Category Archives: parable

The Ant Head

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They gathered in a building.  The final place of the final test.  They came together to prove the value of Man.

The question was leadership and righteousness.  Who is worthy and why.

From the body of the elders they pick the wisest one.  They said to him, “Choose for us a prize that we may begin the contest”.  The old man, bent over and half blind, said to them, “Bring me the head of an ant”.

The youngest of the elders was the first to move.  He ran outside and grabbed the first ant he could find.  With urgent dispatch he returned with the head of an ant.

The elder told him to put it plate and set the plate the middle of the table. 

The elder sat at the head of the table.  “Now debate among yourselves who is worthy to eat this head.”

They all stood speechless for the space of a minute.  Then the first to move was the youngest.  As his fingers reached for the prize, one of the elders slapped his hand with disdain.  “What gives you the right to think you are worthy?”  The reaching and the slapping became a spark to a pool of flammable liquid. 

It started with a response.  But it soon developed into an all out brawl.  This went on for quite a while until a breeze came to the top of the table.  Not even one elder noticed the ant head drift off the plate, down to the floor, and disappear in a crack.

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I have looked at Man.  I have tried to discover why righteousness eludes us.  I thought I had the answer.  But in the telling of it, it took too long.

In my life I have testified well over fourteen thousand times, trying to nail down the reason why we are full of disarray.

I have come to the conclusion of the elder who ordered the ant head.  There is no righteousness among men.  There is no peace to be found anywhere on this earth.  Man simply does not have eternal life in him.

And I have understood from all that is Christianity, Salvation belongs to our God and to the Lamb.  Except that the Living God had done his “Strange Work”, not one man would rise from the grave.

I used to stand at the edge of the city and wait to hear wisdom.  I stood along the path where men walk and waited to hear someone utter something wise and beautiful.  But I realized I will starve to death before I find a wise man walk by me.

Unless the wisdom of God comes down from heaven, man has no option but death.  And hasn’t this been done?  Christ Jesus crucified on our behalf.  Yes, the wisdom of God has come down.

In Man there is no life.  But God has sent mercy.  Let every man do as he will; seek righteousness with all your heart.  You will not find it here!

The Sending

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Take your eyes off the things that are broken.  For to ponder these things is sadness without repair. 

Let your ears forget the noise of the crash.  Let your eyes cease to remember the shattered pieces on the floor.

The Fullness of Life stands at the door.  Turn to see how He watches you. 

Send your ears away that they may listen to His words.  Forgive them their duty as your servants.  Let them go and learn, so that when they return they will give you knowledge.

Send your eyes away.  Let them go and see the things the Living God has in His hand.  When they return to you they will not squint at the brilliance of light.  The shadows will no longer be an attraction.

Do not shrink back but become!

The Scoundrel

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He sits with you while you do your work, waiting patiently for praise.

When you go out to play he comes along with you, bringing all kinds of competitive violence.

When you go to buy what you need, he’s the one who suggests the frivolous.

When you sit in church, he’s the one who pays attention to everything but the sermon.

While you are in prayer, he’s the one who draws your attention to leave.

When you try to love someone in Christ, he’s the one who points out why the man is not worthy.

Who is this scoundrel?  He is the mind of flesh.  He is the one you are commanded to overcome.  He is the one who stands outside your door desiring to have you.  He is the one you must murder.

The Rift

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“To all perfection I see a limit, but your commands are boundless.”  (Psalm 119:96)

All of them were right.  Every one of them gave his testimony; with what words they had, they described what they saw.  Chaos exploded before their very eyes.  Reality appeared then vanished.

A car accident, in full view of many witnesses.  Differing statements were taken.  And the question is asked in retrospect, how can so many variations of witness exist?

It is because there is a difference between believing and seeing.  It is because there is a difference between the imagination and true perspective.  When what we believe comes into view, we find we do not have the words to describe it.

For a split second a rift opened between the peace of man and the truth of God.  For a split second the reality of eternity displayed itself before their very eyes:  “If man continues on that destructive path, bodies will be exploded where they live”.

Yes.

The Incarnation of the Word of Life

1 “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our joy complete.”

Parable of the Mansion

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Man is like those who have unrighteously broken down the doors of The Mansion on The Hill.  With great rebellion they entered and tore down the beautiful things.  The things that were sacred, to he who owns the mansion, were replaced by plastic trinkets.  Worthless painted, fradulently filthy objects, replaced the purified gold.

They have reveled in that spacious Palace, without regard to its heritage.  With drunken revelry they have made his beautiful place a stench.

In some of the rooms they have set up idols to their own hands.  They set up guards to restrict entrance to what they call sacred.  The rebellious restrain the rebellious.  This is what they call truth.

But the owner has known.  He has sent spies among them to report the evil that lives in his house.  He has sent servants to warn the rebellious.  “The one who owns this place will return to it.  He will see what you have done.  He will see your face; the face of those who have called his house theirs.  Not a single one will escape punishment!”

He owns the house.  He owns the hill.  He owns the seas, the air, the food, and even the souls of those who have taken what is his.  He owns the vastness of the universe.  He owns the language that man has turned evil.  He owns the brains which have conceived worthless imaginary religions.  And he will tear this place down!

Man will be caught.  He will be stopped in stride.  Even while he goes about his filthy business, God will pluck him up.

Who is wise to cease his madness?  Who is wise to listen?  Who is wise to beg mercy even while his hands are filthy with destruction?

See how the Mansion resists the will of man to destroy.  See how, though it is a shell of what it was, it remains a place of testimony.  See the strength of God and consider!

Rot and Corruption

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I have seen the body of an animal reduced to bones and fur within the space of two days, by the bugs along a stream.  That’s not a place where I’d choose to sleep the night.  You would be swarmed within the space of an hour.

As I consider this, I am put to remembrance of the souls of men.  The decay of a rotten soul draws the attention of many.  Yes, man is dead, even as he lives, if he refuses the life that God extends through Jesus.

Sleep in this world of destruction, if you have no will to notice the swarm which stands against you.  Or listen to the wisdom of God to turn away from those places where a man should not “sleep”.  Come away from the muddy, unpalatable and slow-moving water of lies.  Answer the call to climb the mountain of God which leads to the living place of rest.

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”(John 3, ESV)