Biblically, Could Death Have Existed before Sin? (Satan, the Fall, and a Look at Good and Evil) by Bodie Hodge. A big picture of sin and death and how they are related in the Bible.
Introduction
Death and sin—these are two things today’s society seems to want to avoid in a conversation! In today’s secular society, kids have been taught for generations that death goes back for millions of years. But there is a huge contrast when you open the pages of Scripture beginning in Genesis.
The Bible is the authority on the past (as well as the authority on scientific and theological aspects), and it is logical that the Bible should be the authority on the issue of death and its relationship with sin. Getting a big picture of sin and death and how they are related in the Bible can make us better witnesses to today’s culture.
Everything Was Originally Perfect
Genesis 1:31 – God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.
Deuteronomy 32:4 – He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.
When God finished creating at the end of Day 6, He declared everything “very good”—it was perfect. God’s work of creation is perfect. We expect nothing less of a perfect God.
What was this “perfect” or “very good” creation like? Were animals dying? Was man dying? Let’s look closer at what the Bible teaches. Continue reading