The Days of a Tree

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The Days of a Tree

We're Programmed for LIFE, Not Death.

I was watching a show on the Science Channel last night called Time. It seems scientists have once again proven the truth of the Bible, this time regarding human genetics. With people fighting so hard to stay young, scientists and researchers have been searching for the gene which causes aging in humans.

You know, to try to alter it, to try to slow down the aging process.

But they can't find it. It appears that there is no human genetic programming for aging.

That would be startling news to me, if I had been relying on the scientific community to guide me.

But when we rely on the truth of the Bible, and God guides us, we can simply trust His Word and wait for the world to catch up. And in His Word He shows us that He has always planned humans for LIFE, not DEATH.

Let me start at the beginning.

As we read the Bible, certain truths seem to reveal themselves to us and - often - these truths clash with common "wisdom".

In fact, learning to receive the truth of the Bible even as it flies in the face of "common sense" is really my own personal battlefield.

But when we immerse ourselves in God's Word and prayer, certain passages begin to piece together and begin to form beautiful new "quilts" of revelation knowledge. It's almost like finding the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. You don't get to see the whole picture until all the pieces are in place. And as usual, things are not always as they appear.

Take this passage from Isaiah, for instance:

Isaiah 65:22 NIV

No longer will they build houses and others live in them, or plant and
others eat. For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my
people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the works of their hands.

The way I read that verse, God is saying that His people will live as long as trees. Some might want to argue the translation, or certain word meanings, but as the verse was given to me, it means God plans for His beloved people to live a long, long time.

Men as trees is a common thread throughout the Bible:

Jeremiah 17:7-8 NIV

"But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in
him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its
roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are
always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails
to bear fruit."

As we read the Bible, certain truths seem to reveal themselves to us and - often - these truths clash with common "wisdom".

If we stop trusting in the world and allow the Holy Spirit to reveal truths to us - as Jesus said He would - whole new meanings begin to be understood, and His light slowly spreads as we learn to trust Him, and not our own reasoning...

John 16:13

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all
truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears,
and he will tell you what is yet to come. 

It is a process I have come to enjoy and delight in. It doesn't aways happen, but when I am in the flow of the Spirit, the joy inside me is uncontainable!

John 7:38 NIV

Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."

Another verse that stands out to me is when Jesus heals the blind man and he sees men, walking around "as trees":

Mark 8:23-25 NIV

He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village.
When he had spit on the man's eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus
asked, "Do you see anything?"

He looked up and said, "I see people; they look like trees walking around."

Once more Jesus put his hands on the man's eyes. Then his eyes were
opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.

Although we don't have a clear explanation for what happened, I don't believe Jesus wasn't able to heal the man correctly the first time. And it is possible the man's faith wasn't quite where it should have been to receive perfect sight at first, but I have another idea. I believe that he may have been prophesying something from the spiritual realm, maybe even "seeing" into the spirit realm, beyond the natural.

We see this special "seeing" ability in the Old Testament, with Elisha:

2 Kings 6:15-17 ESV

When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went
out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city.
And the servant said, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?"

He said, "Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than
those who are with them."

Then Elisha prayed and said, "O LORD, please open his eyes that he may
see." So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and
behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all
around Elisha.

The mountain had been full of horses all along; the servant just couldn't see them, the way Elisha could. What we see is not always what is going on!

Q: So what do humans and trees have to do with aging?

A: Trees live a long, long, long time.

For My people's lives will be like the lifetime of a tree.  My chosen ones will fully enjoy the work of their hands. - Is. 65:22 HCSB

The "Methuselah" pine tree in California is approximately 5000 years old. As mentioned in the following article, this tree was alive and producing seeds, pre-dating the pyramids!

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/methuselah/long.html

Trees easily live hundreds of years when men don't cut them down or damage them. A thousand years is not out of the question.

God has said His people will live as many days as a tree... and we are trees planted beside the river of living water, when we allow the Truth and the Life of God's precious Word to fill us and flow through us...

So if we are not genetically proned to age and die, why do we?

The scientific community puts the blame on our environment, on outside forces that over the years damage our bodies. Even so, we don't have to just accept that. We have the ability to fight, even against the circumstances around us:

Psalm 103:2-5 NIV

Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

I still don't think that's the whole picture, though. We would do well to remember we have an enemy who is constantly feeding anyone who will listen, with "mis-information".

Over time, sometimes we begin to accept what we've been told, even when the "facts" contradict the truth of God's Word. We need to remember: Things are not always as they appear!

Hebrews 2:14-16 ESV

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself
likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might
destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and
deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong
slavery. For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the
offspring of Abraham.

1 Corinthians 15:26 ESV

The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

The last enemy is death.  As the days of a tree, so will be the days of My People. We are programmed for life, not death.