Why Did God Allow Adam and Eve to
Sin?

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Question
Why did God allow Adam and Eve to sin?
Answer
We wonder why God would allow Adam and Eve to sin, because he has the power to prevent them, and he's good, and so why not stop the problem that's going to cause all this distress to many people in creation? And it seems that God is wanting to create good, but bring creation to perfection by upholding their freedom all the way through. And so, to get a free creaturely response for us to relate to God and enjoy him and honor him without being controlled, he has to also permit us to misuse that freedom temporarily. So, the long-term plan is to shut down on sin forever, but in the meantime he has to let us do some damage, and including damage to ourselves, knowing that he has the solution for it, where he's going to enter into the system and take the curse upon himself. So, he lets them sin because he wants to support freedom, he wants us to have relationship with him, and it's not something that's going to thwart his purposes of bringing creation from good to perfect and complete and safe with him forever.

Answer by Dr. John McKinley

Dr. John Mckinley is the Associate Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at Talbot School of Theology, Biola Universtity in La Mirada, California and is affiliated with the Evangelical Theological Society.