Where was the Garden of Eden? This is a question I have heard a lot over the years, even back in Sunday School as a child. There are geographical clues provided in Genesis to give us the answer to this question. For example, some of the rivers described near the Garden’s biblical location are still around today. However, the primary question should not be, “Where was the Garden of Eden?” Instead, we should ask ourselves, “How can I get back to the Garden?”
I believe the Garden was a real, literal place, but it also represents more than just a physical location; it was the place of fellowship between God and man. Adam was placed in this sacred space with a purpose, that is to work it and keep it. His job was to cultivate and maintain the place where God met with him, reflecting the close relationship he had with God.
The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.
Genesis 2:15 (ESV)
Keeping up your yard and garden can be a rewarding, yet tiresome task. I have been spending hours this summer fighting weeds, cutting vines from trees, picking up fallen limbs, and harvesting fruits. A few times this summer, I have had to water my grass due to lack of rain. It’s a continuous battle to maintain a beautiful, thriving garden. This experience parallels our spiritual lives. Just as a gardener must be diligent and persistent, we too must be working to cultivate our relationship with God.
However, just as evil desire and sin crept into the Garden of Eden to disrupt Adam’s fellowship with God, so it does with our own place of meeting with the Lord. Sin wraps itself around the plants in our garden to choke out the life it bears. Distractions and temptations constantly threaten to stunt our spiritual growth. It requires continuous effort and vigilance to keep our place of meeting with the Lord healthy and fruitful. We simply cannot maintain the perfect garden as we were instructed. We have failed like our father, Adam.
Interestingly, Jesus was mistaken for a gardener by Mary Magdalene after he was raised to life (John 20:15). This is not a coincidence. What a glorious detail orchestrated by God in the divine story of redemption! Jesus is indeed the better gardener of Eden. Through His life, death, and resurrection, Jesus restores our broken relationship with God, offering us the opportunity to return to the Garden of Eden.
Today, you are invited to re-enter Eden, work the grounds, and enjoy sweet fellowship with God Almighty. That place is accessible to you right now through the Lord Jesus Christ. This means seeking a relationship with God that is as direct as Adam’s was. It involves allowing Jesus to cultivate our hearts, guiding us to bear spiritual fruit and live to glorify him. This new Eden is open to you now, wherever you are, no matter what you have done, through the work of the better gardener, Jesus Christ. By seeking God’s presence daily through prayer, reading our Bibles, and solemn reflection on his truth, we can experience the peace of walking closely with God.
Bee-Attitude
Blessed are those who know Jesus Christ. For them is an open gate to re-enter the Garden of Eden and meet with God Almighty.
Grant Turner is the editor of the Barnesville Buzz and an educator, coach, and writer based in Barnesville, Georgia. He shares stories that bridge community, faith, and personal growth. In addition to teaching and coaching, Grant is Director of Musical Worship and a Sunday School teacher at New Hope Baptist Church in Zebulon, Georgia. He lives in Barnesville with his wife, Haley.
