Under the Tree of Life
"On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations" (Revelation 22:2).
When I was in Tanzania several years ago, I saw the Baobab tree everywhere. The one in the photo above grew right in the middle of a village and was one of the more impressive in terms of the girth of its trunk. Communities in some areas form around these trees since they provide shelter, food and water for people and livestock.
Endemic to Africa, the Baobab can live 5,000 years, reach up to 100 feet high, and grow to an enormous 165 feet in circumference. During the rainy season, these trees absorb and store water in their vast trunks, allowing them to produce a nutrient-dense fruit in the dry season — thereby earning the nickname, "the tree of life."
In Revelation, John also speaks of a tree of life when he writes about his vision of the New Jerusalem,
He says its leaves are for the "healing of the nations," which points to the fact that in the new heavens and earth, people from all nations will be present, at peace and aligned in their worship of the Lord. John elsewhere in Revelation confirms this when he writes that people from "every, tribe, tongue and nation" will be worshipping before the throne of God and the Lamb.
Friends, this is what Pentecost is about — the gospel message of Jesus's life, death and resurrection going out to the ends of the earth, bringing restoration, forgiveness and healing to every ethnic group on earth.
As I mentioned in a previous Beacon, I had the privilege to participate in a Scripture celebration in Tanzania where Burunge speakers (a minority group of 30,000 people) praised God for the completion of the New Testament in their language.
The joy that emanated from that community felt like a foretaste of the day when we will be unified in our diversity — directing our praise to the One who will gather together all his children under the shade of the ultimate tree of life to experience the joy of his eternal kingdom.
May this vision unify, comfort and inspire us this Pentecost.
Fr. Darin+