And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war … (Revelation 19:11)
Once upon a time there was a moose that wanted to be a horse. One day the moose had seen a herd of horses and thought they were such elegant and graceful creatures, and wanted to be like them. So he taught himself to be a horse. However, he was never accepted as a horse, because after all he was really just a moose.
Though many horse owners may simply breed a family mare to a local stallion in order to produce a companion animal, most professional breeders use selective breeding to produce horses of a given phenotype or variety. A horse is bred where it is foaled or born. Some breeds denote the country, or state, where conception took place as the origin of the foal. As these filly’s and colts grow the breeder is most concerned about the animal’s development through the right nutritional environment. The tissues and organs are all turning over at a great rate, revealing that it is during this time in a horse’s life that those feeding the horses can probably have the greatest impact on the future health and athletic performance of these amazing creatures.
Metaphorically speaking, within the stables of the Restoration we all believe we are horses, and not moose. Perhaps some even see themselves or at least their particular organization as spirited steeds, foaled in the one true barn, having been given the proper nutrition to ensure development free from contamination, disease and apostasy!
Alternatively, a breeder could, using horses of differing phenotypes, create a new breed with specific characteristics. Our divine destiny as Saints presupposes that the Master Breeder will use just such an alternative–breeding plan. This alternative plan really does foreshadow our future, when we will all be ridden by the Master Equestrian into battle, and eventually off into the sunset of the Peaceful Reign. We share so many, many things in common as inheritors of the everlasting gospel. May we look out from our stables toward our spiritual fate, with eyes of faith and earnestness to the dawning of a new day? A day when the phenotypes, those spiritually visible characteristics from the various portions of the Restoration may be bred or combined together to produce the thoroughbreds necessary to run the race to Zion’s borderline.
And the armies, which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. (Revelation 19:14)