There was once a skilled silversmith who was wealthy and had many paid servants in his workshop. One day, he was cleaning his shop when he decided that he was going to use the silver scraps that had fallen onto the floor. After picking up the small scraps, he found that he had just enough silver to craft a small silver spoon. So the silversmith started the forge and melted the silver scraps. After melting the scraps, he poured the silver into the cast and let it cool. After dipping the spoon into the water pan, he saw that it was a beautiful spoon. So he took the spoon and hung it on his wall to show how perfect the spoon was… a display of fine craftsmanship.
Throughout the day, many of his servants walked by and saw that the spoon was beautiful. One of the servants thought that by carving into the spoon, he could improve its beauty, so he did. Another servant saw it, and he thought he could also carve into the spoon, so he did. Four more servants came and did as the previous two servants did.
On the next day, the craftsman came to the wall to admire his work, but he fell and was grieved and was filled with anger when he saw that his work had been defiled by his servants. The silversmith said to his servants, “You dumb and ignorant fools, the spoon was perfect when I made it!! That is why I put it on the wall to be admired! You are fired from this shop and I will tell everyone in the country what you have done so that you may never find work again.”
Likewise, the Church was a perfect spoon. Jesus founded the Church, but men proclaiming a different Gospel and an “easier” path to heaven have come in and defiled the Church that was already made perfect by Christ and the Apostles. Let this be a warning to those in the Church to make sure there are no wicked members among them, for they are to be thrown out of the shop.
Gospel Traveler 