The Parable Of The Elephant and The Chain
Verse of the day “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1, ESV)
If the goal is to always move toward being more like Christ, why do so many fail to advance in their walk with Him? For a lot of folks the answer is found in a story about an elephant and a chain.
As the story goes baby elephants in the circus would be fitted with a collar chained to a post so that they would not run away. Because the elephant was small and much less powerful than they would one day become, the chain and post restrained the young beast. Any attempt at running off would result in the discomfort of the chain jerking the elephant back so the young animal stayed in place.
Much later (and bigger) in life the chain would be attached to a small wooden stake. It no longer had any hope of holding the massive mammal yet did so quite well because the biggest thing in the circus still believed the chain could restrain them. It wasn’t true but it didn’t matter.
Welcome to the story of you and me. We are all tethered to things holding us back. Maybe it is our family of origin, a traumatic experience, something a teacher said to us, or an epic failure that still haunts. It could be from our personality, our particular skill set (or lack thereof), or even our gene pool.
I don’t know what they are for you but I guarantee you have them. Most of us pretend we don’t. We put on masks to hide them or rationalize their existence away, but trust me they are lurking close and your enemy knows how to use them.
Yet here is the TRUTH. They have absolutely NO hold on you. In fact to give them power is to call God a liar.
Truth says
We are made and are being made new in Him! Old things have passed away. We are free. He sent us a Helper (Holy Sprit) to guide, teach, and empower. In our weaknesses He is strong!
Shall I continue?
We have been cut free from the enslavement of the old things holding us back. Tether yourself to the the upward call not the downward spiral. No more excuses. “That’s just who I am” is a lie because in Him you are constantly being changed.
So you can settle, trapped by the chain and stake, or you can roar into a future of freedom, growth, and transformation. Lean into His work in your life or kick against it. I promise if you are His, He will get you there one way or another!
Questions to consider
- What are two or three things from your past that are are still holding you back from God’s best?
- What is a lie you continue to believe that according to Scripture is just not true.
- What are two or three truths that you need to memorize and repeat often in order to keep the chains away?
- How have you been a chain to others? How has the enemy used your actions or lack of actions to disable others from the freedom He wants them to have in Christ?
