Proverbs 3:18. [Wisdom] is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her; those who hold her fast are called blessed.
Do you recall the story of Adam and Eve in Genesis? God created Adam and Eve and placed them in the center of the Garden of Eden with two trees, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and the Tree of Life. If asked which of these two trees would make a person wise it would make sense to answer the Tree of Knowledge. But wisdom is in the Tree of Life, not the Tree of Knowing Good and Evil. It is eating the fruit of life with God that is wisdom, not eating the fruit of knowing what God knows.
The life offered by God, through wisdom, is much more than physical life or even psychological life. It is fellowship with God. It is favor with the Lord. It is a life lived within the love of God. Not mere existence, but the flourishing that comes when living in a right relationship with God. God warned Adam and Eve that if they ate from the Tree of Knowledge they would die. Why? Because to choose to know good and evil on their own, apart from God, was a rejection of God and his grace. But the Tree of Life offered a life of trusting God. Fearing God. Receiving God’s grace.
In the New Testament Jesus claims to be this life. I am the way, the truth, and the life he said. The Spirit in us is a fountain of life, watering the tree of life (Christ) that is growing in our hearts. The thing about trees is that they don’t move. You have to go to them, you have to lay hold of the fruit, and choose to eat it. But in Christ the Tree of Life has come to you, he has planted himself into the soil of your soul. Now we who are in Christ can eat that fruit of his everlasting life all day every day. We can let his grace nourish us. We can rest in the shade of his mercy. We can climb the branches of his love. We can always hold on to God’s life because Life is holding on to us.
You: Are you regularly eating from the Tree of Knowledge or the Tree of Life? Can you tell the difference?
You in Christ: In Christ the Tree of Life has taken hold of you. How does this help you to have confidence to take hold ofhis life each day?
Christ in you: Where do you need to trust in the wisdom of Christ’s indwelling love rather than in your own wisdom?
Pray: Jesus, you are my tree of life. Thank you for grabbing hold of me first so that I can grab hold of you. Amen.
To Live is Christ 