Genesis 3:6
“And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”
When God created Eve, He created her to be a help meet for her husband. Genesis 2:18 says, “And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.” In other words, Eve was created to help make her husband stronger. She was created to complete him. If she fulfilled her role as a spouse, then Adam would be a better Christian, husband, father and citizen of his country.
What is sad is that Eve did the opposite of what she was supposed to do. It says in the verse above, “…she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.” That fruit that Eve gave to Adam was the forbidden fruit. That fruit came from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Instead of pushing Adam closer to God, Eve tempted him to sin, which he eventually did. Though Adam was ultimately responsible for his own actions, Eve was responsible for weakening him.
One of the most valuable lessons which can be learned from this story is that a person should never be responsible of making their spouse weaker. Your goal as a spouse should be to protect your spouse from those things that could cause them to sin. You should not be the one who causes your spouse to do things they should not do. You should make your influence on your spouse an influence for good. There were some things that Eve did that influenced Adam to sin that if we avoid them we can influence our spouse for right.
First, don’t take your spouse to places that would influence them for wrong. Eve would have never had the forbidden fruit in her hand if she had not been in the presence of the forbidden tree. You should never be responsible of bringing your spouse to the wrong place. For instance, don’t influence your spouse to visit the wrong type of church; instead, influence your spouse to attend and join the right type of church. There are many places we can take our spouse that would be wrong. Before you ever suggest that you and your spouse go somewhere, ask yourself if you would want God to catch you in that place.
Second, don’t set things before your spouse that would cause them to do wrong. Don’t ask your spouse to watch a television program that you know would be wrong. Don’t look at websites that would cause your spouse to see something they should not see. A married couple should be influencing each other to do right.
Third, don’t use your influence to persuade your spouse to do something they know is wrong. Eve’s influence was great! Yes, Adam was the first person who sinned, but her power of influence caused him to take of the fruit. Every married person has great influence over their spouse. Don’t abuse that influence to cause them to do wrong. Use the influence you have with your spouse to encourage them to do right.
Let me ask you, are you influencing your spouse to do right or wrong? Your spouse should be a better Christian because they are married to you. If your spouse is a weaker Christian because they married you, then you have used your influence for wrong. With whatever influence you have with your spouse, use it to influence them to do more for God. The power of influence in a marriage is great. So, use that influence for good.