Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Wisdom is essential for life (Gen 2:16-17).
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Wisdom is essential for life (Gen 2:16-17).
Prayer
Dear Lord God, as we open your word, we pray that you would please help us and speak to us. Please give us understanding and help us to grow in our knowledge of you, that you may be exalted and glorified in our lives. We pray that you'd give us wisdom in the reading of your word now, in our meditation. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Reading
Genesis 2:16-17.
“And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, (17) 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.”
Meditation
Wisdom is essential for life. In our previous studies, we saw that one of the ways that life flourishes on earth is through work. That’s certainly true, if we are idle no fruit can grow. For life to flourish, work is required. As we consider the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Genesis narrative, we see that there’s another important ingredient necessary for life to grow, and that is the ingredient of wisdom. The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil teaches us that wisdom itself is a condition of life. Without wisdom, death is the result. We saw in our last study, that the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil is the Tree of Wisdom. Wisdom and death, therefore, are embodied as exact opposites in the tree.
King Solomon confirms this conclusion for us at various points in the Book of Proverbs. For example, Proverbs 13:14 says: “The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death.” This proverb is repeated almost exactly in Proverbs 14:27: “The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death.” Wisdom leads to life, foolishness leads to death.
Turning back to the Genesis narrative, one of the interesting things about the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil is that it gives wisdom not by eating of it’s fruit, but by abstaining. The Tree of Life gave life as Adam and Eve ate of its fruit, but the tree of good and evil works differently. This tree would give wisdom by abstaining from it’s fruit, and directing us to choose the Tree of Life instead. In other words, in abstaining from its fruit, Adam and Eve began training to discern between good and evil. God’s intention was that they would discern, and then choose the good, and so the tree of the knowledge of good and evil gave them the first lesson in wisdom that they needed to live: choose life over disobedience! (which brings death).
We learn from this that one of the central lessons of how wisdom works is that it listens to God. In a sense, then, the first lesson of wisdom is simply this: listen to God. That is, in fact, exactly the first lesson we find in the book of Proverbs. In Proverbs 1:7-9 we read: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, and forsake not your mother’s teaching, for they are a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck.” We must listen to our Heavenly Father. The heartbeat of wisdom is the word of God, just as God spoke to Adam to give him the instruction about the trees. If Adam and Eve ignored God’s Word, death would result. They must listen, and not eat of that tree. Deuteronomy 8:3 says: “...man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.”
Be ye doers of the word…
The life-lesson we draw from this is quite simple: listen to God. We must ask ourselves honestly: Do I listen to God? Do I treat his word as though life and death hangs in the balance? Because they do. So it was in Eden, and so it is today. So then, listen to God. Listen to his word read. Listen to his word preached. Listen carefully and diligently. Listen as though your life depends on it. Discipline your attention. Much is at stake when we open up the Word of God. SDG.
Prayer of Confession & Consecration
Prayer of Confession and Consecration Lord God Most High, please forgive us for the many times that we have disregarded your word. Even today, we pray, O Lord, have mercy on us. Lead us in your ways and help us to treasure and give our attention to your word, to choose what is good and to turn away from what is evil. O Lord, our remaining sinful nature is constantly trying to take the steering wheel of our hearts and steer us away from the good and toward the evil. Have mercy upon us, O Lord. Strengthen us according to your word, that you may be exalted. Please protect us and bless all your people in my local church, in our local churches, with your wisdom. We pray in Jesus' name, Amen.
Get full access to Old things New. at rcbhpastor.substack.com/subscribe
View all episodes
By Reformed devotions from all of scripture.Prayer
Dear Lord God, as we open your word, we pray that you would please help us and speak to us. Please give us understanding and help us to grow in our knowledge of you, that you may be exalted and glorified in our lives. We pray that you'd give us wisdom in the reading of your word now, in our meditation. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Reading
Genesis 2:16-17.
“And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, (17) 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.”
Meditation
Wisdom is essential for life. In our previous studies, we saw that one of the ways that life flourishes on earth is through work. That’s certainly true, if we are idle no fruit can grow. For life to flourish, work is required. As we consider the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in the Genesis narrative, we see that there’s another important ingredient necessary for life to grow, and that is the ingredient of wisdom. The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil teaches us that wisdom itself is a condition of life. Without wisdom, death is the result. We saw in our last study, that the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil is the Tree of Wisdom. Wisdom and death, therefore, are embodied as exact opposites in the tree.
King Solomon confirms this conclusion for us at various points in the Book of Proverbs. For example, Proverbs 13:14 says: “The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death.” This proverb is repeated almost exactly in Proverbs 14:27: “The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death.” Wisdom leads to life, foolishness leads to death.
Turning back to the Genesis narrative, one of the interesting things about the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil is that it gives wisdom not by eating of it’s fruit, but by abstaining. The Tree of Life gave life as Adam and Eve ate of its fruit, but the tree of good and evil works differently. This tree would give wisdom by abstaining from it’s fruit, and directing us to choose the Tree of Life instead. In other words, in abstaining from its fruit, Adam and Eve began training to discern between good and evil. God’s intention was that they would discern, and then choose the good, and so the tree of the knowledge of good and evil gave them the first lesson in wisdom that they needed to live: choose life over disobedience! (which brings death).
We learn from this that one of the central lessons of how wisdom works is that it listens to God. In a sense, then, the first lesson of wisdom is simply this: listen to God. That is, in fact, exactly the first lesson we find in the book of Proverbs. In Proverbs 1:7-9 we read: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, and forsake not your mother’s teaching, for they are a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck.” We must listen to our Heavenly Father. The heartbeat of wisdom is the word of God, just as God spoke to Adam to give him the instruction about the trees. If Adam and Eve ignored God’s Word, death would result. They must listen, and not eat of that tree. Deuteronomy 8:3 says: “...man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.”
Be ye doers of the word…
The life-lesson we draw from this is quite simple: listen to God. We must ask ourselves honestly: Do I listen to God? Do I treat his word as though life and death hangs in the balance? Because they do. So it was in Eden, and so it is today. So then, listen to God. Listen to his word read. Listen to his word preached. Listen carefully and diligently. Listen as though your life depends on it. Discipline your attention. Much is at stake when we open up the Word of God. SDG.
Prayer of Confession & Consecration
Prayer of Confession and Consecration Lord God Most High, please forgive us for the many times that we have disregarded your word. Even today, we pray, O Lord, have mercy on us. Lead us in your ways and help us to treasure and give our attention to your word, to choose what is good and to turn away from what is evil. O Lord, our remaining sinful nature is constantly trying to take the steering wheel of our hearts and steer us away from the good and toward the evil. Have mercy upon us, O Lord. Strengthen us according to your word, that you may be exalted. Please protect us and bless all your people in my local church, in our local churches, with your wisdom. We pray in Jesus' name, Amen.
Get full access to Old things New. at rcbhpastor.substack.com/subscribe