“I don’t know how you guys drive those things,” I commented to a man at
church who didn’t ride. He wasn’t anti-motorcycle, but had never ridden. He
admired them from afar, would and could be seen lookin’at our rides after
church, and would ask questions about riding. Usually alone, he more than once
was offered a ride, but always declined. He was interested in the mechanics of
how they worked, what was good gas mileage, how fast they went, and how
affordable they were. To him it was just another mode of transportation,
another way to get to work, but never a way to go to church, or to enjoy
freedom. He was all about 4 door sedans, and his lifestyle reflected it. The
only thing outstanding about him was that he had no outstanding characteristics,
so when I asked him about driving cars, I caught him off guard. His life was
all graphs and charts, statistics and facts, and in his world if it didn’t make
sense, it must be an abnormal exercise, and he was trying to understand it. And
why God allowed such a freakish event or product to occur. Not a stupid person,
maybe too intelligent for his own good, everything had to make sense. He was
plain vanilla in a plastic cup and a wooden spoon. Yet he was inquisitive, but
you knew he just didn’t get it. And more than once he tried to frustrate me, he
never understood I rode because I wanted to, if it didn’t serve a purpose, why
do it? And for someone who was living on such an intellectual level, he had no
intellect to go with it. He was all rules and regulations, can and can’t, do
this and don’t do that. No gray, he was all black and white in his life,
although he lived a colorless life. So my question was analytical instead of
philosophical, and confused him. Like the robot on Lost in Space, “it did not
compute.”
I am blessed as are those of us who ride to be able to ride. We have found
this great intangible that riding two wheels sets free, that life isn’t about
point a to pint b, but how you get there. It is called life, and we live it on
two wheels. For some it is just commuting, for some weekends, for others track
days or the desert, but we all ride. And for whatever reason, there are times
when you must ride your bike. Which is why you may never see a motorcycle
parked in front of a psychiatrist’s office, the ride is our therapy. It isn’t
about miles per gallon, or miles per hour but about miles covered. With many
times the road the destination. Never being lost as long as you have gas, and
finding peace and satisfaction after a ride to clear out your head. No drugs,
no alcohol, and nothing else can do it for me, which is why some ride to live,
while we live to ride. Yet within our ranks we have many who are brand
specific, riding type specific, and style specific. Black, leather, and a
V-twin are the only ticket in. For some it is top speed, and wearing off the
sides of the tires, and still others add plush animals to their car like two
wheeler, yet we all enjoy the freedom of riding. One place left on earth where
the world will not interfere, and we can be alone, or alone together. And
watching as I pass those who don’t stuck in traffic, stressed out, and
miserable, never seeing anything but the bumper in front of them, I really don’t
know how you guys drive those things. Life is more than statistics, bars and
graphs, and facts and figures. It is more than being practical and having
everything make sense. So use your senses, and push your envelope of normalcy,
four wheels may move you, but two wheels move the soul.
I know a man and his wife, that for everything that comes up, research it.
They will spend hours searching the Bible for answers to their questions,
wanting to do the right thing. They know scriptures better than most, yet live
without an excitement or personal life in Jesus Christ. The Bible calls it
legalism, the Pharisees were legalistic, and knew all the rules, but no
freedom. From hand washing to which days it was OK to travel, others knew their
laws too, and held them to it. For if you broke a law, you had a penalty to
pay. Imagine a full time cop in your mirror of life....just when the road got
interesting. That is legalism. All the facts, without all the fun. It is
called religion, and its people are religious. Living by a set of rules with no
freedom in them, so I tend to be a rebel among rebels. Scripture tells us where
the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty. And when you come to Christ we find
liberty in him, an escape from rules and regulations. Yet some do, and don’t
enjoy that freedom, and some deny him because his forgiveness and grace make no
sense. They are like the guy who doesn’t ride, it is OK for others, just not
for him. So he is lost, trying to rationalize a God who is irrational, who
loves us as we are, and desires us to be more like him. By his spirit, for the
law was meant to expose our sin, while Jesus was sent to forgive it. And so
like riding, there are times you must go to him, to get the answers. Then back
it up with scripture. Those who just read assume everyone has access to a
Bible, but many don’t, so rely on the spirit. Salvation only makes sense when
you accept Jesus Christ, until then it makes no sense. For it takes the spirit
to reveal the mysteries of God to us. No wonder we can now read the Bible and
it makes sense, we have been given God’s spirit to guide us. Into all
understanding.
Imagine if Jesus had never shown love, we would still be set free from sin,
but would still be at odds with God, for God is love, and without love we have
nothing. Love isn’t an emotion, it is the person of Jesus Christ. And no
better place to be alone with him than on two wheels. In your car you turn on
the phone, turn on the radio, and set the AC. On a motorcycle, we twist the
throttle, our hand keeping us under control, the senses being challenged by
smells, air temp, and the sights not seen behind a windshield. We sense the
temp change as we gain elevation, and the exhileration of curves. We are blown
away by acceleration, and speed becomes relevant to the road, no the guy stuck
in traffic ahead of us. And so it is with God, no limits except those we impose
on ourselves to get to know him better, to be blessed more, and to share him
with others. Yet for most, life is like one night in a Bible study, we were
studying the holy spirit, and afterwards the leader gave the us the rules. He
just didn’t get it, do you? Jesus is more than facts and figures, more than a
religion or religious exercise. He is life, revealed to you via the spirit.
Intangible...yet you know he is there. But unlike the cop in your rear view
mirror, he is there to watch over you, to forgive rather than indict and
convict.
So there are times when you must ride your bike, and times when you need
Jesus. We can’t ride all the time, but Jesus is open 24/7. He gets how you
guys are stuck in cars like you are in legalism, and today offers you his
spirit. Obey the rules, but be guided by the spirit, and soon you forget the
rules, but realize the spirit is guiding you. And enjoy a freedom, in a walk
with Christ that many know about, have heard about, or have even tried, but laws
got in their way. They couldn’t make sense of it, so it cannot be true, but it
is real. It is so personal, that maybe it is best described as “I know when I
am not in the spirit,” because I live in it. Like the judge asked to describe
pornography, and said “I can’t describe it, but I know it when I see it,” turn
to Jesus today. I just don’t see how you can live any other way. And you can
find all about it in the Bible. Father, son ,and who is the third person in the
trinity? Suddenly it all makes sense to me, Jesus revealed by his spirit. Take
the short way to Jesus, but ride the long way home. And spend more time with
him. And you’ll understand why dogs stick their heads out of car windows, and
we who ride don’t have too. Something about a rushing wind when the spirit
appeared....you may not understand everything, but you can know Jesus who does.
And is.....
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com