The Tree of Life

The first thing you’ll notice about this post is that it’s not about the Armor of God. Don’t worry! We’re not done with that series yet. We’re just taking a little Holy Spirit-led detour this week.

I was reading in Proverbs and this verse grabbed ahold of me and wouldn’t let go:

"She [wisdom] is a tree of life to those who take hold of her; those who hold her fast will be blessed." - Proverbs 3:18

Sound familiar?

I thought so too!

Let’s flip all the way back to Genesis chapter 2, and we’ll find the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden.

"And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." - Genesis 2:9

But wait a second… there’s another tree there too. The infamous one that led to humanity’s sin and separation from God.

So, what’s the difference between these two trees?

WISDOM.

Stick with me here, and we’ll walk through it together.

In Genesis, we’re told that the tree of life grants immortality. And the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is forbidden. We’re not given much more context than that except for later in the story when Adam and Eve are banned from the Garden in order to keep them from exacting of the tree of life after acquiring the knowledge of good and evil.

Proverbs tells us that wisdom is the tree of life.

I believe that God’s long-term plan for Adam and Eve was never to keep them in ignorance in the Garden forever, but to teach them about good and evil through His perfect wisdom. This is a key factor that humanity missed out on by partaking in the other tree.

They sought knowledge by their own means, apart from God. See, it wasn't the knowledge-seeking that was sinful. It was the "apart from God" thing. We can read all through the book of Proverbs that knowledge and understanding are good things that God wants for His people. But it's got to come from Him, or it will end up getting all twisted.

Thus is the story of humanity even today: we seek instant gratification rather than discipline. We google it instead of studying it. We grab at knowledge instead of seeking wisdom.

The tree of life is about relying on the Lord to give you wisdom in order to discern the knowledge of good and evil. I believe that’s what Adam and Eve missed out on when they took that knowledge for themselves rather than waiting on God to teach and reveal it to them in His perfect timing.

Today, through Jesus Christ we are faced with another chance at eternal life through wisdom and the tree of life.

Revelation talks about it too:

"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." - Revelation 2:7

Through wisdom, eternal life with our triune God is attainable once again! We have the same choice set before us daily: instant gratification of knowledge apart from God, or discipline and persistence to seek God’s wisdom and attain eternal life through it?

Put that way, it sounds like an easy choice doesn't it? But you and I both know it can be hard to put it into practice.

I have good news for you, friend…

It’s as simple as opening God’s word.

Yup. It's really that simple.

Open Proverbs. Read the words of wisdom you find there. Then read them again. As you do, those words will begin to bury themselves in your heart, and you’ll begin to grab hold of God’s wisdom. As you do, that wisdom will grab hold of you and lead you into eternal life with Christ.

Proverbs repeats this promise over and over again: wisdom produces life!