(A.) The True Life and the False Life (continued)
Eternal Life Reserved In Jesus Christ
Now note the next thing. The Lord took action and set a fence around that tree of life. In so doing He said: 'No one shall have life apart from that tree.' In other words, it is impossible for anyone to have eternal life apart from the Lord Jesus, for this life is in God's Son. "He that hath the Son hath the life; he that hath not the Son of God hath not the life" (1 John 5:12). Life, then, is reserved in Jesus Christ and cannot be had outside of Him. Well, of course, that is very simple and elementary but we have not finished yet!
You notice what happened in the Garden: satan was there to make God a liar. Jesus said that satan "is a liar, and the father thereof" (John 8:44), and he was there in the Garden to make God a liar. Did he do it? Mark you, this is something very important for us to notice today, for this is always satan's way. He did not accept the situation in the Garden, and he never does accept a situation. There will come a time when he will have to accept a situation and will not be able to do anything about it, but all through the ages he has refused to accept this situation and has told a lie. So man has fallen a victim to the lie of satan. What is satan's lie in connection with life? He offers false life, another kind of life that looks like the true one. satan falsifies true life, and, instead of being spiritual life, it is just soul life. Do you know the difference between spiritual life and soul life?
satan attacked the soul life of Adam. You know what the soul is, do you not? It is your reason, your emotions, your will. satan began by reasoning with Adam, and, oh, what a dangerous thing it is to argue with satan! Never reason with the devil, or, in other words, do not listen to his arguments! There is a sting in his tail! So satan first came to man's reason and started an argument: "Yea, hath God said?" Immediately a question about God was lodged in the mind. There is a terrible destiny bound up with that question!
Then satan appealed to Adam's feelings, and, pointing to the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he said: 'You see how lovely and full of juice that fruit is! How much it is to be desired!' So Adam looked at the fruit and said: 'How lovely! I think I would like some of that.' His emotions went out to it, and when satan has got your mind and your emotions, it is not far to your will. The next thing was that Adam took the fruit. He used his will, and the damage was done.
It is all symbolic, but, you see, it contains eternal principles. The whole kingdom and reign of satan are built upon that basis. The mind, the heart and the will of humanity are captured by the devil, but it is false life. What about all the emotion in the world, even in Christianity? There is a vast difference between spiritual, eternal life, and soul life. There is such a thing as false life, and that thing is the master- stroke of satan! You will remember that there was a time in the history of Israel in the wilderness when certain sons of Aaron brought false fire and offered it upon God's altar. You know what happened! You know all about God's jealousy. There is a vast amount of false fire in this world today. It looks like true life, true fire, what is of God, but there is a lie in it, and the fruit of that tree is bitter fruit in the end.
~T. Austin-Sparks~
(continued with # 12)
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