The Basis for True Knowledge
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, according to John 1:1. These two Beings existed eternally, before anything else. So it makes sense that they know more than anyone else. In Greek they are called Logos and Theos.
Logos became Jesus Christ in the flesh, according to John 1:14. He came to show mankind the way to the Father. Previously, in ancient Israel and before that, people had encountered God in various ways and places. He is most often called the Lord in English translations of the Old Testament, and this Lord was at least most of the time the Logos.
In the God Family are these two spirit God Beings — Logos and Theos. They created the physical universe (Genesis 1:1), but even before that they created other spirit beings. These we call angels, and some are seraphim, some are cherubim.
Then one of the archangels, called Heylel, decided that he was better than everyone else, and rebelled against God, starting a war in Heaven. We can read about that in Isaiah 14, where Heylel is often translated into the Latin name Lucifer. After he rebelled, he came known as Satan the Devil.
That rebellion caused much destruction, as war usually does. The Earth became in a chaotic condition and flooded. This is what we read about in Genesis 1:2, where the Hebrew words tohu and bohu are used, indicating that the Earth was not in a perfect condition.
God creates things that are perfect. When He created the Universe and the Earth, they were perfect. That great spiritual war that Satan started, with one third of the angels taking his side, caused the bad conditions on the Earth that we read about from Genesis 1:2 onwards.
The rest of chapter 1 describes how God renewed the face of the Earth, and allowed the Sun to shine down on the dry land that appeared after God removed some of the water. That water most likely went underground, held in reserve for the next flood, which came in the days of Noah.
In that recreation week, on the sixth day, God created the first human, out of the dust of the Earth. It was probably clay that He used, of a reddish colour, and He called the man Adam, which is also the Hebrew word for red.
God then rested on the seventh day, thus showing the Sabbath, which is at the end of the weekly cycle. In our modern world, the Sabbath corresponds to Friday evening to Saturday evening.
The following week God continues with the things He wants to accomplish, and decides to perform surgery on Adam. He uses anaesthetic first to put him to sleep, then opens up his side, and removes a rib. He then sealed the wound, and from that rib made a clone of Adam, but altered the DNA to make it a female version of Adam — the perfect companion and physically different but entirely compatible.
If we move on in the story, we see that Adam and is wife, called Eve, are living in the Garden of Eden. No doubt God was teaching them, and these first humans were also the first priests of God. They were told clearly that they could eat any fruit, except the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
But surely we are in favour of knowledge? Why did God say not to eat that tree’s fruit? Look at what happened next in Genesis 3:1–6 (ESV):
“Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God actually say, “You shall not eat of any tree in the garden”?’ And the woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, “You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.” ’ But the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.”
Adam and Eve had been told not to eat that fruit. Then Satan, taking the form of a serpent, spoke to Eve, and tricked her into thinking that she had an immortal soul (which people do not actually have). He told her that she would not die from eating this fruit, and that by eating it she would be wiser than God.
How often do people want to have superior knowledge and be better than others? So when someone offers them secret hidden knowledge, people want it, even if there is a big price to pay. God was already giving Adam and Eve the knowledge they needed, but Satan offered them extra knowledge that they were not ready for.
Eve gave in to the temptation, as did Adam, and they took to themselves the right to determine what is right and what is wrong. Even today, mankind wants to decide what is right and wrong, although those things keep changing. At one time people knew it was a sin to commit adultery, but now society loves adultery and promotes it as if there is nothing wrong with that.
God should be the source of our knowledge, wisdom, and understanding. Look at Proverbs 1:7 (ESV):
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
In our Christian journey we should be seeking truth, true knowledge, wisdom, and instruction from God. The starting place for that is the Holy Bible, and that should be our guide to growing spiritually. Look at 2 Peter 3:18 (ESV):
“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.”