The Rustic and the Batons

There was a rustic who lived out on the skirts of the kingdom and who had gone to the big city to learn how to better serve the King. But arriving there, he found there were various groups promoting the service of the King in their own ways. He wanted to find out which was correct.

The rustic went up to the leaders of one of the groups and asked, "Why do you think that you are the true servants of the King?"

"Our Great Leader has a baton that was passed down from the messengers of the King in the beginning.  It gives him authority, which proves that everything he teaches is true, and this shows we are the true servants of the King."

"But how do you know this is right baton?"

"It came down from the messengers of the King in the beginning."

The Rustic asked the next group the same question.

"We do not claim one Great Leader with the right baton. But all our leaders have batons that have come down from the messengers of the King. Therefore, we are right."

"And you believe your vague passage of the batons is better than their clear-cut claim?"

"Yes, we do."

The next group had a different response. "Our batons have our beliefs engraved on them. They were put there by our founders. It is not enough to just have a baton. We must have a baton with the right beliefs."

"But what if your founders were wrong?"

"Our founders were godly men who carefully studied the Word of God. We trust them."

The next group had a different answer. "We believe the important thing is to have a baton with the right beliefs on it. We do not believe in a specific line of passage."

"You do not believe in passing down a baton. Why then a baton at all?"

"Well, you have to get a baton from somebody who has received it, though it does not matter that much which one. Also, there are some in our group who believe in a secret baton that was passed down completely distinct from the batons passed down by the established groups."

The Rustic grabbed a baton and, walking a few steps away in front of the groups, broke it over his knee. "I have read the King's manual from beginning to end," declared the rustic, "and I see nothing in it about batons. It says we should believe the King's teaching and obey His commandments, but says nothing of anything being passed down." He turned and walked away.