Stories help us picture abstract truths. I pray this story will do that for you.

20 Out in the open wisdom calls aloud, she raises her voice in the public square;[wisdom is personified in order to grasp the meaning of the text].

The following story is allegorical. It is designed to put into tangible form abstract concepts. It is NOT literal, and can be altered at any point if new revelation arises.

I had a dream…
I was walking along and came upon a prison. As I got closer, I noticed that the doors were wide open. “Strange,” I thought. So, I ventured into the open doors.
No one was in sight, so I walked past the guard station. What I found was that all of the doors were open! I began to look for anyone. The further I went into the prison, the stranger things seemed. It looked like it was still in use, except that no one was there–no guards, no prisoners…no one.
I came to some stairs and, since lights were on, I went down them. I went down several floors until I noticed that the floor had changed, along with the lighting. I realized that this hallway was really a tunnel of sorts, made partially of earth. There were cells on each side, and I heard crying. I looked in a cell and saw a man in chains. His clothes were filthy and his wrists and ankles were bloody from the manacles. It’s what I expected to see in a prison, but what I didn’t expect to see was the cell door open. In fact, all of the cell doors were open!
I went into the man’s cell and said, “Why are you crying?” He looked up in surprise and fear and said, “My chains won’t stay on. If the guards catch me without my chains, there will be hell to pay!”
I told him that there was no one in the prison, but he wouldn’t believe me. I left him wailing about how much trouble he would be in when the guard came back. I had walked past several cells when I noticed a young girl who wasn’t crying. I stopped and asked her, “Are you not afraid of the guards?” She replied, “Yes, but I have heard rumors about a man who is coming to save us.”
“Really? How will he accomplish this feat?” I asked.
“I don’t know. I am hoping that he will come and take us away from here.”
I looked at her manacles and they were not locked. I said, “Why not take the manacles off of your wrists and ankles and come with me?”
Tentatively, she reached out and touched a manacle on her wrist. It released and fell off. She took the other one off and looked at me with astonishment. She quickly removed the ones on her ankles and stood up. We moved up the hallway to the stairs and took them as quickly and quietly as we could. We found that there was no reason to sneak around, for there were still no guards. As we walked past the guard station and looked out at the front gates, we saw a man standing there motioning us to join Him.
When we passed through the gates and walked up to Him, He said to her, “My daughter, you are free. There is no record of your past crimes.”
The girl fell at His feet and thanked Him. He knelt down and asked her, “Would you like to come with me? I have new clothes and a new life awaiting you.”
Overjoyed, the girl exclaimed, “Yes! Yes!” and threw her arms around Him. He then turned to me and said, “You are my ambassador. Go back into the prison and bring out more prisoners. Tell them that all debts are paid and all records wiped clean. Bring as many as will come. I will meet you here.”
Overwhelmed by the love in His eyes, I gladly went back into the prison to lead out more prisoners…

Things to know about this story:

1. I, too, was one of those prisoners at one time. The story could have been written with Jesus escorting me out of the prison and then asking me to go back and lead other prisoners out.
2. Christ is with us–actually, in us–as we go out to lead prisoners out of their cells.

May the Lord Jesus use this story to help you understand what a great salvation we have in Him. It is a story of HOPE.

Abba, thank You for setting me free from my prison. It was a joyous day when I realized that You had already set me free (Romans 3:23-24) and that all I had to do was trust You to lead me out. In a way, You are still leading me out of that prison. I look forward to the Day when we reach the gates and I receive new clothes and new life with You in Your kingdom. For now, may I be Your ambassador to my fellow prisoners who have not heard the Good News: We shall know the Truth (Jesus) and the Truth sets us free! All praise be you You, Lord Jesus! Amen.