The Fall, Part 1

Shawn McCraney emphasized the importance of adhering to the original Gospel of Jesus Christ without any additions or alterations, using the analogy of a perfect brownie recipe to illustrate that any deviation, no matter how small, results in a different and defective outcome. He argued that while the Latter-day Saints might consider their faith in Jesus sufficient, changes to the original Gospel make their belief system fundamentally flawed and not aligned with the Biblical teachings.

Shawn's teaching emphasizes that, unlike the LDS viewpoint of pre-existence, the Christian perspective believes God is the ultimate creator who breathed life into Adam, making him a living soul, while Eve was formed from Adam with the life of God already within him. Christians hold that God's commands, such as the one in the Garden of Eden, are straightforward and trustworthy, providing humans with the ability to reason and choose for themselves, emphasizing the importance of a direct and personal relationship with God rather than adherence to organizational doctrines.

God's intention was for Adam and Eve to enjoy life and procreate in harmony with His commands, but free will allowed them to choose disobedience, leading to the Fall and the introduction of sin into the world. Despite their disobedience, the teaching emphasizes that God desires a close relationship with His followers, where they approach Him for guidance, akin to the open relationship Adam and Eve initially had with Him.

Shawn critiques LDS teachings by highlighting a contradiction where Adam and Eve must break a commandment to fulfill another, claiming this undermines the trustworthiness of divine commandments, as seen through the lens of Latter-day Saints. He questions why Satan would encourage Adam and Eve to transgress since it ultimately facilitates God's plan for spiritual progression, presenting this as a fundamental flaw in Mormon doctrine.

Satan aimed to deceive Adam and Eve into believing that consuming the forbidden fruit would grant them enlightenment and power, allowing them to exist independently from God. Despite this deception targeting both, it is noted in 1 Timothy 2:14 that Adam was not deceived, but the woman was and fell into transgression.