Trust and Eat

Genesis 1 – 2 is definitive in understanding our origin and purpose. God created you in his image, to follow his word, and to give leadership and meaning to your surroundings.

The third word that God gave to Adam is the most well known from the creation account; “And the LORD God commanded the man saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’ ” Genesis 2:16 – 17. Much has been written and discussed about these verses and this command. One thing is for sure; the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was not to be eaten. God had a different purpose for the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It had another purpose.

Leaders make decisions. Leaders need discernment, wisdom, and knowledge. Here was a tree that seemed to fit the bill, and yet God had another purpose for it. It was not for obtaining wisdom and discernment. Adam was about to need wisdom for naming the animals, but it would not come from a tree.

God’s word is clear, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge…” Proverbs 1:7. “My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding…” Proverbs 2:1 – 6

Adam would receive wisdom, understanding, and knowledge by eating God’s word, not the fruit of a tree called knowledge. Trusting what God said as true and following what God said with grateful respect and awe would lead to wisdom, understanding, and knowledge from God in his word. Wise choices according to God’s word would follow, giving creation direction and meaning. The same is true today.

This, as we know, was the point of attack by Satan in Genesis 3, trusting God according to his word. The strategy of the world, the flesh, and the devil has not changed. Once God’s character is questioned, his word begins to lose credibility. When confidence in the truth of what God has said weakens, the world, the flesh, and the devil take over with new directions and leads. The problem with the new directions is that they all lead to death and the grave. And the greater problem was that everyone following Adam and Eve were enslaved having followed this deadly lead. “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” Proverbs 14:12.

The choice is still given today; life or death? Who or what will you follow? How can you know who or what to follow? God’s word invites you to “…taste and see that the LORD is good.” Psalm 34:8. As you trust and eat his word, receiving it into your inner most being, you will begin to see, to know, and to understand, but only if you trust God. You will not eat what you do not trust. Parents have to teach this to small children. They put anything and everything in their mouths. You can trust what God has said as true and good. God is trustworthy.

Memorize, pray, and meditate on Psalm 119:103 today, “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth.” And know that as you do, God will give you wisdom. He has promised. He is faithful. He will do it.