The Ordnance Survey is revered as a British institution in the field of mapping the country. It is renowned for the accuracy and clarity of detail in its publications. There is also an on-line facility I like for plotting routes I am planning to walk, or recording those that I have actually done. It is called "getamap". When heading out onto the hills, it is vital to have a map, and the ability to read and use it. Mountain rescue teams regularly bemoan the fact that people set off without the right clothing and maps. Sadly, with the use of satnav devices in cars, map reading skills seem to be in decline.
Once the skills have been developed, map lovers can easily spend hours poring over them. The symbols for the contours, the transport networks, the rivers and valleys, the woods and crags, and all sorts of land use and man made landmarks all create a vivid impression of an area, even if it has never been visited. When out in the field, provided you can keep tabs on where you actually are on the ground, you can then proceed with certainty when confronted with a junction in the path or road requiring a choice or decision to be made.
Life is often likened to a journey. Rightly, the Bible has often been likened to the map for life's journey. God is a higher authority even than the Ordnance Survey. If we can put our trust in man-made maps, surely we can even more securely trust the Word of God? It shows where we go wrong and how things can be put right. It presents the destinations that lie ahead of all people beyond death - either heaven or hell. It shows precisely how to avoid the one and gain the other. God presents His own perspective on what is right and wrong, and who are we to argue? He defines sin and concludes that all have sinned and deserve hell. There is a clearly signed crossroads at the heart of the route selection - the cross of Christ, the meaning of His death and resurrection. God provides a Saviour and makes Him freely available to everybody, so that we can escape hell and be certain of heaven. All we need to do is to recognise our need and accept God's provision.
All too often we want to take short cuts. We may not realise that there is an obstacle or pitfall to be avoided, maybe a difficult river crossing, a bog, a crag. Others only ever want to use motorways and refuse to explore the by roads and so miss out on many of the most special places there are to see. In the journey of life too, short cuts can be dangerous, or simply doing nothing than following the crowd after entertainment or material gain.
To get right with God, there is no short cut avoiding the cross of Christ. Jesus Christ is the key to the Bible. Just like maps, the Bible comes to life when we understand the key meanings of the message being conveyed. God is not hiding things from us, but because the truth often hurts, we try to avoid or alter the message to suit ourselves. We want to earn God's blessing, even when He says we cannot. We want to choose for ourselves what is right or wrong even when He sets the parameters as is His absolute prerogative. We prefer darkness even as God is providing us with light. If only we allow Him to turn on the light for us, we will start to see the beauty and fullness of the message he has for us. The person of Christ becomes precious, His death and resurrection become central to our life and purpose, and the destination of heaven is assured. Our lives can be transformed and have totally new and real motivation and meaning.
When going out for a walk in a new place, nobody with an interest in the world around would set off without a map, and one which is reliable at that. When journeying through life, likewise, we should not proceed without the one reliable guide from the Maker's hands, the Bible. Life is too serious to make mistakes on the most important issues. Don't just accept any old plan for life, get The Map. Don't just make assumptions about its message, make sure you have a first hand understanding.
A good map satisfies the needs of multitudes of visitors with differing interests. In the journey of life, we all have twists and turns that are individual to us, but the Bible is able to speak personally to each and every human life with truth and authority, with direct relevance and yet with grace and mercy too. Don't relegate The Map to some dusty shelf in the corner.
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