One of the individuals I follow on social media is Dave Adamson. He masterfully blends Hebrew insights with biblical teaching to encourage believers’ faith walk. In a post, he noted that the Bible tells one story through three trees. It is a spectacular insight.
The story begins with the Tree of Eden. The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, the Tree of Eden, marks the beginning of human history with God and reveals what’s broken. It affirms God’s rightful authority to define good and evil, as well as humanity’s call to trust and obey Him. When Adam and Eve chose to eat from the tree in disobedience, sin entered the world, bringing spiritual separation from God, suffering, and death to all humanity. This event, often called the Fall, explains why every person is born with a sinful nature and in need of God’s grace. Scripture teaches that the consequences of Eden make the saving work of Jesus Christ essential, as His death and resurrection provide the only way for humanity to be reconciled to God and restored to the relationship broken in the Garden.
The story ends with the Tree of Life in Revelation. This tree symbolizes the complete restoration of what was lost in humanity’s fall in the Garden of Eden. It stands as a picture of eternal life, perfect fellowship with God, and the fulfillment of His redemptive plan through Jesus Christ. Those who have placed their faith in Christ are granted access to the Tree of Life, signifying their inheritance of everlasting life in the new heaven and new earth. The presence of the Tree of Life in Revelation demonstrates God’s ultimate victory over sin and death, as well as His promise to dwell forever with His redeemed people. The Tree of Life is where we enter into a never-ending future with God and where we see what God is restoring.
The most important tree is the one between them. It is the cross, on which all redemptive history turns. Adamson notes a striking detail: when Peter describes the cross in Acts 5, he doesn’t use the usual word for cross; he uses the Greek term (xylon), associated with a cursed tree. John later uses that same word to describe the Tree of Life in Revelation. This small detail points to a remarkable story. The cross can be understood as the “cursed tree” because Christ willingly bore the curse of sin on humanity’s behalf. Scripture teaches that “cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree” (Deuteronomy 21:23; Galatians 3:13), and Jesus took that curse upon Himself so that sinners, all people, could receive forgiveness, righteousness, and reconciliation with God. In this way, the cross becomes the pivotal point in God’s plan of redemption. It’s the place where justice and mercy meet through Christ’s sacrificial death, and where the cursed tree bridges the tragedy of Eden and the hope of Revelation. The thread of redemption running through the whole Bible isn’t merely a story of what humanity lost and will one day regain; it is the story of a loving God who built a bridge from one tree to another, through the cursed tree, the cross.
Adamson suggests that most of us naturally live at either the Tree in Eden or the Tree of Life. We either look backward or wait for someday. But God does not call us to look backward. He does not want us to resign ourselves to waiting for tomorrow. Instead, our lives are to be lived in light of the cross. At the cross, forgiveness, freedom, and hope become far more than a promise. It’s where grace meets us. It’s where the loving act of Christ, who died for our sins and, yes, rose for our salvation, meets us in our brokenness. The cross is where hope is fulfilled, and we don’t need to wait to live in and with Christ today. We do this by receiving Him as Savior and following Him as Lord. Don’t be caught in the trap of looking behind. Don’t miss what God has for you today by being fixated on what lies ahead. Live in the shadow and blessing of the cross. Receive Christ and walk with Him today. Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God Alone)!