It's A Secret
I have lived in some big houses in my day. When you are one of 9 kids, it just sort of comes with the territory. Two of the houses I’ve lived in were actually funeral homes at one point. The way that played on a young boys imagination… But these houses were old and had all kinds of character. One had a laundry chute (shoot) from the second floor to the basement. My little brother got stuck in it once… after we enticed him to go in of course. One house had a ‘widows watch’, it’s called. The top of the roof had a flat spot with a tiny iron railing around it. The real purpose of this I am not certain, but it was fun to go up there and see the town from that vantage point.
Another house had a big closet at the top of the staircase. We moved in and my parents set us loose on the place. Finding the closet, we went to the back and found a little door in the side. There was a staircase leading up to the attic that from thence forward became the boys territory. For 6 boys to find a secret staircase to the attic was heaven. My parents knew it was there all along, but they wanted to give us the fun of finding it. And it was fun. My Dad insulated it and we had our bedrooms up there.
Secrets are enticing. Some people are driven to finding out things and they become archeologists and police detectives. But we all enjoy stumbling upon a solved mystery. That is why mysteries are attractive – we want to know what’s behind them. We watch a magician perform some trick and long to know how he did it. God knows all about this, because he made us that way. He gave us the ability to unlock a riddle, solve a mystery and problem-solve our way out of a room where the walls are closing in and water is rising from the floor and we only have a coat-hanger and a piece of gum (thank-you MacGyver). There are mysteries only because we haven’t solved them yet. There are things that God has imbedded into life for us to discover.
One of my favorite phrases Jesus used was, “He who has an ear to hear, let him hear.” I think that just means, if you’re willing to listen, then step up and I’ll tell you more. You don’t get it all at once. There is too much that way. You can drink a small lake, but you have to spread it out over the course of 80 years. The Lord invites us to gather at his feet as he trickles out wisdom to us. Sometimes there is mystery in places we never would have looked for it. Sometimes we are given the answer to a problem we never knew to be there at all.
Bible translators have had (and still do have) an immense task. There are times when English translators have not known what to do. One particular time is actually in the most famous of all bible verses. That’s right: John 3:16. Do you know what it really says? It reads this way, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whoever believes INTO him should not perish but have everlasting life.” It made more sense to them to substitute the word “in”, but it’s more precise to put “into”. What’s the difference? It may or may not make a difference to you depending on your “ear to hear.” You see, there is a mystery uncovered in the New Testament. But it’s one only the Lord can show you. Here is one more hint though, from the words of Christ: “Abide in Me and I in you.” If you know what that means, you may enjoy John 3:16 in a new way today.
BJ
Another house had a big closet at the top of the staircase. We moved in and my parents set us loose on the place. Finding the closet, we went to the back and found a little door in the side. There was a staircase leading up to the attic that from thence forward became the boys territory. For 6 boys to find a secret staircase to the attic was heaven. My parents knew it was there all along, but they wanted to give us the fun of finding it. And it was fun. My Dad insulated it and we had our bedrooms up there.
Secrets are enticing. Some people are driven to finding out things and they become archeologists and police detectives. But we all enjoy stumbling upon a solved mystery. That is why mysteries are attractive – we want to know what’s behind them. We watch a magician perform some trick and long to know how he did it. God knows all about this, because he made us that way. He gave us the ability to unlock a riddle, solve a mystery and problem-solve our way out of a room where the walls are closing in and water is rising from the floor and we only have a coat-hanger and a piece of gum (thank-you MacGyver). There are mysteries only because we haven’t solved them yet. There are things that God has imbedded into life for us to discover.
One of my favorite phrases Jesus used was, “He who has an ear to hear, let him hear.” I think that just means, if you’re willing to listen, then step up and I’ll tell you more. You don’t get it all at once. There is too much that way. You can drink a small lake, but you have to spread it out over the course of 80 years. The Lord invites us to gather at his feet as he trickles out wisdom to us. Sometimes there is mystery in places we never would have looked for it. Sometimes we are given the answer to a problem we never knew to be there at all.
Bible translators have had (and still do have) an immense task. There are times when English translators have not known what to do. One particular time is actually in the most famous of all bible verses. That’s right: John 3:16. Do you know what it really says? It reads this way, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whoever believes INTO him should not perish but have everlasting life.” It made more sense to them to substitute the word “in”, but it’s more precise to put “into”. What’s the difference? It may or may not make a difference to you depending on your “ear to hear.” You see, there is a mystery uncovered in the New Testament. But it’s one only the Lord can show you. Here is one more hint though, from the words of Christ: “Abide in Me and I in you.” If you know what that means, you may enjoy John 3:16 in a new way today.
BJ
posted by BJ at 2:21 p.m.
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