As a Christian, I expected to go to heaven by living a good life, being a productive member of society, and, of course, going to church. I think most Christians can agree with that. However, once I studied about the tree of life, my opinion changed and I realized I was misguided in the churches I attended in the past.
What is the tree of life? It is the other tree God mentioned in the Garden of Eden. The tree everyone knows about is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The tree no one talks about, and has probably never even heard of, is the tree or life (Genesis 2:9). Before, I might have thought, “Two people lived in a garden, ate from a tree, and were kicked out… How does that help me?” That’s what I was always told, but that was not the whole story.
The Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil
I learned the full story about the tree of life when I studied the Bible at the World Mission Society Church of God (WMSCOG). When I read that God mentioned a second tree in the Garden of Eden, I thought it was so weird that I never heard about it. No church I attended in the past talked about it. You might be thinking, “So there are two trees… What’s the big deal?” When you know the tree of life was in the Garden of Eden, you can fully understand God’s will for Christians today. Jesus explained the importance of doing the will of God.
Matthew 7:21 – ““Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
Christians must believe and do the will of God to enter heaven. If everything God makes has a will or a purpose (Revelation 4:11), then God had a purpose for placing those two special trees in the Garden of Eden. Two trees. Two choices. Two opposite results. If you eat from one tree, you die…
Genesis 2:16-17 – 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 from it you will certainly die.”
… and if you eat from the other, you live forever.
Genesis 3:22 – 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 in Eden and live forever.”
God said “take also” because Adam and Eve “took” from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil first, meaning they ate from it.
What does it all mean? When I studied the Bible, I clearly understood there was something deeper.
Why Did God Place the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden of Eden?
The Church of God follows the teachings of the Bible taught by Ahnsahnghong. To this question, Ahnsahnghong explains in his book, “The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and the Gospel”
Eternal life was not guaranteed for Adam and Eve because they had opportunity to sin by eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. However, God’s plan for us is to guarantee us eternal life.
There is a connection between the blood of Jesus and the tree of life.
Have You Ever Eaten from the Tree of Life?
This video gives a short explanation about the tree of life and God’s plan to give us eternal life. Get your Bibles ready!
The pattern in the Bible is pretty clear.
Eat from Tree of Life → Eternal Life (Gen 3:22)
Eat flesh & blood of Jesus → Eternal Life (John 6:54)
The tree of life is the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ. How come no one has taught about the tree of life that leads to eternal life? I only learned this in the Church of God. It is clearly not optional, according to Jesus.
John 6:53:54 – Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.
Eating the flesh and blood of Jesus is the way we can eat from the tree of life.
The Tree of Life is Very Relevant
Jesus taught the way to eat the flesh and blood of Christ is by celebrating the Passover. Eternal life is the most important thing in the Bible. That is why all the apostles mentioned keeping the Passover.
- Matthew (Matthew 26:17-28)
- Mark (Mark 14:12-24)
- Luke (Luke 22:7-20)
- John (John 13 – 17)
- Paul (1 Corinthians 5:7-8)
- Peter (1 Peter 1:18-19)
The only church I have attended that has taught about the tree of life, the Passover, is the Church of God, founded by Ahnsahnghong in 1964. What I thought was an insignificant detail turned out to be a huge part of God’s plan to save the people of the world. I would encourage anyone who doesn’t see relevance in the Bible to study about the Tree of Life.
Related Articles
- WMSGOG: Passover – The New Covenant
- Ahnsahnghong or Armstrong, Who Restored the Passover First
- Passover and Christ Ahnsahnghong
- How can Ahnsahnghong be the Christ?
Sources
Ahnsahnghong. The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Gospel. Melchizedek Publishing Co., Ltd. 7th Edition. 2011.