How to Eat the Tree of Life - “Loving the Lord with the First Love” vs “Letting the Lord Have the First Place in All Things”

 

How to Eat the Tree of Life - “Loving the Lord with the First Love” vs “Letting the Lord Have the First Place in All Things”

Genesis 2:9 The Lord God made every kind of tree grow out of the ground—trees that are pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden was the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

John 6:35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”

Revelation 2:4 But I condemn you for one thing: you have forsaken your first love.

Colossians 1:18 He is also the head of the body of the church, the beginning, the firstborn one raised from the dead, so that he may have the highest position in all things;

Philippians 3:8 Moreover, I consider all things a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For him I have lost all things; I consider them rubbish, that I might gain Christ. 

Item	Loving the Lord with the First Love	Letting the Lord Have the First Place in All Things	Spiritual Integration: How to Eat the Tree of Life
Meaning	Returning to love the Lord with the purest and best love (Rev. 2:4)	Honoring Christ as Head and center in all things (Col. 1:18)	Loving the Lord is the inward motive; giving Him first place is the outward practice
Reason	Religious knowledge causes believers to lose love and enjoyment of Christ	The self and the natural man hinder Christ from being Lord	Loss of love leads to loss of enjoyment; lack of first place blocks the way of life
Way	Giving the Lord our best love: “I give You my first love”	Willingly being adjusted, broken, and denied	Giving the heart to the Lord and giving Him the position
Explanation	Love brings us back to the tree of life, not to the tree of knowledge	Giving Him first place allows Christ to have a free way within us	Love opens the channel; first place maintains the flow
Purpose	To enjoy Christ as the supply of life	To allow Christ to build up His Body	Eating the tree of life is for the building of the Body
Result	Gaining Christ as enjoyment	Living out Christ as expression	Eating → Living → Shining
Relationship	Love produces the willingness to give Christ first place	First place preserves love from degradation	Love is the root; first place is the fruit
Example	Mary loving the Lord above service (Luke 10:39)	Paul counting all things loss for Christ (Phil. 3:8)	From doing things for Christ to letting Christ do everything
Application	Renew our love for the Lord daily	Ask in every matter: Does Christ have the first place?	Eat the tree of life daily, not the tree of knowledge
Burden	To recover the church’s first love	To recover Christ’s headship	To recover God’s original intention: man eating the tree of life
Prophesying Direction	“Lord, I love You with the first love.”	“Lord, have the first place in all things.”	“Lord, make me one who eats You as the tree of life.”
Conclusion	Loving the Lord brings life supply	Giving Him first place brings living testimony	Eating the tree of life = loving the Lord + giving Him first place
Related Verses	Gen. 2:9; Rev. 2:4, 7; John 6:35	Col. 1:18; Matt. 6:33; Rom. 12:1–2	Heb. 10:19–20; Rev. 22:2, 14

 

✨ Spiritual Integrated View (Key Point)

To eat the tree of life is not a matter of knowledge, but of relationship;
not doctrine, but love;
not activity, but lordship.

Loving the Lord with the first love brings us back to the tree of life.
Letting Christ have the first place keeps us in the tree of life.

🗝 One Prophesying Summary Sentence

“Lord Jesus, I love You with the first love and give You the first place in all things, that I may eat You as the tree of life for my life supply and testimony.”

🏁 Ultimate Conclusion

God’s original intention: man should eat the tree of life.
God’s redemption: the way to the tree of life is reopened.
God’s present way: through the overcomers to recover eating the tree of life.

The practical way today is:
❤️ Loving the Lord with the first love
👑 Letting Him have the first place in all things
🌳 This is to truly eat the tree of life.

 

*Please refer to the 2025 Winter Training: Experience, Enjoy, and Manifest Christ (Part 4), Week 5: Tree of Life.