The story starts in a garden.
Of course, we’d call the garden that Adam woke up in a park.
Majestic trees loaded with fruit, countless flowers in their prime;
Immaculate landscaping features, invigorating scents:
No bare branches, not one dead leaf;
Feathered choirs and friendly animals:
The perfect home, the perfect workplace, and the perfect school.
But after Adam chose to disobey God,
A perfect garden could no longer teach him
All the lessons he now needed to learn.
Cursed is the ground for your sake… Genesis 3:17
Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth for you… verse 18
Thorns and thistles, hard-packed ground, rotting fruit;
Animals slinking away in fear, insects intent on drinking his blood:
All would teach Adam the result of putting self first.
Another teacher was given to Adam;
A teacher that wounded him as no thorn ever could:
As God took Adam out of the original, perfect classroom,
God asked him to kill an innocent, trusting lamb.
The lamb was to teach Adam about the Lamb of God who would come.
Thorns pierced Jesus’ temples as He took the curse for us;
Nails fastened Him to a tree, disclosing a full knowledge of good and evil.
What could lead Jesus to endure such pain and humiliation?
He was looking forward to an event in another garden –
Perfect, without a hint of death:
Once again leading Adam to the Tree of Life,
With the hope that you and I will be there too.