Of Hugo, Clocks and The Purpose of Life

Recently I saw the movie Hugo which is based on the novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret.  The plot centers around a twelve year old boy named Hugo who is a clock keeper.  His job is to make sure they are maintained and fixed when they are broken. He is also on a mission to find parts to repair an automaton because he is certain that once it is fixed it will write a message from his father who has died in an accident when he was much younger.  In the process he runs into a mysterious man who owns a toy shop.  As the book progresses Hugo discovers this man has something to do with the automaton. In the end Hugo helps George Melies discover the purpose he had lost and at the same time Hugo discovers his purpose in life.


This movie and book made me think about the purpose of life.  For Hugo, the world is like a clock. He says,
""Sometimes I come up here at night, even when I'm not fixing the clocks, just to look at the city. I like to imagine that the world is one big machine. You know, machines never have any extra parts. They have the exact number and type of parts they need.  So I figure if the entire world is a big machine, I have to be here for some reason, too."" p.378


And he also says, "If you lose your purpose...it's like you're broken." p. 374


An analogy helps us understand spiritual truth and I believe the analogy of the clock helps us understand about our purpose. We are like a broken clock.  We are broken because of sin. The Bible is clear that we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). We can't function the way we were meant to by The Great Clockmaker.  Thus, we have lost our purpose.  We try to find our purpose with so many things, but in the end we find no satisfaction.  We need to be fixed.  The only one that can do it is The Great Clockmaker. He made us and knows exactly how we are meant to work.  He can put all the parts together and make us find the meaning and purpose of our life.


During Christmas we celebrate the advent of the Savior. The Savior, God with Us (Immanuel) born from a virgin, who came as a human to die on our behalf and free us from sin:
"She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”  (Matthew 1:21-22-NIV). 


He came to restore what was broken, the broken clock. Unlike Hugo, who wasn't sure why existed, Jesus knew his purpose:  


"He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again." (Mark 8:32-NIV)


He was born as a baby. Died on our behalf. Rose from the dead. He is alive! He wants to fix you, if you let Him. He will put the parts where they belong and give you the meaning for which you were created.  But this is only the beginning.  One day He will perfect you and make you as Himself (1 John 3:2-3).