This life can be complicated and at times a bit confusing. Most of us would like to do away with a lot of the difficult areas in life that we cope with. We could even appreciate a little help with the nagging frustrations and unresolved issues of life that contrast what we believe to be true and right.
Why do we live as though we are trapped and held captive by ill attitudes and our various problem causing behaviors? Good News! Scripture identifies the major cause of our struggles as “the sin that so easily entangles us,” (a) [See endnotes for Scriptures] and sheds light on its solution.
God’s Creative Intention
When the Eternal One decided to father children, He designed and created the vast natural universe to function as a temporary environment for birthing and growing offspring. God even identified His intention and goal for our lives; we are created to be and mature into His “image and likeness.” (b)
The Hebrew words that “image and likeness” come from can easily be translated as “reflection and resemblance.” While we are all created to reflect and resemble Him, everyone needs to develop into “His reflective image” and mature so we properly “resemble His likeness” as offspring. To assist our maturing development, the natural environment provides an array of variables and time cycles.
God’s creative intention for our life includes a blend of natural and spiritual realities. (c) Human life began in the pristine environment of the Garden of Eden where God instructed them “to cultivate and keep it.” (d) To “keep” means to maintain, while “cultivating” means to work and make it fruitful.
The ideal environment included natural activity and personal interaction with the Eternal One, who came to them “in the cool of the day.” (e) Maturity comes in the nurture and maintenance of natural life and our interaction with God. Our maturing process involves both natural and spiritual activity.
Of all the variables that were available, only one caution was given: “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; 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.” (f)
The words “good and evil” come from Hebrew words that are easily translated as “productive and destructive.” The natural universe is designed to function with contrasting variables like light and dark, in and out, come and go, and growth and decay, as well as productive and destructive activity.
The Hebrew and Greek words translated in our Bible as ‘sin’ actually means ‘to miss’. Sin is the activity of missing a desired target or falling short of an intended goal. The first sin of ignoring God’s insightful guidance brought harm to their intimate relationship with Him and caused them to begin missing their intended purpose in life, maturing into reflective resemblances of God.
God’s creative intention for our life includes a blend of natural and spiritual realities.
Responding to God’s Lead
As Adam and Eve choose to ignore God and focus on gaining wisdom from nature’s “knowledge of good and evil,” (g) it confused their focus. This first sin was the action of ignoring their interaction with God. All future sin was rooted in the first, which caused them to begin missing their created goal.
The Hebrew text in the above verse actually says: “For in the time that you partake from it you will surely be dying.” The caution was not a one-time result like an immediate or eventual death. The dying was and still is the fading consequences of being out of interactive communication with God.
The original sin clouded their 
perception of God and produced a deathly sense of separation. The result brought deterioration to the quality of their spiritual life. They even tried to hide from God in nature. (h) The separation complicated their ability to properly respond to His guidance.
This act of separation not only affected Adam and Eve, it became the reason why their children lived as estranged and wandering offspring. (i) This is why our perceptions of God and His goal for us as children reflecting and resembling Him tend to fall short of our maturing purpose.
When we ignore God’s input, we tend to miss our created purpose. This keeps us relying on the wisdom that is gained from nature’s productive (good) and destructive (evil) experiences. (j) This deteriorating focus keeps us entrapped in the web of good and evil perceptions and activity.
Sinful actions are side effects of the original sin. Jesus spoke of people who live in separation from God’s guidance – relying on natural wisdom over spiritual wisdom as “the living dead.” (k) Many are alive today but without God’s guiding input they function as sleepy, spiritually inactive people.
We are designed to live this life as natural people who are led by the spirit. (l) Before ignoring God, life was described as a Garden like existence; unashamed, blameless, and no need to hide. When they turned from God’s guidance they became less spiritually minded. Natural life is not sinful if we are responding to God’s lead. We make mistakes because we fail to receive His guidance.
When we choose to focus only on natural life, the quality of our life is short-changed and we tend to miss our created goal as offspring, even as responsive children. Since everyone occasionally misses our created purpose, we are recipients of God’s restoring grace. (m) As we realize why we continue to miss and fall short, our ongoing experience in this life can really improve.
When we ignore God’s input, we tend to miss our created purpose.
Repentance for Redemption
The original sin in the Garden was followed by a lack of repentance. As Adam and Eve made excuses and blamed each other, it kept them entangled in their new independence. (n) So, our first parents were removed from the Garden (o) to experience the separation they chose.
Entrance into the Garden of God is watched over by an angel with a flaming sword. This guards our entrance to the Tree of Life which represents the spiritual nutrient we all need. Why a flaming sword? This visual illustrates the redeeming action of repentance. As we repent, the sword of the Lord cuts away our entanglement to error and the flame consumes the harmful side effects. (p)
Lacking a repentant attitude is what keeps us captivated by our destructive thoughts, attitudes, and actions. Our repentant attitude allows the angel of the Lord to begin cutting and cleansing us from our sinful entanglements and allows us to enter the Garden of God’s presence.
Remember, it is our fellowship with God and our acceptance of His guidance that is able to “save your souls” (q) from living as dead people. Repentance enables us to re-enter God’s fellowship, eat of the Tree of Life, and learn to be better people. This should stir a desire in all of us to be more repentant people, so we can be restored into the intimate fellowship of God’s guiding influence.
Our intended way of life in this natural world includes an interactive relationship with our Father. His love for us as wandering offspring and as maturing children is unlimited and unfailing. (r) Our real example is the anointed Jesus, whose life and words became our only mediator with God. (s)
Responding to God as our insightful Father transforms us from being loved “offspring” into the intimacy of beloved “children.” (t) In this life, our soul’s conscious awareness of spiritual realities remains subject to our choice. While at times we all fall short of the goal, we can learn to be and do better. There’s no reason to remain weighed down by unhealthy worldly attitudes and patterns.
Our repentant fellowship with God’s presence helps release us from the sin that so easily entangles us. We can overcome the frustrations, confusions, and complications of this natural life. Let us learn to be better reflective resemblances of God’s love. This is truly a win-win choice!
Repentance enables us to re-enter God’s fellowship, eat of the Tree of Life, and learn to be better people.
a) Hebrews 12:1; b) Genesis 1:26; c) Genesis 2:7; d) Genesis 2:5, 15; e) Genesis 3:8; f) Genesis 2:16-17; g) James 3:15-17; h) Genesis 3:8; i) Acts 17:22-29; Luke 15:11-32; j) Genesis 3:6; I John 3:15-17; k) Matthew 8:22; Luke 9:60; l) Genesis 2:5, 15; m) Ephesians 2:5, 8; Titus 3:5; n) Genesis 3:8-13; o) Genesis 3:23-24; p) 2 Corinthians 7:10; Hebrews 12:29; q) James 1:21; Ephesians 2:5-8; r) Romans 8:35-39; s) 1 Timothy 2:5; t) John 1:11-12
Keith Carroll, “The Relationship Guy”
Relational Gospel Founder
When We Arise And Shine author