The Knowledge of Good and Evil

The Knowledge of Good and Evil

Gen 2:17

Genesis 2:9,16-17—Out of the ground the Lord God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

How did evil start?

What are good and evil?

What is God’s purpose for evil?

What is our responsibility?

…

16 The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely;

Here we see that God had given man access to all that was good. The garden was full of food that was attractive to look at and good to eat. There was only one rule…

17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.

The story is told of the vagrant who knocked at the farmer’s door and politely inquired about employment as a handyman. The farmer cautiously put the man to work on a trial basis to measure his skill. His first task was to split logs for firewood, which the stranger finished in record time. The next task was to plow the fields, which was done in just a few hours. The farmer was pleasantly astonished; it seemed he had stumbled on a modern-day Hercules. The third task was less laborious. Taking the hired man to the barn, the farmer pointed to a large pile of potatoes and instructed him to sort them into two piles: those that were of prime quality were to be put in one receptacle and those of inferior grade in another. The farmer was curious when his miracle-working laborer failed to report in as rapidly as he had with the other tasks. After several hours the farmer went to the barn to investigate. No perceptible change was evident in the pile of potatoes. One receptacle contained three potatoes and the other had only two. “What’s wrong?” demanded the farmer. “Why are you moving so slowly?” A look of defeat was written on the hired man’s face as he threw up his hands and replied, “It’s the decisions in life that are difficult.” [1]

Decisions  of good and evil, right and wrong, enter into every aspect of our lives

John warned believers about three temptations: “the lust for physical pleasure, the lust for everything we see, and pride in our possessions” (1 John 2:16)… Satan subjected Eve to all three:

•     Eve saw that the fruit looked delicious (lust for physical pleasure);

•     that it “looked so fresh” (lust for everything we see);

•     and that it “would make her so wise” (pride).

Why does what seems so good cause so much trouble

With God there is a definite and absolute black and white. The problem for us is to discover which things belong where

Let’s look at “Good and Evil”…

GOOD.

approval, either for inherent value, or for beneficent effect, or both. – A favorable characteristic

Biblical Concept

a.     God is good: for he is morally perfect, and gloriously generous.

what God is (‘he is good’, Ps. 100:5, et al.),

what he does,

creates,

commands

gives,

approves in the lives of his creatures.

b. The works of God are good: for they reveal his attributes of wisdom and power (see Psalm 104:24-31

When creation was done, ‘God saw every thing that he had made, and behold, it was very good’ (Gn. 1:31)

c. The gifts of God are good: for they express his generosity, and make for the welfare of their recipients.

. The Christian should regard every circumstance, however ungratifying, as among God’s good gifts to him, the expression of a beneficent purpose and, if rightly used, a sure means to his lasting profit. (Rom. 8:28)

d. The commands of God are good: for they express the moral perfection of his character and, by showing us how to please him, mark out for us the path of blessing (Rom. 7:12).

The moral ideal in the Bible is to do the will of God, as revealed in his law. In a lawless and unloving world, Christians must resist the temptation to do as they are done by, and in face of evil must seek out and hold fast in their conduct that ‘good’ which the law prescribes  (Rom.12:2)

e. Obedience to God’s commands is good: for God approves and accepts it (1 Tim. 2:3), and those who yield it profit by it (Tit. 3:8).

Good works are good from three standpoints:

 (i) in accordance with a right standard (the biblical law: 2 Tim. 3:16f.)

(ii) from a right motive (love and gratitude for redemption: 1 Thes. 1:3)

(iii) with a right aim (God’s glory: 1 Cor. 10:31)

EVIL

Bad principles of right and wrong

Evil has a broader meaning than *sin. The Heb. word comes from a root meaning ‘to spoil’, ‘to break in pieces’: being broken and so made worthless. It is essentially what is unpleasant, disagreeable, offensive. The word binds together the evil deed and its consequences. In the NT It is used in both physical and moral senses. While these aspects are different, there is frequently a close relationship between them.

 I. Physical evil

The prophets regarded God as the ultimate Cause of evil, as expressed in pain, suffering or disaster. In his sovereignty he tolerates evil in the universe, though he overrules and uses it in his administration of the world. It is used to punish individual and national wickedness (Is. 45:7; La. 3:38; Am. 3:6).

II. Moral evil

God is separate from all evil and is in no way responsible for it. Moral evil arises from man’s sinful inclinations (Jas. 1:13–15).

Genesis 3:22—Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”—

Adam and Eve had to decide whether God or Satan was lying. They decided that God was. “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” (Heb 11:6) Thus their names are missing from the Honor Roll of Faith in Hebrews 11.[2]

Isn’t it interesting that the first sinners learned about evil by doing evil.

The apostle declares that “none is righteous, no, not one; . . . no one does good, not even one” (Romans 3:11-12). Here the apostle echoes the radical statement with which Jesus replied to the question of the rich young ruler: “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone” (Mark 10:18). At face value, the Bible seems to teach that no one ever does a good thing in this world. This is a grim evaluation of the conduct of fallible human beings.

Since we are not “good” are we then relieved of responsibility to do good?_______________

In Ephesians 5:1-3, we are given an imperative to be followers of God:

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But fornication and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is fitting among saints.

Christ’s statement about love is our norm: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” (John 14:15). Does that mean following his commandments results in love? Hardly! The new testament if full of Jesus condemning the Pharisees for their “good works” without love. The truth is: the proof of our love is obedience to Christ’s commandments.

MacArthur, J. (1995). Alone with God

The entire course of events and circumstances is ordained by God, and that includes allowing the cause of all life’s tragedies—sin. To see God as ultimately sovereign, we must agree that He meant for sin to happen. He planned for it—it could not have caught Him by surprise and spoiled His original program. Thus evil and all its consequences were included in God’s eternal decree before the foundation of the world.

Yet we cannot consider God as the author or originator of sin. The Apostle John says, “God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5; cf. James 1:13). God did not authorize sin; neither does He condone or approve of it. He could never be the cause or agent of sin. He only permits evil agents to do their deeds, then overrules the evil for His own wise and holy ends. Certainly it is not God’s will that people die, so He sent Christ to earth to destroy death. It is not His will that people go to hell, so He sent His Son to take the penalty of sin on Himself that men might escape hell. The Apostle Peter says, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). That sin exists on earth and causes such horrible consequences is not evidence of God’s desire to see sin abound, but of His patience in allowing more opportunity for people to turn to Him for salvation. Thus we can determine that God’s purposes in permitting evil are always good.

Insert discussion on Genesis account of evil to Joseph bringing good.

Read Gen 50:20

Discuss the evil surrounding Christ’s crucifixion and the ultimate good that resulted

Commentary on Romans 7:9-25 and Paul’s struggles with evil.

[3]

Repeat  Paul’s statement in Romans that all things work for good…

Romans 8:28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

GOOD is what is acceptable to God

EVIL is what is un-acceptable or offensive to God

Evil, then starts when we see what looks good and use it in ways unacceptable to God.

OUR RESPONSIBILITY IS TO DO GOOD.

With a right standard— Biblical law - 2Timothy 2:16

From a right motive — Love and gratitude for redemption - 1 Thessalonians 1:3

With a right aim — God’s glory - 1 Corinthians 10:31; Matthew 5:16

Interesting contrast…

Man in his innocence, before sin was called to do God’s good work:

Genesis 2:15—Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.

After their sin, they were expelled from the garden and could no long care for it.

We on the other hand in our natural state can do no “good works” acceptable to God. However after receiving the perfection we are given through Christ’s finished work, we can then do good works acceptable to God.

Let me close with the words of Joshua (24:15) “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

*Let’s Pray