruit from this amazing tree that God put right there within Adam's reach, he ate from the exact one that God told him not to.

This actually reminds me of a child psychology study that was done a while back.  I can't seem to find the study, but I remember watching a small clip of it.  A male child of approximately 10 years old was put in a room.  He was sat on a chair facing a mirror-wall.  Behind him was a lego set up of cars and building, etc.  His mother told him not to turn around right before she left the room.  After the door closed, the boy sat there for a couple seconds, fidgeting.  Then he got off his chair to turn around and look at the toys for a quick second before getting back on his chair.  He then turned around quickly to look again, not having noticed that he was put in front of a gigantic mirror and could look at the toys as much as he wanted without having to turn around.

It's interesting how human nature makes us want to do the exact things that we're told not to do.  Instead of doing anything else possible to avoid that one mistake, we'd rather make it.

And I guess this is what makes us humans sinful by nature.  It's a condition first born in Adam, carried through the generations and into us.