"Now The Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there He put the man He had formed. And 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."
The Creation of Adam and Eve
"And The Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being." (Genesis 2:7). The Hebrew for man is pronounced aw-dawm, from which Adam is derived. It's also related to aw-dawm-ah, which means red earth, or red clay - indicating the natural earth elements that composed Adam's body, and the body of every human being since.
"The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden [see map above to work it and take care of it." (Genesis 2:15). Adam wasn't going to lead an idle life - he had a job right from his first day.
For a little while, Adam was the only human being in existence (imagine being the only person on an entire planet!). "The Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be all alone." (Genesis 2:18)
"So The Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, He took one of the man's ribs [also translated took part of the man's side] and closed up the place with flesh. Then The Lord God made a woman from the rib He had taken out of the man, and He brought her to the man. The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." (Genesis 2:21-24)
Eve's original name, when translated, meant simply "woman," (a "female man") just as Adam was known simply as "man" (a "male man"). He called her "woman," and she called him "man." Later, "Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living." (Genesis 3:20). Eve is derived from the Hebrew word which means life-giving. Eventually, besides Cain And Abel, they had Seth (Genesis 5:3), and numerous other children (Genesis 5:4).
"So God created man in His Own Image, in The Image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground." Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground - everything that has the breath of life in it - I give every green plant for food." And it was so. God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning - the sixth day." (Genesis 1:27-31). (see The Seven Days Of Creation) Adam and Eve had a perfect life in Eden. That is, until That Old Serpent slithered in.
Fact Finder: What was God's command to Adam (Eve had not yet been created) regarding a certain two trees in the Garden of Eden?
see Genesis 2:16-17
The Two Trees
"Now The Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there He put the man He had formed. And 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." (Genesis 2:8-9) (see The Tree of Life and The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil)
"The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And The Lord God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." (Genesis 2:15-17)
"Now The Serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals The Lord God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
"The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'"
"You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
"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. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed Fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves."
"Then the man and his wife heard the sound of The Lord God as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from The Lord God among the trees of the garden. But The Lord God called to the man, "Where are you?"
"He answered, "I heard You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."
"And He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"
"The man said, "The woman You put here with me - she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it." Then The Lord God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." (Genesis 3:1-13)
"Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living." (see The Creation Of Adam And Eve)
"The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. And The Lord God said, "The man has now become like one of Us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." So The Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After He drove the man out, He placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life." (Genesis 3:20-24)
Fact Finder: What did Paul say about Jesus Christ and Adam?
1 Corinthians 15:20-22
That Old Serpent
For many people, the sight, even the thought, of a snake causes feelings of strong dislike. Snakes are repugnant to most of us, which may be exactly why God used a "serpent," or snake, as a symbol of satan. We should naturally regard him as extremely repulsive.
Snake satan is the greatest loser of all eternity. He was at one time an obedient, close servant of God - magnificent in appearance and position (Ezekiel 28:12-15). But he threw it all away through his rebellion, and was cast down to the earth (Ezekiel 28:16-17).
No one influenced satan to sin the way that he now influences humans. Satan is an original. He decided solely by himself, he made the deliberate choice, to go from good to bad.
Satan is the Christian's greatest enemy, the most serious danger to one's eternal life. We need not live in fear of him however. Despite his now being much more powerful, we ultimately have the upper hand over him and all of his demons. We have the power of God's Holy Spirit to guide and protect us.
Satan's greatest weapon against us now is deception. Much of the world today cannot tell right from wrong, whether in matters of religion, or simple everyday life. So often what is wicked and despicable is actually glorified, while what is good and decent is sometimes viewed as somehow wrong or foolish. Satan is the ultimate expert at covering truth with lies and misconceptions.
The good news is that satan has already lost. The Life, Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ has seen to that. The day is not far off when satan is going to get all that is coming to him.
Fact Finder: What will be satan's fate for all eternity?
Revelation 20:10
The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, " Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die." (Genesis 2:16)
Have you ever wished that Adam and Eve had never eaten of that tree? Imagine how wonderful the world would be without shame and disgrace, bitterness and envy, hatred, violence, anger, pride and selfishness. How great if we could enjoy the glory of the Lord all day long, and discover and learn and grow endlessly in the knowledge and wisdom and love of God! If only there were no barriers in our relationship with God! We may regret what Adam did, but all too often we choose to repeat his mistake. This happens when we exalt the voice of independent reason above the true voice of God. It happens when we look to the laws of God more than we look to God Himself. It happens when we wonder what would happen if we just indulge in some sin, and experience the evil thing which seems so tantalising. All too often Christians are repeating the same error, not because they have to, but because the spell of satanic deception has not been fully broken.
For those of us who will enter God's Kingdom, one day things will be wonderful. Yet, even now, by repenting and turning from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and by turning to Jesus, the Tree of Life, we can enjoy far more of God. We can also be a far greater blessing to others, if we will eat of the right tree and say "No" to the enticements of the other.
For information on the Tree of Life, which we should be eating of, see The Tree of Life
This Pharisees had much religious zeal, but it was a zeal rooted in the Tree of Knowledge and not the Tree of Life. Jesus said to them, "You search the Scriptures, because you believe that in them you have eternal life. These are they, that testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me, that you might have life." (John 5:38,39).
Many (but not all) conservative evangelicals in our day are making the same error as did the Pharisees. They search the Scriptures, but are not willing to come and experience the things the Scripture speak of. By superimposing a theological framework upon the Scriptures which effectively denies the power of God to do anything unusual in answer to prayer, they claim things such as "the Bible teaches that the age of miracles has past", "the gifts of the spirit have passed away", "tongues is not for today", "a born again Christian can have struggles with the flesh, but never needs deliverance", "it may not be God's will to heal", "Christ did not die for all men" and so on. All these lies are satanic suggestions designed to hinder evangelism. Yet often the very people who believe they are the most zealous for right doctrine and for Scriptural truth end up being the ones to promote these deadening concepts. The apostle Paul took a different approach. Though himself a very learned man, he made it his aim to "know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified". But Paul's knowledge of "Jesus Christ and Him crucified" was not merely a cold intellectual endorsement of the existence of Jesus Christ and the historical fact of his crucifixation. Paul knew Jesus Christ intimately, not only as Forgiver of sins, but also as Savior from sin, healer, deliverer, guide, master, teacher, baptizer in the Holy Spirit and in many other His aspects and offices. He knew Jesus Christ crucified and so was able to clearly depict this in his preaching, as he did before the Galatians (Galatians 3:1).
As Paul said, "Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up." (1 Corinthians 8:1). We need knowledge but we need it as the Spirit of God leads us into it, and not as our own self-will would lead us into it. The knowledge that comes by the Spirit is revelation and life. The knowledge that comes by the independent action of self is death and bondage.
The internet gives us access to much knowledge. It can be a means to the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, or it could be a means to impart Jesus as the Tree of Life. Many people are finding the knowledge of both good and evil things through the net, and even experiencing them to some extent. We need to restrain ourselves, and not trust ourselves to navigate our way to the information that we need to be giving attention to. That could lead to death.
All of us need to give ourselves to prayer and worship, and waiting on God, none of which require the internet. If we feel compelled to go after the knowledge that we can find on the net, and never wait on God for the revelation we need, we are cursed, because we are trusting in men more than God. In the name of learning more about God, or about good and evil, we actually separate ourselves from the source of fellowship we could be having with God.
I urge you to make it your quest to be focussed on the Lord Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, and trusting in Him. And I ask you to pray for me, that it might always be so in my life.
The Tree of Life
"And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." (Genesis 2:9).
I have experienced God's miracles and I have no doubt that the story related in the book of Genesis literally happened. There really was an Adam and an Eve, a Tree of Life in the garden, and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. But this is not the point. What we need to do is get to the signification of those trees, and understand what they represent for us today.
God told Adam not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, with the words, "For on the day that you eat of it, you will surely die". But there was no such prohibition concerning the Tree of Life. If Adam had eaten from that tree, he would have lived forever and never died. Instead he and his wife ended up eating from the forbidden tree, because they listened to a voice which tempted them to doubt the goodness of God. This is Satan's tactic today with us. We neglect the LIFE God gives and end up trying to attain it by going on a path forbidden by God.
How good it would have been had Adam instead chosen to eat from the Tree of Life! God had said, "Of every tree in the garden you may freely eat..." Adam could have eaten from the Tree of Life! In doing so, he would have known God in an even greater way, and would never have died in any way! If he had eaten of the Tree of Life, he would never have been interested in the forbidden tree. But having NEGLECTED the tree of life, it was really only a matter of time before he would fall to the temptation of eating the forbidden fruit.
A lot of times we get into trouble because we focus on the forbidden thing. We fight with temptation, and lose, because we focus on the temptation. God wants us to get our eyes off the temptation, and even off the moral rules of what would be right and wrong, so we can get our eyes onto what He is wanting us to focus on. We inevitably move towards our most dominant thought.
What does the Tree of Life represent?
I believe in represents Jesus, the source of Life! Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the LIFE, no one comes to the Father but by Me!" (John 14:6). The gift of Jesus that is available to us represents far more than the forgiveness of sins. It represents the very life of God by which we can truly live abundantly! The whole secret then, is to focus on Jesus and not to be distracted by lesser concerns, even the concern of "is this good or is this evil?". If we learn to focus on Jesus, we will tap into the unlimited source of life, power, joy and strength that we need to be "more than conquerors" in this life.
When we truly "eat" enough of that tree, of Jesus, we will live forever. Sin in some form will always look attractive to us unless we get a new focus. I find Jesus is amazingly wonderful.
He is looking for our worship, our fellowship, our attention. Along with the Father, He is the centre of attention in Heaven. In heaven there is nothing better than to be wrapped up in Jesus! The angels worship Him day and night, and stand in continual amazement. The only reason we don't feel like that here sometimes is because of our spiritual blindness. But however blind we may be, if in our hearts we begin to turn to the Lord, something will happen, and we will begin to change. We will come to know Him if we seek Him with all our heart.
Good change doesn't happen when we focus on ourselves. This might be a surprise to some readers. But it is true. Satan loves to get us to look to ourselves. A sure mark of a satanic religion is one that tells you to look inside yourself for the answer. There are many variations on this theme. One is the eastern meditation type thing, where you are told to get in touch with your own godhood. There is another variation, far more subtle, and far more likely to appeal to Christians. That is, to measure yourself up against certain moral or spiritual principles, and consider how well or badly you are doing, and resolving to improve. Multitudes of sincere people are doing this, and fail to realise that in this way they will never become what God wants them to be.
Looking at self is a fruit of eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Just knowing good and evil doesn't give you the power to do what is right, however. When Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden tree, they began to be self-conscious. They started looking at themselves. They knew they were naked. Until then, they weren't even aware of that. In fact, they were clothed with a kind of spiritual glory before they fell, and they lived in the presence of Almighty God without shame. After eating of the forbidden Tree, they lost that glory and began to be selfish and desire to escape from the presence of Almighty God.
The problem with looking at yourself and your problems is that you inevitably end up focussing on the evil within you. It is a law of the mind that whatever you primarily focus on ends up dominating your life. Its very important that God is Lord over the imaginations of our heart. Satan is doing all he can to oppose this, using such means as television, video games, unclean music, false religion, personal ambition, lying philosophies ... the list goes on and on. When Jesus doesn't have a major part of your imagination, something else does, and it works to make you fall short of the glory of God. No one ever became holy or better simply by seeing their weaknesses and resolving to change in their own power. No, the answer is still to go back to the Tree of Life, to Jesus. Adam and Eve lost this opportunity, but we regained it because Jesus Himself paid for all our sins at the cross, making for us the way to return to true God consciousness.
If you look at yourself, judging yourself by your knowledge of good and evil, you will either end up congratulating yourself for your good performance (self-righteousness) or becoming depressed because of the guilt of failing to live up to those standards. Neither of these results is what God wants. God made us for Him, and He is not satisfied when we prefer to ignore Him and become wrapped up in our own righteousness or lack thereof. He wants us to enjoy Him, to trust Him, and that only happens when we dare to take our eyes off ourselves, trust the power of His cross, and begin to get our eyes on Him.
How To Get Your Eyes on Jesus
Attitude is very important here. God requires an attitude of faith. True faith comes through the recognition of Jesus. This knowledge of Jesus can come to us through anointed preaching and teaching of God's Word, through times of worship, through the direct action of the Holy Spirit enlightening us, through the study of the Bible, or through seeing Christ in a true Christian. In each case we have to see beyond the means God uses to reveal Christ to us, to Jesus Himself. We must not give our hearts to the methods and forget who it is about. If we focus on methods, even methods of Bible study, praise and worship, or anointed preachers, we once again fall short of the mark, and end up turning to the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, rather than to the Tree of Life.
Make Jesus your passion, and you will change. Don't be distracted by anything. Don't even allow yourself to focus on the ways God could bless you. Trust that in everything He brings you to, there is a way to see Jesus. Then your faith will grow strong, and more than that, you will be filled with the life of God Himself. This is the true fountain of satisfaction for the soul of man. Accept no substitutes!
"And The Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and
breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being." (Genesis 2:7). The Hebrew for man is pronounced aw-dawm, from which Adam is derived. It's also related to aw-dawm-ah, which means red earth, or red clay - indicating the natural earth elements that composed Adam's body, and the body of every human being since.
took one of the man's ribs [also translated took part of the man's side] and closed up the place with flesh. Then The Lord God made a woman from the rib He had taken out of the man, and He brought her to the man. The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." (Genesis 2:21-24)
