At Anchor

Today I am very thankful for anchors.  OK, I realize that when we speak about anchors we might refer to things that hinder or weigh us down.  But as we approach this Thanksgiving weekend, I am thinking about the gift of a very special anchor.  Usually, when we refer to an anchor, we are talking about matters nautical.  If the crew of a ship “drops anchor” they are securing their vessel in place.  An anchor that is “a weigh” is no longer secured in the seabed.  A “foul anchor” is one that is caught on other other cable or is tangled in its own cable.

An anchor is a rich metaphor.  I recently learned the phrase “swallow the anchor” which refers to retiring from life at sea.  In English communication we often use “anchor” outside of a nautical context.  For example, the main presenter of TV news is called an anchor.  In construction, an anchor bolt may be used.  Whatever the phrase, the term anchor conveys a sense of stability and security. 

When it comes to the security that Christians enjoy in Christ, we have an amazing anchor.  This is described in Hebrews 6:19-20.  “This hope we hold as the utterly reliable anchor for our souls, fixed in the very certainty of God himself in Heaven, where Jesus has already entered on our behalf, having become, as we have seen, ‘High Priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek’.”  (Phillips)

What is this hope?  It is rooted in the complete work of Chirst.  This includes His sinless life, sacrificial death, burial, victorious resurrection, and current advocacy in heaven on behalf of believers.  We often look back to the cross.  We joyfully celebrate the empty tomb.  But we must also take great confidence in the fact that Jesus is pleading and praying for His children before the Father, right now, in real time!

While pondering this amazing promise, I thought how appropriate it was that “anchor for our souls” was the phrase chosen to describe Christ’s work.  You see, when it is working well, we do not see an anchor.  Unless it is in extremely clear or shallow water, the anchor is positioned deep below the water’s surface, lodged securely in the seabed.  This is the case for the Christian.  We cannot see Jesus at the Father’s right hand.  We cannot hear His words of advocacy and intercession on our behalf.  But just as an unseen anchor holds a ship securely in place, the Christian is secured by the High Priestly ministry of Jesus.

Also in Hebrews 6, the author noted the example of Abraham.  He is perhaps the greatest Biblical example of one who could not physically see the outcome of God’s promises.  Yet, with the eyes of faith, Abraham envisioned God’s future promise as present reality.  If you are follower of Jesus, you are invited to do the same.  We have a promise that is firmly secure – an “anchor for our souls”.  We are welcomed to recognize and give thanks for such hope.  We are invited to not fear the winds and waves that may buffet our boat.  We have an anchor in Jesus Christ!