For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.
Genesis 3:5
Ironically, Satan lured Eve into sin by promising her that she would be like God. He suggested she lacked some quality of God’s and was worse off for that deficiency. This suggestion is ironic because God created her and Adam in His image. Furthermore, He called His creation very good (Gen 1:26, 31).
It is also sad because the consequence of believing the lie was the loss of the very quality of God we need the most: holiness. And God calls us daily to strive to regain that quality (1 Peter 1:13-16).
The loss of personal holiness is the root of all our sorrow and suffering. We desperately need to regain it. Unfortunately, Satan has also convinced many that holiness is a bad quality, something judgmental and boring. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is the key to life, joy, contentment, and eternal happiness.
But it is hard and even impossible to attain. But we have this hope. It is God’s purpose that we be holy (Eph 1:4), and the work of Jesus in the believer’s life is to make him holy. He will finish that work! Only trust Him (Phil 1:6).
