God changed my nature when I was born again. That's when I chose Him.
A Case for Not Reading The Bible Literally
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It seems to follow that the serpent would not have bothered with Adam if he were an insignificant underling subject to his dominion. In Rev 19:10 and Rev 22:9, an angel reveals that he is a fellow servant to John, and his brothers, and those who "hold to the testimony of Jesus" and "keep the words of this book," respectively, as Jesus is Him who restored the relationship of man to God as Father. That is, the Son of Man atoned for the sins of mankind in order for the revelation of their adoption as sons of God, the estate in which Adam was created to inherit. Jesus said, "I lay down my life for the sheep (Jn 10:15)." Sheep are stupid, all have gone astray (Is 53:6). And He said, "No one takes it from Me... I have authority to lay it down and take it up again. This charge I have received from My Father (Jn 17-18)."
It isn't illogical to assume that the first Adam was given this very same authority and death for all mankind might've been avoided had he given his life for Eve, and then took it up again, if had he obeyed and not eaten of the fruit of the tree.
but anyway, if you can judge "a fellow servant" like me, well, then...
I agree with part of what you're saying.
The serpent's focus on Adam and Eve certainly suggests humanity held a significant position in God's creation.
Genesis doesn't portray Adam as some insignificant underling.
He was made in God's image and given dominion over the earth.
Where I would slow down is with the idea that Adam possessed the same authority Jesus later exercised.
Jesus says: "I lay down my life... I have power to take it again" (John 10:17-18).
What makes that statement so remarkable is that Scripture never says that about anyone else.
It is presented as a unique authority given to the Son by the Father.
So while I can see the logic of asking, "What if Adam had chosen differently?"
I'm not sure we have biblical grounds to conclude that Adam could have laid down his life for Eve and then taken it up again.
What I do think is interesting is that Adam's failure and Christ's obedience are constantly set side by side in Scripture.
The first Adam failed his bride.
The last Adam gave Himself for His bride.
Paul seems to draw us in that direction repeatedly.
And as for being a "fellow servant," brother, that's exactly how I view these discussions.
We're not sitting in judgment over one another.
We're fellow servants trying to understand God's Word.
Sometimes one of us sees something the other hasn't considered.
That's how iron sharpens iron.
ZuluKono:
I am not in the changing minds business. I would be terrible at it. I believe the 2 creation stories in Genesis are just that...stories intended to answer unanswerable questions about how everything came together in ancient Canaan/Israel and they tracked the evolution of God from EL, Elohim, El Elyon, El Roi, El Olam, El Shaddai, Adonai and eventually Yahweh. This tracks the experiences of the more ancient civilizations from the older Sumerian to the later Akkadian dynasties where the older names of gods from Sumeria were renamed and reduced in number by the Akkadian empire both of which preceded Israel by over 1,000 years. Thus, as various Canaanite religions evolved into the Hebrew religion we know, so did names for the Canaanite/Hebrew God.
However, there are potential semantical issues in your statement. First, what the writer of the last gospel wrote from his perspective near the end of the 1st century dealing only with the Christian perspective of Jesus, should not be taken as eternal truth as the Hebrew Bible has a deeper, wider and more nuanced perspective of what obedience to the will of God included.
"If it's a literal tree whose fruit will sustain life in perpetuity, then there's more than one way to attain eternal life."
There no indication that Adam and Eve were not created eternal beings. Thus the "tree of life" sustained (not attained) eternal life.
In another case for not reading the bible literally, let's look at Revelation 7. There will only be 144,000 people in heaven and they will come exclusively from the 12 tribes of Israel. In Revelation 14 it even describes those going to heaven as male virgins. There will be no married people, no gentiles, and no women.
When we chose to read scripture only literally we eliminate poetry, imagery, metaphors, similes, symbolism, visions and thus reality.
When we chose to read scripture only literally we eliminate poetry, imagery, metaphors, similes, symbolism, visions and thus reality.