For starters, Eve did not even have a name at the time that she ate from the tree. Up until the end of that particular chapter, she was simply called woman. Ever heard the story of Adam and woman?
It is commonly joked about and often assumed that all of this was woman’s fault. She was the one tricked by the serpent. She ate the fruit first, and then she was the one that gave it to Adam. “The man said, ‘The woman you put here with me – she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.’” (Genesis 3:12 NIV)
It is only fair that we blame woman for our fall from God’s grace, right? After all, Adam blamed it on her,didn't he? I actually don’t think he did. Go back and read Genesis 3:12 again. Go ahead, I'll wait...
Notice anything different that time? The first thing Adam says is, “The woman you put here with me.” To me, it sounds like Adam is blaming God for this. If God had not put woman there, this would have never happened.
Does that sound like anybody you know? Does that sound like…you? That’s an easy trap to fall into. God created everything, and He is all powerful, so if something happens He caused it. Well, not necessarily.
God gave us this little gift called free will, and it is not all of the fun it is made out to be. If your boss in an unusually bad mood and yells at you for no reason, that is their decision, not God’s. If somebody you know is killed in a car accident with a drunk driver, it was caused by the driver that decided to drink and get behind the wheel, not God. If somebody you know is diagnosed with cancer, that is caused by thousands of years of mutated diseases continually bred by humans, not God.
God loves us, and He truly wants us to do great things and find great happiness in Him. However, He will not force it on us. If that was the case, He would not have created those “forbidden” trees in the first place. He would have only given Adam and woman holy dining options, and He might have banished that serpent from Eden all together.
So the next time you start to blame God for a situation, step back and take a second look. Does that sound like something God would do? Is that in line with the character of God you understand from scripture and your experience with Him?
Far too often, we assume God is causing all of these bad things to happen all around us. We look for answers as to why He would be doing these things. But most of the time, He is sitting there right beside you, with His arms wrapped around you, wishing this had never happened.