Are We Back in the Garden? Part 3
September 26, 2004
Dear Friends,
As we contemplate the metaphor of the Garden of Eden in Scripture, we have suggested the Garden of Eden represents reconciliation with God. Although this will ultimately result in the Kingdom of God on earth, the Garden represents our current position in Christ. We have also suggested that Adam’s physical possession of eternal life (different than immortality!) represents what we possess spiritually at present in Christ. It simply means that God views us as living creatures rather than dying creatures. Physically nothing has changed yet. The change from eternal life to immortality is yet to come in the Kingdom of God.
We want to consider this week the teaching of the Garden concerning sin and righteousness. Adam, while in the Garden, was not a sinner until he ate of the fruit. He had not “earned” a place in the Garden by being sinless, but he maintained his place in the Garden by being sinless. Adam was in the Garden by God’s grace or undeserved kindness.
It is also important to note that Adam could be tempted and, in fact, was tempted while in the Garden. We believe that it was part of God’s plan for Adam to be tempted while in the Garden. This is implicit in God giving Adam a choice to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. If God did not want Adam to have a choice (i.e. free will), then why give Adam the tree and the commandment not to eat of it? Yet, Adam was given two choices. Choice #1 – believe what God said and obey Him. Choice #2 – do not believe what God said and do not obey Him. It may sound overly simplistic, but that is exactly what it boiled down to for Adam.
So how does this translate to us? We as we have shown, this analogy doesn’t play well for the future Kingdom of God on earth for those back in the Garden. However, it makes a perfect analogy for those in Christ now.
First, Adam was in the Garden by grace. He didn’t deserve to be there and neither do we. Yet, by God’s grace, we are reconciled to Him through Jesus Christ.
Second, in coming into Christ, we are imputed righteousness. Although we could spend pages and pages on the subject of imputation, let’s reduce the idea to its absolute minimum for the sake of simplicity. Imputation of righteousness means that when we come into Christ, God doesn’t see us as sinners any longer, He sees us as righteous. Romans chapters four and five deal with this extensively. Here is a short sample of what is being taught: “How blessed are those whose offence is forgiven, whose sin is blotted out. How blessed are those to whom the Lord imputes no guilt.” (Rom. 4:7,8 NJB) Because of our relationship to Jesus through faith, we are seen as free from sin or sinless. Paul himself even points us to the Garden analogy, doesn’t he? “It was by one man’s offence that death came to reign over all, but how much greater the reign in life of those who receive the fullness of grace and the gift of saving justice, through the one man, Jesus Christ.” (5:17 NJB)
Finally, as we have said before, we can lose this salvation if we stop possessing the faith that saved us in the first place. Adam was given a choice to either believe God or not believe God. Plus, Adam could be tempted. Adam lost his wonderful position before God and place in the Garden because he stopped believing and ate of the fruit. Faith and works always work as cause and effect. Likewise, in Christ, we are still subject to temptation. We still have the free will to serve God or not to serve Him. Faith put us in the Garden and it keeps us there too. Likewise, we can lose our salvation by making the choice to serve sin rather than God just the same as with Adam.
Is it any wonder that in Romans 6, Paul begins to encourage believers to a life of faith and obedience? It is any wonder that immediately following this exhortation be begins an analogy about sin as a master to be served versus righteousness as a master to be served? “You cannot have forgotten that all of us, when we were baptized into Christ Jesus, were baptized into his death. So by our baptism into his death we were buried with him, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father’s glorious power, we too should begin living a new life. If we have been joined to him by dying a death like his, so we shall be by a resurrection like his; realising that our former self was crucified with him, so that the self which belonged to sin should be destroyed and we should be freed from the slavery of sin.” (Rom 6:3-6)
If you accept a homework assignment for the week, read Romans 3-6 in several different translations. Think about the analogy that we have laid out in the above thought and look for all of the allusions to Adam and the Garden. In reading this, you will see how many wonderful things God has done for us now in Christ. Next week, Lord willing, we will pick up here.
Have a great week!
