There Were Two Trees (Intro)

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About 2 weeks ago, a friend of mine lent me a book to read entitled, "There Were Two Trees in the Garden" by Rick Joyner. When he initially explained it to me, I kinda looked at him like..."huh"? He then said, "it is more profound than I am explaining it to be...read it!" Well, so far, it has been one of the slowest reads of my life. This book is unbelievably profound! I am only 47 pages in and I already know that it will rise to be one of the greatest books I have ever read! Here's the deal...when the meat is this rich, I gotta take it slow. I read, think, write, reflect, read more, etc.

So, I have decided to share some of what I am learning as I am learning it. Maybe you want to buy this book and follow along with me.
Check some of this out:
  • There were two trees in the garden of Eden. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life. They are symbolic of two spiritual lineages or family trees. Genesis to Revelation traces these two lineages or themes. Spirit or flesh? Between them lies the focal point of the dichotomy between the kingdom of God and this present evil age.
  • Adam and Eve were told not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, not only as a test of obedience to God, but because of the power that this fruit had to kill and destroy. God did not say, "if you eat it I will kill you." He said, "if you eat it, you will die." There is a reason for the distinction.
  • This is huge! Get this. Evil is evil. We all know that. But, GOOD IS EVIL as well!! And our "good" is what separates most of us from God. In fact, Jesus was much more tolerant of evil than good! Look at the Gospels. He dealt with demons more graciously than the self righteous!
  • Joyner captures it like this: "The knowledge of good and evil kills us by distracting us from the one who is the source of life: the tree of life---JESUS! The tree of knowledge causes us to focus our attention on ourselves. Sin is empowered by the law; not just because the evil is revealed, but the good as well. It drives us to either corruption or self-righteousness, both of which lead to death!"
  • It is no accident that the tree of knowledge was in the center of the garden (Gen 3:3). Self-centerdness is the main product of the this tree. After Adam and Eve ate its fruit, their response was self inspection. Before that time, they were focused on the Lord and his purposes for them. After eating of the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, they were focused on measuring themselves.
  • There is no easier way to keep us from the tree of life (Jesus) than to focus our attention on ourselves.
More later...