He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who overcomes I will give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. Rev. 2:7.
God offers the overcomers in Ephesus a special reward. They will eat from the tree of life, now located in the paradise of God. If it takes deep repentance to eat from that tree, it will be worth it. The reward is far greater than the sacrifice along the way (cf. Rev. 22:2).
Nearly everyone knows the story of Gideon, how he defeated the Midianites with 300 men bearing torches and trumpets. Most have never heard of the rest of the story. After the battle the people asked him to become king. But he said, "I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you" (Judges 8:23, NIV).
Gideon had 70 sons from various marriages. He had at least one other, Abimelech, as a result of an extramarital affair. After Gideon's death, Abimelech plotted with his mother's relatives to murder all the other sons of Gideon and proclaim himself king (you can read the story in Judges 9). The only son of Gideon to escape, Jotham, disrupted Abimelech's coronation ceremony by taunting him from a distance with the following parable:
"One day the trees went out to anoint a king for themselves. They said to the olive tree, 'Be our king.' But the olive tree answered, 'Should I give up my oil, by which both gods and men are honored, to hold sway over the trees?' Next, the trees said to the fig tree, 'Come and be our king.' but the fig tree replied, 'Should I give up my fruit, so good and sweet, to hold sway over the trees?'...Finally all the trees said to the thornbush, 'Come and be our king.' The thornbush said to the trees, 'if you really want to anoint me king over you, come and take refuge in my shade' " (Judges 9:8-15, NIV).
The sting in this parable is in the nature of the "thornbush" (Hebrew: atad). Most trees are an asset to the environment. Animals feed off the fruit and rest in the shade. Birds nest in the branches of the tree. The organic matter that drops from the tree nourishes other plants. So in the ancient world a healthy tree represented the caretaking role of properly constituted authority. But when I saw one of these "atad" trees in the area where Jotham made his speech, nothing--absolutely nothing--grew under that tree, not even a weed! Jotham was satirizing the cruel and abusive nature of the kingship Abimelech would exercise.
The reign of God will not be like that of Abimelech. Instead of a "thorn tree," Revelation depicts it by a "tree of life," which enhances every life that encounters it. There the overcomer will find an abundant life that never ends. And we will never regret yielding our lives to the rule of God.
Lord, I surrender my life to You again today. Help me to trust Your directions.
God offers the overcomers in Ephesus a special reward. They will eat from the tree of life, now located in the paradise of God. If it takes deep repentance to eat from that tree, it will be worth it. The reward is far greater than the sacrifice along the way (cf. Rev. 22:2).
Nearly everyone knows the story of Gideon, how he defeated the Midianites with 300 men bearing torches and trumpets. Most have never heard of the rest of the story. After the battle the people asked him to become king. But he said, "I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you" (Judges 8:23, NIV).
Gideon had 70 sons from various marriages. He had at least one other, Abimelech, as a result of an extramarital affair. After Gideon's death, Abimelech plotted with his mother's relatives to murder all the other sons of Gideon and proclaim himself king (you can read the story in Judges 9). The only son of Gideon to escape, Jotham, disrupted Abimelech's coronation ceremony by taunting him from a distance with the following parable:
"One day the trees went out to anoint a king for themselves. They said to the olive tree, 'Be our king.' But the olive tree answered, 'Should I give up my oil, by which both gods and men are honored, to hold sway over the trees?' Next, the trees said to the fig tree, 'Come and be our king.' but the fig tree replied, 'Should I give up my fruit, so good and sweet, to hold sway over the trees?'...Finally all the trees said to the thornbush, 'Come and be our king.' The thornbush said to the trees, 'if you really want to anoint me king over you, come and take refuge in my shade' " (Judges 9:8-15, NIV).
The sting in this parable is in the nature of the "thornbush" (Hebrew: atad). Most trees are an asset to the environment. Animals feed off the fruit and rest in the shade. Birds nest in the branches of the tree. The organic matter that drops from the tree nourishes other plants. So in the ancient world a healthy tree represented the caretaking role of properly constituted authority. But when I saw one of these "atad" trees in the area where Jotham made his speech, nothing--absolutely nothing--grew under that tree, not even a weed! Jotham was satirizing the cruel and abusive nature of the kingship Abimelech would exercise.
The reign of God will not be like that of Abimelech. Instead of a "thorn tree," Revelation depicts it by a "tree of life," which enhances every life that encounters it. There the overcomer will find an abundant life that never ends. And we will never regret yielding our lives to the rule of God.
Lord, I surrender my life to You again today. Help me to trust Your directions.
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