Jan
14
2016
The Escape Artist
Posted in Salvation 2 Comments
My friend has a dog.
He is a wonderful dog.
Still a puppy, he has boundless energy.
He has a face that one easily falls in love with; he knows it, if dogs can know such things.
He knows my voice.
His hips wiggle back and forth when he wags his tail.
You can’t help but smile whenever you are around him.
He is a funny dog.
My friend loves to walk and enjoys taking her dog with her.
We have a State Park nearby that has a lake in the center.
My friend enjoys walking on the trails there.
Her dog is good company for her and the walks help him run off lots of energy.
One particular day, her daughter was home from college.
They were both taking the dog for a walk.
Enjoying the scenery and the good conversation, their walk was enjoyable.
However this particular day the adorable dog with the wiggling hips was a challenge.
My friend has often referred to her dog as Houdini.
He is an escape artist.
He can get himself out of his harness with such flair and finesse.
He is able to roll himself into a ball so that the harness slips right off.
He has run into fields in pursuit of something interesting.
He catches the scent of something and he is off.
This particular day, my friend and her daughter were down by the lake.
In a split second, he rolled his back, got out of his harness, and jumped in the lake.
I looked down at the rust colored dog with the shaggy fur and smiled.
He looked up at me with eyes that are hidden behind tufts of hair that fall just so.
As I looked at him, his tail was pounding the floor.
As I continued to look at him, he got up and wiggled his hips and wagged his tail furiously.
We ran to the water’s edge, but when he saw us he swam our farther.
We grabbed a stick and he came to retrieve it.
When he did, we were able to pull him to shore.
We started to walk up the path; he ran ahead and jumped in the lake again.
This time we couldn’t get to him so we decided to pretend to walk away.
We glanced over our shoulder.
He was swimming towards us, not away from us this time.
He couldn’t believe we were walking away; he came out of the water on his own.
I laughed as I imagined the scene in my mind.
We came home and gave him a long bath, she said as he still wagged his tail.
Does he like to swim? I asked, not understanding what would make him jump in the lake.
Absolutely! That’s the retriever in him, my friend said.
I thought about what she said.
That’s the retriever in him.
That was his nature.
Harness or no harness, something in him was so strong he just had to respond.
That is what training is all about.
Acceptable behavior must be learned.
My friend’s dog has a nature that he cannot escape.
We have a similar nature as well.
It is said that Billy Graham’s son, Franklin, was a bit of a challenge when he was a boy.
As his father was away preaching, his mother was left to tend to all the children on her own.
One morning, Ruth Graham wanted Franklin to sit at the table.
NO! was his adamant response.
Finally, after being reminded of the consequences for disobedience, Franklin sat down.
He crossed his arms and spoke defiantly to his mother.
I might be sittin’ on the outside, but I’m not sittin’ on the inside!
Our nature is contrary to God’s nature.
As it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one, there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit. The poison of vipers is on their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know. There is no fear of God before their eyes. (Romans 3:10-18)
We have a sinful nature.
We can wiggle out of any harness meant to train us.
We do not want any part of God.
We do not seek Him; we do not fear Him.
Like my friend’s dog, we will jump into the lake of our own choosing.
When someone tries to rescue us, we swim out further.
We live for the moment with no regard for others.
We do not want to be controlled; we do not want to be told what to do.
We are sinners.
We have a sin nature.
There is nothing we can do on our own to change our sin nature.
Only God can do that through His Holy Spirit.
We need a Savior.
God has to change us from the inside.
God has to take away our old heart.
God has to replace our old heart with a new one.
Therefore if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.
(2 Corinthians 5:17)
The wood of the cross pulls us out of the water.
We need a Savior who is like us in all things but sin.
We need a Savior who finds us and brings us back to shore.
We are Houdini’s as well as we try to wiggle out of the consequences of our sin.
There we stand in our harness.
The enemy would like nothing better than to keep us tethered to him.
However, the enemy is the one on the leash.
The enemy is the one who is tethered and whose time is short.
We are slaves to sin.
We need to be rescued.
We need the harness to be removed.
Only Jesus can free us from sin’s bondage.
So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (John 8:36)
Jump in the lake no more.
Come to shore.
Be rescued by the One who extended His arms on a cross for you.
That cross bridges the chasm between you and God, between your sin and true freedom.
Come to Jesus and be free indeed.
Gina,
What a great blog!!! Thank you for sharing ‘Houdini’s’ story with your followers!
He is an adorable dog with a sweet spirit, but sometimes he cannot escape his nature!
But there is hope for us!…. as you explained so well!!!
To: “Houdini’s guardian”
There is always hope!
Only in Christ can we escape our nature.
Only in Christ are we truly free.
Gina