(1) People Who Enjoy Foolish Adventures
In order for Adam and Eve who were the first children of God on earth to live a life of eternal happiness without death, our Father showed them the ways and conditions for everlasting life. He warned them of the terrible pit of destruction that they would fall into if they were to disregard His conditions and gave them precautions and instructions to be on guard, repeatedly.
The condition for an eternal life of happiness was,[The Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden] (Gen. 2:9). [Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it ... and commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat'] (Gen. 2:15, 16), and live forever.
As for the way that leads to the pit of death He clearly warned saying, [but of the fruit of the tree (of the knowledge of good and evil) which is in the midst of the garden you shall not eat it ... for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die] (Gen 3:3, 2:17).
And so they were well instructed regarding the ways and conditions for eternal life as well as for eternal death. But these first children of God fearlessly attempted to take a terrible and foolish adventure. They trifled with the words of their truthful Father and inclined their ears to the whisperings of the enemy, who had climbed over the wall of Eden to entice them into partaking of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which was full of the deadly poison of death. By trifling with the words of the Father, there immediately resulted in the rapid spreading of the deadly poison throughout their whole bodies and souls, and their immortality which was promised on the condition of obedience was forever forfeited. Who could have known the terrible consequences that would result from one wrong step taken against God's word, in following the enemy's suggestion in that deadly moment of temptation? How could they love adventure so recklessly as to dare doubt their Father's words?
But my brothers and sisters! Do not be astonished. For many more children than the first two, millions and tens of millions of God's children today are at this very hour enjoying the same dreadful adventure as did the first holy pair in the beginning, and all are falling into the great snare of death, into a vast field of corpses. Some may be perplexed and ask, "What do you mean by this?" But it is true that the whole human race, excluding a few, are continuously eating that very fruit of the forbidden tree that the first holy pair ate of and died, and they are all going down toward destruction.
Before we study the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, let me tell you about one more thing.
There is only one way to life or death, either in the garden of Eden, on this earth today, or in the future heavenly paradise: All who partake of the tree of knowledge become doomed to degradation and death by its poison. And all who forsake the forbidden fruit and only take the fruit of the tree of life become the heirs of an eternal life of happiness both on earth and in heaven. This is the only immutable law of life and death that the Creator our Father has established, who is the [Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End] (Rev. 1:8).
We well know that there were both the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in Eden, and that they will also be present in today's fruit of life or forbidden fruit which is extremely important to our survival today.
(2) The Fruit of Life That Even Fallen Sinners Can Eat and Live
Let us now learn about today's fruit of life. When Adam and Eve tried to hide their shame with fig leaves after having forfeited their robes of light which had enshrouded them before their transgression, our Father of infinite love and mercy provided them with a garment of sheepskin representing the garments of the Savior's righteousness, to replace their lost robe of glorious light.
Moreover, for His earthly children who are wandering even today, after forfeiting the fruit of life which sinners can no longer partake of, He provides another fruit of life that even the greatest sinners can partake of and live forever. This is the word fruit of life, the Bible, that proceeds out of the mouth of God who is the source of eternal life. As He said, [Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God] (Matt. 4:4). This is why Peter said, [Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life] (John 6:68).
Now by only taking the word of fruit of life, we sinners are able to restore the eternal life we forfeited in Eden. This is yet another form of the fruit of life that our Father mercifully bestowed upon us who are wandering about after having lost access to the fruit of life in Eden. Jesus also adds, [It is the Spirit who gives life ... the words (Bible) that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.] [You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life.] [Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God] (John 6:63, John 5:39, Matt. 4:4).
Oh, what a wonderful and precious gift our heavenly Father gave to His sinful children! We no longer need to be sorrowful over the fruit of life that we forfeited in Eden. The Bible, the new form of the fruit of life, is not in the slightest degree inferior to that of the one in Eden in giving us eternal life. On the contrary, it is more convenient to take and has the same effects. The only differences are in the way they look, in the way we eat of it, and in the location of the trees.
The former one was the fruit on the tree; we were able to see it with our eyes, pluck it with our hands, and eat it with our mouth, and it was in the midst of the Garden. But the latter one is made of letters which altogether constitute His Word that if filled with His Spirit and life; that we see through the eyes of the soul, and pluck with the hand of the heart, and eat through the mouth of the soul. It is located in the midst of the Bible. Anywhere in the world that the Bible is found, we can easily obtain it, eat of it and live. We need not attempt to go to Eden. Moreover, in the garden of Eden only the sinless ones were able to partake of it, but that which we have now sinners and anyone who chooses to can freely pluck it, eat it and live forever. Should we not praise and thank our Father for this?
In addition, He has given us the walking word fruit of life, that is, Jesus Christ His Son who says, [I am the bread of life.] [I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever] (John 6:48, 51).
Truly Jesus Christ is the fruit of life who brings us perfect eternal life which has been given from God; He is the Word that has been with God from the beginning (John 1:1). And this [Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory ... full of grace and truth] (John 1:14), and He was the word fruit of life.
(3) The Beautiful Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
Now, let's turn to the story of the forbidden fruit. In the center of the Garden of Eden, the tree of knowledge of good and evil was standing in parallel with the fruit of life, as if in jealous competition with each other. [The fruit of life was also in the midst of the knowledge of good and evil] (Gen. 2:9). [But God has said, ‘You shall not eat it ... nor shall you touch it'] (Gen. 3:3).
As the tree of knowledge of good and evil was standing in parallel competitively with the fruit of life in the midst of the garden so is today's forbidden tree standing jealously in parallel with the word fruit of life in the midst of the Bible. Today's tree of knowledge is also a word tree like the word fruit of life. In other words, the word tree of knowledge is also found in the midst of the Bible.
Today, the fate of every member of the entire human race depends upon which tree he chooses to partake of ; either the word fruit of life, or the word tree of knowledge, both standing in parallel in the midst of the Bible.
As for the forbidden fruit in Eden, rather than being ugly in appearance as we think of a deadly fruit to be, it was not in the slightest degree inferior to the fruit of life in appearance, beauty, or in fragrance. It seemed peerless in all aspects. As Eve, a paragon of beauty beheld it, she was so fascinated by it that she could not remember the fruit of the tree of life standing right beside it; and standing aghast, she found it [good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, ad a tree desirable to make one wise] (Gen. 3:6). Then she was led to doubt her Father's words, murmuring to herself, "How fair it looks! I wonder why my Father has forbidden me to eat such a tender and beautiful fruit as this! I wonder why?" We can imagine it to be so mysteriously beautiful and fascinating as to surpass even the fruit of life.
Oh, the forbidden fruit so exceedingly beautiful in the sight of Eve! Who could have dreamt it to be poisonous enough to kill all of mankind!
Only those children who believe the words of the Father to the letter and obey Him without question can know and understand. As the forbidden fruit so bewitched man, so is the forbidden fruit today in the midst of the Bible bewitching and destroying all Adams and Eves of the world, for it is poisonous enough to destroy the human race. Who will expose this grievous fact before the world and warn everyone of its danger? Yesterday and today, everyday, millions and tens of millions of my brothers and sisters who partake of this dreadful fruit are setting their feet onto the path leading to destruction and death.
(4) Analysis of the Fruit of Life and the Forbidden Fruit
Now we will learn of what these fruits are made of.
a. The Fruit of Life
As the fruit of life in Eden was made up of God's pure love and His life without any poisonous foreign matter, so is today's word fruit of life made of nothing but His love, mercy and tenderness - the true doctrine of the Bible that God's whole self is love (1 John 4:8).
Love is the light and life of God. With Him is no evil and no poisonous character; His life and whole entity is love. If He could be deprived of His love, He would pass away immediately like the sun deprived of its rays. His whole heart and life is love; He Himself is made of love. He does not have even a shadow of evil but only goodness, mercy and steadfast love. The doctrines and truths that teach only the love of God as written in the Bible are today's word fruit of life. They give light and joy and everlasting life to the perishing children of earth. And from those who eat of this word fruit of life. They give light and joy and everlasting life to the perishing children of earth. And from those who eat of this word fruit of life, in their lives and characters they bear the various fruits of [love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control] (Gal. 5:22, 23). These are the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit, the peculiar fruits of regeneration that can only be produced by those who eat of today's heaven-sent fruit of life.
b. The Forbidden Fruit
As the fruit of knowledge was a mixture of good and evil in the garden of Eden, so is today's forbidden fruit a mixture of mostly good and a little bit of evil added to it. For instance, in our home when we try to catch rats, we make raticides with our grains, sweet potatoes or something and add a small amount of rat poison, disguising it to look beautiful. In the same way, the forbidden fruit in Eden was so beautiful, looked "good for food, delightful to the eyes," and fragrant, but it was mixed with a deadly poison.
Satan, the great enemy of today, has made in the midst of the Bible his fascinating forbidden fruit; the mixture of the truth of God's mercy, love, and tenderness, added to plausible, horrible doctrines and cunning suggestions. To be more specific, this forbidden fruit in the Bible apparently emphasizes that God is a God of love, mercy and goodness, but it also suggests that He is a strict and stubborn God who is reluctant to forgive sinners and takes pleasure in destroying them. He is so relentless that He finds satisfaction in giving fiery judgment, and is terribly fearful and dreadful in contrast to Jesus. These suggestions are the colorful doctrines devised by Satan to destroy all the children of God on earth. These are the forbidden fruits that Satan, the great adversary, has set up dauntlessly in the midst of the Bible so that he might destroy all the human race.
To be even clearer as to what the word forbidden fruit is, all the teachings and doctrines apparently seem to begin with God's character of love and mercy. However, upon analyzing the story a bit deeper, a plain, straightforward explanation or proof of why or how God is love cannot be made. Instead, it concludes with a fearful impression that He is a stern Judge who is cruel to sinners. All of these are fruits of the forbidden tree. And these are the fruits that are killing God's children today. All the children of God who partake of this forbidden fruit offer prayers and praises only to Jesus, and depart further and further away from the Father who is the source of life and love, who loved them [so much that He gave His only begotten Son,] who is the fountain of living waters] (eternal life), and they fall exhausted and parched, left to die in the vast desert of this world.
Our loving God and Jesus urgently exclaim to us, [You shall not eat of the fruit ... neither shall you touch it,] [for in the day that you eat of it you shall die] (Gen. 3:3, 2:17).
(5) Symptoms of the Souls Who Partake of Either Fruit
When I was a little boy, I had a clever puppy. He was so cute and clever that everyone loved him and he was my best friend. One day, as he became quite big, something strange happened. He had always taken kindly to me but suddenly he stopped recognizing me, and without any response to my calls, he started jumping all over the place with such wild eyes. I was too young to understand what was going on at that time, but my parents told me later on that he had eaten the raticide the neighbors had hidden to kill rats. His violent spasms were the symptoms of having eaten the poison. After a few minutes he died. If I had attempted to hug him out of pity as I normally would have, he would have bitten me, his master and friend, in a fury. Although several decades have passed, I still cannot forget the tragic death of my friend and the appalling fitful symptoms of my dog stricken by rat poisoning.
Similarly, if God's children are, through whatever agencies, led to take the forbidden fruit just once, its poison will contaminate throughout the body, mind, and soul; its symptom is more terrifying than that of a dog stricken by any poison.
The normal eyes of the soul and mind become completely deranged, and the loving and merciful heavenly Father is looked upon as a devil of appalling features. From then on, he only seeks to escape from His presence. We know because this was the case with Adam and Eve in Eden. No sooner had they eaten the poisonous fruit (the fruit of the forbidden tree) when the Father whom they had so loved and become so attached to, who had been their best Friend, suddenly began to look loathsome and dreadful. They should have run out to meet their Father upon His visiting call as before, but once they had eaten the forbidden fruit, His approaching sound led them to flee in horror and they sought to hide themselves. [And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden] (Gen. 3:8). But He called to them who were still His loving friends and children as always, in His usual tender voice, [Where are you?] (Gen. 3:9). And there came back an absurd answer, [I heard Your voice in the garden and I was afraid ... and hid myself] (Gen. 3:10). Alas! The Father grasped the situation and said, [Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?] (Gen. 3:11). This was the first symptom of insanity after the holy pair ate the fruit of the forbidden tree.
From then on until today, innumerable children of God have been deceived by the great murderer Satan, eating the forbidden fruit again and again, becoming madder and still madder, dying and perishing unceasingly to this day. Alas! Who will warn God's children of this appalling fact?
On the other hand, those who have partaken of the fruit of life of truth, which is filled with God's pure love, light, and vitality, their original mental power and eyes of the soul are restored, and they are able to behold their Father in the light of the true knowledge of His character and image of infinite love, mercy, and tenderness. Also, they are led to love and follow their Father more closely than Jesus. Like Adam and Eve before the transgression, they rejoice at cuddling up to their Father's bosom of love and cling to His arms of love as the little ones love to cling to their daddy's arms. They are again able to live a happy life on earth today and walk with Him as His close friends as Enoch walked with Him for three hundred years as His friend.
Our greatest need today is the life-giving fruit of the word tree of life. We need true shepherds who can impart this fruit of life to the people. On the pulpit, these true shepherds must not only teach the love of the Holy Son Jesus, but of the unspeakable love of the Father with great power, exclaiming as Apostle John did, "Behold the love of the Father!" And through their teaching, people must be drawn to the Father who is the fountain of living water, and be united with Him, abiding in His bosom. And the Father will impart to them eternal life and [every good gift and every perfect gift] (James 1:17), and at last the barrier that has separated earthly children from their Father for six thousand years will be broken down. This will be the day that [the hearts of the fathers are turned to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers] (Mal. 4:6) - an inspiring and glorious day of reunion.
From then on, whether awake or asleep they become immersed in the wonderful Father's love, their lives a succession of the greatest happiness and joy. they are led to love their Eldest brother Jesus more and more whom God has sent; they become as innocent lambs who follow Jesus the Lamb wherever He goes, and become real children of God who live only for the glory of God [whether [they] eat, or drink, or whatever [they] do] (1 Cor. 10:31), and become heirs to the life of God - which is eternal life. This is the path that He has designed for His children who partake of the fruit of the word tree of life, in order to cross onto the thresholds of eternal life.
But the churches and believers who partake of the forbidden fruit that Satan presents to them are different: the preachers on the pulpit can neither preach and testify the Father's love nor can they know about His love themselves, for they themselves are in deep darkness. They are always in a habit of speaking of Jesus but are not able to plainly explain of the greatness of the Father's love. And so their followers suffer from spiritual thirst and hunger for lack of the love of God who is the living water for their souls. They are on the verge of death, deprived of the knowledge of His love, and misunderstanding His character. The enemy Satan grasps this opportunity and represents God as a fearful, cruel tyrant; hence, separating forever earthly children from their heavenly Father who is the [fountain of living water] (Jer. 2:13).
Therefore, filled with false conceptions of God who is the source of love and life, they are unable to go to Him whose love is unlimited like the pouring rays of the burning sun that brightens the way of truth. They only become surrounded by the cloud of misapprehension and engulfed in the darkness of terror, to eventually vanish from this world forever. Therefore, the first purpose for Jesus in coming to this earth was to remove the darkness of the clouds of misunderstanding that kept the sunrays of God's love from shining upon us, to give us eternal life and light. [He, Himself, likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham] (Heb. 2:14-16). He also exclaims that eternal life is first to know and receive the infinite love of the Father [the only true God], and second, to know the love of Jesus Christ, following and obeying [Him whom He had sent] (John 17:3). If we only know the love of just one of have no knowledge of either, then the road to eternal life is as imperfect as a plane with only one wing or no wings at all! With such a handicap, the way to heaven is virtually impossible. As both wings are necessary to fly, so the knowledge of both the Father and the Son is needed in order to ascend to heaven.
Brothers and sisters! Let us search within ourselves and reflect upon our past belief. Have I been imparting to others the fruit of life or the forbidden fruit? The symptoms manifested in me can plainly tell me. Is mine a life of fear and escape from God or a life of overflowing joy, with as much love for the Father as for the Son whom He has sent?
If we have been taking something other than the fruit of life, we should escape from it immediately and wisely be warned, [Deliver yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, and like a bird from the hand of the fowler] (Pro 6:5). In order to be saved and cured from the poison of the forbidden fruit which spreads throughout the whole body, we must immediately come to the fruit of life and eat of it which is also standing in the midst of the Bible. As we partake of it, it will counteract the poison spread throughout our bodies like sunrays melting snow, and our heavenly Father will cure our souls completely. At the same time, our mind and eyes will be restored to see Him as He really is, who loves us so much. And we will exclaim, "Oh, He has been such a loving Father to me!" We will surrender ourselves wholly to His love, and never leave His bosom again. We will live as His sons and daughters, conforming to His perfect image and character, and we will become miniature Jesuses possessing His fine character, who was sent as an example for us by God, the heavenly Father Himself. And we will ascend to heaven to live with Him forever.
This fruit of the word tree of life that our real Father has once again made in boundless love for His fallen children on earth is yet another gift He bestows upon us.
We will now end this chapter with a summarized diagram.
The First Fruit of Life and the Forbidden Fruit in Eden
The Tree Of Life
Purpose of the Tree:
Eternal life for God's Children
Location:
In the Midst of the Garden of Eden.
Task:
To represent God, the King of life.
Shape of the Fruit:
Beautiful
Constituents:
Full of God's invigorating vitality.
Symptoms of Those Who Partake It:
(1) Have correct eyes and see Him as He truly is and follow Him as He truly is and follow Him with joy.
(2) Body mind and soul become filled with God's vitality, and live a life full of love, joy, and peace.
(3) Live a life a life transforming continually into His character and image.
(4) Live a life filled with joy and become good heralds of the fruit of life.
Result of Taking It:
Whoever takes it obtain eternal life.
The Forbidden Fruit
Purpose of the Tree:
Prevention of Satan"s power.
Location:
In the midst of the Garden of Eden.
Task:
To represent Satan, the king of death.
Shape of the Fruit:
Fascinating
Constituents:
Full of poison of the king of death.
Symptoms of Those Who Partake It:
(1) Go mad and lose one's head, looking upon God as a wicked God and a stern tyrant, and live a life of escape from Him out of fear.
(2) Body mind, and soul feel burdensome, tired, flagging, full of discomfort fretfulness without peace.
(3) Live a life transforming continually into the malicious character and image of Satan.
(4) Live a life filled with anxiety and fear and become evil agents of Satan by distributing the forbidden fruit.
Result of Taking It:
Whoever takes it eternally dies.
Today's Fruit of Life and
Forbidden Fruit
The Fruit of Life
The Purpose of the Fruit:
Eternal life for God's children.
Location:
In the midst of the Bible
Task:
Leads to God, the source of life, who gives eternal life.
Shape of the Fruit:
Undisguised simple truths of the Bible as it is revealed plainly.
Constituents:
The truth that the heavenly Father is love, His whole Being is love. Good tidings(message) from heaven that bring light, joy, forgiveness of sin, happiness, and eternal life for sinners.
Heralds of the Fruit:
God the Father, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, the angels, true messengers led by God's Spirit.
Symptoms of Those Who Partake It:
(1) They have the clear mind and spiritual eyes to see the Father of love as He really is, loving and following Him with joy.
(2) Soul, mind and body become filled with vigor and the vitality of God, and live a life of peace, joy, and happiness, and love all mankind as they love their family and themselves.
(3) They live a life transforming continually into the loving character of the heavenly Father and the image of Jesus.
(4) They become faithful heralds who go forth with joy to impart to their brethren and kinsmen the word fruit of life.
Result of Taking It: They lead themselves and others to the everlasting kingdom where the heavenly Father is waiting for them.
The Forbidden Fruit
Purpose of the Fruit:
Destruction of God's children.
Location:
In the midst of the Bible.
Task:
Leads to Satan, the king of death who destroys.
Shape of the Fruit:
Complicated, plausible truth of various Scriptural words mixed with other adulterated cunning suggestions.
Constituents:
Fearful unpleasant theories from Satan giving heavy burdens to sinners, giving suggestions and impressions that God is love but He is a stern Judge who is reluctant to forgive sinners, who is pleased to punish with fire, and fills the souls with fearful conceptions of Him.
Heralds of the Fruit:
Satan the devil, evil angels, false ministers led by the evil spirit.
Symptoms of Those Who Partake of It:
(1) The spiritual eyes become blinded: heart and mind cannot accept the plainly stated Scriptural testimonies that God is love: they cannot believe it but rather doubt and distrust in their heart. God is looked as a dreadful God.
(2) After taking this fruit (false truth), their heart and soul at times feel momentary ecstasy and fanatical joy and happiness at first, but the aftermath is a greater sense of emptiness, discomfort skepticism, and disbelief in redemption. they reiterate the name of Jesus habitually and of the Father as a matter of formalism but have no love for Him in heart. They rather unconsciously seek to evade from His presence, and live a life with a restless, irritated heart and soul.
(3) As days go by, the true meaning of regeneration or sanctification become more difficult to comprehend; their characters become more and more self-righteous, proud, bigoted, and unconsciously live a life conforming to the mind and character of Satan.
(4) Become faithful agents of Satan who go forth in a hurry, blindly and fanatically
to impart the forbidden fruit to others.
Result of Taking It:
They lead themselves and others to the pit of desolation where abound countless evil spirits.
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