1. Inheritance

In the story of the Prodigal Son, the father divides his inheritance between both sons, one younger and one older. God gives an inheritance to all people! He provides you with physical life, breath in your lungs, and a clear picture of himself through the order of the universe, the beauty of nature, and the diverse creativity of lifeforms throughout the sky, land, and sea.

Through God’s revelation, all people instinctively know there is a supreme intelligence, a creator of this magnificent, complex universe. In his letter to the church in Rome, Paul the Apostle declares, “For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God” (Romans 1:20).

One of God’s most creative gifts given to humanity is free will. In the creation account, God looked at all he made and said, “It was very good” (Genesis 1:31). In the Garden of Eden, God gave Adam rules not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil for, if they ate of it, they would surely die (Genesis 2:17). God did not place a tall fence around the tree or position angels around the prohibited area but rather gave his creation free will to trust and obey God or willingly disobey his request.

God’s gift of free will is given to all people so they can choose to love and honor their Creator or choose to live in disobedience, separated from Him. God could have made people programmed to repeat “I love you” over and over, like robots, but that is not genuine love. Instead, God is seeking people who desire to be part of His family by choice, to walk in obedience to His word, will, and ways because they recognize it is a pathway to true life!

Satan deceived Eve in the garden with a carefully crafted lie, and Adam followed her rebellion. Their disobedience, called sin, resulted in a host of negative emotions, the consequences of sin, and led to both spiritual and physical death. When Adam and Eve ate of the tree, they did not immediately die physically, Adam went on to live over 930 years (Genesis 5:5), but they died spiritually. Their disobedience severed their intimacy with God, their Father, and they were removed from the Garden of Eden. 

This event is known as “The Fall” because from this point forward, all humanity would be under the curse of death, descendants of Adam, inheritors of a sinful nature.

CHAPTER INDEX: Introduction | The Prodigal Story | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Who are you in God’s Story?