God allowed Adam to sin because He created humanity with genuine free will, and without a real alternative Adam would have been a robot.
Les Feldick teaches that God sovereignly set the Garden circumstances in motion and gave Adam one simple test of obedience. God did not create human beings to be robots, so Adam had to have a real choice. Adam chose, of his own free will, to eat with Eve, and in doing so brought sin and death upon the whole human race.
Genesis 2:17 — God's command and death warning show that Adam was placed under a real test with a real alternative.
Genesis 3:6 — This records Adam's actual choice to eat, the moment sin entered the human race.
Romans 5:12 — Paul explicitly explains that sin and death passed to all men through one man, Adam.
In the opening pages of Scripture, God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden and gave him everything to enjoy, with one exception. Genesis 2:17 records, '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.' The command itself shows that a real choice existed. Genesis 3:6 records what Adam and Eve did: '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.' The New Testament draws the consequence. Romans 5:12 says, 'Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.' Scripture therefore presents Adam's sin as the point at which sin and death entered the human race.
Les Feldick explains that when God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden, He gave them one simple responsibility: do not eat of that one tree. That tree was not wicked in itself; it was a means of testing to see if they could remain obedient. God sovereignly set all of this in motion, and the test was necessary because God did not create human beings to be robots. In order for man to exercise his will and truly love his Creator, there had to be an alternative. Les also points out that Adam chose of his own free will. Rather than lose Eve and remain obedient, Adam deliberately ate. It was an absolute violation of God's Word. As soon as he took that step of disobedience, he became a sin-natured individual, and every human being has inherited that Adamic sin nature ever since. Les summarizes it this way: 'We are not sinners because we break the law but we break the law because we're sinners and we're sinners because we are sons of Adam.' He also notes that when Adam and Eve came out of the Garden, circumstances were completely different: sin had entered, death had entered, and they were under the curse, working by the sweat of the brow. God did not change; Adam and Eve did. And because death entered through Adam's sin, death passed upon the whole human race and upon all creation.
Les makes clear that Adam chose knowingly and of his own free will. In the Garden, Adam had to choose between his wife and obedience. Rather than lose Eve, he ate the forbidden fruit. His action was in absolute violation of the Word of God. At the same time, Adam's choice did not catch God by surprise; God had sovereignly set the whole scene in motion.
Les explains that God did not create men to be robots. For man to exercise real love toward God and exercise the power of will, he had to have a genuine alternative. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil provided that alternative. When the tempter came, the choice was laid out: follow the adversary or remain true to God.
When Adam ate, sin entered, and death entered with it. Before Adam ate, death was an unknown entity; after he ate, death passed upon all men. Adam immediately became a sin-natured individual, and his offspring inherited that sin nature. The entire experience changed: they lost paradise, came under the curse, and had to work by the sweat of the brow. God Himself did not change.
Death Upon All Creation
Les teaches that Adam's sin brought death on the whole human race and the entire creation.
Sovereign Plan and the Test Tree
God sovereignly set the Garden scene in motion and used the tree as a test; Adam flunked, and God declared that all his offspring would inherit his sin nature.
Adam's Free-Will Choice
Adam knowingly chose of his own free will to eat with Eve rather than remain obedient, showing human responsibility.
Inherited Sin Nature
Adam immediately became a sin-natured individual after eating, and every human has inherited that nature.
Humans Not Robots
God had to give Adam an alternative, otherwise man would have been a robot; the tree was chosen to create a real choice.
Circumstances Changed, God Didn't
After the fall everything changed for Adam and Eve — sin, death, and the curse — while God Himself did not change.
The Tempter and Free Will
Satan's temptation could only work because God had given man free will, which required a real choice between following the adversary or remaining true to God.
Death Entered by Sin
Before Adam ate, nothing died; once he ate, sin came in and with sin came death upon all men.
Genesis 2:17: 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.
This verse shows God's test and the warning that would follow disobedience.
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.
This verse records the moment Adam and Eve actually sinned by eating the forbidden fruit.
Romans 5:12: Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Paul explains the universal consequence of Adam's sin: sin and death came to all people.
Les teaches that Adam chose of his own free will. God sovereignly set the test in motion, but Adam made the deliberate choice to eat against God's command. That choice is why every human being is born with Adam's sin nature.
No. Les says there wasn't anything wicked in the fruit; it was simply a means of testing whether Adam and Eve would remain obedient.
Sin and death entered, and death passed upon all men. Les says before Adam ate, nothing died; after he ate, death became part of the human experience.
Watch the Teaching: Why Did Adam's Sin Affect All of Us? Romans 5:10-14