This stanza is from T.S. Eliots poem, The Hollow Men part V “Between the idea And the reality Between the motion And the act Falls the Shadow. (John 6:66) After this, many of His disciples drew back (returned to their old associations) and no longer accompanied Him. The back story of chapter 6: Jesus had been addressing the crowd of 5000 that He miraculously fed through the multiplication of the bread and fish. Afterwards the disciples left Jesus by Himself to pray and they rowed on to Capernaum, later He joined them on the boat by walking on water. In the synagogue in Capernaum is where Jesuss Bread of Life discourse took place. The crowd turned away after this revelation, even though they had witnessed a miracle. The crowd wasnt able to move past the familiar or certitude, they couldnt get over not being able to recognize the indistinct and inscrutable. They were predisposed to fulfilling visible, tangible purposes, things were not going the way they had anticipated, so they bailed. They wanted the safety and security of assessing or reasoning with a high degree of certainty. Its like this quote from William Shedd, A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for. A ship exists to traverse the open waters. Ships are by nature used to explore and navigate the width and the breadth of the unpredictable sea. There is an inherent risk in leaving the sanctuary of the harbor. The crowd preferred the safety of being docked, they didnt want to sail out into the unknown or unseen. We were made to search out beyond whats immediately visible- we were made to see further than our physicality, we were made to delve the depths of God, even when things are nubilous. The crowd didnt want to exert any spiritual effort to visualize or be engaged in what they couldnt conceptualize, so they went back to their comfort zones and the readily discernible or recognizable. They preferred to be docked. The crowd envisaged an entirely different scenario, they couldnt see the in between aspects. Shadows hinder sight, going forward despite things being obscure takes faith. In the shadow lurks uncertainty, fear and the unks- the unknown and overshadowed paths. In contrast, the disciples willingly stayed, even if they didnt comprehend or were able to mentally conceive everything. They saw through eyes of faith! They chose to progress with limited or no visibility. That is why the disciples were able to turn the world upside down. They understood that without seeing through faith, its impossible to move forward into the unks we will encounter as we walk down our individual paths. They chose to head out into uncharted territory. They followed the Captain of their soul. There are times of dormancy between an idea being presented and its fruition. That lapse of time varies, and many people quit when the results dont come fast enough or they are not what theyd expected. They refuse to leave the safety of the harbor, theyd rather be anchored where there is absolutely no chance to experience progress, then move out into the unknown. The willingness to leave the dock and proceed through the shadowy areas require faith. Chapter 11 in Hebrews lists heroes of the faith, those who didnt see immediate or expected results, but kept going forward in anticipation of God fulfilling His promises. They saw through the shadows with renewed spiritual vision. The preponderance of their trust in God compelled them onward and forward. Marcel Proust: The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands but seeing with new eyes. Many people become disillusioned after starting out with inspired faith. Like Jesuss followers, when that gray area that exists between what we perceive as possibilities as to what will happen and what actually happens-reality, that gap of expectation causes many to fade away. We have difficulty reconciling the disconnect between our expectations and the actual unfolding of events. Thats why the Bible encourages us to see through eyes of faith. There are several translations and I had difficult time choosing, they all stated the point I wanted to make. (2Corinthians 5:7) We live [walk] by what we believe [faith], not by what we can see [sight]. TEB -It’s what we trust in but don’t yet see that keeps us going. MSG -We live by what we believe will happen, not by what we can see. ERV The gap between point A and point B obligates us to practice our faith. A shadow is a vague representation, it distorts what it is covering. When the potentiality or possibility is over shadowed, do we stay the course of the unknown or stay docked and search out one with more clarity? Become a possibilitarian. No matter how dark things seem to be or actually are, raise your sights and see the possibilities -- always see them, for theyre always there. - Norman Vincent Peale When we Christians learn to live inside “the shadow” without a doubt, and leave the harbor, all things are possible.
Posted on: Sat, 22 Mar 2014 23:41:03 +0000
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