Two Trees In The Garden
By Barry Adams
Genesis 2:8-9
8 Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. NIV
8 Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. NIV
If we are to understand why God hides the Kingdom from the wise and learned and reveals it to little babies (Matthew 11:25-26), we need to go back to the Garden of Eden. Before the fall, Adam and Eve enjoyed unbroken fellowship with the Godhead without ever having the need to know right from wrong.
They walked with God in the cool of the day, all the while being naked and unashamed. They were oblivious to any form of self judgment and lived in the beautiful simplicity of being loved and cared for by a loving Father.Since they were created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27), all creation recognized them as image bearers of the Almighty. After all, Adam was God’s beloved son (Luke 3:38) and was entrusted with the authority to have dominion over all creation. (Genesis 1:28)
It was only when the serpent tempted the woman with a lie that they fell from God’s original intent for their lives. I find it interesting that the the temptation the serpent used to deceive was that Adam and Eve could be ‘like God’, knowing good from evil. (Genesis 3:5) The crazy thing for humanity’s first couple is that they were like God already because they were His kids! All creation recognized their royal status as God’s beloved children but somehow they missed the obvious.
Often when we think of this tree, we think of it being only the knowledge of evil but think again. Genesis 3:6 says… When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. NIV
I think our desire to ‘gain wisdom’ is still the most foundational temptation that we have today. Religion puts a yoke on us we were never created to bear. It shackles us with the weight of having to figure out good from evil in the hope that our self effort will make us more God-like.
If I were to summarize what I think the two trees represent in single word descriptors, I would use words like... Dependence vs independence. Union vs separation. Childlike vs grownup. I believe there is a way that is less travelled where we can experience a greater awakening to the Kingdom that Jesus said our Father is delighted to give us (Luke 12:32).
And Jesus said it is found only when we have a transformation where we go from being competent, self sufficient, independent (the tree of the knowledge of good and evil) to being childlike, simplistic, and absolutely dependent (tree of life) on God for everything. I believe the second option is available for all of us if we would just be willing to turn and go in the opposite direction and embrace the beautiful humility of a little child.
Matthew 18:1-5
1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. NIV
They walked with God in the cool of the day, all the while being naked and unashamed. They were oblivious to any form of self judgment and lived in the beautiful simplicity of being loved and cared for by a loving Father.Since they were created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27), all creation recognized them as image bearers of the Almighty. After all, Adam was God’s beloved son (Luke 3:38) and was entrusted with the authority to have dominion over all creation. (Genesis 1:28)
It was only when the serpent tempted the woman with a lie that they fell from God’s original intent for their lives. I find it interesting that the the temptation the serpent used to deceive was that Adam and Eve could be ‘like God’, knowing good from evil. (Genesis 3:5) The crazy thing for humanity’s first couple is that they were like God already because they were His kids! All creation recognized their royal status as God’s beloved children but somehow they missed the obvious.
Often when we think of this tree, we think of it being only the knowledge of evil but think again. Genesis 3:6 says… When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. NIV
I think our desire to ‘gain wisdom’ is still the most foundational temptation that we have today. Religion puts a yoke on us we were never created to bear. It shackles us with the weight of having to figure out good from evil in the hope that our self effort will make us more God-like.
If I were to summarize what I think the two trees represent in single word descriptors, I would use words like... Dependence vs independence. Union vs separation. Childlike vs grownup. I believe there is a way that is less travelled where we can experience a greater awakening to the Kingdom that Jesus said our Father is delighted to give us (Luke 12:32).
And Jesus said it is found only when we have a transformation where we go from being competent, self sufficient, independent (the tree of the knowledge of good and evil) to being childlike, simplistic, and absolutely dependent (tree of life) on God for everything. I believe the second option is available for all of us if we would just be willing to turn and go in the opposite direction and embrace the beautiful humility of a little child.
Matthew 18:1-5
1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. NIV