The Tree Of Life Man Never Ate From.

Genesis chapter two records that the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden. 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 stood in the midst of the garden, alongside the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

The command was clearly given to man: 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. The tree of life remained accessible. The fruit of immortality waited within reach.

Then the serpent came with his craft. The woman listened. The man followed. Their eyes opened. They knew they were naked. Fig leaves became their covering. Shame entered.

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.

The tree of life stood untouched. Man never ate from it.

Something profound lies hidden in this account. Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden tree. Death entered through that door. But the tree of life remained. They never reached for it. They never tasted its fruit. They never received what God had placed there for them.

The enemy stole much in that garden. But what Adam lost by disobedience, Christ recovered by obedience. The apostle Paul declares in Romans chapter five that where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. As by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

The tree of life reappears in Scripture. Not in a garden eastward in Eden, but in a city that cometh down from God out of heaven. Revelation chapter twenty-two speaks of it: 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.

The tree Adam never ate from now stands in the paradise of God. And the invitation goes forth: Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.

Here is what must settle in the spirit today. What the first man lost, the second Man recovered. What Adam forfeited through sin, Christ secured through sacrifice. The tree of life that was closed to fallen humanity now stands open to all who come through the blood of the Lamb.

The enemy thought he had won in the garden. Death entered. Judgment followed. The ground was cursed. But God had a plan for the redemption of the world. The tree of life would not remain hidden forever.

For every soul who feels the weight of the Fall, there is good news. The curse that came through the first Adam is broken by the last Adam. The sin that separated man from the tree of life has been atoned for. The way back to the tree is open.

Jesus declared in the book of John: I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father, but by me. He is the tree of life made accessible. He is the fruit of immortality offered to all who believe.

Perhaps the weight of past failures presses upon you today. The memory of wrong choices, of forbidden fruit tasted, of doors opened to the enemy. The condemnation whispers that the tree of life remains forever out of reach.

But Scripture declares otherwise. Romans eight opens with these words: There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

The tree of life is not a distant memory of what might have been. It is a present reality for all who are in Christ. The same power that raised Jesus from the dead now dwells in you. The same life that flows from the tree of life in the New Jerusalem flows through the Spirit into your spirit.

Consider the mercy of God in this. Adam and Eve hid from His presence. He came seeking them. They made fig leaves. He made coats of skins. Blood was shed to cover their shame. The first hint of the Lamb who would take away the sin of the world appeared in that garden.

Throughout the Old Testament, the tree of life appears as a symbol of wisdom, of righteousness, of the way of the just. Proverbs declares that wisdom is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her. The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life. Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.

These are shadows pointing to the substance. Christ is the wisdom of God. Christ is our righteousness. Christ is our hope fulfilled. Christ is the tree of life incarnate.

The tree that Adam never ate from, you may eat from today. Not with physical teeth, but with the mouth of faith. The bread that came down from heaven, of which if a man eat, he shall never die. The living water that springs up into everlasting life. The fruit of the Spirit that fills the believer with all the fullness of God.

The gospel of John records these words of Jesus: I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever. And the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.

The tree of life stands before you. The fruit is ripe. The invitation is open. Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.

LET’S PRAY

1. Every curse that came upon me through the Fall of Adam, break by the blood of Jesus, in the name of Jesus.

2. I receive the life that flows from the tree of life into my spirit today, in the name of Jesus.

3. O Lord, restore to me everything that Adam lost through disobedience, in the name of Jesus.

4. Every door that sin opened in my life, be closed permanently by the blood of Jesus, in the name of Jesus.

5. I eat by faith of the tree of life; I receive eternal life and divine nature, in the name of Jesus.

6. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus sets me free from the law of sin and death, in the name of Jesus.

7. Thank You, Lord, for the tree of life that stands in the paradise of God, with fruit for my healing and nourishment.

In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Let’s Make These Declarations By Faith

This day, I declare that the tree of life is accessible to me through Christ. The curse of the Fall is broken over my life. I am no longer separated from the life of God. The blood of Jesus has opened the way.

I eat of the tree of life by faith. I receive the righteousness that comes from God. I partake of the divine nature. The life of Christ flows through my spirit, soul, and body.

I shall not die but live to declare the works of the LORD. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free. I am alive with the life that never ends. The tree of life is my portion. The fruit of immortality is mine.

In Jesus’ name, Amen!