Word of the Week - Freedom - Part 2 - Tree of Life

“Jesus said, “If you hold to my teachings, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth and the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves to anyone.  How can you say that we shall be set free?”  Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.  Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.  So, if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” John 8:31-36

In my “Word of the Week” last week, see below, I shared a message on “Freedom” grounded in the scripture above.  The reality that Jesus sacrifice on the cross gives us access to salvation and so much more.  To live the abundant life that Jesus talks about in John 10:10, we must intentionally pursue the healing power of Jesus and be set free from the things that we all carry from our past that hold us back from the fullness of what God has for us.  This is the process of sanctification that God calls every follower of Jesus to choose daily.  Based on my personal experience and walk with Jesus over the past 24 years, second only to surrender and salvation, I believe this to be the most important aspect of our spiritual journey; making a decision each morning when we awake to choose God’s way “The Tree of Life” and be “transformed by the renewing of our minds” vs. “the pattern of this world” “Tree of Knowledge” Romans 12:2.  The truth is that we have been programmed by the way of the “World” and we must choose to allow God to reprogram our minds and hearts toward Christ and the Tree of Life.  This is how we live in the fullness of the abundant life that God promises us.

The Tree of life is a biproduct of daily fellowship with Jesus – “I am the vine you are the branches, if you abide in me, I will abide in you, and you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 This is my single favorite scripture in the bible because it is so simple and clear.  Jesus himself promises us that if we pursue a connection with Him that He will reciprocate by connecting with us and this will produce spiritual fruit in our lives.  This is how we live in the “Tree of life”, we simply make our connection and relationship with Jesus the first and highest priority.  This is simply a daily decision we all make.  It is not complicated; it’s a simple choice we all make every morning when we awake.  What will be our “First Fruits”.  Will we eat from Jesus “Tree of Life” by getting in His word to renew our minds and spirit or will we start thinking about our to-do list and start checking our text and emails, “The Tree of Knowledge”.  Living from the Tree of Life means staying connected to God, trusting Him rather than relying on our own understanding.  “The tree of life is not about what you know, but who you know” John Maxwell

Fellowship with God results in Innocence – “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest of heaven.  And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.” Matthew 18:3-5.  As we spend time walking with God, listening to His voice, talking to Him, obeying Him, worshipping Him, and enjoying Him, we will notice transformation taking place both on the outside (our behavioral patterns) and most importantly on the inside (our view of who we are in Christ).  We will become in a sense “naked and unashamed” before Jesus.  Think of children running around with no clothes on after taking a bath.  They are innocent and free with no shame! Childlike innocence is an amazing and powerful virtue.  Adam and Eve were living in nakedness and innocence before they sinned and ate the fruit of “The tree of Knowledge” where they lost their innocence and were filled with guilt and shame and started to hide from God.  They lost their connection and fellowship with God. God wants us to be mature in our thinking, but for us to live in the fullness of God’s power, we must foster a childlike spirit.  Jesus said we should be “shrewd as a snake and innocent as a dove” Matthew 10:16  Simple innocence is born out of a friendship with God and fosters deeper intimacy and relationship with God and others.  

Innocence is a conduit for God’s power in our lives – “The spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” Luke 4:18-19.  This scripture says God anointed Jesus to preach the good news.  Being “anointed” to do something means being empowered by the Holy Spirit.  When we are filled with the Holy Spirit and abide in Jesus, we become free and live in freedom.  We become vessels of honor to be useful in God’s Kingdom.  Innocence keeps our minds and hearts pure, helping us continually recognize our need for God.  An attitude of dependance on God is fertile ground for anointing of the Holy Spirit.  As we seek God and submit our lives to Him, He equips us for every good work (2 Timothy 3:17). 

Living from the Tree of Life – Our relationship with the Father through our ongoing connection with Jesus is essential to living in the “Tree of Life”.  God loves us where we are as stated in Romans 5:8, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  He made the first move in love, He simply desires for us to respond by making Him our first and highest priority.  We are made righteous before God by the finished work on the cross not by our works and what we do.  We simply need Jesus plus nothing!  We pursue and serve Jesus not out of duty or obligation (religion) but out of love and friendship (relationship).  God is our loving Abba father, and we are His sons and daughters who He loves deeply.  It is our choice to live out of the Tree of Life vs. the Tree of Knowledge, an attitude of grace and dependance vs judgement and self-reliance.  We need to ask the Lord to help us make life-giving decisions every day in every aspect of our lives.  We will not always get it right, God knows I have fallen short too many times to count, but if we make it our heart desire then God will continue to transform our hearts and minds into His image.  I am not where I want to be, but by the power of God at work in me, I am a totally different man than I used to be.  We must remember that God is for us, He loves us and desires the best for us.  “Our Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love” Psalm 145:8

The truth is that every day God invites us to live from a place of trust, intimacy, and dependance symbolized by the “Tree of Life” (connection to Jesus and His ways) rather than from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses.  Now choose life, so that your children may live.” Deuteronomy 30:19  Lets choose life “today”!

“It is for Freedom that Christ has set us free.  Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1

Have a great week and live in the Freedom of Christ!