Genesis 4-6

You can't help but ask the question, "how did they live so long?" in reading todays chapters. Methuselah for 969 years! There are lots of theories out there and one that I like is that in the Garden of Eden, there was the Tree of Life. I tend toward the position that it was in eating from this tree, which is a prophetic picture of Jesus, that Adam and Eve had the hope of eternal longevity. Once they had to leave Eden, they were no longer able to eat from this tree yet the effects of it carried forward for generations. Remember, in Genesis 1 a principle of life was established, that all living things would reproduce after their own kind. The effects of Tree of Life were passed down from generation to generation but so too was the sinful nature of our humanity. Without continuing consumption of the Tree of Life, the effects of the sinful nature of our humanity eventually overcame us, in part physically, and our lives ceased to be supernaturally lengthened.

This brings up another interesting question, "what is the difference between prescriptive and descriptive?" I am more descriptive than prescriptive. For example, the curse on mankind we read in Genesis 3, is this God prescribing what He is going to do to mankind or describing what mankind has done to themselves? I think God is describing what mankind has done to themselves. God did not curse us which would be prescriptive but rather we cursed ourselves and God is describing how we will suffer as result of our own disobedience. Thus, once we get to Genesis 6:3 and God says that the number of mankind's years will not be 120, I see this as descriptive, not prescriptive. God is describing what is now happening to man a result of not having access to the Tree of Life generations later.

But we know that we have access to the Tree of Life today, in a sense! Not that a vow of devotion to Jesus ensures the longevity of these physical bodies but rather a promise of a greater longevity, a heavenly body! In Revelation, the New Jerusalem has at its center, the Tree of Life! See if you can find the reference and read for yourself!

Godspeed in 2010!

Pastor Fred