In today’s devotional, Dr. Michael Youssef considers the purpose of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden.
If you would like more insight into today’s devotional topic, watch or listen to Dr. Michael Youssef’s sermon The Garden vs. the City, Part 5: LISTEN NOW
What awaits the believer after this life? And how does our eternal future impact our lives today? In his new book Heaven Awaits, Dr. Michael Youssef dispels misconceptions about the believer’s eternal home and articulates the blessings, majesty, and reality of heaven as displayed in Scripture. As you dig into God’s promises for your future in Christ, you’ll be lifted up and empowered to persevere today with joy in your hope that will never disappoint. Pre-order your copy today for your gift of any amount! (The book will ship upon its release in early May 2024.)
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[00:00:00] You are listening to MY Devotional, the Daily Devotional from Dr. Michael Youssef and Leading The Way.
[00:00:30] It was there to remind them that they were God's own possession. The tree was there to remind them that they were accountable to God, and they could not escape judgment for the moral choices they made.
[00:00:41] The tree was not placed there by accident. God deliberately placed that tree in the Garden of Eden, and there in that garden the first man, Adam, met temptation, and he was defeated by sin.
[00:00:54] But thousands of years later there was another garden, the Garden of Guest Semini. In the Garden of Eden, Adam fell and we all fell with him.
[00:01:04] In the Garden of Guest Semini, Jesus was victorious, and all who belonged to him are victorious as well. In the Garden of Eden, the disobedience of one man caused sin to infect all of humanity.
[00:01:17] But in the Garden of Guest Semini, the obedience of the Son of Man produced the antidote for sin.
[00:01:24] In the Garden of Eden, Adam experienced death as a consequence of his rebellion, but in the Garden of Guest Semini we all experienced life, eternal life by grace through faith.
[00:01:36] One tree in Eden defeated Adam and another tree, the Cross of Christ defeated sin and Satan.
[00:01:44] One tree brought the knowledge of evil, but the other tree gave us power over evil, power over temptation, power over death, the power of salvation.
[00:01:56] So the question is, which tree do you look to? The tree by which humanity was tempted and fell, or the tree by which God gave us eternal life.
[00:02:09] Let's pray together. Lord, thank You for Your incredible love for us. Thank You that You made away for us, though fallen, to be with You forever through the Cross of Christ.
[00:02:19] May we always look to the precious gift of eternal life through Jesus so that we can live our lives in submission to You with Thanksgiving.
[00:02:29] We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
[00:02:33] What awaits the believer after this life? And how does our eternal future impact our lives today? In his new book, Heaven awaits.
[00:02:43] Dr. Michael Yusef dispels misconceptions about the believer's eternal home and articulates heaven's blessings, majesty, and the reality of heaven shared in Scripture.
[00:02:54] As you dig into God's promises and understand your eternal future in Christ, you'll be empowered to persevere whatever you face today.
[00:03:02] Pre-order your copy today at ltw.org for your gift of any amount. Heaven awaits.
[00:03:11] If today's devotional encouraged you, we'd love to hear about it. Leave a review and share this episode with a friend who needs to hear it.
[00:03:20] My devotional is a ministry of leading the way with Dr. Michael Yusef. To learn more, visit ltw.org today.