The Watchtower Society and John and Morton Edgar - A2Z.org

The New Creature Compared to a Tree.Let us now consider the various parts of the tree indetail, and compare these with the various stages in the .development of the New Creature as outlined in 2 Pet. 1 :6-7, and we shall be struck with the wonderful aptnessof the illustration, which, under the guidance of the HolySpirit, the Psalmist uses in our text.The Apostle's words are : " Besides this, giving all .diligence. add to your faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge,and to knowledge temperance, and to temperance patience,and to patience godliness, and to godliness brotherly kindness,and to brotherly kindness charity."The Root of Faith.The lirst of the graces' is the root of faith. As with theroot of a tree, its tendrils are at first small and delicate,but they grow and spread in all directions with the continuedgrowth of the New Creature.The root of a tree has two functions:(1) It is the part of the tree which tabs hold of trfap-orrrrl. At first the hold is very feeble, so that even achild could pluck it up ; but by and by, when the tree is.large, it would defy the united strength of many strongmen to uproot it. It is the same with our faith as NewCreatures. Faith is the part which takes hold of theground, the justified heart or will. At first, when ourfaith is small, we should be easily uprooted, were it notthat the Lord is caring for us at this as at every stage.Gradually with our spiritual development, the variousbranches of our faith grow and spread out so as to takea firmer hold of our hearts. Some of them take hold ofthat part of our heart or will which regulates our thoughts,so that we come more and more to think as Jesus thought ;others take hold of those .parts of our heart or will whichregulate our speech and general conduct, so that we