Read all about it - Eternity
TWO SHIPS OF LIFE
The year is 2009 and you are 17 years old. You are good looking and fit. You have been given $100 000 to spend by a deceased uncle and you decide to spend it on a trip around the world.
At the wharf you see an interesting line of ships:
| your favourite is a smart-looking vessel with diesel engines and an array of features which excite you: pool, gym, video games room, casino, dance floor etc. |  |
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Next to that is a sturdy wooden yacht with no frills but promises to reach your destination. |
Other ships down the line don't offer the features of your favourite ship and seem to be chosen by passengers who are not your type: fussy, rule-abiding, boring people. You check the promotional material at the tourist office: your favourite promises endless pleasures day and night, the yacht promises a safe voyage and a guarantee to return some time in the future (you find this claim rather strange), the other boats are only interested in their own clientele and are not promoting their voyages.
Of course as a seventeen-year-old there is only one ship for you. You pay your $10 000 and blissfully skip up the ramp.
| The first few days live up to what was promised: you dance with the prettiest girls till all hours of the night while the rest of your first days you stagger about in a drunken stupor as this is how you have been taught to celebrate such good fortune. |  |
On the fourth morning you wake up with a blinding hangover. But what is even worse you hear loud arguments by other passengers about trivial details such as who can use the shower first. You stagger onto the deck and overhear a heated argument between the captain and the navigator on the bridge which petrifies you.
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The captain is extremely upset about the ship's steering and navigating equipment, especially the compass. The navigators apologize but maintain the captain wanted to keep the costs down so they bought the cheapest steering and navigating equipment which was now breaking down. |
You realise that you have been taken in: the ship promises so many transient pleasures but lacks in vital areas. You look in desperation at the horizon ahead of you, wondering if some submerged reef or rock may claim your life. Then you look behind you to see where the other ships are located. With surprise you find that the wooden yacht is travelling in your wake and is closing the distance between you because your captain has had to reduce speed and operate only one engine due to the steering and navigation nightmare. You go into the bar and tell the others what you overheard but they don't believe what you say because such a fine ship could not have such basic problems. The ship's mate hears your pleading and calls you aside where he tells you there are far worse problems with the ship and he wants your help to rescue the passengers. Your face registers shock when you hear the word 'rescue' and you think: how could such a wonderful trip have degenerated to this? The ship's mate takes you to the navigation room where he shows you some charts that you can see even as an amateur have some alarming defects: they lack precision and are vague, unable even to identify ocean depths and hazards on the voyage.
| Then he takes you to the engine room where you gasp at the sight of the water slowly filling the hold. You urgently ask the mate why the pumps are not coping with the leaks and where the leaks are coming from. He replies to your shocked ears that the ship was built in a hurry from the cheapest materials and was never designed for global tours. |  |
It was only designed for voyages between Mediterranean cities. Your heart is pumping like a jackhammer as you race back to the bar to tell the passengers the news. In their inebriated state they shout you down claiming you are just a party pooper and if you keep going like this they will throw you overboard. You are in panic mode as you rush up to the deck to find the yacht right behind your ship. You look behind the yacht to see your ship's wake has been taking different tacks every hour. Suddenly you see flashing lights coming from the yacht which you recognize as Morse code. The message reads: "Your ship is sinking, man the life boats!" You run down to the engine room where the ship's mate is furiously pumping water out of the hold with the obsolete equipment. He registers no surprise as you recount the latest events. When you ask him why he is not surprised he replies that he has radioed the yacht with the details of our ship's fate.
You both decide to urge the passengers to consider the facts and man the lifeboats. Most of them call you insane and see no reason to abandon ship.
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You plead with them to go to the deck and see the weaving wake, go to the navigating room and examine the broken compass and poor maps or go to the engine room and study the leaking steel plates and antiquated pumps. |
They scream at you that everything is fine, the lights are working brightly and the beer is flowing freely, no need to worry about anything.
You then plead with them to come up on deck to see the yacht which is signalling you. They laugh in your faces, telling you that an old wooden yacht could never be of any use to them, travelling as they are in the latest luxurious vessel with everything their hearts desire. A few, however, are showing worried faces and beginning to whisper their concerns around the bar. One voluble drunk suddenly swings a right at one of the whispering doubters and sends him flying. This is enough to quieten the others who drink many whiskies to cope with their fears.
The ship's mate shrugs his shoulders and wearily accompanies you to the deck again.
The yacht is no longer in your wake but is sailing beside your ship. Its passengers seem far more mature and contented than those on your ship: the mate explains that they are of this nature because their captain has all the latest equipment, has detailed charts, they have rostered duties sailing the yacht which keeps them occupied, they know what storms are within 500 km as they have the latest technology and they know they will reach their destination. Some of them show great concern for our plight.
It is then that you begin to have doubts about everything.
You are thinking: how can an old wooden yacht be a better vessel than your sleek ship? Why do I need the best charts anyway, there aren't any rocks in the ocean. Also you think: how can a few leaks sink such a huge ship. Then you start thinking along a more dangerous track: how can I leave all those beautiful girls here, how can all these people be wrong?
Then you are surprised to see 10 passengers coming up on deck. They tell you they have thought about what you said and have decided to check it out themselves.
You have a choice:
1. Do you decide to join your friends at the bar and party on in the belief that your ship is going to make it despite its problems?
OR
2. Do you decide to abandon ship with the ship's mate and the 10 other passengers?
DECISION 1 OUTCOME
You decide to join your friends at the bar and party on in the belief that your ship is going to make it despite the problems. Three weeks later your girlfriends have convinced you that there is nothing to worry about. Every week the yacht is further away from your ship, making rescue less and less possible.
Six weeks later you are in a drunken stupor with your girlfriends. Suddenly a siren wails: the ship has hit a submerged rock not shown on the ship's inadequate charts. You rush down to the engine room to see if the water level is now under control. With a racing pulse you realise the situation is far worse as the ship's mate is no longer there and the others have been complacent, believing the ship could never sink.
The new leak caused by the collision combined with the instability caused by the hold full of water causes the ship to sink rapidly. You are trapped before being able to abandon ship.
You drown.
DECISION 2 OUTCOME
You decide to abandon ship with the ship's mate and 10 other passengers.
You arrive at the yacht and are warmly welcomed by the passengers who are very concerned about your health.
You spend the next six weeks studying your ship from a distance and sending them Morse code messages.
Suddenly you see your ship lurch to one side and sink. You and your rescued friends are shocked but continue on your voyage. You learn the basics of sailing and form a part of the team.
Three months later you return to your home base.
MEANING
Bad choices ultimately lead to destruction but God offers the possibility of rescue.
How about the ship you are now on? How well constructed is it?
Do you mind if we test the plates and the pumps, the charts and compass?
Did you believe everything you were taught at school or did you doubt some ideas which did not seem to have enough evidence to support them? For example, did you go along with the idea that everything made itself by natural processes? Did you wonder how living things came into being? Have you ever thought, 'There are such complex design features in every living thing? How can I put my trust in people who tell me crazy ideas such as whales probably evolved from cows? How can I trust the evidence they present which has been contradicted and proved to be hoaxes so many times?
In summary if you are living your life without recognition of the divine designer of all created life then you are travelling on a very leaky ship. Your ship's pumps will not be able to save you when the designer comes to hold you to account for your life.
Let's have a look at your steering and navigation equipment.
At school did you ever wonder why everybody was being taught to be independent free thinkers yet they ended up thinking along similar tracks? The Post Modern line of thought dictates everything: all your friends consider they have the right to judge everything and form a firm opinion about it. They are sceptical about everything they have been taught in History, claiming nothing can be trusted. They are critical of most people in authority if they do not agree with them.
Do you battle with these issues? Do you realise how dangerous it is to trust in your own opinion while ignoring the facts and experience gained through research and history?
The Bible has a description of such thinking which should chill you to the bone.
"There is a way that seems right to a man but the end of that way leads to death." Proverbs 14:12 "The people preferred darkness to light." John 3:19
"Broad is the road that leads to destruction but narrow is the path that leads to eternal life and few
find it?" Matthew 7:13
The poor compass on the sleek ship represents your opinion-driven life. You assume that you can sleep around or cheat or lie or live selfishly and no one cares let alone God. You are bound by opinions and slogans such as 'If it feels good, do it, it's OK if it doesn't hurt anyone, it's my life so lay off, I have a right to do it my way, it's only one life so make the most of it, you're only young for a short time so don't waste it, make lots of money and have a ball.'
All of these slogans are based on the false assumption that pleasure seeking and selfishness are the best life styles.
The facts scream otherwise.
In the Prodigal Son story Jesus shows you the folly of such thinking: There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, "Father, give me my share of the estate." So he divided his property between them. Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in the whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
When he came to his senses, he said, "How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men." So he got up and went to his father. But while he still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him,"Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son."
But he father said to his servants. "Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found." Luke 15:11-24
The vague charts represent the unseen consequences of navigating so badly through life. Following your friends into a life of sleeping around, drinking, gambling, smoking, scrambling after more money or cheating on people has consequences you may be unaware of or try not to think about.
| Everything may go well for years as it did on the ship for a while but sooner or later you hit something like a scorned partner, gambling debts or physical breakdown which can lead to divorce, bankruptcy, depression or even suicide. Even if this doesn't happen to you there is still the longing to satisfy your soul's needs which is left unsatisfied. |  |
It's not worth it - pull out now, don't go with the crowd, take the road less travelled which will lead to the peace and joy that your starving soul is yearning for.
Let's look at the compass on the wooden yacht.
Do you remember that quiet voice inside you which said, "Hey, it's wrong to bully that kid, cheat on your tests, give cheek to teachers, etc? It's right to care for that lonely kid even if your friends don't."
That is the voice of the Holy Spirit called your conscience which God has placed in you as a compass to guide you through life. But you have a will which can override this voice if the going gets too tough for you. God has also given you a mind which can work out which ideas are right or wrong such as creation versus evolution.
Are all the complex living animals and plants created by an intelligent designer or by blind chance? Ask 1000 monkeys to write a book on a computer - how long would it take?
God has put a God-shaped vacuum in your soul because He loves you and earnestly wants your company. This vacuum can only be filled by communication with God. You cannot drown this vacuum with alcohol or destroy it with distractions. It never goes away unless you fight against it.
God has also given us a detailed map called the Bible which shows us His nature and how we can come to Him. But best of all God has come down to earth in the form of a man called Jesus Christ. It is your job to check Jesus out to see if this is true. He claims He can bring you to God if you will believe that He died for your sins. You can find out the facts about Jesus which show without doubt He is the Son of God who can take away your sins and save your soul from eternal death. It is up to you.
Look around our site for "Christian Evidences" which show you clearly that the Bible is the true message from God to lead us to Him, that Jesus really was born of a virgin in a stable, lived a perfect life healing people and teaching you how to love God and others, died for all the rotten things we have done which is called sin, rose again on the third day, and is coming back for us soon.
We have so much evidence for this fantastic good news - you will be astounded.