by Leigh Ann Dilley on December 23, 2024
Proverbs 13:12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.
The waiting of Advent continues. From our perspective, on this side of the Gospel, the coming of the Messiah is a celebratory time of remembrance and a calculated time of waiting, knowing the promised Messiah will arrive and the promise of salvation will be realized. Our ancestors, who lived in a time before the Gospels, did not know what was around the corner, when it would come or what it would look like. All they had was hope and faith in a promise . . . a long wait and a whole lot of silence.
Waiting and silence is what makes the proverb above so real. Through our own experiences of waiting for resolutions or answered prayers, we have experienced how hope deferred makes the heart sick, but what is meant by a dream fulfilled is a tree of life?
Interestingly, the “tree of life” is only mentioned in the books of Genesis and Revelation, the bookends of the Bible. It is also the only place we read of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. In Genesis, God created a beautiful garden, where He intended to live with the humans He created. In the middle of the garden, he placed the tree of life and the tree of knowledge. He gave the first couple the instructions that they could eat freely of the fruit of every tree in the garden except the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Most of you know the story. The woman is deceived by the evil one, eats from the forbidden tree and shares the fruit with her husband. After eating the fruit, their eyes were opened, and they became like God, knowing good and evil. It was a lie. They would never be like God, nor would they ever have His knowledge of good and evil. The fruit of the tree of knowledge brought nothing by destruction. Living with God in the Garden of Eden was like Heaven. Because of their sin and disobedience, God banished Adam and Eve from the garden. They no longer had access to the tree of life.
Now, we must travel forward to Revelation to read more about the tree of life. Rev. 2:7 Jesus proclaims in the letter to the church of Ephesus, that everyone who is victorious will receive fruit from the tree of life in the paradise of God. This means we have another chance at eternity with God in heaven! What else might the tree of life offer? At the very end of Revelation 22:2, there is a river flowing from the throne of God, and on either side of the river is a tree of life, bearing 12 crops of fruit and the leaves of the tree were used for healing the nations. The tree produces many good fruits and offers healing along with the promise of eternity with God – life!
What’s our lesson? It seems to come from another proverb: Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths. Knowledge is not a bad thing, but there is something better. God’s thoughts and ways, which are higher than our own. (Isaiah 55: 8-9). We can trust Him.
The next time your heart is sick from hope deferred, rather than thinking you have the knowledge to act on your own, think of the tree of life. Wait in hope for God’s guidance into the things of tree of life which produces lots of fruit, brings healing, and offers life with God.
Merry Christmas!
