The Fall by Mayada Naami

“Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. For Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. Yet she will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control.”

(1 Timothy 2:11-15, ESV).

We live in a world full of lies and deceit. Our sinful human nature makes it too easy to succumb to the lies of the enemy. Eve, in the garden of Eden, was the first person to fall prey to the lies, and unfortunately Adam did not do his part in protecting his woman. He was not strong, watchful or stand firm in the faith. He did not act like the man God created him to be. Adam’s role was to provide, protect and lead. He allowed Eve to take control of the situation. We find this to be very common in today’s relationships.

“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong” (1 Corinthians 16:13, NIV).

Both men and women have difficulty understanding their role. It takes commitment and surrender to God’s order to come to a place of true understanding. The godly man understands and sees the woman as a weaker vessel to honor, respect and cherish. The word “weaker” can cause great offense in our modern world. As Christians, we understand the dynamics at work which are totally at odds with worldly viewpoints. It simply means the man has the greater responsibility to set the tone for the relationship and to put her first before all but God. The woman will respond positively to a man that protects her from any imminent danger. The harmonious relationship that God created between the first man and woman was broken by sin. If Adam would have protected Eve and forbid her from eating the apple, as God had directly commanded him, we would not be living in a fallen world. According to Romans 5, verse 12-14, it was Adam who bore the primary responsibility to obey, and it was his disobedience that brought sin and death into the world.

My prayer today is for all men and women to submit their will to God, live in harmony and be obedient to God, the Father.

“Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned–To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come” (Romans 5:12-14, NIV).