Joined: 6/28/2007(UTC) Posts: 3,537
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From: The Owner's Manual: Chapter 9, " A Holy People" Quote:Perhaps we can use our highway metaphor to illustrate how God’s Law and His Promise interact with each other. Picture a bridge across a deep gorge. The Designer has said, "The bridge I’ve provided is the only way to cross the gorge. It will hold you. I promise. Trust me." At the same time, He’s posted a sign: Bridge speed limit--40 MPH. Now we, mankind, are all standing around contemplating how to get across the gorge. And we find ourselves gathering in groups reflecting our varying "solutions." The first group (whose leader is Abraham) says, "I trust the Designer to get me across the gorge, but since my car doesn’t have a speedometer, I’ll just keep my eyes fixed on Him as I cross the bridge." The next group, led by Moses, says, "We too trust the Designer," and they cross the bridge with their eyes glued to the speedometer: 40 MPH--that’s the law. David’s group not only trusts the Designer, they’re enthusiastic fans. However, though they know there’s a speed limit on the bridge, they often forget to observe it--and subsequently they crash their cars repeatedly into the guard rails as they cross the chasm. All three of these groups believe the Designer’s promise and make it to the other side of the gorge because of that belief. The law has played its part in how smooth (or bumpy) the journey was, but it hasn’t affected the destination or their certainty of reaching it. These three groups represent the world’s believers.
There are, however, other groups of which we need to be aware. Herod’s group doesn’t want to cross the gorge at all. They’d rather try to build paradise on this side. The bridge seems to them to be beside the point. Jezebel’s people swear they know of a fast, smooth road that will easily get you across the river, just downstream a few miles. "You don’t always have to do what the Designer wants," they say. "Trust us instead. C’mon. It’ll be fun!" Those who follow Rabbi Akiba don’t trust the bridge to hold their weight. They say there’s a better path upstream, but to use it you’ve got to be disciplined and keep the letter of the Law--as we interpret it: "The 40 MPH speed limit must apply to all roads, everywhere, even though we reject the bridge that the law was written to instruct us about in the first place." They say, "Crossing the gorge with us will be an impressive achievement you can be justifiably proud of. But the bridge is just too easy--it’s only there to deceive the gullible." And finally, there’s Constantine’s group, who actually do venture out onto the Designer’s bridge, but not to cross it. Their idea is to encrust it with gold and jewels, restrict access to it, and erect a toll booth at the entrance. The bottom line: nobody in these last four groups crosses the bridge at all, and consequently, none of them make it across the gorge. It really doesn’t matter whether they keep the law or not, because they don’t believe the Designer’s promise: "My bridge will get you to the other side."
There are other groups as well, outside the experience of Judeo-Christianity, that neither trust the bridge nor respect the speed limits. One is represented by Muhammad. They provide an inclined ramp and a promise that if you drive fast enough, you’ll make it to the other side, where big-eyed virgins await you with come-hither looks and goblets of wine. Buddha’s group says the gorge is an illusion, and if you just walk up to the edge and step in, all your troubles will be over. Hitler’s group, meanwhile, insists that fate has decreed victory over the gorge and that the lebensraum that lies beyond it must fall to his irresistible military might. Need I go on?
In case you still don’t know what I’m talking about, here is the key to the metaphor. The "bridge" is Yahshua, the one and only way that the "Designer," Yahweh, has provided for us to reach Him. The near side of the gorge is our mortal life, the far side is heaven, and the gorge itself is death. The speed limit is the Torah, God’s instructions for a safe and productive journey. The "vehicles" in our story are our physical bodies. If we don’t heed the "speed limit," our bodies can be expected to suffer some damage along the way. But if we try to reach the other side by any means other than the Designer’s bridge, we will fail altogether. |
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