One of my favorite subjects in high school was Geometry. Certain theorems have now stuck with me throughout my 64 years, thus the title. Parallel lines, if extended through infinity, I was assured would never touch. That could have changed by now, given how many absolutes have been challenged; however, there is One that seems ever constant in my life.
Another favorite thing is entitling blog entries; therein the magnetism to attract new readers from the various internet search engines. I often get comments like the one from Australia, following a word search for democracy: “Enjoyed reading, however, not what I expected.” God only knows who on the globe will read this entry.
This morning while reading the Chronicles of David’s life, I was struck by the favor upon this sinful man. Sinful in that he continues to do things for which one would think earlier failures had taught him better? That is in fact my point of identification with this great King of Israel. As well, I note the fact that God continued His favor toward David seemingly regardless, though not without consequences.
This seems to be true from the initial Adam, even perhaps a law which religion has denied, driving men to struggle for lifetimes to please a God who already knows us better than we know ourselves. Even Joseph was imperfect at points, his brothers’ animosity perhaps the result of his youthful arrogance. Then there was Sampson, pledged a Nazarite from an early age, even escorted into life by an angel, and provided the best of environments to nurture a sinless man; still his story is blemished by seduction and failure. Though, by the end of his life we see a mature man of devotion never abandoned by the God who had called him.
Leaping further across the pages of scripture to the New Testament, we find the likes of Peter, denying the Christ at His greatest point of crises, yet called upon to anchor the Church after the Resurrection.
We are hopelessly prodigal and yet He is the prodigal God; waiting our return with fatted calf, a ring and a robe! Over and over, this prodigal God offers forgiveness though the forgiven never seem to change their trajectory sufficient to intersect His righteousness. Yet, all through scripture, while man is faithful to sin, God is faithful to redeem.
This, my friend is the point of my read. We are on parallel vectors with God, though denying our plight; we religiously attempt to please God, though even His Word establishes that as impossible, we are on two separate planes. Yet this patient Father, waits through the centuries until we ourselves come up with a hideous means of capital punishment, crucifixion. That cruel technology would then best define the impossible but now ready intersection where these two parallel beings could now meet.
He waited in time, in fact for centuries, yet not without ample proposition for this new law of grace. Sacrifices woven into our religious attempts to reach Him, paradoxically portend the day when this God would show up among us, and without awareness on our part, would be offered on the same day as the Passover Lamb was slain by the Priesthood for the sins of mankind.
The God of the Garden was now in our Gethsemane and Mary wasn’t wrong when she mistook Him for the gardener, though no longer in Eden.