I know this is a little long, but wanted to share with you this parable that I read. It's an excerpt that I've taken along with their analysis from questionsinreligion webpage. Hope you like it.
******************************************** This parable (or allegory) illustrates a timeless truth: Materialism looms like a mirage promising refreshment and meaning to life, but in the end takes on the nature of quicksand, drawing the pursuer into its trap.
Three burley brothers, dedicated lumberjacks, proved worthy of recognition for their consistent hard work and productivity.
One day as Tom, Henry and Jake completed a phase of their task, they took a break to quench their thirst. Then, an amazing phenomenon exploded into their consciousness. A light brighter than the sun burst into the deep forest shadows, almost blinding them. Before they could even speak, there came a sound, at first like the roar of thunder, then modified into a gentle voice.
"Tom, Henry and Jake," the distinct words sounded with a kind of echo, "your dedication has been noticed by the king. As his messenger I bring to you the good news of the king’s approval. He wishes to reward you each. You will notice that you each have three sparkling diamonds in your own bag. These stones are very valuable. But bring them to the king, and he will reward you more than a hundred-fold of their value. Nevertheless, the king will allow you to keep the stones and use them for the lesser wealth, if you choose."
"But," Tom, the oldest brother questioned, "we have never been to the king’s castle. We would not know the way there."
"It’s very simple," declared the voice. "Just beyond those near bushes to the east, you will find a rock-paved pathway. Just continue on that pathway until it ends at the king’s castle."
With those words the light vanished and the voice ceased.
At first the brothers glared into the direction the light had shown. Then each moved toward his own bag strung across the branches of a small tree. Sure enough, the bags contained the sparkling brilliance of diamonds.
Since the brothers had no family to consider other than themselves, they decided to pack a few supplies and start down the path toward the king’s castle. The path indeed revealed new, unfamiliar landscapes as they journeyed day by day.
Around one curve in the path a vast, lush landscape greeted them. A large, beautiful dwelling drew them with magnetic invitation. Brilliant flowers hugged the building like an adornment and huge, old oak trees provided a cool umbrella in an inviting fashion. Bright green grass softened the steps like a carpet as the three brothers decided to ask about lodging for the coming night.
The old couple invited them in to spend the night. During the course of conversation Jake, the youngest brother, asked many questions about the property.
"We sure would like to sell this place," the old man finally said. "We are getting too old to care for all this property."
Jake opened his bag and removed the diamonds. He allowed the old couple to examine them. Then, Jake offered, "Since these diamonds are very valuable, I’ll give you two of them for this property. Then, I can live the rest of my life with what I receive for this last stone."
The elderly couple radiated with glee at the prospect of moving into the city where everything would be available to sustain them. Thus, they accepted the offer.
Tom and Henry expressed disappointment at the decision of their youngest brother.
"But guys," Jake bubbled, "this is the deal of a lifetime. Don’t you see? I don’t need to increase my wealth by wasting time to go to the king. This is everything I could want. I can stay here, get married and settle down to a life of ease. I’ll never have to swing an ax again."
And that’s exactly what Jake did after his brothers continued on their journey. He met the ideal lady and was soon married. They had three delightful children. They had a life of ease and comfort, of excitement and plenty, day after day, on and on.
"But something’s missing," thought Jake. "Only, I can’t put my finger on what it is. I have all that money can offer. Maybe I envy my brothers for becoming filthy richer than I could ever hope for. Maybe I should have gone with them. That must be it. I am comfortably rich, but maybe if I were even richer, I’d really be happy."
Year after year from that time forth, Jake grew more and more restless. His wife and children could no longer console him. Jake would continue through life without realizing what exactly was bothering him even though he suspected he might not be rich enough to bring real happiness.
The other brothers, Tom and Henry, on the other hand, continued down the path after leaving their brother Jake behind. Eventually, Tom and Henry came to a small village. Suddenly they came upon an old man sitting on the side of the road with a small basked. He had no legs and immediately was recognized as a beggar.
"Maybe we can help this guy a little when we return from the king," Henry said. "Then we’ll have a hundred times more and even better able to help a little."
But Tom questioned the beggar closely and found that he had a family dependent on what little he was able to bring home. Then, Tom turned to his brother, Henry, and said, "This man and his family need lots of help right now. I am going to give him one of my diamonds, which could provide all the help they will ever need. He does need help right now and may not make it till we can return this way."
"You do what you feel you have to," Henry conceded, "but I am going to bring all mine to the king. Then, I might be able to share a little."
In the course of the trip, Tom met another family in dire need and gave up his second diamond to the amazement of Henry, who scolded Tom a bit for his foolishness.
On down the path the two brothers met a lady under a tree beside the path. Her eyes were red and swollen from weeping. A young boy obviously sought to comfort the lady. Tom stopped and questioned the two and found that this mother had lost her husband, who was also the boy’s father. Tom also learned that they had lost their home and had eaten no food in a few days. They had been unable to make payments on their house. They were forced to give up their home and had no place to live and no way to eat, except rarely when they received a little food from others passing that way.
"Tom," Henry called, "remember you have only one diamond to present to the king."
Tom did not hesitate, but presented the diamond to the lady, though she was reluctant to accept. Tom urged her.
However, the lady learned the real story from Jake. In a vision the brothers had been promised a reward of more than a hundred-fold for the return of the diamonds to the king. Then, she knew that Tom would have nothing to give to the king. Thus, she would only take the diamond if Tom would allow Albert, her young son, to go on the journey with the two brothers to explain to the king in hopes that the king would reward Tom also in some way.
At first, Tom resisted, expressing willingness to discontinue his journey, but since the lady would only agree to accept the diamond if Tom would continue along with Albert, her son, Tom agreed.
Tom, Henry and Albert soon followed the path around a curve to spot the castle in the distance. Before long they all made their way through the gates and entered the grounds where they were escorted before the king.
First, Henry presented his three diamonds to the king. Then, to the shock of everyone, the king burst forth in a harsh tone, "Henry, you did not return the diamonds to me. You have clung to them to make them your own. You wanted more. That was your only motivation. You have not yet learned the lesson that only what you invest in others do you keep. Jake did not learn that nor did you. What you do receive is what the diamonds are now."
As Henry looked at the diamonds in his hand, they began turning to dust.
Immediately, the king turned toward Tom and commended, "Tom, you are the only one who truly brought the diamonds to me. Your compassion and love caused you to invest those precious stones to meet the needs of those you met. Those very people in need are my people whom I love, rule over and care for. Hence, your diamonds will gain in your life a wealth beyond the mere brilliance of the stones themselves. Your reward will be that which cannot be destroyed nor diminished in any way. Go in peace to dwell in the riches of my kingdom. You will be my son and heir to the throne."
Allow us to focus on this fantasy with a few observations relevant to real life situations.
The three brothers could represent three distinct approaches to life and life situations. What is our take on the differences in character and dispositions of each individual brother from the other brothers?
Of course, Tom, the oldest brother, had been around longer than the other brothers had. Do we suppose the added experience could have been the significant factor in the generosity and selflessness expressed by Tom? Do we find in real life that the oldest member of the family is always the kindest and most thoughtful of others? Or have we observed that in reality the youngest member of the family sometimes turns out to express concern and care for everyone else more than the other members of the family? How about the intermediate members of the family?
Does Jake appear to be a bit more impulsive that the others? Did he do wrong by spending the value of his diamonds to acquire a nice place to settle down? After all, did not the king specifically advise that each had a choice with respect to the diamonds and their use? How do we see the issue here? Would we have made the same decision as Jake if we had been in his shoes? Anyway, what could possibly be wrong in wanting the security of our own possessions for the duration of our lives?
But did Jake find that genuine security as events unfolded and time for reflection proved plentiful? Did his restlessness speak of his missing the boat, so to speak?
Then, consider Henry, the intermediate brother. What is our take on Henry? Did he turn out to be the truly faithful one in that he clung tenaciously to his diamonds, perhaps anticipating great rewards for his faithfulness when he would meet the king? How did Henry’s ideas of faithfulness conflict with his other brothers’ ideas?
What religious group in the New Testament did Henry’s attitude and disposition most closely resemble? After all, did Henry guard his possession for the purpose of securing his future ease of life on a much higher plateau than Jake did? He put all his stock in the future, did he not? Otherwise, why did he consider the plights of others to be beyond his interests?
Perhaps we could look at it in this light. Jake interpreted the king’s message as an avenue to embellish himself and find the easy life. He would not feel badly for giving up the greater rewards to find immediate gratification? But, did the satisfaction endure?
On the other hand, Henry lived for the future. Perhaps he considered it a greater merit on his part that he protected the investment the king had given him. Perhaps he would delight to receive the greatest reward with pride and a bit of arrogance in reaching forth his hand to show the king how faithful he had been.
Do we think the king himself saw through this attitude in Henry? What, do we suppose, the king saw in Tom that neither of the other brothers had? After all, Tom had no diamonds to present to the king; yet, the king declared Tom to be the only brother to return the diamonds? Do we suppose that the king envisioned a far greater context for right behavior than the brothers other than Tom were willing to see and acknowledge?
This perhaps represents the key to the whole parable. Jake and Henry revolved around self and self interests. Those two expressed the attitude a little differently, but each had himself always in mind.
Tom, on the other hand, functioned within the circumference of a much broader world. People in need were never outside the perimeters of Tom’s love and concern. He cared not to receive the wealth at the expense of those in need.
May we suggest that the broader context provided greater vision and purpose for Tom? His journey proved his true character, that of a caring and loving person even when he perceived that he was losing the diamonds as an opportunity to enhance himself. Yet, he gave of them willingly and gladly to help others.
Self-centered pursuits always leave open the intrusion of evil. Did not Tom’s two brothers, especially Henry, fail to consider other than themselves, leaving those along their pathway suffering in their own plights? Yet, Jake revealed that he also was wrapped up in himself and his own specific interests almost to the exclusion of everyone else. Did not the attitudes and disposition of Henry and Jake invite the evil of neglecting those in real need?
But allow us to look more closely at this subject of evil. In reality, evil did not intrude into the created order within the context of the fall. The serpent, a reference to the former chief angel of heaven, Lucifer, tempted Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:1-6). Lucifer (Isaiah 14:12-15) earlier became overcome with his pride, that emphasis upon his own separate entity from God to the exclusion of his being the good creation of God. Therein he sought to usurp the throne of God. Of course, there could be no contest. Satan (Lucifer) was cast immediately from the very presence of God.
In analysis, the individual component of God’s creation, Lucifer, tried to reproduce himself universally to fill all being with his image to supplant God Himself. Thus, in tempting Adam and Eve following his fall, he sought to destroy God’s purpose in creation. Thus, Satan will eternally be the cardinal foe of God, darkness opposed to light.
If we might interject a rather crude illustration, we may better glimpse the principle. The brakes of an automobile serves in the total scheme of the vehicle’s functioning. Just suppose the brakes could say, "I’m going to reproduce myself to replace all other components of this vehicle!" Ridiculous? Quite true. The vehicle could not function.
We must conclude, in like manner, that on a higher and far more sophisticated level, existence would have been doomed if by an impossible event Lucifer could have succeeded in displacing God. Hence, as God remains forever pure, unadulterated goodness, holiness, righteousness, etc., forever and forever, Satan remains always His counterpart—unmitigated evil, darkness, deception, egocentricity, etc.
Furthermore, in our existence within the scope of a world of polarity, good and evil, the opposites will exist and wield a powerful influence for either good or evil. Therefore, we must become sensitive to the presence and pitfalls of evil such that good may prevail through truth.
