Resist the Fruit of the Tree

I’ve often thought about the story of Adam and Eve. Here they are in this beautiful place, surrounded by beauty and good and companionship (I mean it is the garden of Eden!). How could they not follow God’s commandment to not eat fruit from that one tree? How could they not trust that they already had all they needed?

But then, I’ve also thought about my own life. The blessings are so bountiful and clear and yet, there have been plenty of moments when I’ve questioned, when I’ve thought, I need more, when I’ve not been able to trust.

This lack of trust plays can play out in some pretty destructive ways. With Adam and Eve, when they take matters into their own hands, when they put their trust elsewhere, it leaves only wanting… longing… grasping.”

This true on many levels.

If we don’t trust God, we’re more likely to seek revenge… less likely to forgive.

If we don’t trust God, we are more likely to take more than we need… less likely to be generous. If we don’t trust God, we’re more likely to be constantly grasping for the next thing and less likely to be at peace with ourselves and the world. If we don’t trust God, we’re more likely to become bitter or cynical or fall into despair.

One of the things that strikes me about the story of Adam and Eve is that it is not just a story that happened, but a story that happens…

Maybe we resist eating from the fruit of the tree by trusting God even when we can’t see the full picture. Maybe we resist eating from the tree by trusting Christ’s teaching to love, to give, and to forgive, even when the world around us scoffs. Maybe we resist eating from the fruit of the tree by trusting that have all that we need, and even should the worst happen, ultimately that we rest in God’s hands.

Let us pray: Help us, O God, to trust that you are as good as Jesus taught, gracious, merciful, forgiving, loving. Help us further to trust in your gracious providence. For you have promised that in life and in death we belong to you. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.