It is time we took matters into our own hands so let us eat this delectable fruit and really live. Sin enters the world through subtlety and deception. Another factor that leads to temptation and sin is the very situation of man s limited dominion. Man s highest authority is over the wild creatures, the serpent of course included, and this unfortunately leads him to feel he ought to have more. Thus does the serpent, representing a part of creation man rightly rules, become a source of temptation to want to rule over more and thus pridefully assume God s place and authority.
Pride goes before destruction, and pride assists in mankind s fall.
Now let us seek to summarize the cause of sin. The cause does not lie in a perverse desire to break God s commandments, but rather it is caused by deception, the deception that sin somehow is rewarding and that God, who does not want us to sin, is depriving us of life and freedom. So does the serpent whisper in one s ear, and to the degree that we fall for it, we fall farther away from God, farther away from true life. This brings us to our final consideration. They still seem to be scurrying around.