The Lie of Autonomy
Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44), and his most destructive lie is the lie of autonomy. Autonomy is the combination of auto, which comes from Greek and means self. For example, an automobile is self-moving. The last part of autonomy (nomy) comes from the Greek word nomos, which means law. So autonomy is self-law.
This is what the serpent offered Eve in the Garden of Eden. The serpent asked a simple question to get Eve to doubt God’s word, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” (Genesis 3:1). Satan, through the serpent, takes God’s positive command that they could eat from any tree in the garden except one and flips it to a negative. He asks if God said they can’t eat from any tree in the garden. Eve responds that they can’t eat from only one tree, but she also adds that they can’t touch it. The expansion of God’s command to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is significant, but that is not my focus. I am focused on verses four and five.
But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 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 3:4–5 ESV)
Satan lies when he tells Eve that she and her husband will not die if they violate God’s command. However, he doesn’t leave it at that, he promises them they will be like God. Notice he says, “Your eyes will be opened.” The serpent implies that God is hiding something—he is holding something back from them. What is God keeping from Adam and Eve? The knowledge of good and evil. Why is this important? The one who knows of good and evil is the one who knows right from wrong. The one who knows right from wrong is the one who has authority. God, knowing good and evil, establishes what is right and wrong; therefore, God is autonomous. There is no authority over him. There is no other God. Not only does God determine what is right and wrong, but he also ordains all things that come to pass.
“Remember this and stand firm,
recall it to mind, you transgressors,
remember the former things of old;
for I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me,
declaring the end from the beginning
and from ancient times things not yet done,
saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
and I will accomplish all my purpose,’
calling a bird of prey from the east,
the man of my counsel from a far country.
I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass;
I have purposed, and I will do it.” (Isaiah 46:8–11 ESV)
Autonomy is what the serpent offered Eve. She too could know good and evil. She too could be an authority unto herself. So, when Eve sees the good fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, she is drawn to it even though she has seen the fruit before. When Eve sees the beauty of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, she is drawn to it even though she has seen the beauty of the tree before. Why the attraction now? According to the serpent, this fruit offers something the fruit of the other trees does not offer because “the tree was to be desired to make one wise” (Genesis 3:6). The fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden won’t just provide nourishment (the fruit of any of the other trees can do that). It will grant them autonomy, just like God. Because they will know good and evil, they can determine what is right and wrong for themselves.
Therefore, Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and nothing happened. She did not die as God said she would, and she did not understand good and evil as Satan said she would. However, she offered the fruit to Adam, who was there during the whole episode and said and did nothing. Eve was deceived (1 Timothy 2:14), but Adam ate willingly. It was only after Adam ate the fruit that their eyes were opened, and they were ashamed of their nakedness. Adam boldly took the fruit and ate with the hope he would now know good and evil like God, thus attaining autonomy. However, the promise of autonomy proved to be empty. Adam and Eve now knew evil because they were evil. Their sense of shame showed they understood their guilt before God. This was demonstrated in their hiding from God and their attempt to cover their nakedness.
Because Adam was our representative, his guilt and corruption were passed to all his progeny. Since the sin of Adam, mankind has sought to be free from God. This is revealed in the rampant idolatry of humanity. The lie of autonomy says we can be our own gods, so we create gods that look and think like we do. The areas of the globe most impacted by Christianity no longer create idols out of wood or stone, but we create idols nonetheless. Our gods are here to serve us and encourage us to be all we can be.
Adam did not achieve autonomy for mankind, but slavery—slavery to sin that results in death (Romans 6:15–23). Adam and Eve denied the reality that they were dependent, created beings, and dependent, created beings can never have true autonomy. Unfortunately, the lie that we are autonomous has been believed ever since Adam ate the fruit and is believed today. Believing this lie is revealed in a multitude of ways. In our day, men claim they can be women, and women claim they can be men. How we think and feel trumps the reality established by God. This has been true since Adam sinned and will continue until Jesus returns.
Remember, even Jesus, as the God-man, did not live autonomously. He lived in full submission to the Father. Jesus said of himself, “The Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing” (John 5:19). He lived perfectly obedient to the Father, died on the cross in obedience to the Father, and rose again in victory. In him, we can now be free from the lie of autonomy. Jesus said in John 8:36, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” Let’s abandon the lie of autonomy and submit ourselves to the Lord Jesus Christ. It is only then we will have true freedom.
Photo by Pixabay: https://www.pexels.com/photo/red-apple-fruits-221076/