Trusting In A Two-By-Four

Most of us know, and can easily identify a piece of lumber known as a “two-by-four” when we see one. I’ve been around them in one way or another since as far back as I can remember. They are seen everywhere, and people use them to build almost everything. In fact, you are probably within a few feet of one right now, though it might be hidden from view behind sheet rock or plaster.

Every carpenter and contractor out there would identify the same board as a “two-by-four”. Two-by-fours are a mainstay and building block, so to speak, of the construction industry. If you want to go into carpentry and can’t identify a two-by-four when you see one, I think it would be good idea to consider choosing a different line of work.

Not only do professionals and Do-It-Yourself guides identify the piece of wood as a “two-by-four,” also, if asked, almost anyone will tell you it gets its very name because of the measurements attributed to it – two inches by four inches.

I find it interesting that so many of us know a two-by-four when we see one, and yet few of us know that it isn’t really a two-by-four at all.

“What do you mean?” I can hear you say. Well, let me explain . . .

Though we all call it a “two-by-four”, if you were to measure it, I am confident that you will find the measurements to actually be one-and-a-half inches by three-and-a-half inches. Try it.

You may have known this little fact all along – especially if you have had to measure projects accurately, and have had to make accommodations for the actual size of the wood. But, I am safe in saying that most people don’t know that the common “two-by-four” is really an imposter.

How has this come about? Rest assured, it isn’t a conspiracy by the people at Home Depot, or some long standing joke to get at the ignorance of the woodworking novice. Before being milled at the saw mill, the rough piece of wood actually does measure two inches by four inches. In the milling process, the piece looses a quarter-inch of material in both directions.

“So what?” you say. “Who cares?”

Probably no one in particular; as long as the people building with them know their real size, there is really no big issue. However, how many other “truths” have you come to accept because you have never bothered to check their “measurements?”

I truly believe that most religious error has not come from intentional deception, but by the same means that a two-by-four is named a “two-by-four” -– convenience –- and a lack of attention to details. Some time in the past, someone decided it was much easier to say, “Hand me another two-by-four,” than to say, “Hand me another one-and-a-half-by-three-and-a-half.” I can’t say I disagree; it’s a mouthful, for sure. But, exchanging the more complex “baptism” found in scripture, for the more convenient “Sinner’s Prayer”, for instance, is another matter entirely.

Though we may never see anyone actually watching over our shoulders, we need to be responsible in how we handle the Word of God. Who knows when it maybe you, taking a break from your diligence, that begins to call a one-and-a-half-by-three-and-a-half a “two-by-four!” Where would we be today if Timothy had not heeded Paul’s words when he wrote to him in 2 Timothy 2:15: “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”

Personal “measuring” is a must. Hadn’t scholarship been telling you the boards were “two-by-fours”? Hadn’t history and even common knowledge lead you to believe it? What is it that has changed your mind about them? -- Holding them up to a standard – a measuring tape.

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Let the Word of God always be the standard by which we measure all things – as it was for the Bereans. “Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” Acts 17:11.