I’m blessed to live in a mountainous part of the world. Tasmania’s mountains don’t compare in elevation to North America’s Rocky Mountains, but they’re impressive in their own way. They often feature a considerable amount of relief from the surrounding terrain and they can be quite steep. I enjoy getting out into our local mountains in the summer months to gain some altitude. So last summer I went with a friend to Mount Pelion East. At 1461 meters (4793’), it’s one of Tasmania’s higher peaks.
The first part of the adventure involves a strenuous climb up into the high country on the Arm River Track. It’s some 18 km to the New Pelion Hut and there we overnighted along with half of the state’s visitors. The New Pelion Hut is on the famous Overland Track, you see. So, in the summer months, the hut is almost always bustling.
The next day we set out south down the Overland Track for Pelion East. Again there’s a bit of climbing to get up to the Pelion Gap (1126 meters/3694’). From there, the track turns left and heads steeply up. Most of it is relatively easy, but eventually you get to the last 100 meters or so and this part is scrambling up the nearly vertical north side.
When you’re climbing a steep mountain like this, they say you should always have three points of contact between your body and the mountain. That means you need to always have at least one hand holding on to something. On this section of the Pelion East track, you need to traverse a ledge to get to the next vertical climb. The ledge is narrow and it’s slanted at an angle downward. Below is a whole lot of air — the ledge is on a cliff. If you fall, you die. However, you’ve got to get across this ledge to continue to the top. But there’s no place to put your hands; there are no handholds for you while you go across this ledge. I saw this situation and hummed and hawed over it. In the end fear won out and I headed back down. My friend did it with no issues, but I think he has some mountain goat ancestry in his bloodline. Me, I’m clumsy and afraid of heights, so it was a no-go for me.
Things might have been different if I’d been climbing with an experienced guide equipped for this situation. I can imagine him being above me in a safe spot. He yells down to me, “Hey, you got this. You can do it. I did it and you can too.” But he has more than words. He secures a rope to some rock and he throws it down to me. Now I’ve got something to hold on to while I move across the ledge and while I climb the next section. Having that guide and his equipment and experience would have made all the difference. With him, I could have summited Mount Pelion East that day.
Jesus is that guide for believers as they make their way up the mountain of life. In John 16:33, he’s revealed as the one who has overcome the world. He has victory over everything that threatens to undo us. He overcame it all to give us encouragement as we navigate this life and all its challenges. He’s gone ahead of us and because he has overcome, so shall we. If we go back to the mountain, because he’s made it to the top, so certainly will we. There’s tribulation in this world and from this world, but Christ’s work has dealt with it decisively. That’s a huge encouragement for believers as we face our own uphill climbs where we might be tempted to give up and head back down.
Our Saviour has experienced the tribulation of the world first-hand. If we compare it to climbing a mountain, it’s not like he took a helicopter to the top to encourage you. He’s climbed it himself and he knows the way is hard. He said in Matthew 7:14 that “the way is hard that leads to life.” But now he’s above us calling down, “Take heart, friend, I have done it. I have overcome. With me, you will overcome too.” He gives us something and someone to help us – he gives us his Word and his Holy Spirit. With the Bible and with the Holy Spirit, we have exactly what we need to make our way to where our Saviour is. By his grace, everyone who believes in him will surely make it there.
Abounding Grace Radio