PAINFUL SEPARATION
He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. Genesis 3:24
God drove them out of the garden and placed two cherubim angels at the garden gate to make sure they, and all who descended from them, would worship another way. Without an intervention of mercy, mankind would never again be in the presence of God. We would never be stunned by His beauty and by His glory. How heartbreaking this had to have been as they walked outside the garden, the streams of light and glory behind them. As they looked over their shoulder, they saw an angel guarding the entrance to, what had once been, home.
We are born with the sting of this banishment written on our soul. Sin holds us in bondage. God seems far away. We fear He is angry with us. The pain of separation feels extreme and permanent. The news is dire without the good news of the Gospel story. As Adam and Eve walked away from the garden, God felt their plight and love overruled. In fact, He had made a way for their restoration before He even created them.
A merciful God, in the face of Jesus Christ, would come to end the separation between man and his Creator. Until then, even in the temple, people would only worship God at a distance. They could never go behind the curtain (the veil) that separated sinful man from the holy of holies. The curtain, made of blue, purple and scarlet threads, actually had cherubim embroidered into it, so significant were these angels who guarded God’s throne room.
When Jesus died, an earthshattering event occurred. The curtain in the Jerusalem temple, 60 feet high, 30 feet wide, and 4 feet thick, was torn in two from top to bottom. No man could have done this. The moment Jesus died and the process of reconciliation was finished, the sound of tearing could be heard.
The way into the Garden of Eden is now open to any who have fallen into the arms of the One who bore their sin. The pain of separation is over. God’s wrath toward His forgiven children is non-existent. He is love driven and ever stands with welcoming arms to give us the privilege of beholding His glory in person. Intimacy has been restored.
Help me start at the beginning when I share this story with others. If I start with the cross, it’s incomplete. How beautiful a story you’re written – and put me in the center of it! Amen.
For more from Christine Wyrtzen and Jaime Wyrtzen Lauze, please visit www.daughtersofpromise.org
For more from Christine Wyrtzen and Jaime Wyrtzen Lauze, please visit www.daughtersofpromise.org
Originally published Monday, 17 February 2020.
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