| I
love maps. I can spend hours looking at maps, familiarizing
myself with certain locations, where various places are in
relation to others, distances between different locales,
figuring the best routes to particular destinations, etc. I
wonder sometimes why I never seriously considered becoming a
cartographer.
Over the years,
maps have gone high-tech. This past Christmas, my father gave
us a portable G.P.S. for the car. This has been especially
helpful in learning how to get around in the Houston area,
considering we’re still new in town. I don’t have to stop
and ask directions anymore. If I’m lost, I just turn on the
G.P.S., and in a few moments it determines my current
location. Then, all I do is plug in my destination and it will
tell me exactly how to get there. It lets me choose from the
quickest route or the shortest route. It can also warn me of
areas of construction or accidents so that I can avoid any
delays.
The Bible is
like my G.P.S. in many ways. First, the Bible will
tell us our current spiritual location. When we open
it up and read what God’s will is for us, we can quickly
determine whether we’re on the right path or not. Are we
lost? Have we made a wrong turn at some point? Are we on the
wrong side of town? The Bible lets us know just how we are to
be living our life, what we are to be doing during our time
here on earth, and just where we are supposed to be.
But sometimes
we get lost. We make bad choices. We trust our own sense of
direction instead of the infallible directions found in
Scripture. We get sidetracked by things that look interesting.
Sometimes the lights of the far-off city are appealing and we
find ourselves in places we shouldn’t be. When we finally
come to ourselves, we can look into His word and see that
we’ve strayed from the path that will get us home. We can
see that our ideas, as good as they may have seemed at the
time, were not God’s will for us. We can then make efforts
to get back on track. “For My thoughts are not your
thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. “For
as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways
higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts”
(Isaiah 55:8-9).
Secondly, the
Bible will tell us exactly how to get to our spiritual
destination. God wants us to be with Him for all
eternity, and He has preserved the Scriptures down through the
ages so we can see exactly what He wants from us. In reading
the Bible, we come to an understanding of who He is and what
is pleasing to Him. We come to know how we are to live in
order to be holy as He is holy. We can read what the apostles
taught the people in the 1st century to do in order to be
saved and what they needed to do in order to stay saved.
While telling
us the route to take to get to heaven, the Bible also warns us
of routes to avoid due to danger or pitfalls. So much of the
Scriptures is full of warnings, admonishing those who will
listen to stay away from certain behaviors, to avoid the lusts
of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes, and the pride of life. It
tells us that if we follow certain paths, we are destined to
destruction, sure to fall victim to the devil who is looking
for whom he can devour. If we listen to the instructions as
well as the many cautions found in Scripture, we won’t have
to worry about safely arriving at our spiritual destination.
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path”
(Psalm 119:105).
There is one
vital difference between my G.P.S. and the Bible. There are
times that the G.P.S. is not accurate. It sometimes shows
roads that are not completed when in fact, they are. At other
times, the suggested route takes me through gated
neighborhoods or on roads that have too many lights or stop
signs. It is not an errant free device.
However, the
Bible will never lead us astray; it is infallible.
God knows the best paths for us to take. He understands what
is best for us, and His paths lead to life. Only good can come
from following His word. It’s when we follow our own
inclinations or other fallible men that we start getting into
trouble. The G.P.S. device is not intentionally trying to
cause me trouble. In fact, it’s trying to make my life
easier. But sometimes it’s wrong. Many times, sincere men
are erroneous in their convictions. If we follow only the
Bible, we can’t go wrong. “There is a way that seems right
to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12).
Just like a map
can direct us in our travels in this earthly life, the Bible
is a map that directs us in our spiritual life. But just as my
G.P.S. won’t help me reach my earthly destination unless I
turn it on and follow the directions, neither will the Bible
help us reach our spiritual destination unless we open it up
and follow the directions. |
