#8: One of the Great Metaphors
The Oil of Life
This is the eighth in a series of the 12 greatest metaphors for life.
The breath of life: a person can live three minutes without air.
The shelter of life: in harsh climes a person can live 3 hours without shelter.
The water of life: a normal person can live three days without water.
The bread of life: the average person can live about three weeks without food.
The light of life: if the sun were to stop giving its light, global temperatures would drop, plants would die, trees would vanish, and all life would cease to exist.
The tree of life: without trees, we would have little fruit to provide our bodies with the antioxidants we so desperately need. In addition, trees provide beauty and shade, as well as leaves which provide healing substances.
The True Vine of life: up to this time, we have looked at the necessities of physical life. The vine of life represents something deeper: abundant life.
The oil of life: the olive tree was once a primary source of oil for food and light.
The Oil of Life
The tree of life was previously mentioned as a metaphor for Jesus, who provides the wellspring of eternal life. But the Bible also speaks of another important tree: the olive tree. Olives were used in ancient cultures as the primary source of oil for both joy and life in eating (Deuteronomy 8:8-9) and light for seeing (Exodus 2:20). And olive oil is a modern staple in many kitchens today. In our house, we eat it daily. What a joy it is to dip a piece of bread in olive oil and savor the goodness. It is perfect for making healthy salad dressings, sautéing vegetables, or cooking popcorn on the stove. I even have a homemade recipe for an Olive Oil Mayonnaise — that actually works.
The Source of True Oil
Romans 11 speaks metaphorically of an olive tree that has both natural and grafted branches. According to the passage, the natural branches are the physical descendants of Abraham (many which have been lopped off). The grafted branches represent the Gentiles who became descendants of Abraham through faith. But more important is the root of the olive tree, which is Christ. From Him comes the fruit of the olive tree which brings forth the oil of joy and life and the oil of light.
Those who are cut off from the True Root can only find life and joy by being grafted back in. Those who remain attached to the Root experience (and bring forth) the joy and life giving sustenance of its fruit as well as the oil from which we can light up the world.
Application.
In recent years, oil has received a bad reputation as unhealthy. Fat free diets were once a fad that I bought into. This wrong thinking caused me great physical harm as oil is necessary for the brain function and healthy hormone levels. In light of the great metaphor of the olive tree -- we should see that oil (fat) is a necessary part of our diet. While God's Word has taught this since the beginning -- "the world" is only recently recognizing the need for healthy, life-giving fats such as olive oil.
When we look to God for answers in our health, we can avoid many harmful diet fads.
“ALL FLESH IS LIKE GRASS,
AND ALL ITS GLORY LIKE THE FLOWER OF GRASS.
THE GRASS WITHERS,
AND THE FLOWER FALLS OFF,
BUT THE WORD OF THE LORD ENDURES FOREVER.”
Our God knows exactly how we should live in the world He designed.
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