The Garden

I was at Dunkin' Donuts yesterday reading "Destine for the Throne" & I got so inspired that I put the book down & I cried.  Right there in the store. Next to my small decaf coffee. 

I had to write this:

February 26, 2011
The last Adam entered the garden again, a replay of Eden. The garden, the tree, the lust for power, the temptation.  He literally took Adam's place. God played my role. He took on everything that I had to face. He came to redeem- to win back what we lost. What I myself had let go, what we gave away willingly to the enemy of our souls.

He didn't have to. He was God: the God who created all things. The God of all, the ruler of heaven & earth.

That's what it means for Christ to take my place. Instead of me talking to satan, he talks to him. Instead of me facing the temptation, he does it for me. Instead of me falling & giving away what God made for me, Christ wins it back. I am behind Him, I am hiding under the shadow of his wings. Thank you Lord. Christ became Adam for us.

"In that day you eat, you will surely die" the curse that God spoke to us was taken by Christ. I took the fruit. I did. I willingly took it from the tree knowing I was dileberately disobeying God. Christ took the fruit & willingly ate it for us, on our behalf.  Sins breeds death, because Christ became sin, the end of result of him eating the fruit was his death. We will never know the cost of our sin until we look at the cross & see what it cost God: the humilation, the sorrow, the suffering, the very death of God.

And yet all that poured out was love. Love how could it be? The world was created in love, we gave it away in lust, & God bought it back in love again. Man! How good can he be?!

Because of the cross, Christ literally put the fruit back on the tree. The tree that was at the center of the story changes when the last Adam comes on the scene. Instead of taking from the tree like us, Christ gave on the tree. From the tree that brought the greatest loss, the greatest victory was gained.  What was once our destruction became our salvation. Thank you God for the tree.