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The story told in Genesis 3 is what Christians refer to as ‘the fall'.

Originally humans were created in the image of God, to live in relationship with God, and to rule over all creation.

Adam and Eve, the first man and woman created by God, were seduced by the devil into believing that they could be “like God” by their own will and effort.

It begins with the serpent, Satan, approaching Adam and Eve.

He tempts them to rebel against the creator by persuading them that they could be “like God” by their own will and effort.

They eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which God told them not to eat from.

This act of disobedience is when sin entered the world.

When Adam and Eve sinned, they rebelled against God’s goodness, his love, and perfection.

They chose to do their own thing rather than obey God’s commands.

As a result, death and evil came into the world. This is often referred to as pain and suffering. Genesis 3, says for example:

• That God cursed the ground

• That God said there would be pain in childbirth.

The fall is important in Christian thinking because it did not just have consequences for Adam and Eve, but for all of humanity.

When Adam and Eve sinned, the Bible says they became slaves to sin. When they brought children into the world, their children were also brought into this slavery.

Paul, the apostle wrote in the New Testament book of Romans that: "Through one man sin entered into the world. And by this one man, death was brought into the world." (Romans 5:12)

When Adam and Eve chose to disobey God, they separated themselves and all subsequent generations of humans from him forever.

The solution to this problem is found in the resurrection of Jesus.

Christians believe that Jesus died to restore mankind's relationship with God.

In the Bible, the apostle Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians that when a person repents of their sins and trusts in Jesus Christ, they move from a life of death, into a new life of eternal life with God forever.