The Wideness of God's Mercy

The following is an allegory about the wideness of God’s mercy. I wrote it to express a point of view that I am struggling through. I don’t necessarily buy completely into it, but it allowed me to get out my thoughts. So read it. Think about it. You might even comment about it. Tomorrow I will unpack it and consider the implications.

There was once a Father and His children who lived in a house. They lived a good life, full of love, content in the company of one another. The children were free to do what they wanted, but the Father asked that they stay on the property when they played and not wander off into the dark woods. He told them of the dangers of the dark woods. It was so dark that they would get lost, and getting back home would be difficult. The children agreed and spent many years playing around the house in the yard.

But one day, as the children looked out from their yard, they saw the dark woods and thought that it would be fun to leave and explore them. Though they knew of the Father’s warning, the children decided to leave the house and play in the woods. Upon entering the woods, they children got split up and lost. The woods were dark and thick, and they could not find their way back to the house. Many of the children spent all their time trying to find their way back to the house. Others gave up, laid down, and prepared for death. Some decided to make the best of it and began to enjoy living in the woods. One day, all of the children throughout the woods heard the Father’s voice calling them home. Some thought it was the wind and ignored the Father’s voice. Others knew it was the Father calling them home. Thus, they started back home again.

The oldest son, Yeshua, came from the house and called out to the woods. Some listened and followed him back. Some had a narrow path to follow to get there; others had to wade through some water; still others ignored the thorns that cut them. Others located the path they took and so following it was easy. Others chose different paths thinking they were better.

Those that heeded the Father’s calling headed back home again. Though they were all in different places in the woods and took different paths, they were all striving for the same goal—to get back home to the Father. Upon arriving, they found that there was now a wall around the house keeping them out. Seemingly there was no way to get through to the Father’s house. Yet, there was one section of the wall that was broken down with a gap large enough for the children to walk through. Standing by the gap in wall was the oldest son, Yeshua with a cross-shaped sledgehammer in hand. He had knocked out a hole in the wall. As the siblings went through the wall, they found on the other side of the wall the Father, with his arms outstretched, waiting to welcome back home again all of His children that heeded His call.

The Symbols
God is the Father on the porch of the house calling all people home.
The children represent humanity who are all in a woods outside the house.
The woods represent life, struggles, walking around in the darkness of sin.
Many will respond to God’s calling, and will come home. However, they will take different paths to get there. This represents various understandings (religions) about how to reach God. Some will follow the path blazed by Christ. Others will take other paths. All that respond to the Father’s calling will make it to God, but the way in which they get there is different.
For those who respond to God’s call, upon arriving at the house, they find a wall all the way around with only one way in. The wall represents alienation that comes from sin, and the gap in the wall is made by Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Though some did not know about Jesus’ sacrifice or sin, Jesus still died for them and they have come home and are allowed into the house.
Many will not respond to God calling them home. These people will be banished to eternal darkness and out of the presence of God were there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.