The answer
The tree was a moral guide and limit, which was placed by God under the authority of Adam, by which He may test him.
God had previously given Adam the means and the ability to carry out the commandment and not to transgress it. However, Adam, by his free will, disobeyed. So, the obeying of the commandment was a measure that reveals the extent of man’s love for God.
We should add that God’s foreknowledge of man’s fall does not impede Him from offering man what is beneficial to him if he obeys. If, however, he freely chooses to reject God’s commandment, he would then have chosen for himself disobedience and separation from God.
We ought not to forget that when evil took place on account of the disobedience, God saved man from the authority of evil, and restored him once again to his primal condition by redemption, thus making man deal with God in a stronger bond of love. This caused St. Augustine to praise the Fall of Adam, which made us recipients of all the graces of redemption.
God’s commandment for Adam was an opportunity for him to exercise his responsibilities, and for his preparation for what is greater. It was also God’s affirmation of man’s free will, which is the greatest gift that God bestowed upon man.
God allowed man to transgress and disobey Him by using his freedom, which is a grace bestowed from God.
His Holiness Pope Tawadros II
Pope Tawadros II, My Faith: A Series of Dialogues on the Creed (Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate, 2014), 58–59.
The pages in the book (58–59)
