Of Man’s First Disobedience, and the Fruit
Of that Forbidden Tree, whose mortal taste
Brought Death into the World, and all our woe,
With loss of Eden, till one greater Man
Restore us, and regain the blissful
Seat, Sing Heav’nly Muse, that on the secret top
Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspire
That Shepherd, who first taught the chosen
Seed, In the Beginning how the Heav’ns and Earth
Rose out of Chaos: Or if Zion Hill
Delight thee more, and Siloa’s Brook that flow’d
Fast by the Oracle of God; I thence
Invoke thy aid to my advent’rous Song,
That with no middle flight intends to soar
Above th’ Aonian Mount, while it pursues
Things unattempted yet in Prose or Rhyme.
This lyrical portrayal of the fall of mankind comes from John Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost. Many literary critics have called it the greatest piece of poetry ever written in the English language. By the time Milton published his masterpiece in 1658, he had experienced paradise lost in his own personal life—he lost his first and second wife, he lost two of his children in infancy—a baby boy named John and a little girl named Katherine, and he lost most of his health—he suffered from gout, was constantly ill, and become completely blind. But even in the midst of his suffering, God blessed him with a rare combination of biblical knowledge and poetic wit that would make his readers long for a return to the Garden of Eden.
Paradise Lost
Even if you have never read Milton’s poem, you probably know the story of paradise lost. It comes from the Book of Genesis: God planted Adam and Eve in the paradise of the Garden of Eden. They had beauty and bounty all around them, and God’s presence was always with them. They experienced ultimate peace and prosperity. They had a perfect life!
All they had to do to maintain this life was to obey God’s one command. He told them that they could eat from any tree in the garden except from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He warned them that if they ate the forbidden fruit, they would surely die, but they did it anyway. From that time on, humanity has been cursed with toil and pain, conflict and blame, and disease and death. Indeed, paradise was lost!
This is the cursed world that we continue to live in today. Our bodies are worn out from getting up and going to work and school every day. We feel the pain of injuries and illnesses and face the constant fear of cancer and heart disease. We see ourselves getting older every time we look in the mirror and are regularly reminded that death is coming.
We bear the burden of broken promises, unfulfilled expectations, and shattered dreams. We carry the cross torn families, tattered friendships, and tormented societies. Like our ancient ancestors before us, we try to cover up our sin and shift the blame to someone else rather than taking responsibility for our own actions. Every day we all experience the pain of paradise lost!
Do you ever find yourself longing for a better life? Do you ever wish for things to be the way they were supposed to be? Do you ever yearn for paradise regained?
Paradise Regained (Revelation 22:1-5)
Thankfully, the Bible ends in the same place it begins: paradise. Genesis tells us about the original paradise that was lost; Revelation tells us about the new paradise that will be regained. In Revelation 22:1-5, the apostle John shows us his final vision of heaven, which is pictured as a completely restored Garden of Eden. These five verses give us a glimpse of paradise regained. Let’s take a final tour of heaven!
The River of Life (1-2a)
The first thing John sees on his tour of paradise regained is “the river of the water of life” which no doubt bubbles up from the “spring of the water of life” (Rev. 1:6) and is flowing from the throne of God. In the original Eden a river flowed through and watered the garden; now a life giving river nourishes heaven. Ezekiel (47:1-12) prophesied about a river flowing from the temple of the restored earthly Jerusalem down to the Dead Sea and bringing abundant life to the most barren place in the world. This crystal clear river flowing from God’s throne is a symbolic image of eternal and abundant life that Jesus gives in heaven. This image represents abundance, satisfaction, and fulfillment. All physical and spiritual thirst is quenched in paradise regained!
The Tree of Life (2b)
As John watched the river flow down the middle of the main thorofare of the city, he noticed the tree of life growing on both sides of the river. There is some debate over whether it is a single tree or multiple trees that is in view here. Even though the word “tree” is singular, the Ezekiel 47 background alludes to a grove of trees lining both banks of the river. Ezekiel alludes to the Garden of Eden imagery from Gen. 2:15-17, where the trees remain perpetually green and provide an endless supply of food. Thus, the single tree of life in the original Garden of Eden has now become multiple trees of life in heaven, symbolizing an abundance of food for eternity.
Normally, fruit only appears in its proper season, but in heaven there will be no seasons—abundant fruit will be available at all times. Just as the river symbolizes the quenching of physical and spiritual thirst, the trees of life symbolize the satisfying of all physical and spiritual hunger. Heaven is a place of abundance, satisfaction, and fulfillment.
Now the Bible doesn’t tell us which fruits will be produced, but I have to imagine that apples and pumpkins will be among them. Can you imagine how wonderful it will be to eat apple and pumpkin pie every day and never gain a pound?
Not only do the trees of life provide an abundance of food, but their leaves also provide healing for the nations. This symbolizes the physical and spiritual healing that has already taken place in heaven. There is no sickness, disease, conflicts, or broken relationships in heaven.
Reverse the Curse (3a)
The Garden of Eden had been the place where the curse first entered; but the curse is reversed in the new heaven and earth. There will be no more sin; no more toil; no more pain!
When most of you hear the phrase “reverse the curse” you think about the dreaded “curse of the Bambino”, which the Boston Red Sox suffered for 86 years. In heaven, the Red Sox will win the World Series every year! All of the suffering and affliction that has been caused by the curse will be gone forever. What a blessing that will be?
Relationship with God Restored (4-5)
Another benefit of paradise regained is that our relationship with God will be completely restored. In the original Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had a perfect relationship with God. His physical presence was with them all the time. Now we see the throne of God and the Lamb established in the new garden. The fullness of God’s presence will be with us again and we will be able to fulfill the original intention of our creation: to worship, serve, and enjoy him forever.
We will be able to see God’s face in paradise regained because we will have a right relationship with him. God’s mark on our foreheads is a metaphor for God’s ownership, status, and protection. We are marked as his people and enjoy all of his benefits. No more night pictures the complete end of all of the darkness that was caused by sin and evil. There is no need for a lamp or the sun in heaven because God’s glory radiates from his presence.
We all experience the pain of living in paradise lost, but through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ; God offers us the hope of living in paradise regained. Prosperity preacher Joel Osteen tells you that you can have your “best life now”, but the Bible tells us that our best life is yet to come.
Just as the Bible ends in the same place it begins, I want to end this sermon in the same place I began, with the blind poet John Milton. I already read you a piece from Paradise Lost, but now I would conclude with a few verses from his less famous poem Paradise Regained:
Wandring the Wilderness, whatever place,
Habit, or state, or motion, still expressing
The Son of God, with Godlike force indu’d
Against th’ Attempter of thy Fathers Throne,
And Thief of Paradise; him long of old
Thou didst rebel, and down from Heav’n cast
With all his Army, now thou hast aveng’d
Supplanted Adam, and by vanquishing
Temptation, hast regain’d lost Paradise,
And frustrated the conquest fraudulent:
He never more henceforth will dare set foot
In Paradise to tempt; his snares are broke:
For though that seat of earthly bliss be fail’d,
A fairer Paradise is founded now
For Adam and his chosen Sons, whom thou
A Saviour art come down to re-install.