A Strip Map and a Ham Sandwich
I overheard a discussion between my brother and my husband after dinner one night. The soldier and the pastor were lamenting the propensity of human beings to screw up the most basic of instruction, usually due to the belief that the hearer has a better idea of how things should go. My husband commented that this notion usually came in his line of work because people had too much information; too many other sources from which to gather information, not necessarily relevant. It is the Christian equivalent of ‘drinking from other streams.’ God calls people to be a part of a flock, working together (and all drinking from the same stream) and following their shepherd who is in turn directed by the Holy Spirit of God. My husband was grousing that it seemed as if he wasn’t always available to his flock, they got distracted, like lost in a swamp or tangled in a briar patch. My husband then asked my brother directly, “how can I do a better job to help them?”
The decorated leader of men replied “Give ‘em a strip map and a ham sandwich.”
I feel quite sure that my husband gave him a blank look or raised eyebrows in the short silence that followed. My brother chose to explain. A strip map is very basic – it shows a specific route on a very narrow piece of land – like a ‘strip’ of a larger map. In Army vernacular, stripped down to just the essential information you need to navigate. Nothing extra to distract or encourage discussion and generate other opinions.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is as basic as a strip map. “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9. That pretty much sums it up. And just what are we being saved from you might ask? Sin. It seems so simple and yet throughout history, we have convoluted this message so thoroughly that people have been controlled by guilt, repelled by hypocrisy, or just flat out confused by the interpretation of this tiny word. So – here is MY strip map about SIN.
Sin is a noun AND a verb. It is a state of being in the physical realm where man exists apart from God. Sin is also an action chosen and executed in opposition to the will of God.
• ALL OF HUMANITY SINS BY ITS EXISTENCE HERE PHYSICALLY SEPARATE FROM GOD
• ALL OF HUMANITY SINS BY FREE WILL CHOICES MADE APART FROM GOD’S DIRECTION
The sin of life in the flesh is not the same as the sin of free will choice. The first sin was one over which we had no choice, and the other sin is totally by our choice! The reason WHY we are living in the first sin is so that we can choose the next life with God and His perfect direction or not. The remedy for both sins is a relationship with Jesus Christ that reconciles humanity with God the Father and fellowship with the Holy Spirit for strength and guidance.
I hope that this little map gives some clarity. I am thankful to my brother for this word picture. It’s my go-to way to teach. Be blessed and be kind today.
In His Service,
<>< Cass
PS – Oh yeah, and you are probably looking for the answer to the question of ‘Why the ham sandwich?’
“So they don’t get hungry and come back,” snarks the little brother I know and love.
