There are parallels in this life that absolutely intrigue me.
Here is an example.
Longboarding down a hill for the first time is intimidating. You have no idea what to expect - no knowledge of the bumps, the slope, the pavement, etc. But once you have gone down the hill several times you become familiar with it, and the ride loses its intimidation.
Meeting somebody for the first time can be intimidating for the same sort of reasons. But once we have become acquainted with their personality we feel comfortable around them.
These two scenarios are parallel. They express the idea of the unknown and the familiar. They are essentially the same.
These sorts of parallels are so prevalent that we weave them into our everyday conversations (as in the sentence I just used). We say things like "I just blew right through that book" or "he nailed that note" without even considering the parallels we are appealing to. Hammering a nail into a board is apparently so much like singing the right note that we can say "he nailed that note" with confidence that we are speaking precisely and truly.
It is as if both of these things speak of the same abstract platonic reality which exists in a different realm.
... Or maybe Justin Martyr was right. Perhaps Plato was plagiarizing Moses. Justin argued that the Torah is filled with earthly instructions and realities (e.g. tabernacle) that are symbolic of heavenly realities. Often Justin's comment is dismissed as a pragmatic apologetic. But regardless of whether or not Plato was intentionally plagiarizing Moses, it is certainly true that the Hebrew Bible has always recognized that the heavens and earth speak of a greater spiritual reality (a reality in a different realm, hence the connection with Plato).
Psalm 19
1The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
4 Their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
This universe is revealing knowledge of God.
I think these are the sorts of passages the apostle Paul was thinking of when he says "his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made" (Romans 1:20).
God's attributions make up the created world. In other words, there is nothing in existence which is not representative of an attribute of God.
Jonathan Edwards says "creation is as full of images of divine things as a language is full of words".
Plato describes a philosophical system that recognizes a realm separate from this metaphysical realm that contains "ideals" which this physical realm represents.
Justin Martyr's argument is that this idea is actually a deeply biblical concept. I think he's right, actually.
Returning to the original example of longboarding and meeting a person, we can recognize that scenarios point to other scenarios... which point to other scenarios. Longboarding is like meeting a person, which is like driving for the first time (something you must become familiar with to overcome the initial intimidation). And there is an infinite chain of these parallels. We call these metaphors, or illustrations.
Everything is about everything else. This is why we can sympathize with stories like Stephen Crane's "The Open Boat". Even if we have never been in jeopardy out at sea, we have all had weeks that seem as though the waves of everyday life will drown us, and the only joy we can find is among sympathetic friends.
Everything is about everything else. But ultimately everything is about Jesus. Everything is a metaphor for Christ. Christ is the only thing that is not a metaphor for other things.
"For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him" (Colossians 1:16).
This world is about Jesus. Everything that you enjoy is pleasant only because it is like Christ. Food is only satisfying and sustaining because Christ satisfies and sustains. A pure, faithful, loving, joy-filled marriage is only beautiful because Christ will marry the church (and no earthly marriage compares to this joy). A good father is a good father because he is imitating the Father.
And this is why Sigur Ros' song "Inní Mér Syngur Vitleysingur" is about Jesus, the coming King, and the joy that will fill our hearts when we see him. It is not possible to write songs that aren't ultimately about Jesus. Though the artist may try his best, in the end this is Jesus' world, and everything he uses - chords, instruments, buildups, breakdowns, beats, time signatures, poetry - are all about Jesus. "The devil has no stories," says Peter Leithart.
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