The Night Sky
Parable of the Night Sky
A woman was on her way to the market and overheard two men in deep discussion. “The most beautiful thing about the night sky is the moon! Look at its silvery light that shines most beautifully!” The other man disagreed and said, “No, it is the myriad of stars that illuminate the sky above us that make it beautiful!”
The woman stopped in her tracks and said to both of them, “What do you see when you look up into the night sky? You see the moon, and you, the stars. But what of the clouds? Or the darkness that is above you? The night sky is more than each of these on their own and it is more than each of these put together.
The moon speaks to us through its phases, the stars chart our paths, the clouds hint at the mysteries of life when it shrouds the familiar glow and shine of the moon and stars, and the darkness reminds us how beautiful and necessary light is when all seems lost.
Yet neither of these are what the night sky is. Only when each is set in its place, set in its season, and set against each other, does the night sky become whole and truly beautiful.”
The men angrily rebuked the woman, and one said, “What do you know about the night sky? Have you studied it? Be on your way and leave the talking to the men!”
Explanation
This parable speaks mainly of unity and diversity – and the resulting beauty from the sum total of both. It is similar in some sense to the ‘many parts, one body’ parable that Paul uses, except I wish to emphasize the resulting beauty that comes from recognizing each part of the greater whole, rather than mere functionality.
1 Corinthians 12:4-26
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6 There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. 7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit; 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.
12 For just as the body is one and yet has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
14 For the body is not one part, but many. 15 If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has arranged the parts, each one of them in the body, just as He desired. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 But now there are many parts, but one body. 21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again, the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, it is much truer that the parts of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary; 23 and those parts of the body which we consider less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor, and our less presentable parts become much more presentable, 24 whereas our more presentable parts have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that part which lacked, 25 so that there may be no division in the body, but that the parts may have the same care for one another. 26 And if one part of the body suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if a part is honored, all the parts rejoice with it.
An additional dimension that could be a result of this parable is the fact that it is subjective; yes, perhaps we pick on things that grab our attention and we focus on those things. However, that does not negate the value of the other things. By not giving the other diverse parts of the ‘night sky’ (or ‘body’ if you prefer Paul's metaphor) their due credit, we are poorer for it.
Think for a moment of our church, Spirit and Truth. We are a very diverse gathering of people. We come from varied backgrounds and may of us come with a great amount of baggage. Yet, we are the body of Christ in this place. In our midst there are those who lead and those who serve selflessly. There are those who love to cook. Those who sew and those who love to paint. Some find great joy in cleaning a bathroom. There are others who stand watch during our services. We are all very different, yet if one is missing, we are all lacking.
Please hear me! Never sell yourself short. You, each one of you, are valued for who you are. You are each a special blessing to our church. We need you and more than this, we want you. Together we are the body of Christ in this place and there is no other place in God’s green earth which is as unique as we are together. The same is true for any and every other church.
Be blessed today!
Pastor Russ
A woman was on her way to the market and overheard two men in deep discussion. “The most beautiful thing about the night sky is the moon! Look at its silvery light that shines most beautifully!” The other man disagreed and said, “No, it is the myriad of stars that illuminate the sky above us that make it beautiful!”
The woman stopped in her tracks and said to both of them, “What do you see when you look up into the night sky? You see the moon, and you, the stars. But what of the clouds? Or the darkness that is above you? The night sky is more than each of these on their own and it is more than each of these put together.
The moon speaks to us through its phases, the stars chart our paths, the clouds hint at the mysteries of life when it shrouds the familiar glow and shine of the moon and stars, and the darkness reminds us how beautiful and necessary light is when all seems lost.
Yet neither of these are what the night sky is. Only when each is set in its place, set in its season, and set against each other, does the night sky become whole and truly beautiful.”
The men angrily rebuked the woman, and one said, “What do you know about the night sky? Have you studied it? Be on your way and leave the talking to the men!”
Explanation
This parable speaks mainly of unity and diversity – and the resulting beauty from the sum total of both. It is similar in some sense to the ‘many parts, one body’ parable that Paul uses, except I wish to emphasize the resulting beauty that comes from recognizing each part of the greater whole, rather than mere functionality.
1 Corinthians 12:4-26
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. 6 There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. 7 But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit; 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.
12 For just as the body is one and yet has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
14 For the body is not one part, but many. 15 If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has arranged the parts, each one of them in the body, just as He desired. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 But now there are many parts, but one body. 21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again, the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, it is much truer that the parts of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary; 23 and those parts of the body which we consider less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor, and our less presentable parts become much more presentable, 24 whereas our more presentable parts have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that part which lacked, 25 so that there may be no division in the body, but that the parts may have the same care for one another. 26 And if one part of the body suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if a part is honored, all the parts rejoice with it.
An additional dimension that could be a result of this parable is the fact that it is subjective; yes, perhaps we pick on things that grab our attention and we focus on those things. However, that does not negate the value of the other things. By not giving the other diverse parts of the ‘night sky’ (or ‘body’ if you prefer Paul's metaphor) their due credit, we are poorer for it.
Think for a moment of our church, Spirit and Truth. We are a very diverse gathering of people. We come from varied backgrounds and may of us come with a great amount of baggage. Yet, we are the body of Christ in this place. In our midst there are those who lead and those who serve selflessly. There are those who love to cook. Those who sew and those who love to paint. Some find great joy in cleaning a bathroom. There are others who stand watch during our services. We are all very different, yet if one is missing, we are all lacking.
Please hear me! Never sell yourself short. You, each one of you, are valued for who you are. You are each a special blessing to our church. We need you and more than this, we want you. Together we are the body of Christ in this place and there is no other place in God’s green earth which is as unique as we are together. The same is true for any and every other church.
Be blessed today!
Pastor Russ
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