Two Trees
And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil…. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 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 2:8-9, 16-17 (KJV) emphasis mine
There were many trees in the Garden of Eden, but the scriptures focus on two specifically: the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
The tree of life represents God’s life, God’s way, and operating within the laws of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. It speaks of having a spiritual mind; thinking with the mind of Christ. Christ is our Tree of Life. As we partake of the fruit of the Spirit, we partake of Christ and His nature. In doing so, we will find true delight and pleasure (Eden means delight, pleasure). We will have a spiritual life, the God life, life as He intended for us- the same kind of life that was available to man in the garden of God. As believers in Jesus, that garden is now inside each of us and we take it wherever we go, spreading the garden and the tree of life to those who are dead.
The tree of the knowledge of good and evil represents man’s fallen nature and ways due to disobedience and rebellion toward God. That tree brings nothing but death and the curse. It is the tree that all mankind tasted before being saved.
One tree speaks of blessing; the other of cursing. One speaks of the law of the Spirit of life, and the other speaks of the law of sin and death. The tree of life is one of obedience, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is the tree of disobedience. One tree produces good, the other produces evil. One is reliant on God’s knowledge, the other on man’s carnal knowledge.
The two trees represents two options from which we choose, and the choice we make determines the course of our lives now, and in eternity. Choose life that you may live now and forever with God and in God.
The more we partake of the tree of life, the better off we will be. The tree of life promotes God-consciousness, and the other tree promotes self-consciousness . The more God-conscious we are, the more we can experience the Lord and all He has for us. And on the flip-side, the more self-conscious we are, the less we experience the Lord because our attention is totally on ourselves. One tree leads to God and a good life, and one tree leads away from God and into a miserable life, filled with our attempts to be our own god. The tree of life takes us closer to God, with a deep intimate relationship with Him. The other draws us further and further from God where we live weak, shallow lives.
Proverbs 3:13-18 tells us that the wisdom of God is a tree of life. I Corinthians 1:30 says that Jesus Christ is our wisdom. John 1:1-3 declare that Jesus Christ is the Word. As we combine these truths, we see that in partaking of the Word, we partake of the tree of life. As we do, we make wise decisions, choosing God and His life and ways. In so doing, we experience God’s presence and sweet fellowship- just as Adam did in the garden in the cool of the day. By choosing the tree of life (Jesus), we have access to the Father and can once again walk with Him and live in close union with Him for all eternity.
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:2 (KJV)
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If you have never received Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you can be born-again right now. Just click on this link for more information. When you do, you’ll go from eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil to feasting from the tree of life.
