Trees of Eden

In the book of Genesis God's creation is described. In the Garden of Eden He created two special trees: the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. God removed Adam and Eve from the Garden because they ate of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The repercussion of being separated from God was they assumed the responsibility of deciding what is good and evil. They did not eat of the Tree of Life, by which God decides what is good and evil. Throughout history the earthly nature of Adam and Eve has been passed down to all mankind. From their choice, mankind has been delegated to individually deciding what is good and evil based on different thoughts or opinions instead of what God stated.


Most people do not even understand what God means when He says something is good or evil. When God uses the word good it means complete or sufficiently perfect in its kind; having the qualities best adapted to its design and use. When God says someone does evil or something is evil, He is saying it is injurious, or something which produces pain, distress, loss, or tribulation. Good is not the same as righteousness and evil is not the same as sin.


God never intended for mankind to determine what is good and what is evil, separate or absent from God. However, because mankind continues to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, each person reserves the right to individually choose what is good and evil.


Because of this many Christians, as well as churches, have become worldly without even realizing it. If these Christians and churches were accused of being worldly, most would immediately be offended and even reject the one who made the accusation. Many Christians choose to determine what is good and evil in their own mind instead of teaching and pointing people to Jesus Christ. Mankind's knowledge of what is good and what is evil comes from numerous worldly sources, which program their minds, hearts, and conscience. Many times you will hear people use terms like "he is a good man" when by God's standards, the person's life is a moral disaster. There are some who proclaim that it is evil when a Christian condemns the very things that God has condemned.


Author Bio: Fred Allen is Senior Pastor of Lee's Summit Baptist Temple in Lee's Summit, Missouri. Pastor Fred has a favorite saying, "Life is hard even if you know what to do, but it is nearly impossible if you don't know what to do!"


Pastor Fred has a lifelong passion to help Christians understand the Word of God and live effectively for Christ. He has written a multi-level discipleship series, which has been translated into numerous languages and used worldwide to build Christians and churches.