5.3 Freedom, the Fall and Restoration

 

Freedom, the Fall and Restoration

It is true that human beings were free to relate with angels, who were created to minister to them. However, since Eve's heart and intellect were still immature when she was tempted by the angel, she became confused emotionally and intellectually. Although the freedom of her original mind induced in her a sense of foreboding, because the power of the love between her and the angel was stronger, she crossed the boundary and fell. No matter how freely Eve was relating with the angel, if she had maintained unwavering faith in God's commandment and not responded to the angel's temptation, then the power of unprincipled love would not have been generated and she would not have fallen. Therefore, despite the fact that freedom permitted Eve to relate with the angel and brought her to the brink of the Fall, what pushed her over the brink was not freedom but the power of unprincipled love.
Since Eve was created to interact in freedom with angels, she naturally related with Lucifer. Yet when Eve and Lucifer formed a common base and engaged in give and take action, the power of the unprincipled love which was generated caused them to fall. Conversely, since fallen people can also relate with God in freedom, if they follow the words of truth, form a common base and engage in give and take with Him, then the power of principled love can revive their original nature. Indeed, the freedom of the original mind yearns to cultivate fully the original nature. Hence, people in every age have been desperately crying out for freedom.
Due to the Fall, human beings became ignorant of God and His Heart. This ignorance has rendered the human will incapable of striving toward goals which are pleasing to God. As God has given "spirit and truth"^{64(John 4:23)CEV|KJ|NI} (meaning internal knowledge and external knowledge) to fallen people according to the merit of the age in the providence of restoration, their heart, which yearns for the freedom of the original mind, has gradually been revived. In step with this progress, their heart toward God has also been restored, strengthening their zeal to live according to His Will.
Moreover, as aspirations for freedom mount in intensity, people will demand a social environment conducive to its realization. When the social circumstances of an era cannot satisfy the desires of freedom-loving people, revolutions inevitably erupt. The French Revolution in the eighteenth century is one example. Revolutions will continue until true freedom has been fully restored.