The Plan of Salvation Through Pole Vaulting

This is a continuation of the previous posts: Keeping the Proper Focus in Life. and Does Grace Really Save You?

Here I want to explore the full extent of the pole vaulting analogy. I'm going to outline the fourteen graces mentioned in the previous post and describe how each one is symbolic of the God's plan of salvation for us, his children.

The first element is the person. The person is symbolic on many different levels. He could be symbolic of you, the individual. He could be symbolic of the family unit or an organization, like a church group or unit, an entire church body, a company, a state, a nation or the world as a whole. Ultimately, the body of Christ is represented here. He is the life of the world. We are to become like him.

The second element is the pole. This is symbolic of the word of God, the iron rod, or all truth. The word of God can be learned through two methods: One, through hearing the words or reading the writings of His authorities, and two, through personal revelation. This also represents Jesus Christ because He is the word and truth.

The third element is the path. The path is the way we must go to get to the final destination; it is straight and narrow. This symbolizes the commandments and covenants of God. There is only one way to God; we cannot divert from the way or we will never get to Him. This is also symbolic of Christ; He says "I am the way ... no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

The fourth element is the box. The box is symbolic of the atonement of Christ. I went into this a little in a previous post. It is the enabling power for us to rise to higher levels of spirituality, understanding and capability. It loses the bands of ignorance and sin. It supports us as we rise. It is the center of everything pertaining to the gospel. Christ is the embodiment of His atoning act.

The fifth element is the vault. The vault is symbolic of God's mercy. It is the resultant blessings of putting our trust in the Christ, His words, covenants and atonement. This is the power behind the words of Christ. It is the ability of the pole to transmit energy through the pivotal point of the atonement and rise above this earth which holds us bound. It includes the gifts of the spirit as well as the resurrection.

The sixth element is the bar. This bar represents the judgment bar of Christ. It is held up by His standards, the standards that we must pass in order to make it into heaven. There is a minimum standard which, if we do not pass, will prevent us from getting into heaven. That is the dividing line between heaven and hell. It takes faith in Christ and His mercy to get above this point; we will be rewarded in proportion to the faith that we invest in Christ, the merit spoken of in the previous post. As we have learned through modern revelation, there are varying levels and degrees of heaven determined by the standards and laws that we live up to or work up to in this life.

The seventh element is the padding. This is symbolic of the rest received in Christ. We are "encircled about eternally in the arms of his love." We are received into the arms of safety and rest; this is the nature of heaven - rest from all our labors - having completed our labors.

This is the main analogy of the plan of salvation. It is symbolic of Christ in every aspect. Without Christ we would not be on earth with a body. We would not have purpose or ability. We would cease to exist; in fact, we would never have existed in the first place. He is the creator of this world and is the redeemer and judge of all mankind.

There are seven other aspects that I mentioned in the previous post but are not chronological like these first seven:

Family - I grew and gained confidence in my family. I saw the example of my parents and siblings. My old brother's example allowed me to gain confidence to try new things. His example is symbolic of Christ and my family symbolic of our eternal family. All physical things testify, and are symbolic, of things spiritual. We have a spiritual family and God the Father is head of that family. This is also literal; He is our literal spiritual Father.

Teammates - Even though the whole human race, dead, living and unborn, is our family, not all are here on earth at this time. We need to work together, cheer each other on and teach each other what they learn. Those of us who use our personal coach and know the correct way to pole vault are given authority to teach others.

Rules - There are laws in this life that must be obeyed to pass or get to heaven. If they are not obeyed with exactness we will fall short of our highest potential or perfection.

Coach - If we go through the proper channels, we can have a personal coach to council with us; otherwise, we must go out of our way to ask the coach when we need directions. Our coach is God – the Holy Ghost. He knows every detail of how this life must be lived. He also knows us, our flaws, weaknesses and strengths and can teach us and guide us through life. When we injure ourselves through sin we must go to our coach to determine how to heal. Sometimes it is serious enough that he directs us to an official for that purpose.

Season - There is a time and a season for us to practice. This season starts with birth and ends with judgment; it is our preparatory state, The time to prepare to meet God. We must work on our skills and abilities to improve and progress. We have lesser events throughout the season to test and try us but there is a final event which will determine where we place. By accepting Christ before this life, we were born and will be brought to the judgment bar and be judged of our works, whether they be good or evil. If we waist our time in this season of preparation we will not achieve our potential.

Officials - These are the people that officiate at the event. They are those ordained by God to sign us up at the beginning of the season and record our progress throughout the season. If we injure ourselves enough we seek healing from their hands. They are the ministers, leaders and officials in the Church of Jesus Christ. God is a God of order in all things.

Joy - This is the feeling that we receive from God as we grow. The feeling we receive when we do something good, when God approves of our actions. Our joy will be full to overflowing if we achieve the highest level that we are capable of achieving.

That is the end of the analogy. On a side note these two sets of seven are very descriptive of the structure of seven that I have tried to portray in many of my blog posts and many of the future. Try to compare this structure, seen so openly here, with the others that I have shown in the past.