WHY DIDN’T ADAM AND EVE DIE THE SAME DAY THEY SINNED?

God gave the divine command and clearly spelled out the consequence of disobedience. It was a simple instruction: "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die" (Genesis 2:17).

The warning was unmistakable. The day they ate from the forbidden tree, they would experience death. God, who is life itself, holds the source of life. Jesus affirmed this when he said, "For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself" (John 5:26).

All other creatures possess borrowed life from God. It is God's life that sustains them. Our very existence is due to God's life and His continuous sustenance. Jesus declared, "Because I live, ye shall live also" (John 14:19). Paul also acknowledged that all our bodily functions operate by the power of God, stating, "For in him we live, and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28).

The life of God flows to all His creatures. Without God and a connection to Him, there can be no life at all, as our lives are dependent on the Source of life. Sin is dangerous because it severs that vital connection. Isaiah 59:2 records, "But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear." Sin separates the creature from the Creator, cutting off the lifeline that sustains us.

When Adam and Eve sinned, they had to die because sin leads to death. However, they didn't die immediately or on the very day they sinned. God had already devised a plan: grace. God's plan for the guilty pair and their children was to send His only begotten Son, Jesus, to die for their sins and ours. John 3:16 reveals this plan, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Though Jesus physically came to die for their sins and ours on Calvary's tree approximately 4,000 years later, God had given Jesus to humanity long before that. In Revelation 13:8, Jesus is referred to as "The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." This does not mean that Jesus physically died at the foundation of the world, but rather that the plan of salvation was already in place from the beginning, even before the creation of Adam and Eve.

The grace of God kept Adam and Eve alive after their sin because of the plan of redemption. Through Jesus Christ, they could now come back to God. This same grace is what sustains us and keeps us alive. We owe our continued existence to the divine Substitute who took our place.

It's important to note that Satan and his evil angels have also sinned (2 Peter 2:4). However, God keeps them alive for a different purpose. They are "reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day" (Jude 6). Once the destiny of all mankind is decided in judgment, the wicked angels and unsaved humans will be destroyed forever. The life of God will be disconnected from them, and they will perish.

In conclusion, God's divine command was accompanied by a clear consequence of disobedience: death. Sin separates us from the Creator and severs the lifeline that sustains us. However, God's grace provided a way for us to be reconciled to Him through Jesus Christ. Adam and Eve, as well as all humanity, did not die immediately after their sin due to God