Selah: Pause and Reflect

[This is one in a series of mid-week Reflections published by Horley Baptist Church during February 2021]

Long before these words were made famous in the southern states of America an Englishman had penned them from his cell in Bedford jail. During the late 17th century England was uncompromisingly Anglican, with little tolerance for either Catholic or other dissenting views. The non-conformist preacher John Bunyan had been imprisoned for advocating the worship of God outside of the authorised Anglican church. After his release, his allegory of the Christian life was published as “The Pilgrim’s Progress”, with the opening words:

“While I slept, I dreamed about a man in ragged clothes who stood, with his face turned away from his own house and with a book in his hand, carrying a great burden on his back. I saw him read from the pages of the book, weeping and shaking in fear until eventually he cried out loudly, ‘What should I do?’” ^[1]

There are those who argue that “The Pilgrim’s Progress” should be required reading for all Christians and there is certainly merit in that. Why does this book have such high regard amongst Christians?

The central character is a man called Graceless who realises his sinfulness and the impending destruction of his city. He reads in a book that there is a way to obtain salvation and, having failed to persuade his family to go with him, he sets out to find the way to heaven. The story recounts his journey from the Narrow Gate to the Celestial City, the moments of joy and disappointment and the characters who help or hinder him. Along the way his name is changed to Christian, he loses the burden that he was carrying and in due course he arrives at his destination. Reading this book is an excellent help for clarifying our own thoughts and encouraging us through our experiences of growing in faith.

The patriarch Jacob also dreamt of a route to heaven. There is an account of it in Genesis chapter 28:

“He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the Lord, and he said: ‘I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac.’” [Genesis ch28 v12-13 NIVUK]

A friend of mine has recently published his study of the life of Jacob. In referring to this passage he says:

“God shows Himself to be the same God who blessed Abraham and Isaac. This may have been a confirmation to Jacob that, even though he had monumentally messed up, God still has mercy. Just as God was patient with the mistakes of Abraham and Isaac, God showed His patience with Jacob, despite the massive mistakes he had made.” ^[2]

Both Christian and Jacob made mistakes during their walk of faith, and we cannot expect to avoid doing the same. The psalmist David also had many difficulties but he was able to say:

And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; For You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You. [Psalm 9 v10 NKJV]

Can you echo his confidence?

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