THE IMAGE OF GOD RETURNS TO THE GARDEN

Genesis 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Genesis 2:8 And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.

Genesis 3:1-3 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? (2) And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: (3) But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.

Genesis 3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

Genesis 3:8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

Genesis 3:24 So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

Adam was driven out.

• The image of God was driven from the Garden.
• God made man in His image and then after man sinned, He drove man out from the garden.

The picture of the sword at the Garden entrance gives us an understanding of a barrier quite easily.

• But the idea of cherubims AROUND that sword opens things up even more.
• And by noticing these little points, we can see many important notes in the Gospel and the New Testament that deal with these issues.
• The Gospel is all about getting man back to the place God originally made for us, out of which Adam was cast.

The Bible calls the WORD of God a two-edged sword.

Verse 11 says we must labour to enter into a Rest....

Hebrews 4:11-12 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. (12)
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

And when we go back and see what that Labour is, we learn it is mixing the word with faith.

Hebrews 4:2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.

Hebrews 4:3 For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

Verse 12 gives us the reason why we should labour by mixing the word with faith -- it is because that word that we mix with faith is accurate and, therefore, successful in dividing things in our hearts.

• And our hearts are a very important part when it comes to entering the rest.
• Our hearts BELIEVE or DISBELIEVE.
• Our hearts are the BELIEVER part of us.
• And our BELIEVER part must be set free of unbelief.

And various visions that were given to people depict the same idea.

Let's look at some visions in the Bible that bring these pictures into play.

Jesus is seen in the first vision of Revelation:

Revelation 1:16 And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

Revelation 19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

So Jesus is said to have a sword come from His mouth.

• This simply is saying that the Word of God is a sharp two-edged sword.
• It works in our hearts.
• Hebrews 4 is trying to tell us that it cuts away unbelief so we can enter the rest.

Hebrews 4 says that we must mix the word with faith.

• And verses 11-12 say that we must do this because His word is like a sharp sword that cuts into our soul and spirit.
• Its a discerner.

So picture Jesus there with a sword coming from His mouth.

• It's all symbolic.
• The sword is always the word of God.

The idea of the FLAMING SWORD in Genesis is becoming clearer.

What else did John see?

Revelation 1:13 And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.

Revelation 1:15 And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.

Remember these highlighted details.

And this additional part of the vision connects us with something in Ezekiel.

• In other words we can see similarities in parts of John's vision with Ezekiel's vision, and realize that both visions give a clearer picture.
• Like adding pieces of a puzzle together to get the entire picture.

Ezekiel saw a vision of Jesus and noted the same thing about the gold and fire..

Ezekiel 1:26-27 And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it. (27) And I saw as the colour of amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance of his loins even upward, and from the appearance of his loins even downward, I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about.

Ezekiel 1:28  As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake.

Ezekiel said that all of this was what he called the GLORY OF THE LORD.

Golden from his loins upward and fire from his loins downward!

THAT IS JESUS' GLORY THAT EZEKIEL SAW!

Since we know it is Jesus, we read some more details mentioned by Ezekiel that John's vision did not provide.

• The following is part of the GLORY OF THE LORD that Ezekiel saw.

Ezekiel adds something about Jesus' glory.

Ezekiel said he saw all of this by the River of Chebar.

Ezekiel 1:1  Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.

Here is what else he saw there.

Ezekiel 1:5 Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man.

Ezekiel 1:10 As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle.

Keep in mind that all of this is part of THE GLORY OF THE LORD.

We know these CREATURES are cherubims because we also read later in Ezekiel the creatures he saw in chapter 1 with the same faces, are called CHERUBIMS.:

Ezekiel 10:1 Then I looked, and, behold, in the firmament that was above the head of the cherubims there appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne.

Ezekiel 10:14 notes the same faces as we see in 1:10.

Ezekiel 10:14  And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle.

This makes us know the CHERUBIMS were the creatures from chapter 1.

Ezekiel 10:15  And the cherubims were lifted up. This is the living creature that I saw by the river of Chebar.

This was what he saw in Chapter 1, in other words.

Ezekiel called this the glory of the Lord.

Notice the sound associated with this glory.

Ezekiel 1:24 And when they went, I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of great waters, as the voice of the Almighty, the voice of speech, as the noise of an host: when they stood, they let down their wings.

Ezekiel 10:5 And the sound of the cherubims' wings was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of the Almighty God when he speaketh.

Recall that Revelation 1 noted the same thing about the VOICE of Christ!

Revelation 1:15  And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.

Praise God!

• The picture is coming together!
• (I am leading up to something great!)

God had Moses make a model of this THRONE/CHARIOT picture in Exodus.

THE ARK OF THE COVENANT.

Cherubims were around the glory of God on the ark of the covenant.

• The ark of the covenant was a model of this glory.
• It had a mercyseat like the throne.
• And aside the seat were golden cherubims.

JOHN GILL WROTE these words about Gen 3:24 where the sword and cherubims were placed at the Garden entrance:

The Septuagint version is, "and he placed him, or caused him to dwell over against the paradise of pleasure, and he ordered the cherubim'' But the words are not to be understood either of placing man, or placing the cherubim, but of Jehovah's placing himself, or taking up his habitation and residence before the garden of Eden, or at the east of it: while man abode in a state of innocence, the place of the divine Presence, or where God more gloriously manifested himself to him, was in the garden; but now he having sinned, and being driven out of it, he fixes his abode in a very awful manner at the entrance of the garden, to keep man out of it; for so the words may be rendered, "and he inhabited the cherubim, or dwelt over, or between the cherubim, before or at the east of the garden of Eden" (q); so the Jerusalem Targum, "and he made the glory of his Shechinah, or glorious Majesty, to dwell of old at the east of the garden of Eden, over or above the two cherubim;'' or between them,

This picture of a sword, representing God's Word, around which were cherubims, not noting how many cherubims were there, is the same picture of the GLORY OF GOD that Ezekiel 1 tells about.

And what is even more interesting is the previous note.

Genesis 3:8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

VOICE of God is also translated NOISE OF GOD.

• And COOL OF THE DAY can be translated WIND OF THE DAY, or SPIRIT OF THE DAY.
• So this corresponds to Ezekiel's words: I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of great waters, as the voice of the Almighty, the voice of speech, as the noise of an host: when they stood, they let down their wings.

A ROARING noise like STRONG WIND or WATERS!

God's anger was kindled.

• His glory became a driving-out force.
• Adam was frightened enough to hide.
• And when the serpent, Eve and Adam were dealt with, this glory drove them out and situated itself at the entrance to the Garden to keep man out.

All of this connects us with Hebrews 4 where we read that we need to enter that Rest of God that Adam failed to enter, when God rested the seventh day.

• After saying we must enter this rest by mixing the word with faith, we read that we should do so because the word is sharper than any two edged sword.

So the sword becomes a good thing!

Here is this glory of God at the Garden entrance.

• The glory Ezekiel saw and John saw was at the entrance of the Garden!
• God's presence is there.
• And the sword in the entrance is the WORD COMING FROM HIS MOUTH.
• The Garden is the rest and we are to take that Word like a sword and let it cut into our souls and hearts.
• Let it remove all unbelief.

It has to cut away elements from our hearts.

Paul said some more words that connect us with the sword.

2 Corinthians 3:13-16 And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: (14) But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ. (15) But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. (16)
Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.

Notice that our HEARTS can have a VEIL upon them, just as Moses' face was veiled so the people could not see.

•  Our hearts are BLINDED by a VEIL.
• Our minds.
• And TURNING TO THE LORD is TURNING TOWARDS THE SWORD.
• It's like coming tot he Garden entrance, where the glory of Jesus stands!
• And the sword there is His Word from His mouth!
• And when we turn our hearts toward Him at the Garden entrance, the VEIL ENSHROUDING OUR HEARTS IS CUT AWAY BY THE WORD THAT IS LIKE A SWORD.

The veil is the UNBELIEF that covers our hearts.

• The veil is the HINDERING FACTOR.

Deuteronomy 10:16 Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked.

Deuteronomy 30:6 And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

Jeremiah 4:4 Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

Romans 2:29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Colossians 2:11-12 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: (12) Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

And something beautiful happens when you you let that SWORD cut away the VEIL FROM YOUR HEART.

2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Once again you are made as Adam originally was!

THE IMAGE OF GOD.

The image of God is once again in the Garden!

God wants to cut away all unbelief and your faith in Jesus Christ will cut away the veil from your heart so you can see His glory.

He wants you to enter into His rest.

Like a sculptor, He stands at the garden entrance with his sword/chisel.

• The sculptor sees the image of God beneath all the caking and veiling of carnality and sinfulness.
• And His SWORD will cut away all that matter.
• And it only happens when your hearts is truly turned to Him.
• You DESIRE His will to be done.
• Your hear BELIEVES!
• You MIX THE WORD WITH YOUR HEART'S FAITH!
• And THAT is the necessary LABOUR you require to enter this paradisical REST!
• BEYOND THE SWORD IS PARADISE.

You are changed into His image when you see this glory.

As awful as you may see yourself, with all the negative aspects of your lives, the SWORD OF THE WORD will cut away and carve out the image of God that lies deep inside, but has been marred.

Romans 8:29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

That is how we experience THE RETURN OF THE IMAGE OF GOD TO THE GARDEN.