In his innocency and before the Fall, the first man acted consistently under the gracious and exclusive influence of God's Spirit. The Spirit of God dwelled within Adam. God was working in him "both to will and to do for His good pleasure." (Phil. 2:13) This inward action of God lifted Adam spiritually out of mere animal status and into the life of godliness. While animals would live by the flesh {and be without the spiritual life of God}, Adam would live by the Spirit of God in union with God's eternal life.
The thing that separated Adam from the animal kingdom was his human spirit. His spirit was the "lamp of the Lord." (Prov. 20:27) The lamp, when fueled by the oil of the Holy Spirit, enabled him to display God's "light of life" in this world. Because everything he did was motivated by the life and will of God, he was enabled to display the image and glory of God.
God gave a warning when He provided Adam with an eternal access to the Tree of Life. It was a warning that carries over to all mankind: "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." (Gen. 2:17) If man turned from a life of living by faith in God's power to an independent life of walking in his own will and sufficiency, he would separate himself from the spiritual life of God. And that is exactly what happened in the Fall.
Our Creator never gave man the right to decide good and evil on his own. And if he acted like a mere animal by choosing to live by his own fleshly desires {living as he saw fit or – "right in his own eyes" (Deut 12:8)}, he would become separated from the eternal life of God and exist in spiritual death. "For if you live according to the flesh you will die." (Rom. 8:13)
Man's choice to live by an independent and self-sufficient spirit is the essence of evil and darkness. It is the source of every sinful action. This path of choosing for ourselves how we will direct our steps {sin} is what keeps fallen man separated from the life of God. We can therefore see why true repentance must include a real turning back to a dependence on God.
...Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted {turned} and become as {dependent} little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven {the Kingdom-life of God}. (Matt. 18:3)
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. (Prov. 3:5-6)
Adam would not need laws to control his activities as long as he lived by the Spirit. The fruit of God's Spirit – His divine nature – would enable Adam to always have right actions. "Against such things {the fruit of God's Spirit} there is no law." (Gal. 5:23)
There was only one spiritual principle that Adam was required to remember: He would need to continue to live by the Spirit of God. In other words, eating from the Tree of Life meant that he would need to live continually by faith, under the control and power of the Holy Spirit.
When Adam turned from this walk of faith, choosing to walk in his own strength and by his own will, he fell from the "light of life." He was then cast out of the Garden into carnal darkness. Not only did he lose the fulfilling spiritual life he had received from God, but he also became deeply corrupted by a self-centered nature. This fallen nature became another source of iniquity in the world.
Adam did not die physically when he turned to "the tree of the knowledge of good and evil" and began directing his own affairs. He did, however, lose the power that had enabled him to be a lamp of the Lord's "light of life." (John 8:12). When he turned from the Tree of Life {when he stopped living by the Spirit of God}, the Spirit stopped manifesting the eternal life through his spirit. He lost the spiritual life of God, and the light went out!
Redemption involves restoring the lamp to its original purpose. The Christian is a lamp of the Lord. But God cannot display the light of His glory through the lamp until it has been set apart and fully sanctified for His exclusive use.
There must be a real presenting of the body to God and a complete turning from the independent and self-sufficient ways of the world before it is possible to display the "light of life" from heaven. The followers of Jesus who are willing to take this narrow path, will have an opportunity to return to the spiritual paradise of God and eat from the Tree of Life.
...For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will dwell in them and walk among them {a life that Adam shared with God in the Garden of Eden}..." Therefore "Come out from among them {the independent and self-sufficient ways of the world} and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you" {into the Kingdom-life}... Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (2 Cor. 6:16-17, 7:1 Emphasis added)
...To him who overcomes {the independent and self-sufficient ways of the world} I will give to eat from the tree of life {the Kingdom-life of God}, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God. (Rev. 2:7)
While this spiritual Paradise of God, which can now be established within the eternal soul, is only a dim reflection of the life we will enjoy when we receive our glorified bodies, we can still enjoy an abundant fullness of the Son's spiritual life in this world. (John 10:10) We can walk in holiness with God and enjoy His life from heaven, as the Son did when He walked in a mortal body. (1 John 2:5-6)
Our Lord has made it possible to follow Him through the cross and into the firstfruits of His resurrection life. (Matt. 16:24-25) If we will enter this path and permit Him to establish His Kingdom-life within our hearts, we will be enabled to "put on the new man, which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness." (Eph. 4:24) In other words, we can now be recreated into the spiritual image of God by returning to the "tree of life" through Jesus Christ. "To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life." (Rev. 2:7)
Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you... Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn... Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy... The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. (Isa. 60:1, 3, 5, 19 Emphasis added)
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