Tree of Life

Growing up in South Dakota, there was a tree strip in the corner of my neighborhood. It did not have anything as impressive as the redwoods on the Pacific coast or as impressive as the cherry trees with their beautiful blossoms in DC. Looking back, I assume that they were oaks and cottonwoods and other Midwest prairie species. We would go there sometimes. We’d play there. We’d climb trees. We’d ride our bikes on the path. It was a place of life. Birds and squirrels up in the branches. Rabbits in the undergrowth. Once a while a raccoon. Sometimes, something unknown rustled in the brown leaves from last fall. It was filled with sounds of life. It was green. And it was peaceful. In the beginning, God created a world and He filled it with life. He made the ground and filled it with life. He made the air and filled it with life. He made the seas and lakes and rivers and filled it all with life. He made living plants that could take the soil and the water and the air and the sunshine and turn it into food. He made a place to live and to call home.In the middle of a garden, among all of the other trees, there was a tree of life. Not out on the edge somewhere. Life was in the middle of God’s plans for this world. Life existed there in abundance and life thrived.Human beings took from a different tree. One of the knowledge of good and evil. In Hebrew thought, “knowledge” includes both things that we know and things that we experience. It’s like, “I’ve known some good years and some hard years,” meaning that both have been experienced. Since that bite in the garden, human beings have known and experienced both good and evil. There’s both kindness and anger, both health and illness, both peace and violence. Human beings have been remaking the world. At the same time, there is still a lot left of God’s creation. The sun is still shining. Food is still growing. Birds are still flying and singing. Pets are still providing companionship. Families still care for each other. We still see actions of compassion and respect.There was another Tree of Life. It grew somewhere near Jerusalem. It was cut down and turned into beams of wood. The beams were used to make a cross, as an object used to execute troublemakers. And on one cross, the Son of God gave His life to save our lives. That instrument for death was used by God as an instrument for life. Jesus entered into death, and rose to life for us. What happened to the original Tree of Life? According to God’s Word in Revelation 22, it’s in the middle of Heaven. It stands on either side of the River of Life. Its leaves are for healing. God created life and He makes life new.Pastor Ken HartFaith Lutheran ChurchFairbury

Playing The Shell Game

Jeffs Have Strong Day At Sandy Creek

Related Articles

Oh, What a Tangled Web We Weave

Gage County Newsletter

Things That Go Squeak in the Night

The Real Problem with Fake News