3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’” 4 The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! 5 For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 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 desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. Genesis 3:1-6 NASB
This is the first temptation recorded in Scripture.
The devil, in the form of a snake, urges Eve to question God’s law concerning the fruits of the trees of the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve have been told not to eat of the fruit of a certain tree. It is interesting to note that the very first temptation begins with the challenge, “… has God said…?”
At a personal level, this is often the way temptation begins. Hath God said? Perhaps you have misread it. Perhaps the preacher exaggerated. Perhaps it was misinterpreted. This thing that feels so right, how can it be wrong?
At the level of the congregation and of the organizational church, this question is now being asked about homosexuality. Hath God said? Perhaps it is just a misinterpretation. Perhaps the Church has been mistaken all these years. This thing that feels so right to so many people, how could it be wrong?
The temptation for some individuals and for certain segments of the Church will be to question and then to ignore what God has plainly said.
– SSXG