Interestingly enough, Eve didn’t seemed intimidated by the presence of the serpent, nor surprised that it spoke. And she was ready with an answer to its query about the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. She clarified that God had told them they could eat from any tree except that one, which was truthful. But then she altered God’s command by adding a rule about not touching the fruit. That might seem trivial, but it was serious. Deuteronomy 4:2 instructs, “You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you.” God, as the Creator, is the ultimate authority. Man’s “wisdom” in eliminating or adding to His instruction is foolhardy. Can the created truly know more than the Creator? Of course not. So how do we avoid swallowing a misrepresentation of the Word? By studying it. The more we know it, the easier it will be for us to recognize when something is taken out of context or altered in meaning. We can also trust the Spirit. When we experience a prick in our conscience, that’s the Spirit letting us know something’s not in alignment with God’s Word. We can trust God over any man-made religion or rule. The One who formed us in our mother’s womb will not send us down a path of destruction.