Rockfest Day 30 - Lord of The Jungle

Tarzan is an amazing man.  Raised in Africa by apes after his parents were killed when he was a baby, Tarzan learned the ways of the jungle early.  He can communicate with the animals.  He is strong and tall. He can hunt with skill. And survive in conditions most men would find extreme.  Tarzan is at home in the jungle. Tarzan’s days are wild and free.

Tarzan has captivated our minds and imaginations for almost a century.  He is the perfect hero. In the books, television shows and movies about Tarzan we find a man who is full of integrity, always rushing to help the weak, is strong and trustworthy.

Tarzan, though raised by animals, quickly learns languages.  He can communicate with man or beast. Moves easily within society once he returns to it but is more comfortable in the jungle.  He is a skilled runner and swimmer.  He has great hearing and tracking abilities.  He wrestles animals and men. He is skilled with a knife.  And skilled with a vine.

His use of the vine comes in almost as handy as his knife most days.  He has learned from his ape family to adeptly travel quickly around the jungle. Tree vines are a useful tool for that endeavor.  Tarzan climbs high into the trees, grabs hold of a vine and swings it exactly to the spot where he wants to go.  Without the vine Tarzan would have found himself in many a tight spot.  We can hardly think of Tarzan and not think of the vines.

It is easy to see why Tarzan has become such a hero and captured our hearts and imaginations since his creation by his author.  There is nothing he seemingly cannot do.  Wouldn’t it be great if we had a real hero who could do what Tarzan does?  Wouldn’t it be great if we had a real hero who could win all our battles like Tarzan does?  Wouldn’t it be great if we had a real hero from whose vine we could swing?

You won’t be surprised to learn that I think we already do.

We have a Hero that can communicate with us in any language – spoken or unspoken.  We have a Hero that is at home in any kind of society – rich or poor, urban or rural, literate or illiterate.  We have a Hero that is a skilled athlete that can keep up with us no matter where we go or what we try to put Him through.

Our Hero wrestles and defeats each and every adversary we face. Our Hero hears us no matter how faint our whisper or how muddled our cry.   Our Hero is the vine from which we swing.

We are told our Hero – the Original Hero, is “the true vine.”  We are told that as long as remain attached to (abide in) our vine we will bear fruit, but without our vine we can do nothing. (John 15:5).  Like Tarzan, without our Vine we are in trouble.   We can't freely live and grow.  Without our Vine our lives would be a great struggle. 

We don't have to live a life of struggle.  We don’t have to dream of a life of freedom. That life is already ours. We can spend our lives bearing fruit and swinging freely.  All we have to do is grab hold of our Vine and hang on for the ride that lasts a lifetime.  Its a jungle out there so hold on tight. 

Feel free to give a little Tarzan yell while you’re at it.
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