Speaking of the unseen
Metaphor as a Bridge
The mind understands abstract realities through concrete experience. A journey can structure how we think about life; seed, light, and bread can carry spiritual meaning.
What to look for
Identify the source, the target, the active correspondences, and the stopping point. A truthful metaphor illuminates without becoming a literal equation.
Metaphor as a Bridge names a basic feature of human thought: we understand one kind of thing through another. The unfamiliar idea is the target; the familiar picture is the source. In LIFE IS A JOURNEY, life is the target and journey is the source, so crossroads can suggest decisions and obstacles can suggest difficulties. Scripture and Christian teaching constantly use this bridge: God is rock, the Lord is shepherd, disciples are branches, and the kingdom is like seed. A metaphor is neither mere decoration nor a literal equation. It carries selected correspondences, helping finite hearers grasp a truth that may otherwise remain abstract while also requiring humility about where the comparison stops.
Jesus turns this ordinary power of thought into a characteristic way of announcing God’s kingdom.
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