Bo WagnerOur family has always practiced the time-honored principle of living below our means. This practice, however, often results in interesting situations.
A year ago, we decided to purchase a second vehicle, a truck. So for a month I scoured Craigslist listings from several states looking for just the right opportunity. I finally found what seemed to be the perfect truck for our situation. It was about six hours from home, a 1997 Ford F250.
Please, you Chevy truck folks, stay with me. Don't flip over to the comics section out of anger at my choice in trucks. I will use small words so as not to trip you up (I am teasing, Bow Tie Truck friends. I love you all and will gladly come to your aid when you are walking down the highway).
Anyway, we drove to get the truck and drove away with it for a steal of a price, $1,700. Yes, it had over 300,000 miles on it, but mechanically it was very sound.
We have driven the truck for a year now and have had only two minor repairs to the mechanical aspects of the truck. We have, however, had some other interesting things to deal with, as would be expected with such a senior citizen of a vehicle.
The windshield had to be replaced, as it was cracked badly. Then just a few months ago, one of the headlights fell out. We have no idea where. We did not notice it till we got home. Then the driver's seat broke. It would not stay upright, and we had to fix that. Then two weeks ago, the driver's side mirror fell out.
Anyone who has dealt with old vehicles will understand what I say next. Trying to get parts for them from the dealership is easy, as long as your last name is Rockefeller or Vanderbilt.
In each of the above-mentioned repairs, we chose to go the aftermarket route. All of the parts look the same but were secured at a much lower cost. Anyone who does not know better would not know the difference. But anyone who had truly studied the issue would immediately recognize those parts as "non-original." They seem normal, but are in fact different from the way the truck was originally designed.
This is much the same situation that creation as a whole now finds itself in. When we examine how God made this world and then compare it with its current condition, we find several things that are very definitely non-original.
Death was not a part of the original creation. First Corinthians 15:21, speaking of Adam, says, "For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead." God created man in his image (Genesis 1:27) and thus man was never going to die. Sin changed that, sin brought death into the human condition.
Sadness and pain was not part of the original creation. But when man sinned, the word "sorrow" quickly started appearing (Genesis 3:16-17).
Separation was not part of the original creation. But some years after man sinned, Adam and Eve had to weep over the ground their son Abel had been so crudely buried in. Then years later, one of them had to stand over the other as they watched their soul mate slip off into eternity.
Knowing all of this, Paul said in Romans 8:22 "For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now."
The good news is, in the immortal words of Paul Harvey, there is a "rest of the story." The rest of the story is: The original condition of creation is scheduled to be completely restored. Isaiah 35 describes a glorious reign of Christ on Earth, Revelation 20 tells us it will be 1,000 years long, when the curse is lifted. Revelation 21 then goes a step further to tell us of the brand new heaven and Earth that will follow that.
I am thrilled to be a born-again child of God. As much as I enjoy this creation with all of its "aftermarket parts," I can only imagine how glorious it will be to see it in all of its original splendor.
Bo Wagner is pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church of Mooresboro, N.C., a widely traveled evangelist and author of several books. He can be contacted by email at 2knowhim@cbc-web.org.