Life and death: Which do you rejoice over? In Eden we find the great tree of life. It was meant to remain there for all time while man and woman lived forever in a heaven right here on Earth. But first the Lord would let them be tested and tried for a period of time because He wanted man and woman to freely choose the right. Had they passed the test, the Lord would have thrown the devil into the lake of fire, sealed him off forevermore. Unfortunately, man with that free choice chose disobedience and fell into the hands of the devil.

To their sorrow Adam and Eve were cast out of Eden; they saw angels at the gate of Eden with a flaming sword that was moving in all directions so that they couldn’t possibly enter Eden again. I imagine that many times Adam and Eve went back to the gate after they were driven out, thinking that surely those angels would be gone; but they always were there with that flaming sword.

Jesus, the Second Adam

The years passed by, thousands of years, and at last the second Adam came. The perfect one, who lived in complete subjection to the will of God, met the devil head-on and defeated him in perfection. Jesus, through His matchless sacrifice of divine blood, made a gate back into Eden for everyone. Suddenly man no longer saw an angel with the flaming sword at the gate of Eden. The gate had swung wide-open and a great sign went up in the form of the Old Rugged Cross with the words: Whosoever will, let him come and take of the tree of life freely! Life—what a great message! The penalty of death that had been upon man and woman was lifted. That tree of life is yours and mine: Jesus is our tree of life.

John Saw the Waters of Life

John the Revelator took a look into the second Eden and said, He shewed me a pure river of water of life [no death was in Eden before man fell], clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. [Man would drink from those pure waters of life and live as the eternal ages rolled.] In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. [Imagine how John felt as he saw the tree of life in his vision! John was the disciple closest to Jesus, the disciple whom Jesus greatly loved, the beloved John. Now he was seeing the tree that bore twelve manner of fruit, one for each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations; there was to be no sickness, just as there was no sickness for the first Adam and Eve—until they sinned and fell into the hands of the devil.] And there shall be no more curse: [Jesus is the cure for the curse upon man and upon the earth. The earth will get its deliverance one day; even the animals will be delivered.] But the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever (Revelation 22:1-5).

Dead Fruit

The Bible opens with life pulsing everywhere and no death. It’s a totally happy Bible in the beginning. Had man not sinned, that happiness would have remained forever. However, in Eden not only was found the tree of life, but also the tree of death. Today the effects of that awful tree of death are on Earth everywhere you look. The devil points to that tree, makes it look beautiful as he seeks to entice everyone he can with his false fruit.

Found by the Dead Sea today is a tree with fruit that looks delicious, but when the fruit is opened, nothing is there but dust. It’s dead. No fruitful life can grow close to the Dead Sea. The fruit of this tree is a good example of the fruit of the world today: The devil has fruit that seems desirable, but it’s hanging on that ugly tree of death. Our worst enemy, death, is the last enemy to be destroyed and cast into the lake of fire; and when it is, all will be joy and laughter, peace as the eternal ages roll. Thank God forevermore for that soon-coming day!

Look for the Blessed Hope

Think of the sorrow of death, what suffering death brings. Death is a ferocious monster, robbing us of the ones we love the best. Life gone from the body, loved ones are buried in that cold, cold grave, and their loss haunts us. Only the Lord can heal us from such deep grief that we feel we can’t go on breathing. Nothing is worse than the death of one who is so close to you, the one you love better than yourself. You sob until you can sob no more. All hours of the night you are awake, lost and lonely without your loved one. Only the great love of Jesus can give you comfort in those times. Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13). Turn away from the tree of death and look for the blessed hope that one day you will see your loved one again. But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him (I Thessalonians 4:13,14). The grave will burst open and your loved one who died in the Lord will arise like Jesus arose on Resurrection morning. Jesus said, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live (John 11:25). You who have the blood of Jesus: Don’t you feel that life right now? It’s eternal life you have.

Jesus Is the Way to Life

Man’s sins brought about death. Had Adam and Eve stayed away from that tree of death, things on Earth today would be so very different. Let their sin be a warning to everyone who reads this message: The tree of the devil that looks so inviting brings destruction, death, robbing you of your character, of everything decent, of your very life for time and all eternity. I despise death.

When you went to Calvary, you received the tree of life; you had life eternal. As the divine blood of Jesus washed away all your sins, you wanted to shout to the whole world, “Thank God Almighty, I’m free! Heaven is mine and I will live there forever!” How wonderful that was! Did you believe it with all your heart?

Jesus told the disciples, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned (Mark 16:15,16). Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me (John 14:6). Jesus truly is the way to life outside of Eden.

Treasure Your Passport to Heaven

Stay away from the tree of death; don’t toy with it. If you play around with even a tiny bit of sin, you’re playing with the tree of death, and it will destroy you like it destroyed Adam and Eve. Oh, Eve didn’t intend to eat of the forbidden fruit when the serpent said, “I just want to talk to you.” But by listening to the devil, you can be talked out of your salvation, out of your passport to Heaven.

The devil will make you think that your life is a hard one, that God doesn’t care. You’ll never make it to Heaven anyway, so why not have a good time while you’re here? However, there is nothing good about what comes through the tree of death no matter how beautifully it’s disguised. The devil’s talk may sound inviting, but it is based in cruel, cruel schemes to rob you of your soul. Nothing true, nothing real comes from him.

Take heed to the big sign over every tree of death: The soul that sinneth, it shall die (Ezekiel 18:20). The Bible says if you are committing willful sin, you’re dead. If you partake of the forbidden fruit, you will die, and there is no way around it. Some people claim that you can’t live free from sin—that’s a lie of the devil. If you are born-again, if you have Jesus in your soul, you are free of sin.

Divine Blood Protects the Tree of Life

When you have the tree of life, you have life. In fact, you have either the tree of life or the tree of death. Which is it? You’re serving yourself from one tree or the other; it can’t be both. The fruit won’t mix; live fruit won’t mix with dead fruit. Dining with sin in any fashion means you are eating the fruit of death and the fruit of life is out of reach; you’ve shut yourself away from it. You’ve lost the protection of the blood. The fruit of life is protected by the divine blood that Jesus brought. That hedge of blood around Calvary keeps the sinner out.

To get to Calvary requires a measure of faith, but don’t worry: Everyone is given a measure of faith. To use it or not use it is the choice of each individual. It’s when you choose not to use it that you should worry. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith (Romans 12:3). Faith is a gift from God. However, many try to get to Heaven without going by the way of Calvary. You can’t go to Heaven unless you first go to Calvary, the tree of life, that second Eden.

Not one sin will be inside that heavenly Eden, not one death tree. All death will be outside. If you have sin in you, you’ll never get inside the gates of Heaven. No matter how many preachers preach at your funeral saying you’re in Heaven, they will be preaching a lie. You won’t be there.

Do you really want to be in Heaven? If so, now is the time to decide to leave the tree of death. Many today are eating from the tree of death, thinking the wisdom, the knowledge they need will be found in the world. No, the wisdom and knowledge they need come from above.

Just Ask

Do you lack wisdom? The Bible has the answer to that. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him (James 1:5). All you have to do is ask for it. Through the tree of life, all things are supplied. The Lord satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness (Psalm 107:9). Jesus, the satisfying Christ, is everything you need for great life when you let the tree of life bear fruit on the inside.

Happiness Is in the Christian’s Life

Paul said, I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me (Galatians 2:20). Some think living the Christian life is hard, but it isn’t hard at all. I enjoy it. I find more happiness in it than I had ever found in the world, and in the world I never thought that would have been possible. I never thought I could find more happiness than I did on the dance floor and in other places. But when I found Jesus I found the tree of life.

My parents tried hard to keep each child away from the tree of death. We knew what sin was before we started to school, and we knew to stay away from that tree of death if we wanted to go to Heaven, if we wanted to have peace, protection from God.

Ever since I could remember I was taught that sin meant death, that I could never enter Heaven if I had one sin. However, I was also taught that I could have forgiveness if I would really mean it when I confessed my sins to the Lord.

At age eighteen I thought I was too young to find Jesus, too young to go to Calvary, too young to separate from the death tree. But I was wrong. I found Him and it was wonderful! I found that I could have Eden on the inside, eternal forgiveness, eternal life, eternal joy, love, hope, courage, gentleness, kindness and peace—eternal, eternal, eternal. In sin I hadn’t been living, just existing. Now I could have it all and then go sweeping through the gates of glory when I died. Jesus would be with me in any dark valley I might have to go through and there would be nothing to fear. When death came, I wouldn’t have to cross Jordan alone; it would be but one step from Earth to Glory all because of the tree of life. We don’t have to fear death when it’s the passage to Heaven. Thank God for the tree of life!

Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life

Jesus said it all when He told the woman at the well that He was the resurrection and the life. The disciples heard that message, but it didn’t sink in until Jesus was resurrected. He had told them: Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father (John 10:17,18).

At Calvary, the disciples thought for sure that Jesus was dead forevermore. They had the opportunity to stand by Jesus and hold up His hands, but they missed it. How wonderful had the disciples been there when Jesus was tried, had they gone with Him from judgment hall to judgment hall as the guards kept Him up all night. What a support the twelve would have been had Jesus been able to look down on them in His agony on the Cross and see that they were there to carry on His work. When He cried, “It is finished!” they didn’t understand those words, didn’t understand that the plan of salvation was now complete. They should have known everything about Him, but they knew such a little, and because of it, lost out on much. They were confused and afraid for their lives.

Many today knowing such a little about Jesus lose out on life daily. Unhappy homes, unhappy children abound because there is no tree of life in the homes. Nothing is in most homes throughout the earth today but the tree of death. From the time they are born, children are fed from the tree of death. The parents have no fruit of life to feed them.

Which Tree Is Yours?

If you grew up with the tree of death, thank God that you’ve been delivered from it and don’t have to live around it any longer or eat its fruit. You don’t have to have any part of death, none at all. Jesus conquered death, hell and the grave for us, and we can live a happy, holy, righteous life as brand-new creatures. Our sins all gone, we’ve been made into the likeness of Jesus.

Jesus, the Son of God, became very man, took on the fashion of man to prove that when you have divinity, divine blood in your soul, you can live a godly, sinless life outside of Eden. God’s grace is sufficient for you and Jesus is your tree of victory every day you have on Earth. The world may look on you as foolish because you live a godly life, dine on the things of Heaven, look to the Lord and pray without ceasing through the blood of Jesus. The world is wrong. The entertainment of the world, the wild parties do you no good.

If those in the world go to church, it’s a church full of dead trees with not a tree of life around. A church without the living Christ, without belief in miracles, healings and deliverance from all sin is a disgrace. A message of social gospel and current events is preached in place of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ.

I want to hear something other than the message from the death trees in the world. You can turn on the news and hear what the world church preaches. The news is filled with dead fruit. How much live fruit from Heaven do you hear on the news?

Soon It Will Be Too Late for Some

People are trying to do away with the live fruit, trying to do away with God, with Jesus Christ. One day they’ll need Him, but they won’t find Him, only death. It will be too late just like it was too late for Adam and Eve when they ate the forbidden fruit. The Lord had warned them they would die if they were disobedient, and die they did: spiritually and later physically. Eat from the tree of death and you will die. More walking dead are on Earth than you will ever find walking with life. You have no life without Jesus Christ.

Some people are deceived about their salvation. They go to church, shake the preacher’s hand, are baptized in water; but they have no life, for they still eat fruit of the dead tree. The tree of death will be the death of them; its fruit is death to everyone who eats it, who loves it. Yet, sin is overlooked, not considered to be death by so many.

How awful to come to the end of life’s journey and be left with nothing but dead fruit! No life at all ever for that soul as it lifts up its eyes in a devil’s hell and screams the screams of the lost.

Cling to the Old Rugged Cross

But it’s not too late for you today; you can gather around the tree of life, Jesus. You can know the fruit of the tree, the greatness of the nine fruits of the Spirit. Through the salvation blood of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit you can have those fruits produced on the inside. Reach for the things of the Lord; walk and live in His Spirit and dine on the fruits of the tree of life. Never go away from them.

Spend no time with the tree of death; don’t listen to its call, even if that call comes through the voices of loved ones trying to convince you that by serving Jesus you are a fanatic. Cling to the Old Rugged Cross, the tree of life.

It’s wonderful to know that you truly are on your way to Heaven. One day you will be there in the mansion prepared for you. The tree of life makes it possible for everyone to have a mansion to enjoy forever and ever with all needs supplied. Are you going to Heaven? You can, you know. It’s a happy day indeed when you find Jesus.

When you are born again, your name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life by the Holy Spirit with the blood of Jesus, and neither devil nor man can blot it out. The unclean can’t write their names in that Book; only the Holy Spirit can write in the names of the godly. What a price was paid that your name could be written there; what a price that you could have the tree of life!

Where Is the Tree of Life Today?

One day someone asked me where I thought the tree of life is today. Why, it was moved out of Eden up to Heaven. While it was still on Earth, the angels had to guard it twenty-four hours around the clock. Before Eden was destroyed, I’m sure the tree of life was moved. No doubt it’s in a special place, and one day we will see that very tree that Adam and Eve had looked at. The Lord will explain it all to us when we gather around the Throne eternal. Then we will understand so much that we’ve never been able to understand before.

By faith we know enough to get there; by faith we know our journey; by faith we know the highway of holiness. On this highway we will see no tree of death, and by faith we will see the tree of life shining brightly.

Life or death? No halfway between the two, I say again; it’s either life or death. You’re either saved or unsaved, either righteous or unrighteous, either holy or unholy, on your way to Heaven or on your way to hell. If you die at the tree of death, you will be eternally damned. After death there is no second chance.

“I’ll Meet You in Heaven!”

I despise that death tree of sin that has destroyed so many lives throughout the world today. I’m giving my life to help rescue everyone. In the overseas crusades we take thousands at one time through the blood of Jesus, through the power of the Holy Ghost, through the true Gospel of Jesus Christ and lead them away from the death tree to the tree of life. There they receive the great song of redemption, of salvation; it’s a joyful time. We love to shout and rejoice with those thousands and listen to them sing the songs of Zion when they find the tree of life.

In the crusades after so many have come to the Lord, I usually close out with the wonderful statement: “I’ll meet you in Heaven!” I want that to ring in their hearts, for if the devil ever tries to get them back to the death tree, I pray that they will turn away when they remember my words, “I’ll meet you in Heaven!” Everything is wonderful in Heaven; everything is love as hearts beat in rhythm with God’s heart.

Such happiness is ours because we have the tree of life, such wonderful life. It’s good to be alive, to walk and talk with Jesus, and to know that the tree of death has no power over us. The tree of life is ours for time and all eternity. Praise God for Jesus! Praise God for life, life, life! We’re going to live forever because of the tree of life, Jesus.

The Sinners’ Prayer

If you’re unsaved, let me lead you from the tree of death before it’s too late. The Lord sent me to tell you that He loves you, that no one has ever loved you like He loves you. He died for your salvation; He paid the price for the whole you. Pray the sinners’ prayer with me if you’re unsaved. Oh, God, I want the tree of life. I want to get away from that tree of death. I’ve heard the Gospel message that says, Whosoever will may come and take life eternal. I confess that Jesus Christ died for me. He shed His sinless blood, and there is power in His blood to wash away all my sins. Come into my heart, Lord Jesus! Come on in, Jesus!

If you meant that prayer, He is yours. You have left the tree of death and now you have the tree of life, real life. You may never have had it before, but now you have it. Keep it. Prayer, fasting and living in the Word of God will help you live with the tree of life, Jesus, for time and all eternity.

You Can Be Healed

Through the healing Christ is healing for the nations. No sickness will be in Heaven. You with AIDS, the AIDS virus: You can be healed. You with any kind of death disease, know that the Lord uses His gifts through me through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Lord is the healer; I am His witness. Lord, here they are. I bring them all before you; they’re reaching, Lord, to you. They want to touch you, dear Jesus. They want to touch the tree of life and have healing not only for their souls, but for their bodies. I use the divine blood of Jesus to kill out all their diseases. I use the blood with faith in that blood to cleanse you of AIDS, HIV, or any other death disease. I use the blood for you to be healed. Heal! in the blood name of Jesus! Heal! in the all-powerful blood name. Heal!

Feel the holy power of God going into you now. God is there where you are. God will be with you. Let yourself get well, then write and tell me what happened to you today. Give God all the praise, the honor and the glory, and never venture away from the blessed Tree of Life.