By Xiaochen

It is recorded in Genesis, “And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:15-17). All along, as for these verses, I had simply realized that after being created by God, Adam and Eve were put into the Garden of Eden, enjoying all the riches God bestowed. Also Jehovah God told them what they could do and what they could not do, and that the consequence was death if they rebelled against God’s words. So they must follow God’s words. As long as they listened to the words of God and obeyed His requirements, they would be entitled to live in the Garden of Eden freely. These are all my understanding about these verses.

Not until I read some words in a spiritual book did I surprisingly find out that actually hidden behind these verses are God’s good intentions which I had never discovered. The book says, “Did you get anything out of these verses? How does this part of the scriptures make you feel? … You can say that this is the first command God gave man since creating him. What does this command carry? It carries God’s will, but it also carries His worries for mankind. This is God’s first command, and it is also the first time God worries about man. That is to say, God has had a responsibility toward man since the moment He created him. What is His responsibility? He has to protect man, to look after man. He hopes man can trust and obey His words. This is also God’s first expectation of man. It is with this expectation that God says the following: ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die.’ These simple words represent God’s will. They also reveal that God’s heart has already begun to show concern for man. … God made it very plain in this command what man can do, as well as what he cannot do” (“God’s Work, God’s Disposition, and God Himself I”).

After reading these words, I knew that although these words of command that God gave to us mankind are brief, they are full of God’s concern, mercy, and pity for us, and even more full of God’s deep love and expectations for us. God knew that Adam and Eve from the beginning of creation had no ability to discern good from evil and were unaware of how to protect themselves. He also knew that Satan wanders around man at all times, intending to corrupt and devour the mankind God loves, and that it will entice and deceive man to become estranged from Him anytime. God has long ago known all these things like the palm of His hand. Since God created man, He has to protect and look after man. He is unwilling to see the mankind He created with His own hands abused by Satan, much less see mankind fall into Satan’s snare after being corrupted by it. So God commanded and warned Adam and Eve not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and also told them clearly the consequence of eating it, hoping that they could believe and obey what He had said. When man is capable of following and believing God’s words, and firmly holding on to them when Satan carries out its ruses, Satan will fail in humiliation and take to its heels without anymore schemes to employ, and will never again be able to invade and corrupt the mankind who was created by God. Then man shall forever live a carefree and happy life in the Garden of Eden, with God’s protection and blessings.
At this point, I understood how important God’s words are to us! Every word God speaks is an expression of His protection and care for us. So long as we follow God’s words and act according to His words, we can counterattack the schemes of Satan forcefully, stand through Satan’s temptations, and live before God. It is now the last days, so looking at the world today, it has been corrupted by Satan, and darkness and evil are everywhere. Plenty of Satan’s temptations and disturbances frequently befall each of us Christians in our real life. As it wanders by our side, tempting us to do things in violation of the truth through using all kinds of people, matters, and things. Its purpose is to make us stay away from and abandon God’s words so that our relationship with God may be severed. For example, every time when people seduce us to smoke, drink excessively, commit adultery, become greedy, tell lies, murder, cling to the world, or follow social trends, if we are unable to remember God’s teachings and practice His words, then with a little carelessness, we may fall into Satan’s snare, be reduced to captives of Satan, become the mark of causing God to be ashamed, and sink into darkness.

Take myself for example. I often encounter Satan’s temptations and disturbances in my daily life. Friends around me always entice me to go to KTV and bars for entertainment, and to strive for fame and fortune, and so on. Thank God for His protection. It is the guidance of God’s words that makes me keep away from Satan’s temptations time after time with a heart of fearing God and shunning evil, so that I have not, like unbelievers, followed the evil social trends and thus become depraved and been devoured by Satan. From my own experience, I have realized that in this evil age, if we want to avoid being corrupted and devoured by Satan, we must often read God’s words, remember them at all times. Furthermore, we must pay attention to seeking the will of God in every matter which befalls us and then act according to the words of God. Just as Psalms 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” Only in this way can we not leave Satan any opportunities to tempt and corrupt us, and only then can we keep away from Satan’s disturbances, be protected by God, and live under the blessing of God.

Thank God for His guidance. Through reading God’s words, I knew the importance of them, and saw that there are God’s earnest intentions and hopes within every one of His words. In the following days, I am willing to read God’s words every day, making them the foundation of my existence and the guide in my road of believing in God!