Eden and Its Tree

I imagine that the Creator of the Universe takes pretty big steps when left on His own. If so, Eden must have been huge! As Adam and Eve took their evening strolls with God, they undoubtedly covered a reasonable amount of turf.

As the story goes, within that paradise of enormous proportions, there was a tree that, in all probability, was not by comparison, all that large. Nonetheless it represented the critical counterpoint -the restriction, the Law, the 'eat of any but...' So let us presume that in that gigantic world of freedom where one walked about somewhat casually with the Lord, there was a comparatively small limitation that the first beings were forbidden to overstep.

That's not to underestimate the ramifications of disobedience. Death is a significant consequence! However, it might be worthwhile to consider God's intent in the light of the fact that earth's first inhabitants were given a huge playing field that contained within it a minor, if deadly, restriction. Compare it to a needle in the haystack and God saying , "Here, enjoy the hay! Just be somewhat careful since there is a needle in the middle of it. I've even marked it with a big, red X. Don't hurt yourselves, okay!"

If such were the case it would be very easy to rant about what it is in mankind's makeup that our focus almost immediately turns to the tiny needle and a rebellious insistence that we know better about the upkeep of our soul's welfare than God.

However, here's the point. I think God's intent is freedom and that He created a universe of potential within which such liberty was to be experienced. The Law was not designed nearly as much to control, manipulate and govern as it was to inform us of a vital safety clause, a warning to us that certain actions would be deadly.

Current spiritual trends would either deny that there really is a needle in the haystack or they would lead us to believe that if we just sit tight in our pew, decked in our Sunday best, we'll be okay.

I think they both miss God's intent of relationship. My personal conviction is that God created a world where we were to be set free to find Him, know Him and enjoy Him. Freedom was His intent. The phenomenal cost of ensuring such freedom was Christ. All the pew-sitting in our Sunday best not only can't do the job, but completely misses the point.

If we truly believed that our greatest failures were already covered, paid for and worked out for good, how would that change our decisions in the year ahead? How would it alter the 'just in case' actions we take to cover us in the event that the Good News isn't quite as thorough as it claims?

What if comparatively speaking, Eden really is that big and the tree that small?