THE TREE OF KNOWLEDGE AND THE TREE OF LIFE
(by brother Tarran Dookie)
THE COMMAND AND THE CONSEQUENCES
Gen 2:8-9 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.
Gen 2:16-17 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.
God gave Adam freedom to eat of any tree in the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God told him that if he broke the command and ate of this tree, he would surely die in the day that he ate of it.
Gen 3:1-7 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 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. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
God told Adam that in the day that he ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil he would surely die. Satan told Eve that they would not surely die. He further said that their eyes would be opened, they would be as gods, knowing good and evil.
Satan told a half-truth, which proved to be very deceptive and effective for his purpose. Adam and Eve did not die physically on the same day that they ate of the forbidden fruit but died hundreds of years after eating it. However, Adam and Eve did die spiritually on the day that they ate the fruit. Spiritual death is separation from God and is born of sin and disobedience to God. Sins do separate us from God (Isa 59:1-2). Physical death is also one of the consequences of sin.
Their eyes were opened and they became aware of their nakedness. Nakedness is often associated with sin in the scriptures (Exod 32:25; 2Chr 28:19; Isa 47:3; Ezek 16:22, 36; 2Cor 5:3; Rev 16:15). Man often seeks to cover his sin and shame by his own works. So they sewed fig leaves as a covering but God made them coats of skin. The coats of skin required the shedding of blood and foreshadowed the death of Christ. Only the covering of the Lamb of God can cover the nakedness of sin.
When Adam and Eve ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, they did enter into a realm of knowledge. This kind of knowledge is aptly described in James 3:15 'This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.' The tree of knowledge represents the self life, a life of independence from God. This knowledge puffs up and men see themselves as gods and this is exactly what Satan wants.
THE TEMPTATION OF CHRIST
Matt 4:1-10 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred. And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
1John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
Satan appealed to the sensual nature of man when he tempted Eve. She 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. This corresponds to the passage in 1John 2:16. The 'good for food' answers to the lust of the flesh, the 'pleasant to the eyes' relates to the lust of the eyes and 'a tree to be desired to make one wise' pertains to the pride of life.
Satan used the same ploy on the last Adam as on the first Adam. Urging Jesus, who was hungry after fasting for forty days, to make the stones become bread was an appeal to the lust of the flesh. He wanted the Lord to indulge in the pride of life by vaunting his position as Son of God and casting Himself from the height of the pinnacle of the temple. Satan also tempted the Lord to yield to the lust of the eyes by showing Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory and promising to give it to the Lord if He would worship him.
The Lord Jesus did not succumb to the temptations of the evil one. Believers in Christ Jesus must fix their eyes on Jesus and resist every snare and wile of the tempter. The tree of knowledge represents the life of self. We must walk in the Spirit and not follow the dictates of the old man of sin. The Lord bids us to take up His cross and die to self. He who loses his life shall gain it (Matt 16:25).
Think not that the tree of knowledge has been uprooted and done away with. Satan, the god of this world, has blinded the eyes of the multitudes. He wants us to still eat of that tree by looking to ourselves and not to God. Let us recognize the devices of the enemy. We must say with the apostle Paul, 'Not I but Christ liveth in me' (Gal 2:20).
A CHOICE OF TREES
When God formed man from the dust of the ground, He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul. James tells us that the body without the spirit is dead (Jas 2:26). Bring the spirit and body together and we have a living soul. What is the soul of man? The soul is the bridge between the spirit and the body. The soul is the seat of our emotion, intellect and will.
Adam's spirit was untarnished before he fell. It was in harmony with God. Through his spirit Adam communed with God. Such a spirit controlling the soul and body brought forth a life pleasing to God. A spiritual life depends on the life that the Lord Jesus imparts. The tree of life represents the life of Christ.
A life that does not flow from a dependence on the Spirit of God is a life lived in the flesh (the soul and body). Such a life fulfils the desires of the flesh and mind. A life lived independent of God partakes of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. An unregenerate person has a spirit that is not quickened by the Holy Spirit and lives solely in the realm of the soul and body.
Even the regenerate person can live according to the principle of the tree of knowledge. Self will, yielding to the flesh, conforming to this world and disobedience to God springs from the soul life. A believer must watch and pray lest he enter into temptation and eat of the tree of knowledge as Eve did.
1Cor2:6-7,13 Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory... Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
There is a wisdom that is not of the tree of knowledge but flows from the tree of life, a type of the Lord Jesus. This knowledge is hid from the eyes of the world and they know it not. Spiritual things are spiritually discerned. Let us choose the tree of life. Let us choose the Lord Jesus for in Him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2:3).
THE TREE OF LIFE
Gen 3:22-24 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.
Both the tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil were in the midst of the garden. God did not forbid Adam and Eve to eat the fruit from the tree of life. However, once they ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil they were driven out of the garden and cherubims and a flaming sword were placed to keep the way of the tree of life. Why was this done? God did not want Adam and Eve to eat of the tree of life and live forever. The life of God had departed from them and they were in a fallen state. In such a state eating of the tree of life would have resulted in a life of eternal misery. They would live forever but in darkness and the stain of sin always clinging to them. Eternal life was not possible until the death of the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
Some wonder why it was improper for Adam and Eve to become 'one of us and know good and evil'? If God knew good and evil, why cannot man? God is good, He is inherently good. Evil manifested itself when Lucifer sought to dethrone the God who created him (Ezek 28:11-15; Isa 14:12-15). God's knowledge of good and evil relates to distinguishing between good and evil, the separation of good and evil. God knows good and evil and knows that the evil is not desirable. His purpose is that all evil is eventually conquered.
Adam could only have come into this knowledge if he disobeyed God. God knew that if man came into this knowledge he would touch death and ruin. He would be incapable and insufficient to dispel this evil in his fallen state. Man fell and is incapable of conquering evil. Only God can bring death and evil to an end. In the new heaven and earth the tree of knowledge of good and evil is not present.
Ps 1:3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
Rev 22:1-2 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
The tree of life incorporates life in Jesus Christ. To partake of the fruit of this tree is to partake of eternal life. He has died and is risen and offers the abundant life to us. He makes us to be partakers of the divine nature. As we abide in Him we shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth his fruit in his season.
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Believers in Christ Jesus may freely copy but under no circumstances must it be sold.
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