In this sermon, the speaker discusses the significance of the tree of life in the Adamic administration. They suggest that the tree of life served a purpose similar to the sacraments in the economies of covenant grace. It would have been sacrilege for Adam to partake of the tree of life after he had sinned, as it would have violated the divine order. The speaker also explores the idea that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil may hold the key to understanding the tree of life. They propose that the knowledge of good and evil could describe the alternative of the probation choice.

O Thou most high and holy and ever-blessed God, we give Thee thanks for the marvel of Thy grace, for this great opportunity that is granted to us. And may we abound in thanksgiving, may we abound in obedience to Thy revealed will, and forbid that we should ever be overcome by the great archenemy, by the deceit of this world, by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. But do Thou grant that we may be able to persevere, persevere in our undertakings, persevere in our devotion to Thy will, and persevere in the bringing forth of fruit that will be to Thy glory. And do Thou may enable us to measure the whole of time in the perspective of eternity. For Jesus' sake, amen. If this administration of eternal life is implied in the very designation, whatever is the bearing of that surely means that we come away another. Now there is confirmation in Revelation 22. So there are those other concepts that are derived from the analogy that pertains between Christ and Adam, between Adam and Christ. And if we would, for this man had obeyed, he would have attained to life, life that would be the antithesis of death, and therefore life which death could never invade. We need not suppose that his perseverance attached to his devotion of God was provided by the attainment, disposition of God. Lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life. But we need not, we need not assume, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, would be applicable even if there was some unwitting, unwitting on the part of Adam beneficial, that which it signifies, this statement of Genesis would have been quite applicable even if Adam somewhat unwittingly partook of the tree, when that which it signified and symbolized had no further beneficial significance for him. To appeal in this discussion, I specifically think of Galatians 3.12, shall live in them, or by them. In systematic theology, these texts are often appealed to, to support this doctrine, namely the principle that the man that doeth these things shall live in them or by them. That in the Adamic administration, there was provision for the attainment in the tree of life, that these texts bring us any further than that which we dealt with earlier, namely that where there is righteousness, there will be the corresponding justification and the corresponding... We are dealing with a gracious provision, a gracious provision, and we are not dealing in this principle of justice, of obedience, associate from the Adamic administration every notion of meritorious earning. We must guard in our construction of this economy. I say we must guard. In our construction of this economy, we must guard jealously against the notion of pure legality that the Adamic administration was entirely a matter of reward according to works. The most concentrated obedience that Adam could have rendered to the relieved will of God, to the specific text, could never have earned, never have earned the promise of eternal life, could not possibly have done that. That is for confirmation in blessedness altogether of God's grace that such a reward should have been attached to Adam's obedience altogether of grace that such a reward should have been attached to Adam's obedience. Now in these... The man that doeth these things do not get as any further the principle of equity and do not benefit grave. It is true and persevered in his obedience, knowledge of the implications in confirmed holiness and blessedness, the fulfillment, never on the basis of meritorious earnings, only on the basis of God's faithfulness, God's faithfulness, faithfulness to grace. He is not fulfilling a debt, fulfilling a debt or paying a debt which he owes to his obedience. There is another point. Paying to the reward of God's grace, what relation would it sustain to unify and simplify? We would simply have to add in the Adamic administration it would have served a purpose similar to the tree of life would have been the sign and seal of the life which men would have attained through successful probation. Sign and seal from access to the tree of the order which God instituted for man to partake of that tree. Once he had parted it symbolized the last point and lived deliberately to partake after he had parted and it would have been a man that Adam had casually and perhaps unwittingly partaken of the tree of life after he had parted and he went on and lived forever and died forever. He said must he put forth his hand and take to an evidence what's an evidence? Changing it. Live forever. Behold the man is become then you could took the one as I meaning of course become relationship Behold the man and now become relationship become relationship What? Now if it is irony but if it isn't irony you don't need to adopt it but I'm just going to propose it and I think there's some good ground for this even so at first glance reasonable ground for this key to the interpretation of this you remember he built a radical course but nevertheless please does service for the neither alternative I try to show you that in the administration that same pattern to the interpretation of the tree of life we may say that the tree of life likewise had a double reference a double reference if the probation had been successful he would have attained to indefectible life the tree would have been the final field of that possession the sign however if after profiting that life that is he would have partaken of the tree the tree would have still some symbolic and sealing significance but symbolic and sealing significance in the opposite direction namely the sign and seal of that to which he had degenerated through disobedience that is to say it would have been the seal of that kind of life that kind of life in which we must remember that if knowledge is described knowledge of good and evil that state sin and death significance similar meaning I I will submit in knowledge life consists in knowledge why the word life should as well as the word to designate that into which man had fallen by his sin if that interpretation is correct then the expulsion from the gods is not only a matter of judgment not only an act of judgment prevented man from an act that would have sealed his doom that in the in the order instituted by god would have been the sign and seal of his doom prevented man from that action which would have signified and sealed his irrevocable in the kind of knowledge of good and evil the kind of knowledge of good and evil and therefore in the kind of life into which by sin he had brought himself that is god preserved preserved from taking upon him the seal of irrevocable doom the seal of irrevocable doom now that's all in that next and final subdivision of our discussion is this reflection of well that would have been the implication he would have been the seal of his input god well and in any case we in any case you cannot but discover in the expulsion from the garden the grace of god because to partake of the tree would in any case in violation of the divine order and is done deliberately extreme sacrifice and of either event would god's grace exclude him from the possibility of access to that tree sacrament in this respect that a person does not forsake the divine tree is a person deliberately knowing that he does not forsake the grace which has been given to us and deliberately partakes of them with the intent of arresting that tree and you see how king is the sin of that person the tree an additional sin which because of its gravity well of interpretation i am presenting it to you so i consider it to be a reasonable interpretation of the significance of the tree of life