Read Genesis 3
Thomas Edison filed a United States patent for the electric lightbulb, a groundbreaking discovery that made many lives exponentially easier, and many days more long-lasting. Many like him are credited with some of the world’s greatest inventions, making life much simpler, faster, less painful and more appealing to human life.
In short, the reason these things occur is because Adam’s sin in Genesis 3 resulted in the Lord’s cursing the ground. This curse brought on the following consequences, creating man’s reasons for inventing.
The “Multiplier” Curse:
“Unto the woman He said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children; and thy desire shalt be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.”
— Genesis 3:16
The “Landlock” Curse:
“And unto Adam He said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree which I commanded thee saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat of the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy brow shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”
— Genesis 3:17-19
Imagine:
Everyone is dying. Now, this minute. You, everyone you know, and everyone you may or may not have ever seen. All of them, slowly dying.
Now stop imagining. Welcome to Reality.
Skin cells on your body are constantly falling off and being replaced. Imagine a wide, long line, with people trying to get into a fair. The people in the very back of the line have just arrived. Midway through the line are concession stands, where people contribute to the welfare of the circus by spending money on food and miscellaneous items. Toward the front of the line are people buying tickets, and at the very front are people who are moving away from the line and spreading out, going to various rides and shows. But as the people get past the line, more people are coming, so that the line never gets much longer or shorter, it simply consists of different individuals at any given time.
Your skin is like that line. On the very bottom are cells, formed, perhaps, just today. In the middle are the cells that hold blood vessels, support your hair, etc. toward the top are the outside layers, what you see, and then they fall off, but the cycle keeps going. Eventually, like the fair leaving town, you die. Your hair is like that too. It grows to a certain length and then falls off, which is why your eyebrows grow out like your hair, draping down over your shoulders. They just fall off and are recycled before they get anywhere near that long.
As parts of your body degrade and break down, you can develop diseases like cancer, illnesses like polio or arthritis. Organs may just fail, like your kidneys or your heart, especially after being overexerted or suffering some type of trauma. In the end, you die, and you spend eternity in Heaven or Hell.
The “Intimidating” Curse:
“The fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered.”
— Genesis 9:2
This was not stated until after the global flood (Genesis 6-9) in which God purged the earth of the growing evil which had developed in under 3,000 years. It is, however, observable in nature. Animals act based on fear. Fear of starvation, loss of young, loss of territory, and of death. When their fears do not show any signs of being realized, (i.e. no intruders or hunger,) they sleep or play.
- Humans make animals afraid more than other animals. Humans are extremely powerful controllers and takers of territory, they are efficient killers, loud and obnoxious house guests, (for animals’ tastes), and they live off of natural products in large quantities. Animals have the instinct to be afraid of humans because of guns, mining, building, trapping, hunting, fishing etc. While God gave us this right as part of having dominion over the earth, (see “Crown or Creature), God also stated that animals would maintain a fear of humans. This is why it can be — and often is — very difficult to tame an animal.
I am not advocating to stop development. As mentioned in the article cited above, this is our right, and even our obligation.
So what about inventions?
Many inventions help keep humans alive and healthy in a number of ways:
- Curing disease
- Replacing/Removing defective organs
- Removing cancer and parasites
- Reducing pain in work or health
- Making jobs easier/more efficient
Inventions usually strive to reduce the amount of work needed to accomplish any task mentioned above. Humans cannot, however, dodge the effect of sin. God has planned a day when He will create the new Heaven and Earth, where all things shall be made new, perfect, without the marring of sin. Then, all things will be perfect, and there will be no painful toil, no red line of pain and suffering.
Inventing is no crime! You will not face God on Judgement Day and have to explain why you crossed the line. Part of the dominion mandate in Genesis, mentioned in the article cited earlier is that we make the Earth a better place, a task which reflects the very character of God.
