Ok, I know it wasn't an apple. Work with me.
My social media feeds are abuzz with controversy. Who decides what's sinful and what isn't? How can anyone possibly expect another human being to pronounce, 'Yes, [whatever] is sinful.' It doesn't matter how many Bible verses spell out the certainty that [whatever] is clearly offensive to God and specifically named as not to be practiced by God's people, the public reaction is that '[Christian person] has declared that [whatever] is sinful! How narrow minded and judgemental [Christian person] is! Why, I know many people who [whatever] and they are fine, loving people! Obviously, God won't condemn someone just because they [whatever]!' On the other hand, if [Christian person] values relationship with folks who do [whatever] and wants to maintain that relationship with the possibility of having a positive influence on them and hedges around the question, the 'Christian public' responds just as negatively. '[Christian person] missed a chance to Speak Up for Truth! How could anyone who claims to be a Christian not know that [whatever] is clearly offensive to God! (lists Bible verses)'
To quote Admiral Ackbar, 'It's a trap!'
Stop expecting other people to make God-like pronouncements. They are going to fail. Period.
Somebody could have asked Eve, 'Is it wrong to eat fruit?'
Oh, wait, someone did.
And the answer, of course, was, 'No, it's not wrong to eat fruit. But it is wrong to eat that fruit.'
Why was it wrong to eat that fruit? How was it different than other fruit, which could be enjoyed freely?
That fruit, my friends, was poisonous. It was forbidden because it was deadly. Hazardous. Harmful.
Oh, it wasn't presented that way, no no no. There was an agenda that resulted in it being presented as appetizing, aromatic, desirable. As something that would allow the partaker to become fully who they were meant to be.
Which implied that God was trying to keep them from being fully who they were meant to be.
The soul-killing sinful decision is hidden there. And it is, really, at the core, completely a different issue than 'Is [whatever] sinful?' as if the action/attitude/ lifestyle, etc were the crux of the issue. No, the crux of the issue is this...Who has the authority to determine what is right and what is wrong?
If God is the authority, then it doesn't matter what the fruit is, what it does, how it smells or looks or tastes or anything else. He said 'No', so we leave it alone.
If the individual is the authority for him/herself, then forbidding one fruit out of the whole orchard doesn't make sense. If we can eat that one and that one and that one, why not that one? If I think it's good for me, well, isn't it? It's not fair! Why should anyone...even God...tell me what is best for me?
And that, dear reader, is what is sinful. Setting myself above God in the 'who knows best' category. EVERYONE has a [whatever] in his/her life. Some are more visible than others, but we all have them. And we all falter at them...sin is ubiquitous. The question is...do we embrace the [whatever] as our identity and then get mad at God when He says [whatever] will keep us eternally separated from Him...and even more angry at the folks around us who are trying to point out that [whatever] is not good? Or do we renounce [whatever] and believe that God has a better plan, even if we don't know what it looks like?
In the end, it's not about what you do...it's about who you embrace as God and the results of that decision.
Embracing God does mean that you will leave that fruit...the [whatever] in your life...alone. Because He really does know what's best.
For further reading, I suggest the first 3 chapters of Genesis, the Gospel of John and the book of Romans.
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