Building a Bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge is probably one of the most iconic landmarks in North America. I don't think there's anyone in the United States who hasn't seen a picture of the bridge somewhere. It's been in dozens of movies and TV shows and it shows up in textbooks, travel guides, and magazines as well. 

The bridge lives up to its larger-than-life reputation. At almost two miles long, it's one of the longest suspension bridges in the world. The deck of the bridge lies two hundred feet above the surface of the bay, and the bridge's two towers stretch another five hundred feet higher. It looks big in all the pictures, and it is.

The bridge is so large that at one time, it was considered un-buildable. Experts claimed that building such a long bridge would be physically impossible. Others reasoned that the deep water and strong currents of the San Francisco Bay would make construction difficult, and some said that the strong winds and dense fog that are common in the area would make the bridge---if it could be built---extremely unsafe.

In the end, however, human ingenuity prevailed. A team of architects and engineers headed by a man named Joseph Strauss designed a structurally sound bridge that would span the bay. The Golden Gate Bridge was---and still is---a feat of engineering and in its day, the bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world.

Construction on the bridge began on January 5, 1933 and ended four years later, on May 27, 1937. The bridge cost $35 million to build, which was an enormous amount of money at the time. If the Golden Gate Bridge had been built in 2003, it would've cost nearly $1.2 billion.

Approximately 83,000 tons of steel were used to build the bridge. The steel, which was made by Bethlehem Steel plants in New Jersey, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, was shipped to San Francisco through the Panama Canal.

The two large suspension cables that run the length of the bridge are each made up of 27,572 individual strands of galvanized steel wire. Six months and 80,000 miles of wire were needed to manufacture the two massive cables. More than three feet in diameter, the cables weigh almost 12,000 tons apiece.

The amount of concrete necessary to complete the bridge---about 380,000 cubic yards---is enough concrete to fill 120 Olympic-sized swimming pools. On the towers alone, iron workers used a total of 1.2 million steel rivets. All told, the completed bridge weighed in at a massive 894,500 tons.

None of the ten contractors that worked on the bridge kept accurate employment records, so no one knows how many construction workers it took to build the bridge. Currently, seventeen iron workers and thirty-eight painters are needed to perform maintenance.

Joseph Strauss, the man that headed the design team for the bridge, insisted on making the construction site safe. A safety net was erected under the bridge to prevent iron workers from falling off the bridge, and it saved nineteen lives. The Golden Gate Bridge was also one of the first construction sites where workers were required to wear hard hats. Special cream designed to combat the effects of strong winds and diets designed to minimize dizziness were also developed to increase job site safety.

*     *     *     *     *

Wow, Chris! I just learned more than I ever wanted to know about the Golden Gate Bridge. Those were some pretty cool statistics . . . in a lame, geeky sort of way. But what does the Golden Gate Bridge have to do with God?

That's a good question, Chris. I'm glad you brought it up. I don't know if you've ever thought of it this way before, but the whole reason that Jesus came to earth was to build the un-buildable---a bridge between God and man.

A bridge like that used to exist. In the Garden of Eden before the Fall, God walked and talked with Adam and Eve, and they were free to talk to Him as well. (Genesis 3:8) Since man was perfect, there was no enmity between him and God. When Adam and Eve sinned, however, this was no longer the case.

Because of their sin, they were no longer holy and could no longer enjoy uninhibited fellowship with God. When God cast Adam and Eve out of the Garden (Genesis 3:23-24), He was figuratively casting them out of His presence as well; as sinners, they were no longer compatible with a holy God.

For thousands of years after the Fall, God allowed man to atone for his sin with blood sacrifices, but these sacrifices were always temporary. (Exodus 29:36-38) With each new sin, a new sacrifice was required. Even with the sacrifices, man was still not free to enter into the presence of God. Only the high priest had that privilege, and he was only allowed to do it once a year, on the Day of Atonement. (Leviticus 16)

God knew that it would be impossible for man to restore fellowship with Him. According to Romans 3:11, there is no one righteous, no one who seeks God. Left to his own devices, man wouldn't seek out a relationship with God. If God wanted to restore fellowship with man, He was going to have to do it Himself.

About two thousand years ago, God decided to permanently reconcile sinful man to Himself. He sent His one and only Son to earth with a single mission: to build a bridge between God and humanity.

Ever since the Fall, people considered the gap between God and man to be unbridgeable, and it was. People had tried everything from good works to blood sacrifices, but they always came short; their sin always kept them from God. There was only One who was worthy enough to build the bridge---Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:15-17)

While the Golden Gate Bridge is a modern marvel of engineering, the bridge that Jesus built is far more impressive, more than words can say. Jesus didn't need 83,000 tons of steel; He got the job done with two roughly cut boards. Instead of using a million steel rivets, He used three nails.

He did it without any special safety equipment, and instead of a hard hat, He wore a crown of thorns. He built the bridge all by Himself. And it only took Him three days.

I think that oftentimes, we don't realize what Jesus really did for us when He died on the cross. It's easy to use the Sunday school answer of "Jesus died on the cross to take away my sins," but I think that really detracts from the entirety of what Jesus accomplished.

Jesus' death and resurrection does give us forgiveness and redemption. But it also gives us fellowship with God. In John 15:15, Jesus calls His disciples His friends---not servants, not followers, but friends. No longer was man at odds with His Creator; as friends of God, the disciples were able to join in fellowship with God. 

Think for a moment about how awesome it is that we can enjoy fellowship with Almighty God. For thousands of years, this simply wasn't possible for the average person. But because of Jesus' sacrifice---because of the bridge He built---we can enter in God's very presence whenever we please. Isn't that amazing? 

According to Hebrews 4:16, we can approach the very throne of God and receive grace and mercy when we need it the most. If Jesus hadn't bridged the gap between us and God, that wouldn't be possible. I'd like to close with a passage from Colossians. Check it out:

"And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him."

Colossians 1:21-22 (ESV)

We were once sinners, but because of Christ's sacrifice, we are now blameless in God's sight. We were once forbidden to enter God's holy presence, but because of the bridge Jesus built, we are now free to approach the throne of grace. Thanks be to God for His unfailing love, mercy, and grace!

"Three nails, three days, one way to God."

-Three Nails by Undercover