Celebrate Analogy

A concept has been churning in my thoughts for a while now, and a book I'm reading by Andrew Peterson has stirred me up enough that I think it's time to begin a series on it. (The book, BTW, is Adorning the Dark, and I highly recommend it.)

The concept is that this life is full of analogy. It's not hard to argue that case, nor to support the argument, and so I will in brief. Further, I will argue that the real (and intended) effect of this phenomenon is to point to God, and more particularly, to Christ, as he is the way God makes himself fully known to us.

Think about every epiphany you ever had, not just the huge, life-changing ones when you said, "Aha!" but even those little moments when it was more like, "Oh, I see now." It's like when someone finally explained fractions or algebra in a way that made it click for you. (If that never happened, I'm sorry, but you'll muddle through okay, unless you are in architectural engineering or something. In that case, I'm sorry for your boss.) Or, it's like that moment when the punch line of a joke finally hit you and sent you rolling on the floor. (Or, sadly, left you wondering why the jokester thought THAT was funny at all.) It's like this whole paragraph you have been reading. Our experiences are filled with simile and metaphor, and also antithesis. We learn by realizing what something is like and by what it is not like.

This is why communication is full of analogy, especially poetry and song. What do we say? "Art imitates life." An imitation is analogy. Through analogy art helps us ruminate on and understand life, even DISCOVER life. Thus, some who muse - and help others muse - are called muse-icians. This principle is why Jesus taught so often in parables: "The kingdom of heaven is like [such and such]..."

Before the Incarnation, God taught with analogy through the law and prophets. The law itself was to show what God was like in his holiness so his people would themselves becoming a living analogy to the rest of the peoples of the world. In speaking of the gods of enemy nations, Moses declared, "their 'rock' is not like our Rock.'" God worked over and over through Israel to show the world that he was not like other so-called gods but was the one true God. In teaching his people how to worship, God referenced the practices of the pagans around Israel and said, "Don't worship the LORD your God this way." In other words, true worship is not like that but rather like this.

In the NT, read Peter and see his metaphors: "... you yourselves, as living stones, a spiritual house, are being built to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices." Paul too calls the church a building; and a Body with many members and Christ as the Head; a temple where God's presence is; a household; an inheritance. He talks about Christian life using everyday life pictures like olympic racing, boxing, military service and even prostitution (as antithesis), and on it goes. Analogy.

We are God's art that imitates his life, especially we humans who are made in his likeness. We understand God, and all spiritual reality through the ways we compare or contrast to him. Of course, in our fallen world we humans build a much fuller collection of antithesis than of simile. That's one reason the Incarnation of the Son is so important. Jesus is the full expression of what we can know about God. Knowing Jesus is an eternal well of discovery. That discovery happens in the world he created, and for that reason this world is full of theological analogies, creative works that show us what God is like, that point to Christ.

Just like you begin to get a feel for what an artist is like from her paintings, sculptures, songs or even her clothes, we learn what God is like from his creations - from each other and our life experiences. So, Jesus taught us about his kingdom through kernels of wheat, through poor widows, through stories about sheep and managers.

Of course, we know Christ explicitly through the Scriptures. But the more we are immersed in the Scriptures the more we see Christ and his work imbedded in the world around us, even in those who do not possess his life or his spirit. That's the beauty of his sovereign power and design. God is revealing himself through everything, even through those who are unwitting or, what's more, unwilling analogies. That ancient Pharaoh who refused God's demands and chased down his people? God is NOT like that, but even that Pharaoh served his purposes. The little girl in kindergarten who felt bad for the new kid and brought him something cool from the toy box that lit up his eyes? THAT's what God is like.

My point in all this is to encourage all of us to notice the theological analogies in our mundane lives. And as we notice, then, "Whatever is true, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable - if there is any moral excellence and if there is anything praiseworthy - dwell on these things." Then praise God for what he allowed us to see. Now we are worshiping him. If we share what we saw with others, they may be drawn into worship too. So, when you see spiritual realities, share them.

This brings me to another reality about analogy, something I'll call resonance. There is a subjective element here. I realized that subjective side of analogy when I took the ACT many ages ago... in the last millennium. I discovered that analogy was a gift for me in most cases, but a curse when it comes to testing for it. One section of the college entrance exam was all about analogy. As I recall, there were a number of problems that featured a word followed by four more words that might associate to some degree with that word. My job was to identify which of the four words had the strongest relationship to the key word. I was frustrated. In most cases, I could see relationships everywhere, and was hard-pressed to pick one over the others. It turned out I did not resonate as much I would have hoped with the one who created the test. He or she (or they) saw different connections than I did.

Once again we see God's sovereign creativity. Some people see things much like you do, enough so that when you point out a God analogy they too may have an "aha" moment. It might even be stronger than your own, and - this is really cool - it will likely amplify your own when you begin to reflect together on it. Others see things very differently, and will not resonate with your discovery. That's okay. There are others with whom they will be more directly encouraged.

Resonance is why you have favorite teachers or sermons, or favorite singers or songs, authors or books. One person on any given Sunday is perplexed by the preacher on stage, mostly lost, while another is sitting in the same room shouting "YES!" inside (or maybe even audibly) because of the "brilliant" way the preacher just spoke the truth. Brilliance may be involved (hopefully), but I think the greater reality at work is resonance. (This, by the way, is a major liability of having the same guy in the pulpit 52 weeks a year, for you will almost certainly become a congregation largely filled with those who resonate with that teacher. Unless they resonate with the worship leader, the other prominent "resonator" on stage. Most people will gravitate toward a church family in which they resonate strongly with the people in one or both of these roles. Better (in my opinion) than a congregation almost exclusively oriented around one or two people is a church where there is diversity on stage as much as is practical so as to serve a diverse congregation.)

But, back to the subject...

My hard-wiring to see analogy was a curse in that ACT setting, but it has been a great blessing in most every other aspect of life. The longer I live, and the longer I grow in knowing Christ and his Word, the more I see him and his truth everywhere! And I want this for you too.

You have honored God anytime you praise him for your discoveries from him. Analogy is powerful regardless of resonance. So, when God shows himself in everyday life share it with anyone who will listen. It will resonate with someone. Sharing your discovery might even be God's tool to bring the "aha" of new life, eternal life, to someone. It will certainly fire up and encourage and challenge your brothers and sisters in the church.

God designed all of us for analogy - to see it, to learn from it, to live it out. So, when you have a "Wow! So, it's like this!" moment, celebrate it and share it.

In the spirit of that challenge, I will continue from time to time sharing the analogies that have jumped out to me, and I encourage you to do the same. Analogy will likely be a part of all my observations, but when the post is mostly about one particular analogy I will label it with that title. The first one will follow soon, In the Cards. I hope it resonates with many.