Our Choice of Trees

“And out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” (Genesis 2:9)

Adam and Eve had a choice every single day. They had a choice every single moment of their lives. We have that same choice. As Adam and Eve strolled through the Garden of Eden and enjoyed paradise, they passed by the one thing God told them they could not have or eat. Somehow, all the pleasures God could give them in the garden were suddenly not enough when the serpent began causing them to doubt what God had said.

“Now the serpent was more subtle than any other wild creature that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God say, ‘you shall not eat of any tree of the garden?’ And the woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but God said, ‘you shall not eat of the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” (Genesis 3:1-3)

Did you notice the location of the forbidden tree? In Genesis 2 we see the tree of life was placed in the midst of the garden. In Genesis 3 we see the tree of knowledge of good and evil, which is the forbidden tree, was also in the middle of the garden. Adam and Eve did not have to go very far to eat from the forbidden fruit, but they also had the tree of life staring them right in the face when they did it.

We do the same each day. We have the laws of God, the sacraments, the commandments of God all at the same time when we choose to turn a blind eye and take of the sinful tree which is against all those laws and commandments. We choose to spew vulgar and hateful words through our mouths and social media against those we disagree with but simultaneously speak of the value of each life. We preach that God loves each person while at the same time pouring hate against our neighbor. We preach that Christ died for forgiveness of sins while at the same time refusing to offer forgiveness to others ourselves.

Before we speak with our lips or type with our fingers let us ask ourselves if it lifts someone up and points them to Jesus or is it fruit from the forbidden tree? Are my actions and words the fruit from the tree of life that gets me closer to God or are they the fruit of the forbidden tree that leads to sin?

Each day and every moment we are given the choice to obey or disobey. We are given the choice every moment of our lives to listen to the commands of God or the taunts of the serpent. We are given a choice every single moment to choose life or choose death. With each breath we take we are given the choice to believe God or not to believe.

Which tree are you eating from today? Which fruit is in your hand at this moment?