Some more on 3:1-5

The cunning nature of the devil, revealed in this passage, should be a strong warning to us that many subtle attempts will be made to undermine our faith in God's word. It is interesting that in this passage the main attack is not on the existence of God but on his character. One of the enemy's most evident strategies is to distort people's beliefs about God. God has revealed much about himself throughout the centuries and by studying the bible we can come to know what he is like. By neglecting the Old Testament we can easily miss out on this wealth of revelation. Our tendency becomes to create God in our image and we become susceptible to believing, with Eve, that God is withholding good things from us. The tree in the middle of the garden is rich with modern day equivalents - it's an illusive mirage that appears to be offering something better and richer than life with God when really behind its sugary coating is death, disease and pain. The pretense of wealth, the short term thrill of adultery, the quick fix of cocaine or the shortcut in business are all equally as appealing until the mess and pain that follows becomes evident. If only we can rediscover who God is and trust completely in His promises then we will be guarding ourselves from the mistake Eve made and consequences that followed.

It is also important to note that Eve misquotes God's command. God has said that they could eat 'freely' from 'every' tree in the garden. Eve omits the words 'freely' and 'Every' and is drawn, by Satan, to focus on the what she cannot have. Even though God in all His goodness had given them everything in the garden to enjoy, sadly Eve had been enticed by the only restriction. So often we take for granted what we have and allow our eyes to be drawn towards what we do not have and our desires to be aroused for those things which are forbidden. Don't forget - forbidden only because they have undesirable consequences.

A final thought - Satan's use of a serpent seems to reflect his preference to use things that form part of everyday world/environment to be the voice of temptation. So watch out, it might be very subtle!