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Why do we die?

In the beginning, God created everything. (Gen 1:1) The best part of his earthly creation was the first man, Adam. Adam’s wife Eve was created using one of Adam’s ribs. Adam and Eve were perfect, and lived in the Garden of Eden. 

God wanted to test Adam and Eve’s obedience, so he gave them a rule to follow: they were allowed to eat fruit from any tree except the one called the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. God said if they ate from this tree, they would die. 

Using the form of a snake, Satan lied to Eve and told her that if they ate from the tree, they would not die and would become wise like God.

Eve ate the fruit, gave some to Adam, and he ate too. As punishment for their disobedience, they had to leave the garden with its perfect food.  Now they had to live under very difficult conditions, and they and their future children would grow old and die.  

This is how it is with mankind, too. We slowly become old and eventually die. When we have children, they are born in this sinful condition too – it’s like a terrible “chain reaction” of sin that gets passed down to every generation. We all die because Adam sinned and we all came from Adam.   

But this was all part of a loving plan that God permitted for man’s blessing. His son, Jesus, volunteered to give His life as a perfect substitute for Adam, allowing everyone who has ever died to eventually come back to life.

1 Corinthians 15:22 says,

“For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” 1 Corinthians 15:22

When all people are made alive again, they will remember the sin and death caused by disobedience. Having learned the lesson, they will go on to develop perfect obedience in God’s future kingdom so they can live forever in happiness. 

So, why do we die? It was the punishment for not obeying God. But it was God’s love that permitted it for man to learn an everlasting lesson. 

To learn more about why death and sin exist, listen to, “Is it God’s Fault We Have Evil In This World?”