The fall & its effects on the human race
The serene and perfect communion that Adam and Eve enjoyed with their Creator in the Garden of Eden was shattered by a single act of disloyalty, and the consequences this pivotal event brought to this world were devastating, both upon the natural world, and through its effects upon human nature.
Ellen White emphasizes a particularly dreadful aspect of the fall: “One of the deplorable effects of the original apostasy was the loss of man’s power to govern his own heart.”1
Given that God had made man in His own image, self-government was intimately connected to the dignity, individuality, and identity of every man and woman. Remove the power of self-control, and we are left to the mercy of the power that enslaves us, and there is no mercy to be found there. The Apostle Paul vividly describes this natural state of humanity without salvation, writing, “Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:3).
The loss of self-government was therefore one of the most pervasive and soul-destroying results of the fall—something that cannot be exaggerated. While we may see evidence of self-control, forethought, and care in the world today, we must remember that all the good we witness is due to God’s intervention since the fall, beginning in the Garden of Eden. “We are not to seek to extenuate the consequences of the original apostasy. It is not possible to overstate the degree of alienation from truth and righteousness entered into by those whose souls revolt from God.”2
The natural mind, now leaning toward pleasure and self-gratification, became a breeding ground for sin. Sin’s reach was pervasive, corrupting every aspect of our being. It infected the race with moral darkness, polluting the imagination with perverse thoughts, defiling the conscience, corrupting our motivations, and crippling the will, enslaving it to desires that lead to death – this human condition is aptly described by Scripture as being ‘dead in trespasses and sins.” (Ephesians 2:1).
This inclination and native leaning towards sin became the universal experience of humanity. You can observe it in the way little children tend to follow their natural self-serving impulses, and just like vines that are left untrained, they will grow wherever they lean—so, “To allow a child to follow his natural impulses is to allow him to deteriorate and to become proficient in evil.”3
The perversion of human nature created a continuous opposition to God’s will and ways, and without divine intervention, humanity would have remained in a state of hopeless bondage to sin. “Without the transforming process which can come alone through divine power, the original propensities to sin are left in the heart in all their strength, to forge new chains, to impose a slavery that can never be broken by human power.”4
Scripture captures this enslavement with the words: “Of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.” (2 Peter 2:19).
But was there any good left in humanity at all? What if they were presented with the possibility of choosing good? Would they have chosen it, even after they had sinned? For God, force was out of the question, yet it was impossible for even Him to entice humanity – in its fallen and morally depraved condition – to choose the purity of a redeemed and holy nature. “Man through sin has been severed from the life of God. His soul is palsied through the machinations of Satan, the author of sin. Of himself he is incapable of sensing sin, incapable of appreciating and appropriating the divine nature. Were it brought within his reach there is nothing in it that his natural heart would desire it.”5
In this dire situation, God immediately intervened to save humanity from complete ruin. As soon as Adam and Eve transgressed, He revealed His plan to introduce a divine principle into their hearts, one that would contend against the selfish desires of the heart and the deceitful suggestions of Satan. God declared to the serpent—the devil: “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed.” (Genesis 3:15). This proclamation provided the human race with the hope it so desperately needed.
Ellen White explains, “This enmity is not natural.”6 This is evident in the words of God, “I will put”—this being a divine act, a supernatural act of God to save the human race and not something we inherit through birth. What would have happened had He not done this? “Had not God specially interposed, Satan and man would have entered into an alliance against Heaven; and instead of cherishing enmity against Satan, the whole human family would have been united in opposition to God.”7
God would not let humanity remain in its fallen state without hope. In the Garden of Eden after the fall, He made a declaration to Satan about the seed: “it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:15). The seed that would crush the head of the serpent (Satan) was Christ. The enemy of God was well aware of this, and from the moment of His birth on earth, he sought to destroy Jesus: “and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.” (Revelation 12:4).
Satan’s intense hatred and enmity against Jesus was revealed throughout His life. Demons arrayed against Him in a manner unlike any other time in history. The forces of darkness, fuelled by their hatred of the righteous Son of God, left no means untried to overcome and destroy Him, even via people claiming to be friends of God. But the point I want to emphasise is that the battleground was fought, and the victory won in the human and divine mind of Jesus, the mysterious combination of humanity and divinity where enmity against sin was both natural and supernatural. To mark the point – the human nature of Jesus possessed a natural enmity against sin, and his divine nature possessed a supernatural enmity against it.
Ellen White explains: “The enmity put between the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman was supernatural. With Christ the enmity was in one sense natural; in another sense it was supernatural, as humanity and divinity were combined. And never was the enmity developed to such a marked degree as when Christ became an inhabitant of this earth. Never before had there been a being upon the earth who hated sin with so perfect a hatred as did Christ.”8
So, recognizing the helpless state of fallen humanity without his intervention, God set into action the plan of redemption. As soon as there was sin, the Son of God was revealed as the one suffering the penalty for sin – he was, “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8).
There was hope for humanity only in Christ. “Through the union of the divine with the human nature Christ could enlighten the understanding and infuse His life-giving properties through the soul dead in trespasses and sins.”9
Ellen White captures the essence of this mission: “Fallen man is Satan’s lawful captive. The mission of Jesus Christ was to rescue him from his power. Man is naturally inclined to follow Satan’s suggestions, and he cannot of himself successfully resist so terrible a foe, unless Christ, the mighty conqueror, dwells in him, guiding his desires, and giving him strength. God alone can limit the power of Satan.”10
“He sent His Son into the world, that through His taking the human form and nature, humanity and divinity combined in Him would elevate man in the scale of moral value with God.”11
The atonement of Christ is the central theme of our exploration, and as we move forward, we will delve into the claims of justice, the ransom found in Christ, and the profound effects of His atonement on sinners.