Keys to success The earliest locks, thousands of years ago, were made entirely of wood. The Romans not only started making locks out of metal, they invented wards, blocks that prevented the wrong key from opening a door. --unitedlocksmith.net
You read it first in this week’s The Factory in Guide magazine.
Have you ever heard this phrase before? Under lock and key? Usually something very valuable is kept under lock and key for safe keeping. But there were not always locks and keys to protect things. People just had to trust that others would respect their things and their homes.
Unfortunately, in a sinful world, people’s trust didn’t last long. According to Wikipedia, locks have existed for several thousand years, with one early example discovered in the ruins of Nineveh, the capital of ancient Assyria. Isn’t that amazing? It seems soon after the first humans were sent out of the Garden of Eden, it was found necessary to think of ways to keep people’s things and homes safe with locks.
So, locks and keys were made. As is mentioned above, the earliest locks were made of wood. Apparently the Egyptians also used these. Locks such as this were developed into the Egyptian wooden pin lock, which consisted of a bolt, door fixture or attachment, and key. When the key was inserted, pins within the fixture were lifted out of drilled holes within the bolt, allowing it to move. When the key was removed, the pins fell part-way into the bolt, preventing movement. However, wooden locks were found to break fairly easily with the right tool or right amount of pressure, or even rot after a time because of dampness.
Eventually, the ancient Romans figured out a way to make locks and keys out of metal, which lasted much longer and were much more durable. They developed the skeleton keys made from bronze or iron to open things like doors and chests without having to break them. These keys could sometimes open a lot of different locks, so they even invented wards, blocks that prevented the wrong key from opening a door.

Well, today there are several types and designs of locks and keys. Have you ever used a padlock and key to lock up your bike or home shed? I remember when I was in school, we had lockers that had combination locks on them. We had to remember our number code to spin the dial to open the lock, much as you would to open a safe.
There are also some called deadbolt locks. This has a large cylinder of metal that fits into the doorframe when you turn the knob from inside your house. People on the outside would need a key to open it. Many people use these to help keep their homes secure.
Today there are way more modern locks. Just a little while ago I was at a hotel where I had to use a plastic card with a magnetic strip to gain entrance to my room. Some very high level security places even have rooms where you can only gain access by either pressing your thumbprint on a pad, or having your eye scanned. These are called biometric locks. Because every fingerprint and iris is unique, these provide a much more effective security system because they are obviously hard to copy.
Well, this makes me think of a very special key to a very special place and Person. The Person is God and the only way we can come into the presence of God is if we know Jesus. Let’s see what it says in this verse. John 14:6: Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus is our Key to Salvation and to eternal life! I hope you get to know Him better and better every day!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version, Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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