Fingers of mist drifted imperceptibly upward into the morning air  as the first rays of sunlight painted a symphony of color and freshness on the landscape of this glorious new morning of creation. The One had finished all of His work. "It is good!" He said, "Yes, it is very good!"

The One planted a garden.  It was in this garden that He put the First.  He formed the man from the earth, and He formed the woman from the rib that covered the man's heart.

They were the First and they were with the One. In center of the garden were two trees, both bearing fruit. The fruit of the first tree was very attractive.  Indeed, that tree was the most beautiful tree in the whole garden.

It's canopy spread out in perfect symmetry against the clear, pure pristine blue of the fresh New World.  Its leaves were golden and it's bright, attractive fruit seemed to call out, "Come taste of me, for I am sweet and fulfilling."

The second tree, however, was gnarled and bent. It's branches were twisted in a contorted struggle against the gravity of the  new earth,  so that it seemed to cry out in agony,  "I have grown up as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground, but I have no form or comeliness; there is no beauty that anyone should desire me."  Its leaves were brown with rusted patches that looked like dried blood.  Cruel thorns encased it and it bore hard, knotted fruit that had no promise of taste.

Still, the First was at peace with both trees. When they walked in the cool of the evening, they often spoke about the trees. They were naturally curious about the fruit of the beautiful tree. But the One sternly commanded them not to eat of its fruit. As to the other tree, there was no command, so they lived in peace with both, not tasting the fruit of either.

The woman, however, could not put the beauty of the first tree from her mind. "It looks so good," she reasoned. "Yes, it is good" the serpent tempted, "and it will make you more than you are. It will make you like the One." The woman looked for the man, but he was not there. "The One says we will die if we eat of that tree", she offered the serpent. The woman's  gaze fell upon that beautiful tree.  She desired. "You shall not die!" the serpent said as he moved seductively near the  woman. A strange light flickered in its eyes as it crooned, " You shall live forever!"

The Second

"Father," said the Second, " if it be thy will, take this cup from me!" He gazed at the tree. It still stood there. Its image had not changed since the first day.  The garden had changed. The clear blue sky had changed; it was no longer innocent. It was hazed, cloaked and covered. The night was thick, and the smell of blood-sweat filled the air.  Those whom He loved slept. The knowledge that they had carried in their very core weighed heavily on them. They could no longer abide in the cool of the evening.  They must shut out the knowledge. It was too much for them.

His mind took Him back to the time in the desert, when the dragon had come to Him.  The thoughts rushed though His tormented consciousness like a flood. "As it has been ordained since the beginning" He pondered, "until the end,  I must be tempted in every way, and again I must choose.  The First chose wrongly. How I loved them, oh how I miss their  presence!" Still the vision of the tree waited for Him. It had called Him since the beginning, yes even before the beginning. He had always known it. Indeed, for Him, it was life. Its fruit was His food. The other tree held no appeal. It never did for Him. "Father, not my will but thy will be done!" He cried out! He was ready.

The Rock

"How could this be?" he asked, "Even the Master, when He was with us never let any impure or unclean thing defile Him." But still, there it was before him, a sheet full of all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air, with the voice of the Lord saying,  "Get up, Peter, kill and eat." He thought back to the time when he walked with Him. "He called me rock, but I'm not a rock. Oh yes, sometimes on the outside,  but when it came right down to it, I denied Him. A rock? Me? No I am sand."   Thoughts of the patriarch Abraham filled him. He could see the cruel blade on it's  way down to pierce the heart of the promise. At the last, the blade was stopped, but what must have filled Abraham's mind? It made no sense. It scolded the workings of the reason! Here Peter stood before the two trees.

For centuries to come, his race would wrestle with such thoughts as they were caught in inertia swaying between the two trees. Kierkegaard would have to come to his "leap of faith" in order to overcome the fruit of the knowledge of good and  evil, but Peter, the Rock, faced another problem. He never hesitated that day on the boat when he threw himself before the Master and cried out, "Lord, I'm not worthy." Instead of hesitating, he rushed into his faith without a doubt. This was different. This went against all of the knowledge that he'd been taught. This was more like the time when he was sinking beneath the waves. His first rush of faith had deserted him and he sank until the Master took His hand. Suddenly he realized the truth. It was the hand of the Master that raised Him up. He would take that hand again and trust in Him. He would reach out in fear and trembling and taste once again of the body and the blood. He would fill his soul with the fruit of the tree of life, and turn once again from the second tree.

Two Trees

Today, the two trees still stand. For a long time, the choice was hidden. "Let us close the garden, "They said. "Let us block it with fire lest they taste and become like Us." But the curtain has been torn. The Choice stands again like a tree. Today, the way has been cleared. The garden has been opened. The decision is real. Which tree? Take care! The fruit still can deceive. Take care not to choose with your mind! Reason will not suffice.  It is like a mining car filled with gold. You can  start it by pushing it down the shaft but once it has its momentum, you can only hang on as it gains speed.  Its course is set and cannot be altered.  Catastrophe awaits, for it will eventually jump its tracks and spill the precious gold and you along with it. Only in doing can one be sure.  In obedience, there is certainty.  Two trees still stand today.  You must walk past them every day. You will taste of the fruit from the tree you have chosen. Choose Life and He will sustain you!