29 March 2025
There are times that the Bible will use tactile, tangible imagery to express immeasurable realities. For example, Jeremiah’s purchase of a fresh set of underwear, and Yahweh using its deterioration as an example of Israel and Judah’s abandonment of the Lord. Yahweh had bound them closely to himself as a set of undergarments are close to our skin. This cannot compare in reality to the profound closeness Yahweh desires of us to him. Still, it compels us to think further of this intimacy the Lord has designed us for.
Another analogy the Bible will frequently use is that of the traveler. The pilgrim which moves away from Yahweh falls in with the wrong crowd, loses everything, and in desperation returns to the Father. Another traveler on his way to Jericho gets ambushed by a group of thugs, but then is helped by the unexpected stranger. Two travelers together are blind to the very closeness of I AM as they discuss the crucifixion and rumors of a resurrection. Our journeys through life resemble these tales, too. We have gone astray, found our way back, been attacked by pressures and presumptions of the world around us, wondered at what the Lord might be doing, and then come to a new place of understanding of the Lord’s presence. This sequence happens repeatedly throughout our lives, hopefully with less of the dramatics of the first running away from the Father.
Our pathway, or perhaps better said by today’s methodologies, our road trip, is marked by many different surfaces and conditions. As we learn to trust more, we start to recognize that the rocky road is cause to exercise extra care, and the wide open highway allows us to move forward quickly. Yet, the sudden narrowing and slowing of our route gives us new opportunities to see more detail around us, while the fast lane carries us quickly toward our destination. All along are the hazards, and the Lord provides ‘hindrances’ in the form of speed limits that are meant to give loving restriction to our movement. What we see in our trip, however, is that at every moment the Lord desires us to stay close to him. The changes in terrain are not threats to our progress, but are instead reminders of our need to trust. We are also not to yearn for what we’ve passed, but look forward to the present scenery with the appropriate attention to the road. This means, the pains we go through (those detours and rocky roads) are not meant to stop us and hold us to that moment. They are, instead, pointers onward and inward. As we draw ever closer to the Father’s presence, his guidance becomes more natural to follow, even through the twists and hindrances of life.