The Two Trees

To tell you the truth, I never get very far in scripture during my quiet time because a verse will always jump out and catch my attention. I will spend hours seeking the truth of what I read and asking (out loud) I might add, for the Lord to explain it to me. I always sense a chuckle from Him and I believe He truly appreciates
our inquisitive hearts.

I remember one day in particular when I had settled in for a day with Genesis. I had studied this book many times and the Lord has blessed me with several short studies to share with others. So there I was Chapter 3, Eve had eaten the fruit, and you know the story. I knew the story too, then something caught my attention. Something I had read, but never noticed the way I did that day. I’ll pick it up in verse 22.

GENESIS

Verse 22 Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"--
Verse 23 therefore the LORD God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken.

I understood that they had eaten from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and were being sent out of the garden of Eden, what captured my thoughts for the first time had been right there all along. The other tree! Clearly it says the tree of life.

Verse 24 So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way,
to guard the way to the tree of life.

Not only did He drive them out of the garden, He set a flaming sword, and cherubim at the garden gate, to keep them from ever going back
and eating from the tree of life.

Next came my question. Lord, why didn’t you want them to eat from the (other tree) the tree of life? That was a good tree, I don’t understand. What I did next is what we must always do. Scripture tells us to pray for discernment, and I was. Suddenly I understood. I could almost hear His voice say to me. Adam and Eve had a choice. They could have eaten from the tree of life at any time, but they chose to eat from the one tree that I the Lord your God had forbidden them to eat from. I had to guard the tree life. I did it for them, and for you. If they had eaten from the tree of life after they had eaten from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they would have lived forever in their sin. That is how much He loves us, and as He said to me, “that is how much I love you.”
The first blood sacrifice for sin in the Bible was right there in the Garden of Eden, verse 20 God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. Blood was shed for those skins.

I always thought that leaving the garden was punishment, and so it must have seemed to them I’m sure, but the opposite is true. It was because He loved them. He was protecting them.

We have choices to make everyday of our lives. We too must choose between those two trees. Should we, like Adam and Eve choose the forbidden, let us repent, ask forgiveness and know that we have access to the Tree of Life. (The Cross-) where at Calvary Jesus gave His live for you and me. His sacrifice clothes us in forgiveness and covers our sins. What choice have you made?

John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”