Portland, The Real Deal

Portland has a rich history with many historic landmarks and stories. If someone tells you a story about Pittock Mansion, the end of the Oregon Trail or the Grotto you can jump in your car and go there and check things out for yourself.

If you live hundreds or thousands of miles away and someone tells you how beautiful and wonderful the Rose City is and you don't believe them, you can learn much with Google. When we are inclined to do so we can follow up on what we read or what we're told, not only about Portland, but also about much of what the Bible has to say.

The Bible is rich, richer yet when you pull off the road and take a minute to reflect on what you're reading, or take the time to follow its many clues.

Here's a simple phrase, "It is here to this day." The author is telling his readers that whatever he is referring to can be checked out. In Gen 35:20 the author says that the pillar of Rachel’s tomb is there to this day.

Rich traditions, including Rachael as the eternal mother caring for her children, especially those in distress, have grown up around Rachael, yet we don't know for sure where she was buried. Is it adjacent to the Jerusalem neighborhood of Gilo or north-east of Jerusalem or somewhere else? Is it just a fanciful myth? The point is, at the time it was written we could go to the exact place. Rachael's tomb is mentioned casually in 1 Samuel 10:2 as a meeting place. It was real.

If we lived in Salem thousands of years ago and we were trying to describe the awesome beauty of Multnomah Falls we could finally say, "Just go see it for yourself if you don't believe me. It is here to this day."

Not only do these little clues help point to the authenticity of the Bible, but they can also help us understand when something was written.

We have our catch phrases that change with the next generation. Keeno-jet, out-of-sight, cool, etc . identify a certain generation to many of us today. There are also phrases in the bible that identify different times and people.

Today we can go on our laptops and tour cities by satellite. We can also do our own research and discover for ourselves that the Bible is about real people, and their real encounters, with a real God.