The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden—except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.” [Genesis 2.15-17]
Why do you suppose God created and placed the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden?
It seems it was necessary in order for man to have free will. Without the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, man would have been nothing more than a pet in a cage. God wanted man to be more than that. After all, He had created man in His own image.
Interestingly enough, along with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, there was the tree of life in the Garden of Eden. The tree of life was evidently a necessary safeguard in place in the event of man's disobedience. The tree of life is the whole reason man had to be expelled from the Garden.
Before eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, man was allowed to eat from the tree of life. It would seem, even in man's perfect created state, he still needed to eat from the tree of life in order to live in perpetuity. I would speculate that the tree of life had something to do with preventing aging, therefore eventually causing death. Man could "live" without the tree of life, but he could not live forever. And so, man's sin that led to his being expelled from the Garden, ultimately led to his death.
If you think about it, God put together a very clever plan. It was the perfect plan. It provided the perfect platform for salvation!
Father, Your ways are perfect.
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