Tree of Life

Dear Brethren,

The Tree of Life is about God’s Holy Spirit.  So few people in this confused world understand what Spirit–Life is all about.  We, in God’s Church, are the only ones who are able to come to the truth vis-à-vis God’s Spirit.  Vis-à-vis is a French phrase that means “as regards,” but interestingly, it also means “face to face,” as in, the Lord spoke unto Moses face to face, as a man speaks unto his friend.  (Exodus 33:11)

John reveals that we will see God as He is (1 John 3:2).  And Paul tells us that we only have partial knowledge at this time, but in the resurrection we will see God face to face (1 Corinthians 13:9,12).  God’s eternal Spiritual Family is open to all those who live by His Spirit – it is not a closed family as Satan would have us believe.

Knowing as we do that the Holy Spirit is not a third person of a mysterious closed Trinity is a good start at coming to the knowledge of the nature of God.  More importantly, however, we must understand what God’s Holy Spirit is, and then make every effort to bear as complete a resemblance to it as is possible.  The Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden represented God’s Spirit – God’s Life – God’s Family tree – even His eternal Life.

So, what is God’s Holy Spirit like?  God’s Spirit is the one Spirit that the Father and Jesus Christ share with each other and with us.  God’s Spirit is His life, His attitude, His life’s force, His mind, His love, His all-presence, His all-knowing, His unlimited power, His personality, His manifold traits, His character – it is every characteristic of God like His gentleness, compassion, generosity, mercy… the list is endless. 

We are totally unable to comprehend every characteristic of God’s Spirit with our human intellect for God is too great.  The complete attributes of God's Spirit are beyond the grasp of our finite minds.

Man begins to make the transition from his physical existence to growing in Spirit toward the flawlessness of Christ when he receives the first token of God’s Spirit at his baptism and the laying on of hands.  In order for a Christian to be able to achieve that great leap from man-kind to God-kind, God gives baptized Christians a security pledge of His Spirit – His Life, making us His Godly children.

God’s Spirit in a Christian begins the conversion process, which culminates in our being born eventually into the eternal Family of God.  God’s Spirit is the gift of God unto eternal life (Romans 6:23).  It is God’s Will that we enter His Kingdom as His Spirit-born eternal Children.

We are to do our utmost to obtain the same stance and perspective on everything as God has and be exactly like Him in every way that we are able.  And in the same way that God loves us we are to follow suit and love one another.  “Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace… Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”  (Ephesians 4:3,13)

God’s desire is to share His Spirit with us “for the promise [of His Spirit] is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.”  (Acts 2:39)

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Sermon:  "Tree of Life"
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