CG 475
As related to the first Adam, men receive from him nothing but guilt and the sentence of death.
HS 138, 139
Selfishness is inwrought in our very being. It has come to us as an inheritance…
CG 475
The inheritance of children is that of sin.
4T 384
Under the general heading of selfishness [comes] every other sin.
Psalm 51:10
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Romans 8:7
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.
Mathew 23:27
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.
Gen 2:8
The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed.
PP 51
On every leaf of the forest or stone of the mountains, in every shining star, in earth and air and sky, God’s name was written. The order and harmony of creation spoke to them of infinite wisdom and power. They were ever discovering some attraction that filled their hearts with deeper love and called forth fresh expressions of gratitude.
Genesis 2:9
And out of the ground the LORD God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
PP 47
In the midst of the garden stood the tree of life, surpassing in glory all other trees. Its fruit appeared like apples of gold and silver, and had the power to perpetuate life.
RH Jan. 26, 1897
As God’s servants strive to fight against the enemy of God, Christ must be to each one of them a personal Saviour. Each one must experience his pardoning grace. The tree of life is a representation of the preserving care of Christ for his children. As Adam and Eve ate of this tree, they acknowledged their dependence upon God. The tree of life possessed the power to perpetuate life, and as long as they ate of it, they could not die. The lives of the antediluvians were protracted because of the life-giving power of this tree, which was transmitted to them from Adam and Eve.
TMK 14
The forbidden tree was as attractive and lovely as any of the trees in the Garden. It was called the tree of knowledge, because in partaking of that tree, of which God had said, “Thou shalt not eat of it,” (Gen. 2:17) they would have a knowledge of sin, an experience in disobedience.
PP 49
God might have created man without the power to transgress His law; He might have withheld the hand of Adam from touching the forbidden fruit; but in that case man would have been, not a free moral agent, but a mere automaton. Without freedom of choice, his obedience would not have been voluntary, but forced. There could have been no development of character. Such a course would have been contrary to God’s plan in dealing with the inhabitants of other worlds. It would have been unworthy of man as an intelligent being, and would have sustained Satan’s charge of God’s arbitrary rule.
PP 48, 49
At the very beginning of man’s existence a check was placed upon the desire for self-indulgence, the fatal passion that lay at the foundation of Satan’s fall. The tree of knowledge, which stood near the tree of life in the midst of the garden, was to be a test of the obedience, faith, and love of our parents. (cf. Three steps that bring about the fall.)
LHU 20
When Adam and Eve were placed in the beautiful garden they had everything for their happiness, which they could desire. But God chose, in His all-wise arrangements, to test their loyalty before they could be rendered eternally secure. They were to have His favor, and He was to converse with them and they with Him. Yet He did not place evil out of their reach. Satan was permitted to tempt them. If they endured the trial they were to be in perpetual favor with God and the heavenly angels…
OHC 343
As the tree of knowledge was placed in the midst of the Garden of Eden, so the Sabbath command is placed in the midst of the Decalogue. In regard to the fruit of the tree of knowledge, the restriction was made, “Ye shall not eat of it, … lest ye die.” Gen. 3:3. Of the Sabbath God said, ye shall not defile it, but keep it holy. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Ex. 20:8. As the tree of knowledge was the test of Adam’s obedience, so the fourth command is the test that God has given to prove the loyalty of all His people.
AU Gleaner Dec 14, 1904
The Lord created every tree in Eden, pleasant to the eyes and good for food, and he bade Adam and Eve freely enjoy his bounties. But he made one exception. Of the tree of knowledge of good and evil they were not to eat. This tree God reserved as a constant reminder of his ownership of all. Thus he gave them an opportunity to demonstrate their faith and trust in him and their perfect obedience to his requirements. So it is with God’s claims upon us. He places his treasures in the hand of humanity, but requires that one-tenth shall be faithfully laid aside for his work. He teaches us the lesson that he requires this portion to be placed in his treasury. It is to be rendered to Him as His own; it is sacred, and is to be used for sacred purposes, for the support of those who carry the message of salvation to all parts of the world. He reserves this portion, that means may be flowing into his treasure-house, and that the light of truth may be carried to those who are nigh and those afar off. By faithfully obeying this requirement, we prove that we realize that all belongs to God.
RH May16, 1882
God has sanctified the seventh day. That specified portion of time, set apart by God himself for religious worship, continues as sacred to-day as when first hallowed by our Creator. In like manner a tithe of our income is “holy unto the Lord.” The New Testament does not re-enact the law of the tithe, as it does not that of the Sabbath; for the validity of both is assumed, and their deep spiritual import explained.
God has made an absolute reservation of a specified portion of our time and our means. To ignore these claims is to rob God…
While we as a people are seeking faithfully to give to God the time, which he has reserved as his own, shall we not also render to him that portion of our means, which he claims?
Ed 15
Through sin the divine likeness was marred, and well-nigh obliterated.
CC 11
He [Adam] was more than twice as tall as men now living upon the earth, and was well proportioned. His features were perfect and beautiful. … Eve was not quite as tall as Adam. Her head reached a little above his shoulders. She, too, was noble, perfect in symmetry, and very beautiful.
Psalm 104:2
Who cover Yourself with light as with a garment, Who stretch out the heavens like a curtain.
PP 45
The sinless pair wore no artificial garments; they were clothed with a covering of light and glory, such as the angels wear. So long as they lived in obedience to God, this robe of light continued to enshroud them.
3T 138
God endowed man with so great vital force that he has withstood the accumulation of disease brought upon the race in consequence of perverted habits, and has continued for six thousand years. This fact of itself is enough to evidence to us the strength and electrical energy that God gave to man at his creation… If Adam, at his creation, had not been endowed with twenty times as much vital force as men now have, the race, with their present habits of living in violation of natural law, would have become extinct.
4aSG 155
There are many inventions and improvements, and labor-saving machines now that the ancients did not have. They did not need them… In strength of intellect, men who now live can bear no comparison to the ancients. There has been more ancient arts lost that the present generation now possesses.
Rev 12:9
So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
PP 53
In order to accomplish his work unperceived, Satan chose to employ as his medium the serpent–a disguise well adapted for his purpose of deception. The serpent was then one of the wisest and most beautiful creatures on the earth. It had wings, and while flying through the air presented an appearance of dazzling brightness, having the color and brilliancy of burnished gold. Resting in the rich-laden branches of the forbidden tree and regaling itself with the delicious fruit, it was an object to arrest the attention and delight the eye of the beholder. Thus in the garden of peace lurked the destroyer, watching for his prey.