The Story of a Tree, the Failure of Adam, and the Rhythms of Humans

The garden story is about a man who failed his test to protect his bride; it is about a tree that should have been left alone at that time.

I have always been fascinated by this concept of human formation. What rhythms do Christians need to embrace to overcome temptation and trouble? How can we establish productive routines, avoid distractions, conquer spheres, and form micro-Christendoms that shape our families and churches in the image of Christ?

The Bible gives us rhythms: evening, morning, seasons, liturgical calendars, colors, and patterns. God created times for everything. Time is uniquely orchestrated for our good. God is the author of time, and therefore, Christians need to be masters of time, redeeming the times for the days are evil (Eph. 5:16).

The Negative Rhythms

From the beginning, God established these rhythms. And from the very beginning, man learned to violate these rhythms. God says, “Do this,” and man says, “But can I add a twist to your command?” God says, “Don’t eat this fruit,” and man says, “Can I eat it when everyone goes to bed?” It’s important to navigate the negative rhythms before we can see what the proper rhythms look like in the Christian life.

You must know the beginning so that you may understand your future. It’s helpful to see what happens when we don’t follow the patterns of the Bible so that we may understand their significance. Proverbs consistently do this. It tells us, “Don’t follow the ways of unrighteousness because they lead to death.”

So, where is the destination of this opening monologue? We are headed towards the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5. We will arrive at a very productive tree, but we need to do some work to show you the first tree: the one that put us in this predicament, the tree on a mountain called Eden.