We all crave to be the “good side,” but Scripture says both camps stand in shadow until they cling to one tree—the red tree of Jesus, whose blood bridges darkness and whose fruit glows white with light. The way out of rivalry is not by being right, but by being redeemed.
Human beings are wired for black-and-white thinking. From our earliest years, we crave clarity: right versus wrong, safe versus unsafe, us versus them. Biologically, this is the cortisol stage, our bodies’ stress chemistry makes us rigid, reactive, and tribal. Spiritually, this shows up when groups claim, “We are the righteous ones (white), and they are the wicked ones (black).”
But here is the trap: each side sees itself as white and the other as black. In truth, both are still in darkness. Both camps are caught in rivalry, pride, and illusion. Neither is the true white that belongs to God alone.
Scripture insists: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). Even our “whiteness” is an illusion unless it is given by God. As Isaiah warns, “All our righteous deeds are like filthy rags” (Isa 64:6). Rival camps are really two shades of black, fighting over a false white.
So what is the way forward?
The Red Tree in the Middle
The Book of Mormon offers a striking vision. Lehi dreams of a tree whose fruit is “white, to exceed all the whiteness that I had ever seen” (1 Nephi 8:11). This tree is the love of God, fulfilled in Jesus Christ. But how do we reach it?
Here is where covenant color theory helps: the path from black rivalry to white fruit is always through red.
Red is the paradoxical color in scripture. It can symbolize sin, violence, and bloodshed, “though your sins are like scarlet” (Isa 1:18). Yet it is also the color of cleansing, “they shall be white as snow.” Blood at Passover marked Israel for life. Jesus’ blood on the cross purifies and reconciles.
That is why Jesus is not just the gardener of the tree; Jesus is the red tree itself. His cross, stained with His blood, is the trunk that bridges earth to heaven. Whoever clings to Him ascends from black rivalry into the light of God’s presence.
Biologically, this stage corresponds to dopamine, the chemical of motivation and hope. Cortisol (black) traps us in rivalry and fear. Dopamine (red) energizes us to move forward, to take the risk of faith, to step onto the bridge of Christ. It motivates us to let go of tribal illusions of being already white and instead cling to His red tree.
Jesus’s redness is not counterfeit, like Babylon’s scarlet robes or the Amlicites’ red marks. Jesus’s redness is real because it is self-giving, sacrificial, and covenantal.
From Red Tree of Jesus to White Fruit of Atonement
When Lehi tastes the fruit, he says it is “most sweet, above all that I ever before tasted” (1 Nephi 8:11). This white fruit is the serotonin stage, peace, belonging, maturity, wholeness. It is Zion in miniature, the kingdom of God breaking into human life.
But notice: no one reaches the white fruit without passing through the red tree. There is no ladder from black to white. There is no rival camp that is already “white enough.” There is only Jesus, the red tree that offers the white fruit of the light of his love.
This is the covenant pattern everywhere in scripture:
Israel saved by lamb’s blood (Exod 12).
Sins scarlet, made white as snow (Isa 1:18).
The Lamb slain, yet enthroned in radiant glory (Rev 5).
Red always precedes white.
Living in the Red Tree
To follow Jesus as the red tree means giving up illusions of self-made whiteness. It means admitting we are still black without Him. It means resisting counterfeit reds such political saviors, false mediators, scarlet pretenders. It means clinging to His cross/tree daily, trusting His blood as the only way upward.
And when we do, He gives us the fruit: light, joy, peace, wholeness. Not just for individuals, but for communities. Rival camps give way to the one body of Christ. Black illusions fall away. Red sacrifice blooms. White fruit shines.
The gospel journey can be summarized like this:
Black rivalry (cortisol, fear, danger, conflict) → Red tree (Christ’s cross, dopamine of hope) → White fruit of light (serotonin of peace and covenantal community).
Jesus is the red tree that leads us to the white fruit of light.
—Taylor Halverson
Learn Deeply. Live Meaningfully. Spread Light and Goodness!
[Note that I’ve created audio narration using experimental AI enhancement of my voice. I think the narration is functional…but not quite authentic!]
Article Summary
Human default: Black-and-white thinking fueled by cortisol—fear, rivalry, and self-righteousness.
Problem: Each tribe claims to be white, but both are shades of black (Rom 3:23; Isa 64:6).
Red tree revealed: In Lehi’s dream (1 Nephi 8), the path to the dazzling white fruit passes through the tree—Christ’s red cross.
Red in scripture: Paradox of stain and salvation—sin’s color turned to cleansing (Isa 1:18; Exod 12; Rev 5).
Biological echo: Dopamine mirrors the red stage—hope and motivation to move toward Christ rather than rivalry.
White fruit: The final stage of peace, belonging, and divine light (serotonin zone); true whiteness is a gift, not an achievement.
Covenant pattern: Black rivalry → Red sacrifice → White light.
Discipleship: Reject counterfeit reds (political, prideful, performative); cling daily to the true red tree.
Outcome: Communities of light replace camps of fear; Christ’s blood blossoms into shared joy and wholeness.