A tree transformed and transforming: Good Friday

            One of God’s most useful creations is something we see all the time in northern Minnesota: trees.

            Think about it.  You are sitting on a pew made out of wood in a lovely church covered with wood paneling.  Trees give us raw material for building.  They also provide food.  As we get our last snowfall (better be!) tomorrow, it might help to picture an orange tree down south on a warm sunny day.  They provide shade for rest and relaxation.

            The tree is used as a metaphor in both the prophets and Psalms.  Just as a tree would not survive without growing deep roots, we cannot survive in the spiritual life without doing the same.  A tree that has a solid foundation will survive drought, storms, heat and cold as it is nourished from the deep.  So, too, we can face any situation (joyful or tragic) with confidence if our roots of faith are connected to God.

            Did you know that a tree bookends the entire Bible?  Genesis 2—the second chapter of the whole Bible—narrates as follows: “And out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”  Fast forward to the last chapter of the Bible—Revelation 22—and note the presence of the same tree: “Then he showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”

            In disobeying God’s command not to eat of the fruit of the tree in Eden, Adam and Eve brought sin and death into the human experience.  Yet in Revelation 22—which portrays a vision of heaven—this same tree gives healing and life.  How did this happen?

            For the whole reason we are celebrating Good Friday!  Where Adam and Eve sinned, the new Adam followed God’s will perfectly.  He took the tree of Eden—from which came sin and death—and mounted another tree: the cross.  He made atonement for our sin and now everyone who tastes the fruit of the cross may find healing and abundant life.

            Jesus took something we see (in northern Minnesota) everyday—a tree—and made it the center of salvation history.  “Behold the wood of the cross on which hangs the salvation of the world.  Come, let us adore.”