License Plates, part 2
I must have license plates on my mind because, today, while driving to Kansas City, I noticed the different states the license plates were from on many of the cars. Of course, I saw a bunch of Kansas license plates. I also saw quite a few Missouri plates. I don’t think these observations would surprise anyone.
Then, I noticed the states a little further away. For example, I saw three Colorado license plates and one of them was on a newly acquired vehicle. I also saw an Illinois plate, which would be at least four hours away at highway speeds.
I also saw a Louisiana plate. When we lived in New Orleans and drove home to visit family in Illinois, it took us more than 12 hours of driving. I checked Apple Maps and it suggested more like 13 hours. Then I saw a Florida license plate. Apple Maps suggests that would be roughly a 17-hour drive.
That’s when I saw the California plate. Apple Maps suggests that would be about 23 hours of highway driving! That’s when you have to adjust for reality. On top of these highway driving hours would be time to refill your vehicle and rest stops to eat and take care of necessities.
I decided to research how many miles Jesus’ ministry took him. According to the source I found, Jesus walked (or rode a donkey or colt) 3,125 miles. The average walking pace is 3 to 4 miles per hour. Some quick math suggests that Jesus was traveling for about 37 days of his ministry. This website suggests that when Jesus started his ministry in Galilee, he traveled 75 miles to be baptized by John the Baptist. That 75 miles would have required about 21 hours of walking. This is just over the distance from my house to the Kansas City airport and takes me about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
“Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’ But Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then he consented. And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.’” - Matthew 3:13-17 ESV
What is my point? When we read the Bible (You are reading the Bible to feed yourself daily, yes?), we need to remember things were different back then. I would think nothing of running to Lawrence for something. In Jesus’ time, that trip would require a full, long day of traveling just to get there (can’t walk in the dark…).
The same is true with concepts of allowable social conventions as well. Slavery is abhorrent to us today, but was acceptable then and God made rules to help the Jews survive fairly in a world with slavery.
“If your brother becomes poor beside you and sells himself to you, you shall not make him serve as a slave: he shall be with you as a hired worker and as a sojourner. He shall serve with you until the year of the jubilee. Then he shall go out from you, he and his children with him, and go back to his own clan and return to the possession of his fathers. For they are my servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as slaves. You shall not rule over him ruthlessly but shall fear your God. As for your male and female slaves whom you may have: you may buy male and female slaves from among the nations that are around you. You may also buy from among the strangers who sojourn with you and their clans that are with you, who have been born in your land, and they may be your property. You may bequeath them to your sons after you to inherit as a possession forever. You may make slaves of them, but over your brothers the people of Israel you shall not rule, one over another ruthlessly.” - Leviticus 25:39-46 ESV
Apologetics is the defense of your faith. All these things are important to know when someone bashes your faith and tries to twist it to further bash you.
