...My First Parable

Two men were walking through a deep forest in search of the large city they had heard was nearby. At a fork in the path, they spotted an ancient signpost with one end pointing toward each path.  

The first man noted the age of the signpost, the conflicting pointers, and the obvious attempts that had been made to either fix it or attach other messages onto it. Disgusted, he continued in the path that continued mostly in the direction he was already traveling.

The second man thought to himself: "Clearly this signpost was put here for a reason." He examined the post in depth, not looking for imperfections in it like the first man did, but for what information he could still get from it. He saw that the writing on it was faded but still readable with some effort. And the path to the large city was not the one the first man took, but the other one that required a sharp turn in the direction of travel. So, looking to get out of the forest while there was still daylight, he raced down the path given by the signpost.

That path took many twists and turns, but exited the forest just as the sun was setting. He found himself on a cliff overlooking a bay, where a boat sat, abandoned but still usable. He also saw a telescope mounted there, but no sign of the city. He decided to make camp for the night on that cliff. 

When he was done, he decided to look through the telescope. He found another path out of the forest, and a large encampment had been set up on both sides of it. The markings on the tents were those of a known bandit group that liked to ambush travelers and they were clearly setting up an ambush for someone. He then turned his attention across the bay, where the lights of the city started appearing. He then knew that, even though his journey was still going, he had found his destination.

The problem I have seem with too many discussions about religion and other metaphysical matters is that everyone is too busy examining the signposts for errors instead of for guidance on what it is pointing toward. Religious texts, properly so called, are designed to point to the deity they promote, not to themselves. A book that is concerned about itself is not doing its job. 

Some will question me on this view because it conflicts with their idea of Biblical inerrancy. But this, to me, is the main point of the Bible. The Bible inerrantly points to the true Word of God, namely Jesus. It is not the Word of God itself, but rather a pointer to Jesus. Jesus saves; the Bible tells us how to get to him. So those who focus on the differences in translations or versions or verses that were added or removed are missing the point. Does the Bible you are looking at point you to Jesus? If so, it is doing its job. If not, find one that does.